The Birth Activists

In this episode the lovely Sheena Byrom joins us to talk about midwifery, maternity services and the current challenges midwives are facing working during the pandemic. 

Sheena was awarded an OBE in 2011 for services to midwifery, and received an Honorary Fellowship of the Royal College of Midwives in 2015. In 2016 she was delighted to receive an Honorary Doctorate from Bournemouth University. You can find out more about Sheena on her website: www.sheenabyrom.com/

Sheena has written several books: Catching Babies, her midwife memoirs. She jointly edited The Roar Behind the Silence: why kindness, compassion and respect matter in maternity care with Professor Soo Downe OBE. She joined forces with Soo again with Squaring the Circle: researching normal birth in a technological world which was published in June 2019.

Sheena and her daughter, Anna, set up All 4 Maternity, the home of The Practising Midwife publication - find out more here: www.all4maternity.com/

Follow Sheena on social media @sheena_byrom

Michelle (AKA Limerick Doula) was part of our podcast episode back in June of last year talking about plus-size pregnancy and birth (which you can listen to again here). Michelle joins us in this new episode to tell us about the birth of her daughter, Iris and her upcoming book, Fat Birth. Get yourself a cuppa and make yourself comfortable - This is a beautiful birth story...

Follow Michelle on instagram here>> @fat.and.pregnant

If you have a plus-size birth story you would like to submit for inclusion in Michelle's new book, please do so here

The first podcast episode of 2021 is here!

In this episode Sallyann joins Sam and I to talk about her book "Labour of Love: The Ultimate Guide to being a Birth partner". The role of the birth partner is pivotal to a person's birth experience whether you are husband, wife, partner, mother, sister, friend or doula! 

You can find out more about Sallyann and her work as a Doula on her website here: www.birthability.co.uk

Checkout Sallyann's new podcast here: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-ultimate-guide-to-being-a-birth-partner

This year saw the creation of the Birth Activists podcast amid a global pandemic. Sam and I recap on the podcast guests of 2020 whilst we enjoy a festive tipple. 

You can also watch the video recording of this podcast on YouTube here!

In this episode, we are joined by the Leader of the Welsh National Party, Neil McEvoy AM, to talk about the issue of parental alienation and the abuse of power perpetuated by social services. Neil has well and truly earned his place on The Birth Activists podcast! His activism work has caused great controversy and he has been personally targeted because of his willingness to speak out against injustice.

You can follow Neil on social media @neiljmcevoy

Find out more about Neil here: https://www.neilmcevoy.wales/

Links referenced in the podcast: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/media-attendance-at-family-court-hearings-ex711

**This is marked as explicit cos Sam only went and dropped the 'F' word! 

Kay King joins us in this episode to discuss her new book 'Why Babyloss Matters' and her work as an Advanced Grief Recovery Practitioner.

*TRIGGER WARNING* In this episode we discuss sensitive issues such as abortion, infertility, miscarriage and babyloss.

Visit Kay's website and buy the book: www.birthandloss.uk

Find out more about the Grief Recovery Method here: www.griefuk.org

Sam and I are joined by Verina, Emma and Maddie who all devote time to volunteering for the charity, AIMS (Association for Improvements in the Maternity Services) in varying ways and are passionate advocates for choice in and improvement of the UK's Maternity Services.

Since the 1960s AIMS have campaigned tirelessly for improvements to the UK's maternity services, as well as supporting women and families directly through their helpline, and sharing information to pregnant people and health carers with their hugely informative books, Journal and website resources.

AIMS works towards better births for all by campaigning and information sharing, protecting human rights in childbirth and helping women to know their rights, whatever birth they want, and wherever they want it. 

In this episode, Sam and I talk to Komal, a first time expectant parent based in Northampton (my neck of the woods). She has been campaigning about the restrictions on partners attending scans and is now facing the prospect of spending a great deal of her labour alone, without her partner.

Please think about signing Komal's petition here: https://www.change.org/p/northampton-general-hospital-to-allow-1-named-contact-at-maternity-appointments

If you are based in Northamptonshire, please consider giving feedback on maternity services to the Maternity Voice Partnership (MVP) via this survey

Amity Reed joins us in this episode, on the eve of her book release!

"Amity Reed became a midwife to serve women, but the reality of working in over-stretched and underfunded NHS maternity services soon shattered her illusions. She’s not alone – for every 30 midwives that train, 29 will leave the profession.

Overdue is both the devastating personal story behind the statistics, and a call for change in the NHS. Real-life stories capture the moments at the heart of midwifery: life, death, birth, tragedy and joy, and are embedded in a clear-sighted examination of what is working – and what isn’t – in maternity services. The result is a book that asks – and tries to answer – questions that are at the heart of many people’s working lives: how can we follow our calling, provide for our families and keep ourselves healthy, if the workplace and its systems are working against us?"

Buy the book here: https://www.pinterandmartin.com/overdue

Holly is a mum to 3 boys, living in Northamptonshire, who started a petition to allow partners in to hospitals when she faced the prospect of being without her husband, Ricky, when she needed him most. We talk to Holly about the #butnotmaternity campaign and her experience of being pregnant and birthing during the pandemic.

Sign the petition: https://www.change.org/p/partners-allowed-for-entirety-of-labour-birth-in-all-hospitals

Use this open letter as a template to write to your MP: https://www.birthblissdoulacourses.co.uk/kickihansardsblog/open-letter-restrictions-in-maternity-services