Kiwi Birth Tales

In Episode 21 I talk with Christian Newman about the birth and after birth of their lovely baby boy Frankie (Francis). Christian takes us through the journey himself and Mark (his partner) went through to find a surrogate, the process for surrogacy and fertility, the birth of Frankie and also the adoption process in New Zealand, life with a Newborn and the big question - do they want more kids? 

Christian and Mark share their lives on Instagram through @lovefromyourdads with informative content about the Adoption process and life as new dads. Christian talks about the community he has found through the platform which is such a positive way of looking at social media. 

Christian also takes us through adjusting to life with Frankie, Marks experience with Post Natal Depression and day to day life with a newborn. 

Thanks for joining me on the Podcast Christian! I hope you enjoy the episode. 

Thanks for listening!

@Kiwibirthtales
@Yourbirthproject

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Episode 20 I speak with Bridget about the births of her 3 boys Nixon, Noah and Sonny. All boys were born Vaginally but have 3 quite different stories. During Nixons birth Bridget was induced but Nixons head was stuck which made for difficultly bringing him into the world. After he was born Bridget had a lot of bleeding so she was rushed away to find the cause, which was never really discovered. Nixon had a tongue tie that was missed and their breastfeeding journey was a difficult one. 

The birth of Noah was the opposite for Bridget, she went into labour naturally at home and arrived at the Hospital just in time for Noahs birth - 13 mins after they got to the hospital to be exact. Bridget had a large amount of blood loss again so was rushed away to find the cause. 

Bridget was determined to have a different experience with her third birth, Sonny. She research birthing affirmations and prepared mentally for the birth more than she had done previously. Bridget was induced at 38 weeks due to Gall Bladder issues, but the experience was one Bridget found healing - she reached down to pull Sonny out on the last push, a moment she will never forget. 

If you want to check out Bridget and her tribe of boys on Instagram you can do so @bridget.madar

Thanks for listening!

@Kiwibirthtales
@Yourbirthproject

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Episode 19 I speak with Joi about the birth of her Identical Twin Boys Jaxon and Byron. Jaxon and Byron were born at 28 weeks and 2 days via elective C-Section and Joi had been under close observation by the Fetal Med team at Auckland hospital for the better part of her pregnancy due to suspected growth restriction and possible Twin-to-Twin-Transfusion Syndrome. 

During the last scan it was discovered Jaxon had a problem with his heart, so a C-Section was scheduled in order for Jaxon to receive the medication and care her needed. Both boys needed to go straight into NICU, where Jaxon was extremely unstable for the first week and needed to be resuscitated at 6 days. After this Jaxon made steady improvements and was the first twin to leave NICU. They spent over 3 months in NICU/SCBU/Starship with Byron, who then spent another 5 months on oxygen at home. 

Jaxon and Byron are now busy, beautiful 2 year olds who keep their parents on their toes! Joi does a wonderful job of recounting her birth story and journey with the boys, and I'm grateful she took the time to talk with me. 

If you want to check out Joi and her family on Instagram you can do so @joiful.me

Thanks for listening!

@Kiwibirthtales
@Yourbirthproject

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Episode 18 I speak with Laura about the birth of her baby boy Cohen who is 1 year old. Laura is currently pregnant and due with her second baby end of January in which she is planning to have another Home Birth.

Before falling pregnant with Cohen, Laura had 2 Miscarriages which made her anxious for the entirity of her pregnancy. Her Midwife supported her through the anxiety and they made the decision together to try and birth at Home. 

Laura was 10 days overdue when she went into labour, the labour was much quicker than everyone had expected it to be. Laura tells us about her positive and calm Home Birthing experience, after Cohen was born the Placenta came so fast it ended up being caught in a Cooking Pot as no one was prepared. Laura had a good recovery from Birth and was back playing Basketball 3 weeks later. 

Lauras Anxiety started to flare up when she was Breastfeeding Cohen, so they switched to formula and the Anxiety subsided. Not long afterwards, Lauras period came back and a few months later she fell pregnant again. I wish Laura all the luck and love for this time around. 

If you want to check out Laura on Instagram you can do so @lauraannswambo

Thanks for listening!

@Kiwibirthtales
@Yourbirthproject

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Episode 17 I talk with Renee about the birth of baby Emmie. Renee takes us through her quick journey to pregnancy after deciding to start "not not trying", antenatal anxiety and depression, her preconceptions about the birth she wanted and the very positive birth she ended up having. 

Renee gave birth to Emmie in a birthing pool with no drugs and recovered well. When Emmie was born Renee talks about how her Anxiety / Depression lifted and she felt like a different person again. She also takes us through her breastfeeding journey in which she started mix feeding with pumping / formula top ups from 12 days. 

Emmie is a beautiful little girl and if you'd like to check Renee and her family out on Instagram you can do so @whatreneewrites

Thanks for listening!

@Kiwibirthtales
@Yourbirthproject

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Episode 16 I talk with Mo Mc Reynolds about the birth of her Baby Boy, Brixton. Brixton was born at 38 weeks after Mo had been dancing all night earlier in the week at an Adele Concert and had just finished up work. Mo discusses the difficulty she had with the stand in Midwife, who told her she could push without checking her dilation only to find out Mo was only 8cm after 4 hours of exhausting pushing. After being transferred from the Birth Centre to Hospital, Mo was 10cm dilated and very soon after, Brixton was born. 

Mo talks with me about her recovery from birth both physically and emotionally, as well as her experience with Breastfeeding, eventually moving to exclusively pumping for 8 months. 

If you'd like to check out Mo and her family on Instagram you can do so @mmcreynolds1

Thanks for listening!

@Kiwibirthtales
@Yourbirthproject

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Episode 15 I talk with Tessa Murray about the 2 Homebirths of her daughters Waitohi and Hapahapai. Tessa takes us through her decision to birth at home, her quick labours, using a Tens Machine for her Second Birth and also the Maori Tikanga that surrounding her birth and after birth. 

Tessa speaks so positively of Homebirth and her experiences are lovely to hear. I hope you enjoy the episode!

If you'd like to check out Tessa and the girls on Instagram you can do so @kiwimamaproductreviews

Thanks for listening!

@Kiwibirthtales
@Yourbirthproject

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Episode 14 I talk with Freya Adams about the birth of her Fraternal Twin Girls Aubrey and Frankie. Freya discusses the surprise of finding out they were pregnant, and then with twins, her uncomplicated pregnancy and induction at 38 weeks. 

Freyas labour progressed after induction, eventually Freya decided on an epidural and was quickly 10cm following that. Both girls were born Vaginally, with a small tear requiring a few stitches afterwards. Twin 2 spent a short time in the NICU as she had water in her lungs, but she was able to join Freya and Willow (Dad) not long after. 

This is a really positive multiples birth story, Freya does a great job of talking about her experience and I hope you love the episode as much as I do. 

If you'd like to check out Freya and the girls on Instagram you can do so @freya.adams

Thanks for listening!

@Kiwibirthtales
@Yourbirthproject

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Episode 13 I speak with Jasmine about her 2 births with Alexa and Lincoln. Jasmine fell unexpectedly pregnant at 16 with Alexa while living at home with her family. Jasmine takes us through her long labour and experience feeling isolated and not listened to by the staff at the Hospital as she was young. Her first birth ended in an episiotomy and extreme PTSD after Alexas birth. Jasmine suffered from Post Natal Depression and Anxiety, which continued into diagnosed Depression later on. This then had an impact when Jasmine fell pregnant 4 years later with Lincoln. 

Lincolns birth was the opposite of Alexas, and Jasmine describes it as a very healing experience which is such a nice story to hear. 

Jasmine is pregnant with her third, expecting in 2019. If you'd like to check out Jasmine and her lovely family on Instagram you can do so @jasminehiku

Thanks for listening!

@Kiwibirthtales
@Yourbirthproject

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Episode 12 I talk with Hannah McLean about her Vaginal Birth with her baby girl Winter. Hannah takes us through her experience with wanting to birth at a birthing centre, ending up in hospital, having her waters broken and the ventouse method to assist in getting Winter out. 

Hannah then takes us through her post-partum journey including breastfeeding, using nipple shields and her anxiety levels which significantly increased after Winter was born. 

I hope you enjoy this episode, if you'd like to check out Hannah on Instagram you can do so @hannah.winter.andco

Thanks for listening!

@Kiwibirthtales
@Yourbirthproject

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.