Today I'm joined by Maddie who lives in Queensland with her husband Nicholas and their three beautiful boys - Oscar (who they affectionately call Ozzy) and five-month-old twins, Angus and Archie.

In this episode, Maddie shares her remarkable journey from a traumatic emergency cesarean with her first son to achieving a successful twin VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean). She opens up about navigating a challenging first pregnancy while working in the Northern Territory away from her husband, dealing with high blood pressure, and experiencing a car accident at 28 weeks that led to a partial placental abruption.

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Looking for an engaging and educational way to entertain your little one? You need to check out Kiwi Co. Kiwi.Co offer bi-monthly subscription boxes designed for babies ages 0 right up to teens. Offering open-ended, research-backed projects that encourage curiosity and hands-on play. Each crate is packed with high-quality, safe activities that help build essential skills while creating special bonding moments. With projects designed for repeat use, KiwiCo provides a wonderful alternative to screen time and makes learning fun for you and your child.

KiwiCo offers five different clubs covering science, engineering, art, and math, making it easy to find a subscription tailored to your child’s age and interests. With no commitment required, you can pause or cancel anytime. For a limited time, get up to 50% off your first crate by using promo code BIRTHSTORIES at KiwiCo.com.

Give KiwiCo’s Panda Crate a try and inspire your little one’s creativity, confidence, and love for learning.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s Perinatal Mental Health Week and in this episode, I chat with Julie Birkendorf, the CEO of PANDA (Perinatal Anxiety and Depression Australia). One in five new mums, and one in 10 new dads will experience a mental health challenge in postpartum so conversations like this one are vital to raising awareness and minimising stigma. Julie nods to the importance of realistic expectations in parenthood and explains how important it is to pay attention to any new symptom or feeling and reach out for support without delay. If you’re pregnant or in postpartum, you’ll feel comforted by this conversation. It’s also always nice to know that if you need someone to talk to, they’re only a phone call away.
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If you’ve been eyeing a beautiful nursery update, now is the time to make it happen!
We’ve partnered with iL Tutto for an exclusive Black Friday offer for our Australian
Birth Stories listeners.

Starting now, you can access a pre-sale 20% off iL Tutto's luxurious Trend
Collection—including their iconic Electric Nursery Chairs in super-stylish Teddy
Fleece fabric. These are the same cosy, premium chairs loved by none other than
influencer Sarah’s Day! Just use the code Presale20 at checkout, but act fast—the
offer ends 11:59 PM on Tuesday, November 19th.

And here’s the kicker: If you’re looking at something beyond their Trend Collection, iL
Tutto’s full Black Friday sale kicks off on Wednesday, November 20th, with savings
of up to 40% off across their entire nursery range! We’re talking chairs, cots, chests,
CoZee Co-Sleeping Bassinets, and even natural fibre Grow Kindly baby sleepwear.
This sale ends on Sunday, December 1st.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s episode Sonja takes us through her two pregnancies and births but also talks at length about her pelvic pain. She’s been diagnosed with pelvic congestion syndrome which was exacerbated after birth and especially when her menstrual cycle returned. Her symptoms were very similar to a prolapse - a heaviness and dragging sensation in her rectum - but she also experiences sharp, debilitating pain that can last for up to an hour and significantly affects her day to day life. She is planning for a laparoscopy to investigate endometriosis and talks about the importance of specialist care and the comfort she finds in the stories of other women.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s such a pleasure to welcome Heidi back onto the show. You can listen to Heidi’s first two births in episode 126. Today, she shares the journey of her third pregnancy and birth, offering a unique perspective as a nutritionist and dietitian. Heidi opens up about the long road to conceiving her son, Philip, emphasising how important it was for her to feel both emotionally and physically prepared to welcome a new life into her family.

We’re celebrating Spring with a spring time sale!

Enjoy 20% off our online courses:

The Birth Class was $249 now $199

The Birth Bundle was $349 now $279

Discovering Motherhood was $119 now $95

Welcome to the First Trimester was $67 now $53

Just use code ‘SPRING24‘ at checkout.

Hurry – this offer is only valid until 31 October 2024.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You can listen to Beth’s first birth story in episode 254 and today she shares her second pregnancy and birth story - from the perspective of a midwife and a mother. After moving interstate, Beth had two hospitals to choose from and halfway through her pregnancy, intuition dictated she change from one to the other. While she had beautiful care through the midwifery clinic, she talks about the consistent conversations about her ‘big baby’ and she takes us through the process of trusting herself, tuning out of doubtful comments and declining suggestions for growth scans and induction. Her labour was a mental game and Beth details it beautifully, especially the mother/midwife tussle and the profound difference a reassuring, trusting care provider can make to labour progression and a woman-centred birth.
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We’re celebrating Spring with a spring time sale!

Enjoy 20% off our online courses for a limited time.

The Birth Class was $249 now $199

The Birth Bundle was $349 now $279

Discovering Motherhood was $119 now $95

Welcome to the First Trimester was $67 now $53

Just use code 'SPRING24' at checkout.

Hurry - this offer is only valid until 31 October 2024.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sometimes we hear so much about birth - all kinds of births - that we can forget it is a normal, biological process. In today’s episode, Emily’s experience reiterates the ease of physiological birth - both at home with a single baby, and in hospital with twins. She is honest from the get-go when she admits that she wasn’t even sure she wanted to be a parent but we follow her journey of acceptance, the grief of misscarriage, the trust in her body and the preparation she did to lean into her intuition and birth all three babies with a profound sense of faith in her breath and body. If you’re currently in a period of doubt and fear (both very normal experiences in pregnancy), you’ll find so much comfort in this episode.

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What makes The Birth Class so unique?

Instead of learning from one person with one perspective, we’ve gathered nine perinatal health specialists to take you through everything you need to know about labour and birth.

Evidence based information is key to thorough preparation. In The Birth Class you’ll learn from:
5 midwives and an obstetrician, a women’s health physiotherapist, yoga teacher and birth doula.
Listen in your own time and as many times as you like so you understand:

• the process of labour and the hormones involved
• the benefits and risks of interventions
• your pain-relief options
• what happens in an emergency caesarean
• what to expect in the hours after birth
• active preparation for a VBAC

Plus, you’ll be taught practical birth skills that will help you navigate the twists and turns of labour.

The Birth Class is accessible birth education that’s both conversational and wise. Best of all, it will start a conversation with you and your support person so you can both feel prepared and confident to make informed choices; the foundation of a positive birth experience.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s episode Maude takes us through her two pregnancies and births. She moved interstate in her first pregnancy, registered with her local public hospital and had a planned caesarean because her baby was breech. She talks at length about her positive birth experience and the challenges of breastfeeding and being a stay at home mum. When she fell pregnant with her second baby, she accessed psychological support to assist with the transition from one to two babies and it really set her up for a smooth pregnancy. She knew she wanted a VBAC so she takes us through what she did to prepare and how the birth unfolded.

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New Beginnings is an Australian maternity brand dedicated to quality and care, offering thoughtfully designed products that cater to the unique challenges of motherhood and supporting mothers at every step of the journey - from pregnancy to postpartum and beyond.

Tried, tested, and loved by mums, New Beginnings offers a comprehensive range of essentials and is now expanding its range with some new and exciting products to deliver a complete solution for mums.

New Beginnings is offering 15% off for Australian Birth Stories listeners. You can purchase any of their maternity essentials today at newbeginnings.com.au using the promo code ABS15 for 15% off.

You can also find New Beginnings at Baby Bunting, Chemist Warehouse, and other local pharmacies and baby stores. Embrace the beautiful journey of motherhood with New Beginnings.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today's episode, Genevieve shares her first pregnancy and birth and details her postpartum joys and challenges. She embraced her ‘goddess energy’ in her second trimester but by the third trimester, she really felt the physical limitations of carrying a big baby and only being quite small herself. Her waters broke at home and once she arrived at hospital she was hooked up to syntocinon which is when her contractions intensified so significantly that she requested an epidural. It was only once she’d been discharged and was reading her notes that she discovered she’d had an episiotomy and a postpartum haemorrhage and she talks about how this made her feel.

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If you’re pregnant, we encourage you to start thinking about your birth recovery now. You need more support in the fourth trimester (the 12 weeks after birth) than you do in pregnancy which can be surprising to many new mothers. It’s for this reason that Bare Mum began and now they offer a beautiful collection of practical and supportive products to assist your postpartum healing.

All new mums need lower back, abdominal and pelvic floor support after birth. Bare Mum’s Postpartum Briefs gently hold you in the first days and weeks, helping you feel confident. Endorsed by the Australian College of Midwives and the Australian Physiotherapy Association, they offer a unique pocket design so you can insert a warm or cold pack to offer soothing relief and assist with caesarean wound or perineal healing.

Ideal for caesarean and vaginal birth recovery, Bare Mum Postpartum Briefs are soft, stretchy, and supportive, offering you essential post-birth care. They’re a must-have for your hospital bag.

Bare Mum is offering you 15% off storewide with the discount code ABS2024

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.