Doing It At Home: Our Home Birth Podcast

How does one go from being unsure about being pregnant to planning a home birth and then on the path to becoming a midwife? Well our DIAH mama in today’s birth story can and does answer that question for us by sharing her incredible story of bringing her daughter Selah earthside.

How do we move the conversation and care of birth forward? In this episode, we chat with Afua Hassan, Afua is the founder, owner and licensed midwife of The Birthing Place in Houston, Texas. Her philosophy in her practice is that the mother is the captain, the partner is the co-captain and she is the advisor. In this conversation we talk about what is normal in birth and its variations, the fear women have around birth and racism in birth healthcare.

What’s more important - your children or your marriage? Well, sorry to disappoint, but we’re not going to answer that question. Because that’s not our business and we’re not here to tell you how to live your life. We respect and honor the variations of normal and the family dynamics that work best for each of you. So we’ll leave how you feel about that question and how you answer it up to you.

How do you cope with the potential frustrations of things not going according to plan? Today we’re jumping back into conversation with Brooke Nielsen, a DIAH mama from episode 111 where we talked about her preparation for a home birth with her first baby. We get to hear about the weeks leading up to birth and some changes that shifted some things around a bit. Like baby being in a breech position and not flipping.

What do you need to do to prepare for a home birth? In this episode, we’re taking a “WHOLE-istic” approach to a home birth checklist. So yes, we cover the supplies and gear and equipment (which we have the full list of on our website with the episode). We talk about setting the scene and prepping the space for you birth. And then we a take a turn and talk about some of the deep, gritty stuff like emotional, mental, spiritual preparation with your birth partner and then with yourself.

Can too much exercise during pregnancy become a detriment to your birth experience? We wouldn’t presume to give you a definitive answer to this question because frankly it’s not our place and we’re not the experts of your physical body, pregnancy, preferences or life experience. This is a question we explored with today’s guest Deb Flashenberg, founder and director of the Prenatal Yoga Center in New York.

You know how they say babies have their own timelines and agendas when it comes to their births? Well in this episode, we’re digging into some past news stories of babies who have arrived in some unique locales. And they’re not hospitals, birthing centers or planned home births!

How do you process when things don’t go the way you planned in your birth? We deconstruct this question with mamas Amy and Mallory Caldwell in today’s episode by taking it back to the beginning of their pregnancy journey. Both Amy and Mallory knew that they’d like to carry children at some point in their marriage and growing their family. So for their first, they made the decision for Mallory to go first as the gestational parent.

In today's episode we answer listener email and discuss having the birth that you want, no matter where it takes place.

How can we view our challenges around pregnancy, birth and parenthood as gifts? Take trying situations and circumstances and turn them into lessons of empowerment and gratitude? This is part of the discussion on the podcast today with our guest Jennifer Griffin. Jennifer has a background in counseling psychology that she has brought into her current work of running her website Spiritual Gift Institute, writing multiple books and being a mother to 4 children.

Why did you choose home birth? Or any of your birth plans? There are usually a collection of motivating factors that go into creating the birth vision you have in mind. So after talking to a lot of amazing mamas on the show and reflecting on some of our own intentions for our birth, we decided to dedicate an episode to the reasons why some might choose home birth. This is based on the most common feedback and experiences we’ve heard and talked about on the show.

Have you ever thought about pregnancy being a time to pamper yourself? It’s not something I would typically think about. I mean, you plan for birth, buy all the baby gear, take the classes, etc. But what about a time to give yourself that self-love and care, and even make it a luxurious process? Well that’s what HeHe Stewart creates for her clients in her maternity concierge and doula services. Enjoy the episode!

Was anyone blindsided by the postpartum experience? This is a home birth story with conversation on what can happen after baby arrives and how you can use your empowering birth experience to support you in challenging postpartum times. In this episode we’re chatting with Kristina and Chris Porter, parents to baby Madeline. Fun fact: Madeline and Maya have the same birthday - just one year apart!

How awesome are doulas?! It’s a trick question - because they’re so awesome it’s almost impossible to put into words how awesome they are. We’re celebrating World Doula Week this year by sharing some powerful conversations with doulas in different parts of the country and with different journeys into doula work as well as in practice. Today we have our conversation Sharon Randolph, holistic health practitioner and doula.

Who are some of your heroes in the birth world? We got to chat with one of ours in this episode. Lindsey Bliss, also known as @doulabliss on Instagram - mom of 7 (including 2 sets of consecutive twins), doula, doula trainer, co-director of Carriage House Birth and the author of “The Doula’s Guide to Empowering Your Birth: A Complete Labor and Childbirth Companion for Parents to Be,” shared some of her time with us.