Episode 67 is shared by Amy who lives on Gubbi Gubbi country in Queensland. Amy shares her two homebirth stories, which includes one in a publicly funded hospital homebirth program and then her second with a private midwife. We chat about her experiences with both models, her episiotomy  and then her fear around tearing, her desire for a water birth and so much more. 

Please make sure to share this episode or any others you’ve listened to, whether it’s wth friends, or on social media, or leaving a rating or review. 

All of it helps to get the word out there that homebirth is an option! 

Resources:

• Free Antenatal Classes from Core Floor Restore 
• Dr Andrew Bisits 
  • One-on-one midwife care linked to lower risk of premature birth
  • Australia's breech baby whisperer (ABC)
  • Intrapartum CTG monitoring in breech presentation
• Birth Time: The Documentary 
• Catherine Bell - Birth Map
• Lael Stone
• Birth is Magic Kids Book for Homebirth

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Episode 66 shared by Tegan in Queensland. 

This episode unfortunately, is a roller coaster & I’m so grateful to Tegan for sharing her story. It’s difficult to summarise Tegan’s story into a quick intro, but how’s this - after being accepted and excluded from the local publicly funded program MULTIPLE times in her pregnancy with her second baby, Tegan made the decision to birth at home, unassisted. We talk about so much in this episode too, like GBS diagnoses, antibiotics, gut health, breastfeeding, Cervical ectropion and more. \

Resources: 

• Short cervix info 
• Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering by Dr Sarah Buckley 
• Cervical Ectropion
• First 1000 Days of Life: Consequences of Antibiotics on Gut Microbiota
  • There is SO much info out there on this topic - this is just one article 
• Born at Home: The Documentary 
• Pacific Mother (See the Trailer) 
• Thrush in Pregnancy
• GBS (Group B) Testing 
  • About Group B Strep (GBS) 

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This is episode 65 and it’s shared by Meg in NSW who shares her experience being a first time mum who chose to have a homebirth. 

She shares her journey to finding homebirth, her pregnancy journey, the birth of her baby girl Dylan & then her post partum experience including post partum hameomorrahe and breastfeeding difficulties influenced by a severe tongue tie. 

A fantastic episode for anyone planning a homebirth for the first time!

Resources: 

• Birth Time: The Documentary 
• The impact on midwives and their practice after caring for women who have a traumatic childbirth: A systematic review
• Trauma and fear in Australian midwives
• The Dinner Ladies (post partum food)
• Birth Circle (Abby & Sheryl Siddery)
• The Birth Sling
• Tongue Tie 

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Episode 64 is shared by Amber who is a mum to two homebirth babies. 

Today she shares the fantastic story of the birth of Delilah at 42 + 5 weeks at home, and then the birth of Bette, who was a planned homebirth with midwives, but ended up being an accidental freebirth at home  as the midwives didn’t make it in time! 

We also chat about family centred birth and changing the narrative around homebirth and birth. 

Resources

• Evidence on post dates baby written by Dr Rachel Reed
• OP baby written by Dr Rachel Reed
• A survey of Australian women’s digital media usage in pregnancy and labour and birth (2023, journal article) 
• ECV (external cephalic version) for breech baby
• Just Another Day in a Woman’s Life?Women’s Long-Term Perceptions of Their FirstBirth Experience. Part I (older article from 1991 but still relevent I think) - click on the PDF download for the full text 
• The meaning of a very positive birth experience: focus groups discussions with women (2015)

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Episode 63 is shared by the amazing Alice. 

Alice is the creator of Halo Mumma, which is a free website resource to support those on their pregnancy after loss journey. 

Alice herself today shares the loss of her twins Ayla and Millie, and the trauma which this created, not just from the pregnancy, but the induction of labour, post partum, and including a delayed PPH. 

During the pregnancy of her rainbow baby, Vinny, she ended up switching to homebirth in order to foster a more positive experience. 

We talk about multiple different quite difficult topics in this ep that may be triggering for some - so please take care of yourself when listening. 

Ultimately, Alice’s story demonstrates that you can homebirth after loss and that no one should be forced to birth in a place where they have experienced so much trauma. 

Resources: 

• Halo Mumma 
• Twins - Great Birth Rebellion Episode with Dr Stu 
• The Fifth Vital Sign (book) 
• Calm Birth (Education) 
• PANDA Pregnancy After Loss 
• Chemical Pregnancy 

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This is the 62nd episode and it’s shared by mum of 3, Mel from Newcastle who shares her incredible stories with having 2 babies after 42 weeks and planning 3 home births through the publicly funded system. 

Mel chose to have a publicly funded homebirth with her first baby, but at 42 weeks, she was coerced into an induction due to the criteria of the program. After a 5 day induction, Oscar was born. 

For her second baby, she planned another homebirth with the the publicly funded program, however at 41+2 her baby girl Zara arrived before the midwives did, in a fantastic unassisted homebirth. 

For her 3rd baby, after choosing the PFHB program, as the clock ticked past that arbitrary cut off again, Mel connected with a privately practicing midwife and she was supported to have a fantastic homebirth   4 days later. This also happened to be on her mums birthday, who passed away the year before. 

I am so grateful for Mel who recorded with me when Archie was only 5.5 weeks old. I know these stories will mean a lot to so many listeners. 

As we talk about in the ep, going past 42 weeks is a rarity these days so please make sure to share the ep in whatever way you can.

Resources: 

• Post dates baby - Induction of Labour https://www.rachelreed.website/blog/induction-of-labour-for-prolonged-pregnancy
• Post Dates Birth https://consultations.health.gov.au/health-services-division/pregnancy-care-guidelines-review/supporting_documents/Prolonged%20pregnancy%20evidence%20evaluation%2015Oct18.PDF
• Meconium in post dates baby https://midwifethinking.com/2015/01/14/the-curse-of-meconium-stained-liquor/

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In episode 61, I chat with Emma who is a student nurse and midwife who shares her positive homebirth turned hospital birth story. 

After labouring for well over 20 hours at home, Emma was forced to come to terms with transferring to hospital. We chat about her experience of a publicly funded (ie. free) homebirth program, having a doula, her long labour, the emotional journey of accepting the need to transfer, and she also shares her powerful birth story, where despite having an epidural on board, she successfully goddess squatted baby Lua out! 

Resources: 

• Birth Time Documentry (get a 20% discount with code ' CICADA20 ' ) 
• Di Diddle Birth Education 
• Epidurals 
  • Cochrane Review 
  • Evidenced Based Birth Podcast Ep 
• Homebirth Victoria 

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This is the 60th birth at home story!
And it shared by Racheal in Victoria, mum to 2 babies both born at home. Growing up Rachael, alike many people, thought homebirth was a bit ‘woo woo’. Meeting her home birthed husband, now paramedic, they began on a homebirth journey for their 2 babies, choosing private midwifery care.
We also chat about the emotional experience of the baby when it is born, its transition to life outside the womb and the impact of social media on perceptions and understandings of birth. Racheal also shares her experience with homebirth after significant perineal and cliteral tearing.

Resources: 

• Julei Bell - Blissful Herbs https://www.blissfulherbs.com.au/
• The changes required when transitioning to extrauterine life https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4987541/

Thought provoking points:

1. Why do we feel safest in the hospital?
2. What is the impact of social media on perceptions and understandings of birth?

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This is another partner episode in the partners supporting birth at home series.

Today Cian, dad to 2 girls, shares his experience witnessing two very different births, a c-section and then a homebirth after caesarean. As with all the partner episodes be sure to share them, as we reflect in this episode, they are powerful and play an important role in understanding, choosing and feeling comfortable with homebirth. 

Resources: 

• The Purple Line in Labour https://www.sarawickham.com/questions-and-answers/evidence-for-the-purple-line/
• Birth After Caesarean by Hazel Keedle https://coreandfloor.com.au/products/birth-after-caesarean-your-journey-to-a-better-birth-by-hazel-keedle?srsltid=AfmBOoog7Eytny_gtQdPDC5wasYBifyofjiweadXdzIp2IZ3I3OzbFCk
• Episode 28: How to be a great birth support https://www.melaniethemidwife.com/podcasts/the-great-birth-rebellion/episodes/2147895640

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In episode 59, Sahara a midwife and IBCLC shares her 3 homebirth stories. 
Sahara shares her journey to finding homebirth and choosing to become a midwife. We then hear about her experience in a publicly funded homebirth program during the start of COVID 19 in Melbourne and the challenges she faced — she then shares her two home births under the care of private midwives. We go on some interesting tangents in this episode and we also talk about loss and also the trauma associated with a pyloric stenosis surgery that her 3rd baby had to undergo in the early weeks of her life outside the womb. 

Resources: 

• Gestational Diabetes 
  • https://www.rachelreed.website/blog/gestational-diabetes-beyond-the-label
  • https://podcasts.apple.com/ua/podcast/gestational-diabetes-the-pregnancy-perspective/id1523178579?i=1000527077230
• Eating dates for inducing labour https://bmcpregnancychildbirth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12884-023-06196-y
• Acupuncture or acupressure for induction of labour https://www.cochrane.org/CD002962/PREG_acupuncture-or-acupressure-induction-labour
• Pyloric stenosis
• The 'Timing Method' to increase chance of a particular sex https://www.naturalcycles.com/cyclematters/how-to-conceive-a-boy-or-a-girl

Support the show

Connect with me, Elsie, the host :)

www.birthingathome.com.au

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