Kat | 2 births, amenorrhea, letrozole, hypnobirthing, homebirth, waterbirth, episiotomy

In today’s episode I’m speaking to Grace about the birth of her son Jude. Grace knew she was going to need IVF to conceive having had both fallopian tubes removed at the age of 22. As a nutritional therapist specialising in fertility she knew exactly what to do to help her and her husband prepare themselves so she talks us through the conception preparation they both undertook before their successful first round of IVF.

Midway through her pregnancy Grace found out she had grade 4 placenta praevia and had no choice but to birth her baby via c-section. Her surgery was booked for 38 weeks but had to be brought forward after a scary antepartum haemorrhage. This was far from the birth she had hoped for and Grace shares how she found both the experience and  her recovery really tough; from the pain following the surgery to a challenging start with breastfeeding.

Grace’s website: https://www.gracekingswell.com/

Grace’s IG: https://www.instagram.com/gracekingswell

My website: www.serenalouth.com

My IG: https://www.instagram.com/serenalouth/

In today’s episode we’re hearing from Jess. As a midwife and one of 10 siblings she was no stranger to the world of birth when she found out she was pregnant. Jess was lucky enough to have continuity of care from an amazing friend and colleague of hers which had such a positive impact on her experience. She chose to give have her baby in the birth centre where she worked. After a long latent phase, she opted for a pethidine injection to allow her to rest for an hour or so. During that time things progressed very quickly and her daughter was born shortly after!

Following her first birth which she describes as the most empowering experience of her whole life, Jess knew she wanted to birth her second baby at home. She admits she became a bit impatient in the final days of her pregnancy, to the point that when her labour began she was in denial it was the real thing, but once her waters broke things moved quickly and it wasn’t long until her son arrived.

My website: www.serenalouth.com
My IG: https://www.instagram.com/serenalouth/

Online Hypnobirthing Course: https://www.serenalouth.com/hypnobirthing 

In today’s episode we’re hearing from Anna about her two vastly different births. She admits she did zero preparation during her first pregnancy, seeing birth as something that simply had to be endured. As a result, when she went in for her induction she had no coping techniques to rely on and ended up having an epidural and forceps delivery. It wasn’t until she took a hypnobirthing course whilst pregnant with her daughter that she realised perhaps things could have gone differently…

During her second pregnancy, Anna threw herself into preparing holistically, exercising, informing herself on her options and managed to totally change her outlook on birth. Her second labour was short, uncomplicated and in her own words; euphoric and transformative. It was so good she went on to train as a hypnobirthing teacher so she could help hundreds of others have positive and empowering experiences like hers.

Anna’s website: https://www.hackneyhypnobirthing.com/
Anna’s IG: https://www.instagram.com/hackneyhypnobirthing

Pregnancy Relaxation info: https://www.instagram.com/p/C2w3JKkqwgc/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Pregnancy Relaxation booking: https://serenalouthbookings.as.me/schedule.php 

My website: www.serenalouth.com
My IG: https://www.instagram.com/serenalouth/

In today’s episode we’re hearing from Ellie who conceived both her little boys via IVF due to primary amenorrhea. She shares how she struggled with anxiety during her first pregnancy, not trusting in her body’s ability to carry a child. Her and her husband moved out of London just weeks before Bowie was born and despite a short hospital stay at 38 weeks due to a hemiplegic migraine, Ellie went on to birth her baby at home.

Her second pregnancy was a very different experience as she dealt with fatigue, PGP and some difficult emotional challenges all whilst mothering a young toddler. Unfortunately hospital restrictions meant that Ellie had to give birth in the labour ward, which was far from her first choice and whilst again she had the unmedicated vaginal birth she wanted, the care she received in the hospital negatively shaped her experience of her second birth

Ellie’s IG: https://www.instagram.com/elliemaeclarke/
Studio Amphora: https://studioamphora.com/ 

My website: www.serenalouth.com
My IG: https://www.instagram.com/serenalouth/

In today’s episode I’m speaking to Phoebe who birthed her daughter at home in Bali. Phoebe and her husband were advised they would probably need to conceive via IVF, but gave themselves a month to relax and have fun before starting treatment. Miraculously their daughter came through that month!

When Phoebe started experiencing contractions on her due date she had no idea that her baby wouldn’t be born for another 80 hours. Whilst labouring with the support of her husband and midwife an old injury resurfaced, leaving Phoebe unable to walk which resulted in a long, tough recovery on crutches after her daughter was born.

Phoebe’s website: https://phoebegreenacre.com/
Phoebe’s IG: https://www.instagram.com/phoebegreenacre/

My website: www.serenalouth.com
My IG: https://www.instagram.com/serenalouth/

Pregnancy Relaxation Sessions: https://www.instagram.com/p/C2w3JKkqwgc/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== 

In today’s episode we’re hearing from Ellie who had her baby whilst living out in LA. Ellie fell pregnant quickly and went on to struggle with anxiety during her first trimester. She shares her fascinating account of navigating the US maternity system where she had difficulty finding midwifery lead care to support the physiological birth she was hoping for. She hired a doula to help her advocate for herself and finally managed at 37 weeks to find a likeminded OB-GYN who supported her choices. Ellie laboured at home for 30 hours before transferring in to the hospital where, after another exhausting 12 hours, she opted for an epidural. When her daughter was born she was rushed off to the NICU and Ellie reflects how with hindsight perhaps this course of action wasn’t entirely necessary.

Ellie’s website: https://www.coupld.co/ 
Ellie’s parenting course: https://www.coupld.co/prebaby-bootcamp 
Ellie’s IG: https://www.instagram.com/coupldco/ 

My website: www.serenalouth.com
My IG: https://www.instagram.com/serenalouth/

In today’s episode we’re hearing from Kat as she shares about the births of her two daughters. She used letrozole to help her conceive her first baby due to amenorrhea and her second was conceived after her first period in 13 years! Despite both babies being born at home, her two births were wildly different experiences; one ended with an episiotomy in an ambulance outside the house and the other in the birth pool with the midwives calmly watching over. We discuss the importance of sharing positive homebirth stories, the power of mother’s intuition and the logistics of homebirthing with an older sibling present.

Kat’s website: https://katarinarayburnyoga.com/
Kat’s IG: https://www.instagram.com/katarinarayburnyoga 

My website: www.serenalouth.com
My IG: https://www.instagram.com/serenalouth/

Upcoming hypnobirthing course dates: https://serenalouth.com/hypnobirthing

In today’s episode we’re hearing from Minnie about the birth of her son Miles. Minnie fell pregnancy quickly and as an active person found the first trimester fatigue difficult. Despite feeling pretty good during the rest of her pregnancy she came up   against some challenges; from her 12 week bloods showing the baby had a high chance of having Down Syndrome to low PAPP-A levels and concerns around the baby’s size in the third trimester. As a result she had frequent monitoring and scans during the final weeks.

Due to the baby measuring small and her increasing blood pressure Minnie was advised to have an induction and she shares her decision making process that ultimately led her to choose a planned c-section for the birth of her son.

Minnie’s website: https://www.minniesamengoyoga.com/

Minnie’s IG: https://www.instagram.com/minniesamengoyoga/

My website: www.serenalouth.com

My IG: https://www.instagram.com/serenalouth/

In today’s episode we’re hearing from Lucy as she shares her experience of birthing her daughter Freya. Her labour began when her waters broke dramatically at home one night. Her surges were irregular and remained so for the next 24 hours so eventually she was advised to have her labour augmented with a syntocin drip which she found intense but manageable. Despite accepting some interventions that Lucy hadn’t planned or hoped for she feels she had a really positive birth experience using only gas and air and the bath for pain relief. She found the water to provide huge amounts of relief and she went on to birth her baby in the pool with the support of her partner and lots of cheerleading from the midwives.

Lucy's website: https://www.lucyrowland.co.uk/ 
Lucy's IG: https://www.instagram.com/lucyrowland.yoga/ 

My website: www.serenalouth.com
My IG: https://www.instagram.com/serenalouth/
Apply to be a guest on Birth Tales: https://serenalouth.com/bt-application 

In today’s episode I’m chatting to Kim about her amazing homebirth. Kim fell pregnant a little faster than she expected and quickly decided homebirth was the best option for her and her baby. She threw herself into birth prep - reading books, listening to podcasts and seeing a women’s health physio - which she found to all be very empowering.

When her labour started at 4am her contractions came on thick and fast from the beginning. She used active birthing positions, gas and air and the birth pool to help her through her surges and Indie was born after an intense 9 hours of labour. Kim opted for a physiological third stage and delayed cord clamping before snuggling up for some lovely skin to skin with her newborn at home.

Kim’s website: https://kimhartwell.com/ 
Kim’s IG: https://www.instagram.com/kimhartwell/ 
Humum: https://www.instagram.com/iamhumum/

My website: www.serenalouth.com
My IG: https://www.instagram.com/serenalouth/