Send us a text In this week's episode, I had the privilege of chatting with Rosemary Umolu. Rosemary is a Midwife & Herbalist helping women get rid of period pains. Her love of nature & reproductive health inspired her to become a midwife, combining herbal knowledge and traditional skills to help women birth safely. We spoke of her journey to becoming a herbalist, the importance of self-care, her role as a midwife, and how to take ownership when it comes to your life and your birth. This...
Oct 02, 2022•1 hr 12 min•Season 3Ep. 62
Send us a text I am back with Season 3 of the podcast, and in this episode I am flying solo. I wanted to record this episode alone and share with you all my personal stance on the difference between the three ways you can give birth. I believe it is essential for every pregnant woman or person to fully understand their options when planning for birth so that when you know the 3 different types of birth, you can prevent yourself from accidentally accepting interventions or procedures without real...
Sep 25, 2022•30 min•Season 3Ep. 61
Send us a text In the last episode of Season 2, I am answering some of the questions that were sent to me by my listeners. I am covering information on birth preparation, birth partners, vaginal examinations, induction of labour, doulas, breastfeeding and much more... It can be so helpful to listen to the many unexpected nuggets of information that come up when questions are being answered. I will be back with Season 3 in a few weeks - so subscribe now to make sure you don't miss out on the next...
Mar 27, 2022•40 min•Season 2Ep. 60
Send us a text In this week's episode, I am chatting with Dr Jenna Brough who is a perinatal clinical psychologist. We get into a deep discussion about the term 'normal' and how it relates to birth. How medicalised birth and intervention is seen as the norm and how most recommendations for intervention are based on fear of litigation. Book a session with Jenna https://linktr.ee/tribepsychology You can find Jenna on Instagram @tribepsychology If you would like to buy a copy of the book that accom...
Mar 20, 2022•55 min•Season 2Ep. 59
Send us a text In this week's episode, I am chatting with Laura Berkeley who shares with us her journey through two very different pregnancy and birth experiences - where she suffered hyperemesis gravidarum (HG) and had a vaginal breech birth at home with her second baby during Covid. Laura gives great tips and information about becoming a mother and what has worked well for her since the birth of her first child. Laura is a trained hypnobirthing teacher and doula. Laura's website - https://thel...
Mar 13, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Season 2Ep. 58
Send us a text In this week's episode, I am talking to the lovely Aimee Strongman from Glow Yoga in Dorset. She shares with us her wisdom on the motherhood journey, taken from her pregnancy yoga classes - which helps support the women who attend her sessions, to tune into their instincts and incorporate the tools she offers on the mind, body connection. As a pregnancy yoga teacher, Aimee really understands the importance of breathwork and relaxation. During our conversation, she offers many tips...
Mar 06, 2022•46 min•Season 2Ep. 57
Send us a text In this episode, I am chatting to the lovely Sheena Byrom, as she shares her story of working in the maternity system, and what it has been like from the 1970's - to the current day. Sheena talks of her time as a student, and how her career has led her through many different roles, finally becoming the head of midwifery for a large trust - which included setting up 3 midwife-led units. Her insights were fascinating, and it wasn't always easy for Sheena as she describes terrible bu...
Feb 27, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Season 2Ep. 56
Send us a text In this week's episode, I had the privilege of chatting to the incredible human rights lawyer Hermine Hayes-Klein, who shares so much of her knowledge of the law of informed consent and refusal in relation to a pregnant woman or person's rights in childbirth. Hermine and I chat in detail about how to provide support during this time, as partners, doulas, or family members - in order to make sure that as advocates, we fully understand our role. The sound quality isn't great, as Her...
Feb 20, 2022•58 min•Season 2Ep. 55
Send us a text In this episode, I am chatting to Louisa, a mum of 3, who recently gave birth in a Midwife Led Unit to a breech baby. Louisa had a C-section with her first baby who was also breech and then went on to have a VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Caesarean) for her 2nd. Her preparation for her 3rd baby was very thorough, in order to achieve a similar experience to her 2nd birth. After realising at the end of the pregnancy that her baby was breech, and clearly very comfortable in that position,...
Feb 13, 2022•1 hr 6 min•Season 2Ep. 54
Send us a text In this week's episode, we catch up with Carmen, who shares the VBAC birth story of her 3rd baby after having 2 previous c- sections. Her birth story is so inspirational and she describes how her mindset and certainty in her ability to give birth to her baby really worked in helping her to achieve her dream birth, despite circumstances unfolding in a way that was not expected. Carmen runs courses on mindset which you can find here - www.thebirthcoachcompany.com And follow her on I...
Feb 06, 2022•57 min•Season 2Ep. 53
Send us a text In this episode, Teresa Coote shares her journey of supporting two families to become parents through surrogacy. Through her research, she chose to use Brilliant Beginnings - a fully supported surrogacy service that matches intended parents with their surrogates and takes them through the entire journey to ensure a positive and safe surrogacy journey. https://brilliantbeginnings.co.uk If you would like to buy a copy of the book that accompanies this podcast - click here:- Labour o...
Jan 30, 2022•54 min•Season 2Ep. 52
Send us a text At the end of 2021, I had the privilege of spending an hour with the wonderful Blyss Young, a licensed midwife who practices in California, USA. We chatted about a wide range of subjects, including why she became a midwife, physiological birth, antenatal education, birth partners and more... You can find Blyss here - https://www.birthingblyss.com Follow her on Instagram - @birthingblyss Listen to Blyss and Dr Stu on their podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/birthing-in...
Jan 23, 2022•50 min•Season 2Ep. 51
Send us a text In the second of two episodes, Sheryl Wynne shares with us what it means to become trauma-informed and what it is like in her experience. In becoming aware of trauma, she has moved forward to support others to recognise trauma and is now running monthly courses to help birth workers, hypnobirthing instructors and others, to open their eyes to the best way to support women and birthing people throughout pregnancy, birth and beyond. Sheryl can be found at - https://simplynatal.co.uk...
Jan 16, 2022•54 min•Season 2Ep. 50
Send us a text In the first of two episodes, Sheryl Wynne shares with us her two very different birth experiences. Sheryl honestly and openly describes how her first birth was very traumatic for her, and how the support she received was lacking, throughout her experience. She also takes us on the journey she went on postnatally to discover, that she wasn't to blame for the experience she had. In becoming aware of trauma, she was able to have a very positive second birth and has moved forward to ...
Jan 09, 2022•1 hr 11 min•Season 2Ep. 49
Send us a text In this episode, I give my top 3 reasons why I hate contraction apps. I have a good old rant about this seemingly innocent gadget, that is in fact an intervention. You would be amazed at the amount of births that are sabotaged by an app that does not take into account what is actually happening in the birth room - as it cannot take into consideration the behaviour of the labouring woman or person. As a birth partner, it is even more important that you let birth happen and only che...
Jan 02, 2022•20 min•Season 2Ep. 48
Send us a text In this episode, I am sharing my views on the differences between physiological birth and a medically managed birth with interventions. I share tips on how to succeed in achieving a physiological birth, and what to look out for if you have a managed birth. I cover vaginal examinations, positions, sounds, monitoring the baby, pushing and much more. Here is a link to more information on cervical recoil by @drsarawickham https://www.sarawickham.com/original-articles/exploring-cervica...
Dec 19, 2021•20 min•Season 2Ep. 47
Send us a text In this episode, I am excited to be in conversation with the amazing midwife Dr Rachel Reed. Rachel is most commonly known for her blog 'Midwife Thinking' and is the author of two incredibly popular books, aswell as being the co-host of the brilliant Midwives' Cauldron podcast. Rachel is originally from the UK, but now lives in Queensland Australia. She is a researcher, speaker, teacher, and consultant. During our time together, we chatted about a wide range of topics including - ...
Dec 12, 2021•1 hr 5 min•Season 2Ep. 46
Send us a text In this week's episode of the podcast, I had the privilege of chatting to the very lovely Professor Amy Brown. Amy is a professor of maternal and child public health at Swansea University. She is the director of their research center - LIFT (Lactation Infant Feeding and Translation), and the author of 10 books and numerous research articles which can be found on her website. During this episode, we chat about the importance of preparation in pregnancy for the postnatal period. How...
Dec 05, 2021•53 min•Season 2Ep. 45
Send us a text In this episode, I had the privilege of chatting with community based obstetrician Dr Stuart Fischbein, about many of the issues that pregnant women and people are facing in maternity services today, both in the US and the UK. We discuss information on twin birth, breech birth, vbac, gestational diabetes, home birth, microbiome and much more. You can contact Dr Stu via his website - http://www.birthinginstincts.com Listen to Dr Stu and Blyss on their podcast - https://podcasts.app...
Nov 28, 2021•1 hr 10 min•Season 2Ep. 44
Send us a text Have you been wondering if hypnobirthing is for you? Have you looked at the pro's but not considered the con's? This episode will help you to identify 5 reasons why you might want to avoid taking a hypnobirthing training. As a hypnobirthing teacher, I believe it is important for you to know ALL the facts when it comes to hypnobirthing training. Most people get the best out of the techniques once they are fully invested, and it is important to know how it will work on the day. SIgn...
Nov 21, 2021•20 min•Season 2Ep. 43
Send us a text In today's episode I am chatting to Carly Lewis who is a placenta remedies specialist. Carly runs Prism placenta training and also chairs the PRN (Placenta Remedies Network). She shares with us the benefits of placenta encapsulation and talks about the wide variety of remedies that can be made from the placenta. She also answers some of the frequently asked questions that she gets from potential clients. You can find a placenta remedies specialist near you by searching - www.place...
Nov 14, 2021•41 min•Season 2Ep. 42
Send us a text In this week's episode, I am chatting with Rob Geraghty who candidly shares his experiences of being a birth partner, and becoming a father of 3 children. So often the focus in maternity care is around supporting the women during pregnancy and birth, so it is easy to forget the partner and ask how they are doing. Rob admits that he didn't always find it easy in the beginning, and was happier when he was able to get back to more of a work-life balance. He points out that not all da...
Nov 07, 2021•48 min•Season 2Ep. 41
Send us a text In today's episode, I am chatting with birth rights activist Emma Ashworth about the need to understand your rights in pregnancy and birth, in order to ensure that your plans for birth are not affected by the fear-based practice that we see in maternity services today. We also hear Emma talk about the current midwifery crisis in the NHS and how to navigate your birth options during this time. This episode contains some important truths regarding issues that pregnant women and peop...
Oct 31, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Season 2Ep. 40
Send us a text In today's episode, I am speaking to Leonie Rainbird-Savin who candidly shares her experience of giving birth 3 times with only her husband present. During each pregnancy, Leonie's thoughts and feelings varied regarding how much care she wanted to access. Listen to her describe each birth, and the planning and preparation that went into those 3 pregnancies. Leonie also shares her feelings about the interventions that followed each one of her births, which effectively 'broke the bu...
Oct 24, 2021•1 hr 9 min•Season 2Ep. 39
Send us a text In this episode, I am speaking to Carmen who is expecting her 3rd child. Her journey so far, through 2 C-sections and 1 devastating miscarriage, has led her to use positive mindset tools to help her to conceive and prepare for her upcoming birth. We hear all about how Carmen's plans are unfolding during her pregnancy and are looking forward to catching up with her again after the birth. Carmen runs courses on mindset which you can find here - www.thebirthcoachcompany.com And follo...
Oct 17, 2021•49 min•Season 2Ep. 38
Send us a text In this episode, I am chatting with birth activist Michelle Quashie about the very different birth experiences she had with her 4 children. These include a premature birth via emergency c-section, a crash c-section after haemorrhaging with placenta previa, a hospital VBAC and a home VBAC with an independent midwife. Michelle shares how her confidence in her own body led her to finally achieve her dream to birth with no intervention. Michelle is currently involved in the Childbirth...
Oct 10, 2021•56 min•Season 2Ep. 37
Send us a text In this episode, I am speaking to James, a male midwife who is a true inspiration to so many birth keepers. James has a real passion to support pregnant women and people through physiological childbirth, and he shares with us his story, of how he always wanted to be a midwife from a very young age - and his journey to fulfilling that dream. He now works in rural Wales, where the service is midwife-led only. With no hospitals close by, families in his care are offered the opportuni...
Oct 03, 2021•56 min•Season 2Ep. 36
Send us a text In this episode, Aimee and Tom talk candidly about their journey through the very fast birth experience of their first child, and the subsequent anxiety Aimee felt in the early months of becoming a mother. They also share their reasons why they decided to plan their next birth at home. Tom's role as a birth partner is enlightening as he shares with us his feelings about the role throughout the episode, and it is so helpful to hear his tips for other fathers-to-be and birth partner...
Sep 26, 2021•1 hr 10 min•Season 2Ep. 35
Send us a text In this episode, I am talking to the very knowledgeable midwife Molly O'Brien about imbalances in the body that can affect the labour and birth process. It is important to remember that most women and birthing people will not have an issue giving birth to their babies. In modern times, however, we sit a lot, we drive everywhere, and sometimes we have accidents or falls that can affect the fascia in our bodies, resulting in tight areas that may stop the baby from moving through eas...
Sep 19, 2021•57 min•Season 2Ep. 34
Send us a text In this episode, inspirational midwife and author Becky Reed share's with us the story behind establishing the well-known Albany case loading practice in South East London during the 1990's. Listening to her incredible journey through the years of being both an independent and NHS midwife, helps us to see how amazing support can affect a labouring woman or birthing person and their family, resulting in beautiful birth experiences for all. Becky also speaks about her book - Birth i...
Sep 12, 2021•1 hr•Season 2Ep. 33
