“Peace on earth begins with birth.”

In this powerful episode, Meagan sits down with Anna Lundqvist, founder of Sacred Birth International. Anna is a seasoned midwife from Sweden whose work has evolved into educating birthing families, doulas, and birth professionals on how to protect birth as a sacred, primal, and physiological event. Drawing from years of attending births around the world, Anna now focuses on teaching how to reclaim the innate design of birth, preserve reverence throughout the process, and support mothers in advocating for their autonomy. Her philosophy is rooted deeply in trauma-informed care and physiological birth wisdom. 

Meagan and Anna let the conversation flow naturally as they dive into induction, cervical checks, trauma, and the harsh realities many families face within the medical system. Anna offers heartfelt insight on processing fears, discerning intuition from anxiety, and why she often encourages VBAC at home for those who feel aligned with that path. Thank you for joining us today, @sacredbirthinternational for a very special conversation!!

Content warning: This episode includes frank discussion of birth after sexual abuse and trauma. Please listen with care.

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Women of Strength, you won’t want to miss this one!!

In today’s episode of The VBAC Link Podcast, we welcome Sarah, a mom of three boys, an active duty Air Force officer (AND a spouse to one as well!) about her incredible VBA2C during an overseas PCS move from South Korea to Florida. 

Sarah’s first birth was a c-section for breech presentation. Her second was a scheduled c-section timed around her husband’s deployment. Her third pregnancy brought navigating prenatal care in a foreign country, a huge move with two toddlers in tow, and the stress of finding a completely new birth team. 

After Sarah’s water broke unexpectedly at 37 weeks while visiting family in Kentucky, and with all their belongings either in Arizona or on a boat in the Pacific, she was induced so she could labor while a VBAC-supportive doctor was on call. After 11 hours on Pitocin, she delivered her baby vaginally, finished the move and arrived in Florida when her newborn was just one week old. 

Sarah & Meagan also share tips about using nitrous oxide in labor and important Tricare resources for military families. Though there were wild twists and turns, Sarah got her especially redemptive moment of being fully present for the moment she introduced her new baby to her other boys. We are so proud of you, Sarah!!

Nitrous Oxide Article

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Catie, a pediatric physical therapist from Northern Kentucky, joins Meagan on the podcast today sharing her three birth stories– a vaginal delivery, c-section, and VBAC! Catie struggled with hyperemesis gravidarum (among other complications) during all three pregnancies but wasn’t officially given the diagnosis until she was hospitalized with her third. By that time, she had researched hard and was ready to proactively manage it, even though her doctor wasn’t up-to-date on all of the ways to do that. Catie shares what she did and how it made a world of difference for that third pregnancy.

In regards to her births, Catie talks about her first induced vaginal birth, her long, traumatic second labor that ended in an urgent c-section, a PTSD diagnosis, and her healing VBAC that was medically induced at 37 weeks due to Cholestasis. 

After her traumatic second birth, Catie really fought for healing. Women of Strength, we cannot stress enough how important this is. Through EMDR, pelvic floor therapy, exercise, and more, Catie gained back the confidence and trust she needed in her body to absolutely rock her VBAC!

ICP Care Cholestasis Article

The VBAC Link Blog: Kick Counts

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Today we’re talking with Esther, who shares her eventful six birth journeys and two miscarriages. Esther's stories include four Cesareans, breech twins, placental abruptions, hemorrhage, stillbirth, and two unassisted home births. Her experiences deeply changed her understanding of birth, trauma, and autonomy. 

Esther faced unexpected involvement from social services and legal pressure around her birthing choices, ultimately leading her to give birth to her sixth baby unassisted and in hiding. She talks about rebuilding trust in her body after trauma, how inflammation and stress played into her pregnancies, and why knowing your rights in birth matters so deeply. Esther was committed to taking care of her own health and the health of her babies by doing whatever it took to birth in the way that felt safest to her. Her stories are honest, brave, and full of determination!

**This episode discusses miscarriage, medical trauma, and infant loss. As The VBAC Link Podcast is storytelling by nature, we believe informed decision-making comes from hearing all types of birth after cesarean stories as told by women themselves. We encourage birthing with a supportive, qualified professional, but also recognize that some women give birth without providers for personal or situational reasons. Please take care while listening.**

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We are so excited to welcome back our favorite registered dietician and bestselling author, Lily Nichols! Lily is here to chat with us about her third book, Real Food for Fertility. She explains how while the title focuses on fertility, this book goes far beyond that, diving into how nutrition supports hormone health and overall well-being at every stage of life.

Meagan and Lily talk about nutrition before pregnancy, during pregnancy, and even how diet can sometimes (but not always!) affect a baby’s size. Lily also shares her hopes for future research on nutrition recommendations and the important reminder that even small, consistent changes in how we eat can make a meaningful difference. It’s truly never too late to start.

Is it Too Late to Make Nutrition Changes in Pregnancy?

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Is it Too Late to Make Nutrition Changes in Pregnancy?

Institute for Prenatal Nutrition Website

Lily’s Books

Lily’s Freebies

Lily’s Instagram

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Kari joins us today from Huntsville, Alabama sharing her story of two induced but very different births. Her first was an unplanned Cesarean after a 39-week induction and the second was a medically induced VBAC due to preeclampsia. 

With her second baby, Kari saw a new provider who was VBAC supportive, hired a doula, and went to a chiropractor. She also found out that she had a velamentous cord insertion and signs of preeclampsia. Although she was planning for a spontaneous, unmedicated labor, Kari was able to have an empowering experience with Pitocin, an epidural, a delivery, magnesium, a 3rd-degree tear, and a blood transfusion, Kari found deep healing and pride in her VBAC experience.

She and Meagan talk about blood pressure numbers, preeclampsia, the ARRIVE study, how epidurals can help or hinder progress, and navigating the emotions that come when birth unfolds differently than planned. Kari reminds us that birth can be beautiful and healing no matter what twists and turns come about!

The VBAC Link Blog: VBAC With Preeclampsia

ACOG Article: Preeclampsia and Blood Pressure During Pregnancy

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“I want to be the light I wish I’d had in my darkest moments.” 

As we close out Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month, we are sharing Abbie’s two birth stories and honoring the memory of her firstborn, Rowan. Rowan was born prematurely via emergency Cesarean at 29 weeks during the height of COVID and passed several weeks later in the NICU. Abbie shares what it was like to come home from the hospital without a baby, the weight of overwhelming grief, and how self-care has helped her find healing. 

Her second pregnancy was labeled advanced maternal age and considered high risk. With the support of her care team, Abbie went on to have a healthy and empowering VBAC birth at 41 weeks that was filled with joy and deep healing.

Professionally, Abbie is a massage therapist. She shares her tips around things like herbal support, massage therapy, and acupuncture. 

Abbie wants Women of Strength to know that acknowledging fear doesn’t mean we have to act on it. “Be afraid when you’re afraid, but do it anyway— whatever it is. Different baby, different birth.” 

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We are so excited to welcome back our friend, Rachel! She shared her first precipitous VBAC story all the way back in Episode 56. This time, she joins us again to talk about her next two VBACs— one of which included an unexpected diagnosis of gastroschisis and the other surprisingly beginning with PROM (premature rupture of membranes).

Rachel opens up about navigating gastroschisis and how her care team supported her through it. Though she wasn’t sure she’d be able to have another vaginal birth, her provider actually encouraged it as the safest option for baby. Rachel achieved her second VBAC, but had to watch her baby be intubated immediately after birth, hemorrhaged, and was left alone when her husband went to be with their baby. She was thankful for her VBAC, but also deeply traumatized by the scary circumstances. 

With her fourth, Rachel decided to give birth in the hospital. She experienced PROM for the first time, back labor with an OP baby, and had her first sweet baby girl. 

From the prep before to the processing after, each of Rachel’s births were truly their own story. Women of Strength, you are strong enough to handle whatever birth throws your way, and Rachel is a beautiful example of just that.

Gastroschisis Article

Episode 56 Rachel’s First VBAC Story

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Today we’re revisiting one of our earliest episodes — Episode 13 Kelie’s VBA4C in Utah! Our audio quality has come a long way since those early days 😅, but Kelie’s story is still one of our most inspiring.

“Kelie’s VBA4C section story is one of many awe-inspiring moments! She truly has been through it all with each of her cesareans and her VBAC. Her first baby was born weighing less than two pounds, and you will NEVER guess what her doctor did to her during her third C-section that leads to secondary infertility after her fourth birth. You will be laughing, crying, and gasping along with Julie as she reacts to the story. Then, we discuss VBAMC facts, information, and studies that you can find referenced on our blog at www.thevbaclink.com/blog

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Please note, to get stories from all over the country and even other countries, we record using phone lines. For this reason, audio quality may vary between episodes and speakers.”

VBAMC Article

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About her VBA2C, Chloe says, 

“I’ve been dreaming of my VBAC for 8 years. When my HBAC turned into a scheduled CBAC, I wasn’t even sure I’d get the option to have a VBA2C. It took a lot of planning & hard work & I knew as a first time labouring mom that it would be a longer labor but I completely underestimated just how long… 

Dreams came true New Years Eve as fireworks went off & my husband & I welcomed our daughter!”

Chloe’s first birth was a scheduled Cesarean due to a partial placenta previa. For her second, she was planning an HBAC, but after going overdue with no signs of labor, concerns about her baby’s size, and a CPD diagnosis, she had another scheduled Cesarean. 

For her VBA2C baby, Chloe went all in. She connected with supportive providers, leaned into physical prep, and was so inspired from other women’s stories on The VBAC Link Podcast.

Chloe labored hard for almost 3 days and was progressing veryyy slowly. Though it wasn’t what she thought she’d want at 3 cm, she got an epidural and AROM which ended up being incredibly helpful! 

Her midwife even said that she pushed as though she had delivered five babies. Take that, CPD! 💥

After a long 65-hour labor, she pushed for just 15 minutes. We are so proud of you, Chloe!!

Fear Release Activity Video

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