Latest Waterbirth Podcast Episodes
488 | Emily, three babies, type 1 diabetes, private obstetrician, induction, spontaneous labour, breastfeeding, antenatal expressing
Australian Birth Stories - July 08, 2024 00:18 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn this episode Emily details her diagnosis and experience with Type 1 diabetes. It has significantly informed her three pregnancies and births because she’s deemed high risk (diabetes increases the risk of placental deterioration, stillbirth and hypertension). She takes us through her different...
487 | Amelia, three babies, twins, PROM, induction, emergency caesarean, twin VBAC, breastfeeding, Dr Bisits, breech vaginal birth
Australian Birth Stories - June 30, 2024 23:00 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn today’s episode Amelia shares her first birth which was a challenging induced labour that ended in an emergency caesarean. She always knew she wanted a VBAC so when she discovered she was pregnant with twins, she made it her mission to find a care provider to support her. Thankfully, she disc...
486 | Suze, one baby, MGP, induction, syntocinon, epidural, forceps-assisted birth, breastfeeding, nipple shields
Australian Birth Stories - June 24, 2024 01:05 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIf you’re in the mood for a birth story full of truths and just as many laughs, this one’s for you. Suze started listening to the podcast years before she conceived so in early pregnancy, she started an evening ritual of going for a walk and listening to every episode from #1 (the very rustic ep...
485 Postpartum | Eliza, two babies, disabled parent, medical stigma, disability advocate
Australian Birth Stories - June 20, 2024 00:29 - 36 minutes ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn today’s episode I chat to Eliza Hull - a musician, author and disability advocate who lives with a neurological condition called charcot marie tooth. When she started considering and discussing her plans to have children, she was met with stigma from friends and medical professionals, an expe...
484 | Hannah, three babies, PROM, induction, gas+air, MGP, waterbirth, breastfeeding, epidural
Australian Birth Stories - June 17, 2024 03:13 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsHannah’s three vaginal births are so different but they all started with pre-labour rupture of membranes (PROM). Her first was induced and she explains the intensity of contractions and how she navigated them. In her second birth she waited days after the trickle of her waters began, was guided ...
483 Postpartum | Jen, one vaginal birth, GD, induction, episiotomy, postpartum confinement
Australian Birth Stories - June 13, 2024 02:34 - 44 minutes ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn today’s episode, I talk to Jen about her pregnancy, birth and traditional Chinese confinement during postpartum. Jen is a second-generation Chinese-Australian and while she was at first hesitant to embrace the confinement period after birth, when she left the hospital feeling frail, “like a c...
482 | Bee, one baby, MGP, spontaneous labour, The Birth Class, sterile water injections, episiotomy, vacuum assisted birth, breastfeeding
Australian Birth Stories - June 10, 2024 00:35 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsBee came to her first pregnancy like most women do; with the understanding that birth is incredibly hard and painful - something to be endured. Understandably, she was terrified and not interested in hearing anyone’s birth story. Thankfully, she was accepted into MGP early on and had a beautiful...
481 Postpartum | Ruby, breastfeeding, sleep challenges, normal infant biology, low sleep needs
Australian Birth Stories - June 06, 2024 05:43 - 26 minutes ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn today’s episode Ruby shares her journey with infant sleep. We all come to postpartum with a predisposed understanding of baby sleep which usually involves the mindset that it’s the parent’s ‘job’ to ‘teach’ the baby to sleep. But as you will hear in this episode, babies have a primal drive to...
480 | Sea, MGP, physiological birth, positive birth story, Indigenous, planned postpartum
Australian Birth Stories - June 03, 2024 01:15 - 44 minutes ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsSea shared her first three physiological births in episode 304 and today she returns to tell us all about her fourth pregnancy and birth. Little Leia was a big surprise but Sea took it in her stride - as most mums of four do - and managed to get in the MGP program at Cairns Hospital which gave h...
479 Postpartum | Ariane, postpartum psychosis, psychologist, hallucinations, postpartum depression, psychotic depression
Australian Birth Stories - May 30, 2024 00:29 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn today’s episode, Ariane shares her experience with postpartum psychosis. As a psychologist working in child and family services, Ariane was aware of perinatal mental illness but her anxiety prevented her from disclosing her symptoms which included disillusions, hallucinations and suicidal ide...
478 | Katie, one baby, plus-size, doula, induction, vaginal birth, PPH
Australian Birth Stories - May 27, 2024 02:36 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn this episode 478 Katie shares her pregnancy and birth experience as a plus-size woman. She was denied access to midwifery group practice because of her weight and was immediately placed in a high risk model of care. She reflects on the inherent stress of this and admits that there were freque...
477 | Angela, physiological home birth, private midwife, water birth
Australian Birth Stories - May 20, 2024 01:35 - 48 minutes ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn this episode Angela shares her incredibly positive first birth - a water birth at home, supported by private midwives. Before she had conceived, Angela spent years learning about birth and discovered that a physiological birth in water was her preference. She came to this pregnancy - her seco...
476 | Georgie, four babies, MGP, physiological birth, breastfeeding, surprise breech, breech vaginal birth, DCDA twins, twin vaginal birth without epidural
Australian Birth Stories - May 13, 2024 05:13 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsI know I say it a lot, but you’re really going to love this episode. Georgie details her positive physiological first birth, her second that was a surprise breech (birthed vaginally!) and a DCDA twin pregnancy with confronting fragmented obstetric care. Georgie’s three births emphasise how vital...
475 Postpartum | Arnikka, postpartum, IBCLC, neurodivergence, autism, ADHD, sensory overwhelm
Australian Birth Stories - May 08, 2024 22:23 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn this absolutely brilliant episode, Arnikka - @sucklebubs - takes us through her life-changing diagnosis of autism and ADHD in her second postpartum. Postpartum is a common time for women to consider their neurotype and for Arnikka, the overwhelm of the mental load was quickly becoming debilit...
474 | Chantal endometriosis, IVF, anxiety, private obstetrician, HG, amniocentesis, spontaneous labour, vaginal birth
Australian Birth Stories - May 05, 2024 23:49 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsThe gender pain gap has been in the news cycle recently with the Victorian government announcing an inquiry into women’s pain. Chantal’s story mirrors the experience of thousands of Australian women; a history of painful periods that had been dismissed. She was diagnosed with stage three endomet...
473 | Ash, three babies, induction, vaginal birth, homebirth, waterbirth, microcephaly,
Australian Birth Stories - May 02, 2024 04:37 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsAsh has been listening to the podcast since episode 40 so I’ve been in her ears every week for six years. Today she takes us through her three pregnancies and births, nodding to the importance of being prepared - listening to all kinds of births - and also accepting intervention when necessary. ...
472 | Sarah Davidson, one baby, private obstetrician, miscarriage, ovulation induction, gestational diabetes, footling breech, planned caesarean
Australian Birth Stories - April 29, 2024 04:35 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn today’s episode, Sarah takes us through her fertility experience as an adoptee which prompted her to do a series of tests early in her journey. After a missed miscarriage, she embarked on ovulation induction but then spontaneously conceived while on an overseas holiday. She opted for private ...
471 | Ashlee, one baby, gastric sleeve surgery, IVF, placenta previa, private obstetrician, student midwife, iron infusion, PPH, breastfeeding
Australian Birth Stories - April 24, 2024 21:30 - 48 minutes ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn today’s episode Ashlee details her long fertility journey including her choice to have gastric sleeve surgery. She conceived baby Luca on her first IVF transfer and chose private obstetric care alongside the support of a student midwife. Placenta previa dictated a caesarean birth so Ashlee pu...
470 | Abby, three vaginal births, gp shared care, public hospital, pain-free birth, physiological birth, breastfeeding
Australian Birth Stories - April 22, 2024 05:55 - 58 minutes ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn this episode Abby shares her third pregnancy and birth story. She opted for shared care with her GP, a decision that really suited her busy family life and offered her continuity of care with someone she trusted. Her third trimester was challenging - she had significant pelvic pain which prev...
469 Postpartum | Gen, breastfeeding, unsettled sleep, mother and baby unit, sleep consultant, sleep training, sleep school
Australian Birth Stories - April 18, 2024 00:23 - 56 minutes ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsFollowing on from her birth story in episode 468, Gen shares her significant challenges with baby sleep. Sleep is one of the most political and polarising aspects of parenthood; there’s a plethora of differing opinions and it can get very overwhelming, fast. For Gen and her baby Robbie, a variet...
468 | Gen, infertility, miscarriage, IVF, hyperstimulation, private obstetrician, induction, epidural, vacuum-assisted birth, episiotomy
Australian Birth Stories - April 15, 2024 01:13 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsGen shares every aspect of her fertility, pregnancy and birth experience in this honest and hilarious episode. She tried to conceive for two years and experienced a devastating miscarriage before deciding to start IVF with her husband, Michael. Gen is a type-A personality and admits she loved th...
467 | Gemma Fraternal Twins, MGP, Sunshine Coast Hospital, CMV
Australian Birth Stories - April 03, 2024 22:33 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn episode 467 Gemma shares her unexpected pregnancy with twins. She shares the emotional rollercoaster of disbelief and excitement and the impact of the twins on her planned model of care for the pregnancy. Gemma went through the Midwifery Group Program at Sunshine Coast University Hospital, ex...
467 | Gemma Fraternal Twins, MGP, Sunshine Coast Hospital, CMV
Australian Birth Stories - April 03, 2024 22:33 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn episode 467 Gemma shares her unexpected pregnancy with twins. She shares the emotional rollercoaster of disbelief and excitement and the impact of the twins on her planned model of care for the pregnancy. Gemma went through the Midwifery Group Program at Sunshine Coast University Hospital, ex...
466 | Dee, two vaginal births, induction, TENS Machine, miscarriage, continuity of care
Australian Birth Stories - April 01, 2024 03:40 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn episode 466 Dee shares her emotional and challenging pregnancy journeys. She was shocked to learn she’d conceived quickly but her elation soon turned to grief when she miscarried; an experience that was long and traumatic. For her subsequent pregnancy she details the isolation and uncertainty...
465 | Georgie, vaginal birth, pre-eclampsia, induction, breastfeeding and mixed feeding
Australian Birth Stories - March 28, 2024 00:39 - 48 minutes ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn episode 265 Georgie shares with us the birth of her first child Sadie. Georgie lives in Gunning in rural NSW and went through the local public hospital for her care. Georgie was having her blood pressure carefully monitored throughout her pregnancy however, it wasn't until after Sadie was bor...
464 | Alice, Doula and Midwife, private obstetrician, home birth, planned postpartum
Australian Birth Stories - March 25, 2024 01:01 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn this episode Alice shares her birth experiences in light of everything she’s learned as a mother, doula and midwife-in-training. In her first pregnancy she chose private obstetric care because at the time, she thought it was the best option available. She details the natural onset of labour, ...
463 | Courtney, two births, GP shared care, NIPT, Maternal assisted caesarean, Down Syndrome, heart surgery
Australian Birth Stories - March 21, 2024 00:34 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn episode 463 Midwife Courtney shares with us her two pregnancy and birth experiences. Courtney lives in rural Victoria and chose to go through GP-shared care for her first pregnancy. Courtney admits that she found her midwifery knowledge contributed to her anxiety during both her pregnancies. ...
462 | Briony Benjamin, Natural conception post chemotherapy for Hodgkin's lymphoma
Australian Birth Stories - March 18, 2024 01:51 - 59 minutes ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn episode 462 Briony shares with us her pregnancy and birth of her little boy Charlie. Briony was diagnosed with stage 4 Hodgkin's lymphoma at the age of 31 and her doctors recommended she do one cycle of IVF prior to starting her chemotherapy treatment. Briony shares that doing the IVF cycle b...
461 | Sophie Two births, fraternal twins, shared care, positive induction, vaginal breech birth twin B
Australian Birth Stories - March 11, 2024 03:27 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsSophie shares with us the birth of her son Liam and her twins Hannah and Louis. After getting married in 2020 Sophie and her husband felt ready to try and grow their family and they were fortunate to conceive shortly after beginning to try. They were living on the Mornington Peninsular in Victor...
460 | Gemma - two births, endometriosis, Sotos Syndrome, in utero blood transfusion, caesarean, private care
Australian Birth Stories - March 07, 2024 02:46 - 1 hour ★★★★★ - 138 ratingsIn today’s episode, I’m joined by Gemma who shares with us her two very different and uniquely challenging pregnancies of her son Max and her daughter Ava. During Max’s pregnancy, everything appeared to be running smoothly in his growth and development however the Obstetrician did note that Max’...