Healing Birth

Juanita's story begins with the heart wrenching experience of becoming pregnant at 14 after a sexual assault, and giving that baby up for adoption.

Later in life, the birth of her second child was a re-traumatizing experience for her, as it commonly can be for survivors.

The third time, Juanita used mindfulness tools, meditation, a trauma-informed team to support her, and super strong boundaries to have exactly the birth she desired, even in the midst of a time of national chaos.

She says that you (yes, you!) CAN you have the birth you desire.

At the 1:08 minute mark Juanita leads us in a grounding meditation that she wrote just for listeners of this podcast!

We mention a few there resources during the conversation that both of us strongly recommend, especially if you are survivor of sexual assault who is planning for birth:

1. The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel Van Der Kolk

2. When Survivors Give Birth by Penny Simkin and Phyllis Klaus

Be sure to go to our instagram page this week to see the grounding and centering resource that Juanita created herself and generously shared with us all. We are @healingbirth

You can find Juanita @thesnappiehippie and @pauseanywhere

Go too www.pauseanwhere.com to see all of Juanita's mindfulness offerings!

If you love the podcast, please consider supporting the show! www.patreon.com/healingbirth

I love to hear from you! Send me a note at www.healingbirth.net

Mandy was induced for all of her births, until her fourth. She was told by medical professionals that her body just "didn't go into labor on it's own" and she "needed a little help."

The resulting distrust in her body was something she carried within her until, after having had enough with the conveyer-belt style standard maternity care, she sought out a midwife who would support her to birth at home.

And after three previous births, all induced and two of them, cesareans, she birthed this baby at home without surgery or drugs.

Turns out, her body knew how to give birth just fine.

If you love the podcast, please consider supporting the show! www.patreon.com/healingbirth

I love to hear from you! Send me a note at www.healingbirth.net

Leah's first daughter was born still, but this isn't the story of trauma you might be expecting. Supported at home with just her husband and best friend, she says that the somatic experience of that birth was so intact, that it left her feeling the fullness of her power, full of oxytocin, even ecstatic.

Leah quickly conceived again after her loss, and under rainbow filled skies on the island of Kauai, freebirthed her second daughter.

This one feels really special for me to share because as you will hear quite early on, I have a personal connection to this story!

Follow Leah on instagram @of.mystic.nature

If you love the podcast, please consider supporting the show! www.patreon.com/healingbirth

I love to hear from you! Send me a note at www.healingbirth.net

Last season, (episode linked below) Natalie shared the truly jaw-dropping story of giving birth via cesarean with completely failed anesthesia - she had full sensation of the procedure.

We talked about what it looks like to heal from an experience like that, and the total lack of accountability from anyone at the hospital where this birth occurred.

This year, Natalie reached out to me to let me know she'd had another baby, and I'm happy to say, this time it was different.

You can hear her first birth story here:

https://open.spotify.com/episode/4b1ZExcI5aogUcCbMSuNSk?si=d59b34fcd1124632

Please consider supporting the show! www.patreon.com/healingbirth

Visit our website! www.healingbirth.net

The best definition I know of trauma goes something like this: Anything that was too much, too soon, and too fast for us to process and integrate. It causes elements of the past to get stuck in the biology of our bodies and our subconscious experience.

This story is a perfect example of how that can show up in birth.

You can follow Katie @clairehaven_farm and @littleonedoula

Please consider supporting the show! www.patreon.com/healingbirth

Visit our website! www.healingbirth.net

Dr. Sarah is a chiropractic physician, birth educator, and mother of three. She became entrenched in the birth world after a traumatic, unnecessary cesarean led her to have a subsequent, healing freebirth. In this episode, she shares the stories of both of those births.

Sarah is an advocate for bodily autonomy and human rights in childbirth, and believes that you deserve to be in charge and have a birth that transforms you. You will hear us talk quite a lot about that!

Follow Sarah @birthuprising

www.birthuprsing.com

JOIN US! BIRTH PLANNING WORKSHOP

Join Dr. Sarah of Birth Uprising and Lynnea Laessig for a two-hour, intimate birth planning session where you will learn about ALL of your options for birth and have a village to support you as you make decisions that feel best to you.

This workshop is an amazing foundation for first time moms and seasoned mothers who plan to birth in any setting to get curious and make informed choices about your upcoming birth.

Online Event | October 1, 2022 | 10AM EST

Sign up at www.birthuprising.com

Support the show and get bonus episodes! www.patreon.com/healingbirth

Amana is a mother, birth keeper, death keeper, and host of the show The Heart of the Soul. Recently she invited me onto her podcast as a guest, and the conversation we had was so epic we decided to release it to both of our audiences!

In this part two, Amana shares the stories of her journey with birth and loss, including that of her daughter Hartly, who passed shortly after her birth at home.

From working as a hospice nurse, to the ways death has touched her as a mother, I have rarely met someone so young who has so much experience with loss, and wisdom about grief.

Amana's website:

https://www.birthingnova.love/

Check out the Heart of the Soul Podcast!

https://www.birthingnova.love/podcast-theheartofthesoul

Support the show!

https://www.patreon.com/healingbirth

Our website is www.healingbirth.net

Amana is a mother, birthkeeper, deathkeeper, and host of the show The Heart of the Soul. Recently she invited me onto her podcast as a guest, and the conversation we had was so epic we decided to release it to both of our audiences!

In this part one, Amana interviews me. I share both of my son's (very different) birth stories, and if you are a new listener and not familiar with my story, I think you will understand why I am so passionate about birth and birth trauma.

Next week, in part two, you'll hear Amana's story.

Amana's website

https://www.birthingnova.love/

Check out the Heart of the Soul Podcast!

https://www.birthingnova.love/podcast-theheartofthesoul

We have an upcoming event!

Rituals for Rooted Postpartum with Nicole Parker

Join us with traditional birthkeeper Nicole Parker as we integrate into embodied motherhood with the support of conscious, rooted rituals for postpartum.

In this live webinar, you'll learn about the energetics of postpartum descent and the biomarkers your body uses to communicate with you, over 30 simple nourishing rituals to support you as you integrate the initiation of motherhood each time you cross the veil, and reclaim the innate power of your inner matriarch.

www.healingbirth.net/events

ONLINE EVENT

SEPTEMBER 18, 2022 | 4 PM PST

Support the show!

https://www.patreon.com/healingbirth

Our website is www.healingbirth.net

Jessica's first baby was born in a hospital in Australia. Although she had the natural birth that she desired, some interventions happened that, in retrospect, she realized were not necessary.

Her second baby was born in Bali, at home, attended by Balinese midwives who barely made the birth. That birth helped her to realize she never needed to outsource her power to give birth. She had everything she needed within herself all along.

Jessica is the founder of Mothers of All, a wife and a mother of two boys. She created Mothers of All so women can have a place to go to find evidence based information to support them in their pregnancy, birth and motherhood journey from a holistic perspective. After giving birth to her first son, Jessica realized how much of the world isn't set up to support women when they become a mother, so she decided to create a space that was supportive and nourishing to women.

www.mothersofall.com

JOIN US! For Rituals for Rooted Postpartum with Nicole Parker Join us with traditional birthkeeper Nicole Parker as we integrate into embodied motherhood with the support of conscious, rooted rituals for postpartum.

In this live webinar, you'll learn about the energetics of postpartum descent and the biomarkers your body uses to communicate with you, over 30 simple nourishing rituals to support you as you integrate the initiation of motherhood each time you cross the veil, and reclaim the innate power of your inner matriarch.

www.healingbirth.net/events

ONLINE EVENT SEPTEMBER 18, 2022 | 4 PM PST

Support the show!

https://www.patreon.com/healingbirth

Our website is www.healingbirth.net

Bella shares the birth story of her first baby, after multiple pregnancy losses and multiple rounds of IVF. She speaks candidly about the experience of infertility, loss, and how best to support others going through it.

She serves as the assistant director of Empty Cradle, a loss support group local to the southern California area. They offer in person and virtual support, and hold several events annually honoring the lives of babies who have passed. You can connect with her, and Empty Cradle, by searching for Empty Cradle on Facebook.

Support the show!

https://www.patreon.com/healingbirth

Our website is www.healingbirth.net