When contractions began during a Succession marathon with her mum, Lucinda Pikkat wasn't particularly concerned—her husband Simon was asleep at home an hour away, and surely there would be plenty of time to alert him.

In today's episode, Lucinda shares how her third daughter Saachi followed her older sisters remarkable pattern of arriving precisely at 38 weeks. As labor progressed quickly and phone calls went unanswered, Lucinda gave birth with her mother by her side, while her husband slept blissfully unaware, only discovering he had a new daughter when he woke up the next morning!

Lucinda reflects on the unexpected full-circle moment as her own mum stepped into the support role during her birth, creating a unique bond between three generations. She shares how she refined her approach to childbirth with each pregnancy, making her deliveries progressively more manageable, and describes the euphoric "warrior princess" high that accompanied each of her births.

Diary Of A Birth features mums telling their miraculous stories of bringing life into the world. If you'd like to share your birth story, we'd love to hear from you at [email protected] or send us a voice note here.  

THE END BITS:
Support independent women's media
Follow Diary Of A Birth on Instagram

Mamamia studios are styled with furniture from Fenton and Fenton visit www.fentonandfenton.com.au

Mamamia has a podcast for every stage of parenthood.

Check out our hilarious and seriously unhelpful podcast The Baby Bubble hosted by Clare and Jessie Stephens.
If you’re pregnant, listen to The Delivery Room and Hello Bump.
And if you’re trying or preg-curious, Get Me Pregnant and Before The Bump are for you.

CREDITS:

Host: Ksenija Lukich

Birth Story: Lucinda Pikkat

Obstetrician & Gynaecologist: Dr Bronwyn Devine

Producers: Ksenija Lukich & Ella Maitland

Audio Producer: Tina Matolov

Mamamia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.

Support the show: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this weeks episode, Seize the Yay's Sarah Davidson takes us through her emotional journey to motherhood—one made even more unique by her experience as a cross-cultural adoptee. From experiencing a heartbreaking missed miscarriage that left her waiting three painful weeks for a D&C procedure, to the surprising natural conception that followed unsuccessful fertility treatments; Sarah navigated her pregnancy with cautious hope until her waters dramatically broke in the hospital car park at exactly 38 weeks. 

As her breech baby Teddy arrived, Sarah's mother—who had never experienced pregnancy herself—was there to witness this profound moment, creating a beautiful full-circle experience and solidifying Sarah's belief that Teddy was meant for their family all along.

---

Diary Of A Birth features mums sharing their miraculous stories of bringing life into the world. If you'd like to share your birth story, we'd love to hear from you at [email protected].

THE END BITS:
Support independent women's media
Follow Diary Of A Birth on Instagram

Mamamia has a podcast for every stage of parenthood.

Check out our hilarious and seriously unhelpful podcast The Baby Bubble hosted by Clare and Jessie Stephens.
If you’re pregnant, listen to The Delivery Room and Hello Bump.
And if you’re trying or preg-curious, Get Me Pregnant and Before The Bump are for you.

CREDITS:

Host: Ksenija Lukich

Birth Story: Sarah Davidson

Obstetrician & Gynaecologist: Dr Bronwyn Devine

Producers: Ksenija Lukich & Ella Maitland

Audio Producer: Tina Matolov

Mamamia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.

Support the show: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Imagine discovering you're pregnant just two days after receiving a rare blood cancer diagnosis at 30. For journalist Elle Halliwell, this unimaginable scenario became reality when her routine health check revealed chronic myeloid leukemia—an incurable but treatable condition that would change everything.

Despite doctors advising she terminate the pregnancy to begin life-saving treatment, Elle made the extraordinary decision to continue, feeling it was "meant to be." She takes us through the peace she found amid chaos, and her induced birth at 36 weeks that brought her perfect son Tor into the world. From the emotional rollercoaster of breastfeeding while preparing for cancer treatment, to rebuilding her life as a mother with an ongoing medical condition, Elle's story is a powerful testament to maternal determination that defied medical odds. 

Diary Of A Birth features mums telling their miraculous stories of bringing life into the world. If you’d like to share your birth story, we’d love to hear from you at [email protected] or send us a voice note here.

THE END BITS:
Support independent women's media
Follow Diary Of A Birth on Instagram

If you’re looking for something else to listen to, check out our hilarious and seriously unhelpful podcast The Baby Bubble hosted by Clare and Jessie Stephens.

Mamamia has a podcast for every stage of parenthood.
Our parenting podcast is This Glorious Mess.
If you’re pregnant, listen to The Delivery Room and Hello Bump.
And if you’re trying or preg-curious, Get Me Pregnant and Before The Bump are for you.

CREDITS:

Host: Ksenija Lukich

Birth Story: Elle Halliwell 

Obstetrician & Gynaecologist: Dr Bronwyn Devine

Producers: Ksenija Lukich & Tina Matolov

Audio Producer: Leah Porges 

Mamamia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.

Support the show: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Mamamia's Head of Content, Eliza, found herself unexpectedly pregnant with her third child during what was meant to be a one-year Swedish adventure, life took a beautiful detour. But her planned C-section was not so routine when the spinal anaesthesia failed midway through, causing Eliza to feel the surgical procedure.

After a desperate plea for help and being rushed to be put under general anaesthetic, Eliza describes waking up to the joy of meeting her son August. She shares the cultural differences of Swedish healthcare—celebration sandwiches with tiny flags, their devotion to constant skin-to-skin contact (to the point of no hospital bassinets!), and the staff's bewilderment at her Australian swaddling techniques. Her story beautifully weaves together the unexpected moments of motherhood with cross-cultural discovery.

Diary Of A Birth features mums telling their miraculous stories of bringing life into the world. If you’d like to share your birth story, we’d love to hear from you at [email protected] or send us a voice note here.

THE END BITS:
Support independent women's media
Follow Diary Of A Birth on Instagram

If you’re looking for something else to listen to, check out our hilarious and seriously unhelpful podcast The Baby Bubble hosted by Clare and Jessie Stephens.

Mamamia has a podcast for every stage of parenthood.
Our parenting podcast is This Glorious Mess.
If you’re pregnant, listen to The Delivery Room and Hello Bump.
And if you’re trying or preg-curious, Get Me Pregnant and Before The Bump are for you.

CREDITS:

Host: Ksenija Lukich

Birth Story: Eliza Sorman Nilsson

Obstetrician & Gynaecologist: Dr Bronwyn Devine

Producers: Ksenija Lukich & Tina Matolov

Audio Producer: Leah Porges 

Mamamia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.

Support the show: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When 26-year-old Silje and her husband Jordan decided to expand their family beyond their 18-month-old son Mads, they never imagined what would happen next. In today's episode, Silje shares the breathtaking moment at her dating scan when the sonographer counted not one, not two, but three heartbeats—completely spontaneous fraternal triplets with no family history of multiples.

From navigating a high-risk pregnancy while caring for a toddler and maintaining her legal career, to the extraordinary cesarean birth where she'd already named each baby based on their distinct movements in utero. Silje takes us through her journey of delivering Ada, Teddy and Eric at 34 weeks, and how this unexpected blessing transformed her into an advocate for multiple birth families across Australia. 

Diary Of A Birth features mums telling their miraculous stories of bringing life into the world. If you’d like to share your birth story, we’d love to hear from you at [email protected] or send us a voice note here.

THE END BITS:
Support independent women's media
Follow Diary Of A Birth on Instagram

If you’re looking for something else to listen to, check out our hilarious and seriously unhelpful podcast The Baby Bubble hosted by Clare and Jessie Stephens.

Mamamia has a podcast for every stage of parenthood.
Our parenting podcast is This Glorious Mess.
If you’re pregnant, listen to The Delivery Room and Hello Bump.
And if you’re trying or preg-curious, Get Me Pregnant and Before The Bump are for you.

CREDITS:

Host: Ksenija Lukich

Birth Story: Silje Andersen-Cooke

Obstetrician & Gynaecologist: Dr Bronwyn Devine

Producers: Ksenija Lukich & Tina Matolov

Audio Producer: Leah Porges 

Mamamia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.

Support the show: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This episode of Diary of a Birth contains graphic descriptions including blood loss and traumatic injury. Please proceed with caution. Additional resources can be found in the show notes. 

A pop. A gush. And suddenly, a huge amount of blood running down her legs. What started as a peaceful first day of maternity leave became a fight for two lives when Sabrina Banayad experienced a rare and life-threatening placental abruption.

Sabrina shares the story of her second birth, that ended in a code green emergency cesarean. With extraordinary presence of mind, she called emergency services while home alone, calmly organising childcare and preparing for paramedics even as she continued to haemorrhage.

This powerful story is about maternal instinct, quick thinking, and the medical miracle that allowed both mother and daughter to thrive after one of the most dangerous birth complications possible. 

Resources:

PANDA Birth Trauma And Recovery

Birth Trauma Australia 

Gidget Foundation

Diary Of A Birth features mums telling their miraculous stories of bringing life into the world. If you’d like to share your birth story, we’d love to hear from you at [email protected] or send us a voice note here.

THE END BITS:
Support independent women's media
Follow Diary Of A Birth on Instagram

If you’re looking for something else to listen to, check out our hilarious and seriously unhelpful podcast The Baby Bubble hosted by Clare and Jessie Stephens.

Mamamia has a podcast for every stage of parenthood.
Our parenting podcast is This Glorious Mess.
If you’re pregnant, listen to The Delivery Room and Hello Bump.
And if you’re trying or preg-curious, Get Me Pregnant and Before The Bump are for you.

CREDITS:

Host: Ksenija Lukich

Birth Story: Sabrina Banayad

Obstetrician & Gynaecologist: Dr Bronwyn Devine

Producers: Ksenija Lukich & Tina Matolov

Audio Producer: Leah Porges 

Mamamia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.

Support the show: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From epidural to delivery in minutes—Nikolina's second baby Leo stunned even veteran doctors with his lightning-fast arrival.

Despite a physically "cruisy" pregnancy with her children just 16 months apart, Nikolina Koevska Kharoufeh battled intense anxiety about giving birth a second time. After casually attending brunch during early contractions, her labor rapidly intensified. Just as doctors prepared for her curved spine complication during the epidural, Leo's heart rate dropped, and with a single push, he arrived—prompting one doctor to declare it the quickest birth in her 20-year career. 

Nikolina's story reminds us that birth anxiety is perfectly normal the second time around, even when you've done it before.

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Diary Of A Birth features mums telling their miraculous stories of bringing life into the world. If you’d like to share your birth story, we’d love to hear from you at [email protected] or send us a voice note here.

THE END BITS:
Support independent women's media
Follow Diary Of A Birth on Instagram

If you’re looking for something else to listen to, check out our hilarious and seriously unhelpful podcast The Baby Bubble hosted by Clare and Jessie Stephens.

Mamamia has a podcast for every stage of parenthood.
Our parenting podcast is This Glorious Mess.
If you’re pregnant, listen to The Delivery Room and Hello Bump.
And if you’re trying or preg-curious, Get Me Pregnant and Before The Bump are for you.

CREDITS:

Host: Ksenija Lukich

Birth Story: Nikolina Koevska Kharoufeh

Obstetrician & Gynaecologist: Dr Bronwyn Devine

Producers: Ksenija Lukich & Tina Matolov

Audio Producer: Leah Porges 

Mamamia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.

Support the show: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Waters breaking in public, a head popping out in the shower, and neighbours rushing to help—Kate Longley's second birth took a very different path than planned!

In today’s episode, Kate shares how her birth with Jesse took a surprisingly swift turn when, shortly after her waters broke at home, she found herself cradling her newborn in the shower before help could even arrive. With no time to reach the hospital, Kate's neighbours—who happened to be mothers themselves—stepped in to help as Jesse was born in their family home. 

Kate reflects on how, despite the surprising speed of Jesse’s arrival, her calm mindset and supportive community helped create a positive birth experience.

-------

Diary Of A Birth features mums telling their miraculous stories of bringing life into the world. If you’d like to share your birth story, we’d love to hear from you at [email protected] or send us a voice note here.

THE END BITS:
Support independent women's media
Follow Diary Of A Birth on Instagram

If you’re looking for something else to listen to, check out our hilarious and seriously unhelpful podcast The Baby Bubble hosted by Clare and Jessie Stephens.

Mamamia has a podcast for every stage of parenthood.
Our parenting podcast is This Glorious Mess.
If you’re pregnant, listen to The Delivery Room and Hello Bump.
And if you’re trying or preg-curious, Get Me Pregnant and Before The Bump are for you.

CREDITS:

Host: Ksenija Lukich

Birth Story: Kate Longley

Obstetrician & Gynaecologist: Dr Bronwyn Devine

Producers: Ksenija Lukich & Tina Matolov

Audio Producer: Leah Porges 

Mamamia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.

Support the show: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One embryo. Two heartbeats. After years of fertility treatments, Laura Parr found herself staring at an ultrasound screen showing the impossible—her single frozen embryo had split into identical twins.

In today's episode, Laura shares her extraordinary journey from having her son Lucas through IVF, to the shock of discovering her second embryo—frozen for two years—had developed into identical twins - with no history of twins in the family. She takes us through the emotional rollercoaster of multiple ovarian induction cycles that finally yielded nine precious eggs and the complex reality of carrying monochorionic diamniotic twins who shared a single placenta but had separate amniotic sacs.

From severe morning sickness to a dramatic caesarean at 34 weeks, Laura's precious twins transformed their families life forever.

Diary Of A Birth features mums telling their miraculous stories of bringing life into the world. If you’d like to share your birth story, we’d love to hear from you at [email protected] or send us a voice note here.

THE END BITS:
Support independent women's media
Follow Diary Of A Birth on Instagram

If you’re looking for something else to listen to, check out our hilarious and seriously unhelpful podcast The Baby Bubble hosted by Clare and Jessie Stephens.

Mamamia has a podcast for every stage of parenthood.
Our parenting podcast is This Glorious Mess.
If you’re pregnant, listen to The Delivery Room and Hello Bump.
And if you’re trying or preg-curious, Get Me Pregnant and Before The Bump are for you.

CREDITS:

Host: Ksenija Lukich

Obstetrician & Gynaecologist: Dr Bronwyn Devine

Producers: Ksenija Lukich & Tina Matolov

Audio Producer: Leah Porges 

Mamamia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.

Support the show: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's Christmas morning, you're on all fours and your dad's just accidentally broken your waters.

This wasn't how Francesca Hung imagined birth - but we all know motherhood often arrives unexpectedly. In today's episode, the model and presenter shares the dramatic story of finding herself in active labour just 30 minutes after her first contraction, creating a Christmas morning her family will never forget.

Francesca recounts her daughter Bridie's remarkably swift arrival—a birth that completely defied all expectations of first-time deliveries. While this whirlwind experience brought a healthy baby girl into the world, Francesca honestly reveals how the shock of such an intense birth took weeks to process, creating a story that's both extraordinary and real.

Diary Of A Birth features mums telling their miraculous stories of bringing life into the world. If you’d like to share your birth story, we’d love to hear from you at [email protected] or send us a voice note here.

THE END BITS:
Support independent women's media
Follow Diary Of A Birth on Instagram

If you’re looking for something else to listen to, check out our hilarious and seriously unhelpful podcast The Baby Bubble hosted by Clare and Jessie Stephens.

Mamamia has a podcast for every stage of parenthood.
Our parenting podcast is This Glorious Mess.
If you’re pregnant, listen to The Delivery Room and Hello Bump.
And if you’re trying or preg-curious, Get Me Pregnant and Before The Bump are for you.

CREDITS:

Host: Ksenija Lukich

Birth Story: Francesca Hung

Obstetrician & Gynaecologist: Dr Bronwyn Devine

Producers: Ksenija Lukich & Tina Matolov

Audio Producer: Leah Porges 

Mamamia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.

Support the show: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.