Welcome to The Birth and Postpartum Diaries - a place where Mamas share their authentic stories of pregnancy, birth and beyond, and where I interview experts in order to help Mamas, and Mamas to be, navigate this crazy and beautiful season of their lives.
In this short episode, I explain why the podcast is still on break and why it will stay on break for the foreseeable future.
Thank you so much for being a loyal listener, I sincerely hope I am able to bring you more episodes sometime soon!
Jade
In today's episode of the show, Sandra shares her story of two quite different postpartum experiences. The first, was in lockdown in Victoria, which proved to be quite a lonely and difficult experience. Sandra openly and honestly shares what it was like to not be able to breastfeed her son as she had planned to, and how she was not provided the level of education and care she would have hoped for as a first time Mum.
Her second postpartum experience was quite a contrast, as she knew what to expect, especially in terms of post-caesarean recovery. She also spent time educating herself more about breastfeeding and had a much more positive feeding experience second time round. Sandra also talks about the importance of having more support postpartum, as she had more help from her mother the second time round. This made a huge difference in terms of taking care of the household, so that Sandra was able to focus more on taking care of her toddler and her newborn.
I'm sure you will love today's episode as much as I loved hearing Sandra's story.
In today's episode of the show, I speak to Sandra who shares her two birth stories - one unplanned caesarean and one planned. Sandra also discusses what it was like moving back to Melbourne from Sydney in the middle of lockdown and how that affected the choices she made for her maternity care.
Hey there!
I'm just letting you know that the show is taking a short break - I'll be back very soon with new stories, special guests and experts!
If you would like to request any episodes or if you would like to share your story, please reach out on instagram @thebirthandpostpartumdiaries
Sending love and warmth,
Jade
In today’s special episode of the show, I speak to Vaughne Geary who is a nautropath, postpartum doula and one half of Mama Goodness. For someone who is so young, Vaughne has achieved so much and is someone I find so inspirational!
In our conversation, Vaughne explains what a doula is, why they’re important and why their services are becoming more popular (and in many cases, more crucial for Mother-wellbeing) in the birth and postpartum space. We also discuss why she chose to become a doula and how it intertwines with her work as a naturopath and business woman.
We chat about her new book (Life After Birth) that she co-wrote with Jess Prescott (which is a must-have for postpartum), prenatal and postnatal nutrition, and Vaughne provides some top tips for supporting people in the postpartum period.
I absolutely loved chatting to Vaughne and learned so much from our conversation. If you’re about to enter postpartum or have friends or family who are about to enter this phase, this episode is well worth a listen. As always, if you enjoy the show please share it with a friend or family member who you think would benefit from tuning in 🤍
You can find Vaughne here:
Vaughne’s Instagram
vaughne’s website
mamagoodness.com.au
In today’s episode I have Niki back to share her postpartum journey so far. Niki describes the immediate postpartum as peaceful, as she birthed at home and was surrounded by people she loved and felt cared for by.
Niki speaks about the transition to motherhood and how it took a while to adjust to the new life and new way of being. Niki and her partner Michael took a teamwork approach to parenting, and due to lockdowns, were able to spend a significant amount of time together as a family of three in the first 18 months of Elsa’s life.
We discuss the transition back to work, along with Niki’s breastfeeding and subsequent weaning journey (and so much more). Niki eloquently shares her story and reminds us of the importance to using your intuition when it comes to parenting so I’m sure you’ll love listening in 💕
In today’s episode of the show I speak with Niki who shares her pregnancy, labour and birth story. Niki lives in Thailand and after falling pregnant towards the end of 2019 decided she wanted to have a home birth in Australia, which is where her husband Michael is from.
As we all know, Covid spread in 2020 which led to lockdowns and border closures. This meant that Niki and Michael had to rush back to Australia and essentially spent the last few months of her pregnancy in isolation. Niki shares what it was like navigating the challenges of lockdown, along with how she used breath, movement and sound to have a positive, unmedicated home birth.
Niki has a magical way of describing her journey and also has an incredible outlook on life, so I’m sure you’ll enjoy listening in to this episode.
Today I have Emma back to share her postpartum experience. As you may recall from the last episode, Emma is a solo Mum by choice and shares her experience of parenting with a different style of support system.
Emma says she went into postpartum with balanced expectations, however felt intense pressure to be a perfect mother with a perfect baby, as she had worked in childcare and a nanny for most of her life. She describes what it was like when her son wasn’t doing the things that she expected a baby to do, and quickly had to change the plan and lean into a parenting experience that was different from what she had envisioned.
Charlie struggled with sleeping flat and faced several health issues in the early months of his life, which meant that Emma endured over 6 months of incredibly rocky sleep. These sleep challenges led to Emma eventually deciding to attend Masada baby and mother unit, which she describes as life changing!
If you’re having a tough time with your baby’s sleep, Emma’s story might provide some solidarity. Either way, it’s well worth the listen as she provides great insights into solo parenting, along with some great tips that have helped her along the way.
In today’s episode of the show I speak to Emma who shares her preconception, pregnancy and birth story. Emma decided to become a solo Mum by choice, and chose to use ICSI to conceive her son Charlie. The journey was long, and as Emma openly shares - expensive, but was of course well worth it in the end!
There were a few twists and turns (as there almost always are) during the birth of her son, but overall Emma describes her birth as a positive experience. This story is inspiring and insightful, especially for those who may be considering becoming a solo parent by choice.
“Western culture pretends our little ones need us less than they do”
In today’s episode, I have Sammy back to share her postpartum experience so far.
We cover a lot of ground and discuss things such as:
We also talk about the challenge of not having family around, which has led to Sammy having what she describes as an “immersive parenting” experience. As I mentioned in the last episode, Sammy has a beautiful way of describing her experience, it is truly a pleasure to listen to her story so I know you will love it!
If you’re interested in the books that Sammy mentions, they are listed below:
The Nurture Revolution - Greer Kirshenbaum
Safe Infant Sleep - James McKenna
In today’s episode I speak with Sammy about what she describes as her “magical” home birth experience. We chat about her decision to switch from birthing at a birth centre to birthing at home, the importance of feeling safe throughout pregnancy (and birth) and why it’s important to trust yourself, your baby and your body.
Sammy also highlights why it’s key to protect yourself from negative people and comments while pregnant, and describes how creating a peaceful, calm and dark birth space, helped her birth her daughter Ayla into the world. Sammy has a beautiful way of articulating her experience, so I’m sure you’ll enjoy listening in!
In today’s episode I am joined by Bec who shares her postpartum journey with two premature babies who both had to spend some time in the special care unit.
Bec speaks about the challenge of being discharged from hospital without her baby, along with the struggles she faced with breastfeeding premmies who hadn’t quite developed their suck, swallow and breathe skills yet.
She also speaks about the intense emotions she and her partner experienced when they received a phone call letting her know her baby had stopped breathing.
Bec is such a bubbly and positive ray of sunshine and reminds us of the power of optimism even when it seems like nothing is going your way. I was close to tears hearing Bec’s story and I’m sure that no matter where you are on your journey, her story will be inspiring and educational.
In today’s episode I speak to Bec who shares the story of the pregnancy, labour and birth of her two sons Callum and Charlie who were both born premature. Callum was born at 35 weeks and Charlie was born at 32 weeks.
Bec is a type 1 diabetic and explains how that affected her pregnancy and her choice when it came to her prenatal and birth care. Both her births were quick and she shares how in hindsight it was funny how unprepared she was!
Bec also openly shares her experience with miscarriage, something that is quite common, but is often hidden and not spoken about.
I’m sure you’ll love this episode as much as I enjoyed recording it!
In today's episode I have Amy back to share her postpartum story. Amy shares how panicked, stressed and out of her depth she felt in the immediate postpartum phase as everything was new and unfamiliar.
She speaks about the monumental identity shift that comes with becoming a mother and how in the loneliness of postpartum-life, she mourned her old-self and her previous life. Amy also talks about the challenge of having very little support from family (as they don’t live locally) and how her and her partner worked as a team to ensure they were both feeling physically and mentally ok.
Finally, Amy reminds us that “no matter how hard it is, it is worth it” which is such a beautiful sentiment and one that resonates deeply for me (and perhaps for you as well).
In today’s episode of the show I speak to Amy who shares her pregnancy, labour and birth story. Amy explains what life was like pre-baby - lots of travel, a strong focus on herself, her career and her training - and how things changed when she became pregnant, and subsequently entered motherhood.
She speaks about her preconception journey and after long term use of the contraceptive pill, how she took the time to get her cycle back and eventually conceive her daughter Lallie.
Amy also speaks about how stressed and anxious she was in her pregnancy and how she managed big emotions. The birth of Lallie was very quick and unexpected and Amy shares how it felt to be at work and training in the gym one day and becoming a mother the next!
There are so many amazing lessons that Amy so generously shares in this episode so I’m sure you’ll enjoy listening in.
In today’s episode I have Ash back to share her postpartum experience so far. We both had a bit of “mum brain” and go on a few tangents, but we did cover some key topics including:
Also…we may mention a yoga teacher training that we are running later in the year, you can find more info here
If you want to get in touch with Ash you can find her on IG here
#whatwasthequestion
In today’s episode I have Bronte back to share her postpartum experience so far.
She openly shares all the details of her third degree tear recovery, including how it affected her sex life, speaks about her postpartum hemorrhage, her successful breastfeeding journey so far, along with the importance of setting boundaries in the postpartum period.
Bronte has such a positive attitude and also shares her easy going approach to parenting and the decision she and her partner have made to try to keep things as chill and simple as possible.
As I mentioned in the last episode, Bronte has such a great sense of humour, so I’m sure you’ll be smiling your way through this episode!
In today’s episode I speak to Bronte about her pregnancy, labour and the birth of her son Leo. Bronte conceived quite quickly and opted for public care at her local hospital in Bendigo.
She speaks about her experience of the typical pregnancy symptoms, such as nausea and reflux, along with a bout of sciatica which she was able to get on top of.
Bronte had planned to have a low (or no) intervention birth, but as she jokingly shares, things don’t always go to plan and she ended up having an episiotomy, an assisted birth (with forceps) and a third degree tear.
Bronte has a wicked sense of humour and I found myself laughing along with her as she openly shared her story.
On today’s episode of the show I speak to my dear friend Ash about her pregnancy, super-long labour and birth.
Ash admits that pregnancy wasn’t what she had expected and openly shares her struggles with nausea, pelvic girdle pain, severe insomnia and prenatal anxiety.
She is a big believer in therapy and found it to be particularly helpful as she navigated pregnancy and started to look ahead to not only her impending birth, but to her future as a mother. This process included grieving the past self and the “old Ash” - saying goodbye to many of the things that were familiar and hello to an unfamiliar, challenging, but beautiful new way of life.
Ash also discusses the importance of yoga and staying active in pregnancy, why we must learn to surrender as we move through pregnancy, birth and beyond, and why support from friends and family is critical as you move through this period.
This story serves as a reminder for anyone who is struggling with anxiety or depression to seek help from a trusted medical professionals or to call Lifeline on 13 11 14.
You can connect with Ash on IG:
https://www.instagram.com/ashleigh.jade.dickinson
In today's episode Elly is back to share her postpartum journey so far.
Elly shares her experience with breastfeeding, including a mastitis scare, how she's navigated sleep deprivation, what support systems she had in place for the fourth trimester, how she's been able to nourish herself to support her recovery and so much more!
Elly also shares practical advice on how to eat well in the postpartum period so that you and your family can thrive.
You can find Elly on instagram and on her website:
IG: https://www.instagram.com/nutritionelly
Website: https://www.nutritionelly.com/
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