Australian Birth Stories

In this episode Erin Holland takes us from the very beginning, when a routine AMH blood test sent her and her husband Ben looking for answers, through four egg retrieval cycles, two spontaneous pregnancies that ended in loss, an ectopic pregnancy treated in Melbourne while she was away for work, a stage two Asherman syndrome diagnosis and twenty rounds of IVF. She then walks us through a pregnancy that looked straightforward until the 28 week scan, when her daughter dropped from the 17th centile to between the second and third.  What follows is weekly monitoring, a breech baby, a caesarean booked for the exact day her fertility specialist had predicted months earlier, and a four hour birth that did not go to plan. 

Today's episode is brought to you by CuboAi helping parents feel more at ease while their baby sleeps.

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With sleep analytics and real-time alerts straight to your phone, CuboAi offers extra reassurance so you can rest a little easier.

Australian Birth Stories listeners can save an extra $20 on the CuboAi  with code ABS2026. This offer can be stacked with existing sales, including Black Friday and Cyber Monday promotions. *Valid 9 November – 31 December 2026.

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Jo Hunter has been at the heart of the home birth movement in Australia for almost thirty years. She birthed three of her four babies at home, became the National Convener of Home Birth Australia, worked as a doula and childbirth educator, and then studied midwifery and went straight into private practice. In this episode she unpacks an urgent and very current problem: from December, an insurance requirement means the second midwife at every home birth must be endorsed, and the flow on effect could see more than half of Australia's privately practising midwives close their books. She explains how we got here, what the rallies on 21 November are asking for, and why this is a choice issue that matters even if you never plan to birth at home.

To find out how you can support head to Home Birth Australia

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In this episode I chat with Laura, a midwife and first time mother from Melbourne who birthed her daughter Ariella in the very hospital where she works. Laura takes us through an unexpected pregnancy discovery during a fertility ultrasound, a frightening early bleed on the same day, a week of frustrating prodromal labour, and a swift, mostly physiological birth that shifted to continuous monitoring in its final stage. She also speaks candidly about a painful and little known breastfeeding complication called nipple vasospasm, something she had never come across in five years of midwifery practice. This episode is a wonderful listen for newly pregnant mothers, doulas and midwives alike, offering an honest look at how even those who work in maternity care can be surprised by pregnancy, birth and breastfeeding.

Mother Dose by Land Lab is one of those rare finds that cuts through all the confusion. What has really impressed me is that it’s been formulated by doctors, dietitians and naturopaths – every single ingredient is there for a reason, backed by evidence and aligned with current prenatal guidelines.

It includes the good stuff like choline for baby’s brain development, folate in its most active form, and a clinical dosage of ginger that’s actually proven to help with morning sickness. Over 75 health professionals have peer-reviewed the formulation, and they all said the same thing – it’s an amazing blend that delivers the kind of care every woman deserves.

Whether you’re pregnant or trying to conceive, Mother Dose takes the overwhelm out of choosing a prenatal.

And this time, Australian Birth Stories listeners can also save $15 on Mother Dose with the code: ABS. Just head to land-lab.co to redeem the offer.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today I chat to Mel about her path into motherhood. Mel met her partner Antonio later in life, after having come to terms with the idea that she might never become a mother. Living with emetophobia, a fear of vomiting, shaped nearly every decision Mel made in pregnancy, from her choice of care provider to her decision to have an elective caesarean. This is a candid conversation about recurrent miscarriage, navigating severe nausea and a genuine phobia throughout pregnancy, and finding calm through a planned caesarean birth.

Aussie sleepwear brand ergoPouch makes TOG-rated swaddles and sleeping bags that take the guesswork out of dressing your baby for sleep. They’ve just launched their Heritage collection, a curated collection of their most loved prints from the archive, given a fresh new look. Think Coastal, Meadow, Taupe Marle and the much-loved Savannah, all in 1.0 TOG organic cotton Cocoon Swaddle Bags and Sleeping Bags. Australian Birth Stories listeners get 20% off sitewide with the code AUBS from the 19th of October to the 2nd of November. Head to ergopouch.com.au. T&Cs apply.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today I chat to Kate Jones about becoming a mum for the first time to her daughter Lila. Kate takes us through months of frustrating fertility tracking, a tricky local hospital landscape after her area's only private birthing suite closed, and the vaginal water birth she had hoped for from the very beginning. She's honest and funny throughout, especially when describing labouring at home, the mental shift of transitioning to hospital, and the moment her umbilical cord snapped after her daughter was born.

To see Kate's birth video head to @australianbirthstories on Instagram.

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Available in four beautiful corduroy colours: Mocha, Green Olive, Taupe and Coconut.

And exclusively for Australian Birth Stories listeners, enjoy 20% off with code ABS20 at iltutto.com.au.

Hurry, ABS20 ends 31 October 2026 and cannot be used with any other offer, only available at iltutto.com.au.

Lola by iL Tutto. Made for the moments that matter now, and designed to be loved long after.

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Beth shares two beautiful birth stories. Her first with Bernie was an unmedicated hospital birth at the Mercy, and Quinn's home birth through the Joan Kerner programme, where her partner Paddy caught their daughter in their own lounge room. Beth talks honestly about the power of continuity of care, hiring a doula for both births, and why birthing at home felt like the most natural thing in the world.

Mother Dose by Land Lab

I rarely talk about supplements on here – mostly because so many aren’t backed by real evidence, and as someone who’s always reading the fine print, I’m pretty selective about what I’ll share with you. But every now and then, something stands out. Mother Dose by Land Lab is one of those rare finds that cuts through all the confusion. What has really impressed me is that it’s been formulated by doctors, dietitians and naturopaths – every single ingredient is there for a reason, backed by evidence and aligned with current prenatal guidelines.

It includes the good stuff like choline for baby’s brain development, folate in its most active form, and a clinical dosage of ginger that’s actually proven to help with morning sickness. Over 50 health professionals have peer-reviewed the formulation, and they all said the same thing – it’s an amazing blend that delivers the kind of care every woman deserves.

Whether you’re pregnant or trying to conceive, Mother Dose takes the overwhelm out of choosing a prenatal. And this time, Australian Birth Stories listeners can save $15 on Mother Dose with the code: ABS. Just head to land-lab.co to redeem the offer.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, I chat to Sarah Viliamu, content creator, model and founder of The Self Love Supply, about her two very different birth experiences four years apart. Her first birth took place in Melbourne during the height of the 2020 lockdowns and ended in a long induction with a frightening postpartum haemorrhage. In between her two children, Sarah experienced two miscarriages and speaks honestly about that grief and the anxiety that followed her into her next pregnancy. Her second birth, a spontaneous labour at home followed by a short, powerful vaginal birth in hospital, could not have looked more different. This is a beautiful episode about how much knowledge, continuity of care and the right support team can change a woman's experience of labour the second time round.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode I chat to Mel about her road to motherhood, which began with a year of unexplained infertility and a round of IVF squeezed in during a short trip home from remote Northern Territory. Her pregnancy played out almost entirely in a small community several hours from the nearest town before an unsettled labour led to an emergency caesarean and a frightening panic attack on the operating table. Mel speaks candidly about feeling disconnected from her newborn son in those first days, the baby blues that tipped into something far more serious, and the two week stay in a mother and baby unit that turned everything around. It's an honest, generous conversation.

Meet Lola - the newest chair from iL Tutto’s Trend Collection, combining beautiful design with the comfort and support you need through pregnancy, feeding and beyond. With a generously cushioned seat, supportive backrest, curved armrests and soft corduroy upholstery, Lola is designed to look just as beautiful outside the nursery. Smooth electric recline, gentle glide and 180-degree swivel make it easy to find your perfect position and move comfortably with your baby. Available in Mocha, Green Olive, Taupe and Coconut.

Australian Birth Stories listeners can enjoy 20% off with code ABS20 at iltutto.com.au until 31 October 2026. Cannot be used with any other offer.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, I speak with Senator Marielle Smith about the newly established Senate Select Committee on Women’s Health and what it could mean for women and families across Australia.

We unpack what a Senate Select Committee actually is, how it differs from a Royal Commission or state-based inquiry, and - importantly - how the stories and experiences shared with the committee can help inform recommendations and future policy.

We also discuss why the inquiry extends beyond postpartum care to examine broader issues affecting women’s health, including women’s pain, medical misogyny, fertility and reproductive health, pregnancy and birth, postpartum care, stillbirth and infant loss, and the regulation of medical devices.

For so many women, the six-week postpartum check can feel like the end of their care, despite recovery, feeding, pain and mental health challenges continuing for weeks or months afterwards. We talk about the opportunity this inquiry presents to reconsider how women are supported during those crucial first months after birth.

Most importantly, Senator Smith explains how women, partners and families can contribute their own experiences to the inquiry.

Submissions are open until 9th of October 2026

If you have an experience of Australia’s healthcare system that you believe needs to be heard — including your experience of postpartum care - this is an opportunity to have your voice included.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode I chat to Mia, a mother of two living in Canberra, about her two vaginal births, close in age but very different in circumstance. Mia's first birth followed an unplanned pregnancy at twenty three, was quick  and left her with a healthy respect for gas and air. Her second birth was carefully planned as a home birth through Canberra's continuity of care programme, but a posterior baby, reduced movements and a racing heart rate meant she ended up induced in hospital instead, birthing on an epidural she never expected to need. Mia also speaks candidly about single motherhood, meeting her now partner at a Pilates class of all places, and blending two families into one. It's a warm, funny and very honest conversation about surrendering the plan and still coming out the other side with a positive birth.

Today's episode is brought to you by Bare Mum.

If you're pregnant, we encourage you to start thinking about your birth recovery now. You need more support in the fourth trimester - the 12 weeks after birth - than you do in pregnancy, which can be surprising to many new mothers. It's for this reason that Bare Mum began, and now they offer a beautiful collection of practical and supportive products to assist your postpartum healing. If you're preparing for a vaginal birth, or know someone who is, check out Bare Mum's Vaginal Birth Care Kit, and use the code ABS2026 at checkout to get 15% off storewide.

Bare Mum — supporting mothers through the fourth trimester and beyond.

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