Keep Birth Wild Keep Birth Wild

In this episode Sophia shares the stories of her two homebirths. Her first birth was long and winding, with many visits from bodyworkers and a hospital visit in an effort to spur along labour after her waters broke, eventually ending in the safe deliver of her son Abel after five days. Her daughter, Bowie was born 20 months later, and her experience of labour the second time around is very different, with it being very fast and powerful.
Sophia is interviewed by Indi as part of the handover of the podcast, as Sophia will be taking over as host of the Keep Birth Wild Podcast in an effort to bring back much needed story-telling medicine.
Sophia is a doula working in Naarm (Melbourne) and living with her two children in the bushy hills along the Birrarung. She speaks about her journey into Rites of Passage and Ceremony as a space holder for expecting and new parents. Her deep belief in the healing properties of community lead her to this work and she hopes that the more we speak about birth as a normal physiological experience, the less we have to fear from it.
Sophia Grant - Sophiagrantdoula
Lisa Wraith - Mimosa Midwifery
Robbie - Essence Midwifery
Steffi Arvanitakis - Sacred Ways of Being

In this episode Jess shares the stories of her two births. Both of her pregnancies were unplanned but very lovingly received. Her daughter was born in hospital, and although the birth was relatively straight forward, Jess describes the experience as traumatic and a catalyst for choosing a very different model of care for her next birth.
During her next pregnancy she explored several options for homebirthing, and opted to have the birth attended by a birthkeeper. She describes the whole experience as an exercise in tuning in to her own intuition and exercising autonomy over her choices.
Jess runs a wonderful women’s circle in the Yarra Valley, and you can follow her on instagram @welcometojessland to find out more about how to access her circle and her new offerings as they unfold.
 
Photos by Mother Mehndi
 
Ten Moons by Jane Hardwicke Collings
The Down to Earth Birth Book by Jenny Blyth
Newborn Mothers by Julia Jones
The Fourth Trimester by Kimberly Ann Johnson

In this episode Sarah shares the story of her second birth with her son Freddie. You can find Sarah’s first birth story all the way back in Episode 1, so be sure to head back and listen to that one first if you haven’t done so already.
After sharing Freddie’s fast and furious birth, Sarah goes on to talk about postpartum, tandem breastfeeding, and what she envisions for her next birth.
You can find Sarah on instagram @simplifyfit

Martina is a Mum of 3 crazy, fun, loving and uber cheeky kids! She is a midwife, runs Calmbirth courses, and has just completed her IBCLC certification. She offers her full spectrum services through her business, Hey Baby! Birth & Breastfeeding Support.
In this episode Martina shares the stories of her three beautiful homebirths and her breastfeeding journey through her baby raising years. She brings a unique perspective through her expertise in all things birth and breastfeeding!
 
Martina recommends:
Birth with Confidence by Rhea Dempsey.
Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering by Sarah Buckley.
Give Birth like a Feminist by Milli Hill.
The Midwives Cauldron podcast
The Aware Parenting Podcast
And this Episode of Rockstar Birth Magazine with Sarah Buckley: https://podtail.com/da/podcast/rockstar-birth-radio/ep02-dr-sarah-buckley-undisturbed-birth/
 
You can find Martina on instagram here.
 
Support Keep Birth Wild on Patreon here.

Janelle and her husband are farmers, growing avocados, beef cattle and a market garden. She is religious and after many years of feeling that she may not want children, she left the decision to start a family to God, and conceived not long after. In this episode she shares the story of her pregnancy and birth with her son. Janelle’s birth was overall a positive and life changing experience.
Her favourite books she would recommend for expecting parents are Sarah Buckley’s Gentle Birth Gentle Mothering and Rhea Dempsey’s Birth With Confidence.

Jana Woodhouse is a Melbourne based homebirth, newborn and maternity photographer. Her work captures the beauty of birth and pregnancy and the magic of fresh babies earth side. In this episode Jana shares the stories of her own three births.
Her first birth experience was through the caseload midwifery program at Casey Hospital, where despite developing preeclampsia at 38 weeks she was still about to labour spontaneously and have an unmedicated vaginal birth. Jana left that birth feeling proud, but also traumatised by the way she was treated during the birth by hospital staff.
For Jana’s second birth she opted for care through an obstetrician. She describes the thoughtful, hands-off and attentive trust from both her obstetrician and the midwives who attended the birth.
During her third pregnancy, Jana had persistent bleeding and a miscarriage scare. She explored several care options through her pregnancy and ended up having a beautiful birth at home with a private midwife.
You can find Jana on instagram @janawoodhousebirthandbabies
Visit the episode web page at https://www.keepbirthwild.com.au/episodes/45-jana-woodhouse-