Her Herd

In today’s episode, we are joined by Matt, who shares his deeply personal journey through pregnancy after loss, the challenges, and the emotional complexities of navigating grief, hope, and the desire to grow their family. Matt's story is one of resilience, vulnerability, and the deep bond he and his wife share as they rebuild after the loss of their daughter, Wren. Pregnancy after loss is a beast...

Welcome to a very special episode of  The Herd  podcast! Today’s episode is unlike anything you’ve heard before, as I sit down with my brother, Tim. Tim and his wife, Sammy, have always faced life's challenges with their trademark "get on with it" attitude, and this conversation is no different. While we’ve always been open with one another, this episode offers a level of candidness and...

Ryan’s story is one of deep vulnerability and honesty, and his unique perspective as a husband and father adds a layer to the conversation that we don't often hear from men. He shares the highs and lows of their IVF journey, the emotional toll of multiple miscarriages, and the weight of grief that can often go unspoken in male experiences of infertility. From the moment Ryan and Ellin learned of E...

Meet Katie Francis: a community champion, advocate, and all-around superstar!  Since founding Bloss Riverina in 2018, Katie has been instrumental in expanding support for families navigating grief after pregnancy loss. Growing up in Downside, a charming regional town near Wagga Wagga, she embraced a lively childhood filled with farm life and mischief. Now, she shares her life in Coolamon, NSW...

Tori is often described as a ray of sunshine, and that couldn’t be more spot-on. Her infectious smile and the genuine joy she radiates when she greets you are just the surface of her true magic. What really sets Tori apart is the way she makes everyone around her feel—it's her superpower. Today, we’re diving into a side of Tori that you might not know as well. She’s not only an exceptional teacher...

Kimmie is the @ruraldietician - but that’s just one of many hats she wears on any given day.  Kimmie is a mum of four, three of which she has living in her home. Kimmie takes us through her journey of how her beautiful family has come to be. Kimmie is warm and kind. She is vulnerable with her story but has summoned a strength, “her Pippa power” to bring this story to life. Honestly I can...

When I first looked at the unedited version of this episode, I was sure it was two episodes, but as I listened, I just could not find a point in which I could cut it in half. As you listen, you you will begin to understand, that what happened in Acacia first two births, really sets you up to understand what happened with her beautiful baby girl Sadie.   Acacia is a mum, wife, and schoolteache...

Clare Hockings is a name you might have heard before, that’s because her, and her love, Farmer Brad met on the little-known Australia tv show Farmer Wants and Wife. Now I can’t speak for Brad, but I have had a chance to have a good chat to Clare, and I have to say the way she met Brad is really the least interesting thing about her. Clare is one hell of a tough rural women, to me she comes across...

When I caught up with Tiarna from @helloblossomsbouquets she was in her third trimester with her fourth baby, a baby girl who she was so excited to welcome. Tiarna is the creative genius behind the incredible blooms you can find in @transwestfuels, and just before your brain goes there THESE ARE NOT SERVO FLOWERS, they are like the most beautiful fresh market flowers you can get. Tiarna’s journey...

Ash’s opening line to me was that she loves babies, and by the end of our conversation. together, I had no doubt about that. Ash lives with her husband and high school sweetheart in (as she described it) sunny gunny Gunnedah NSW, together they have three beautiful babies.    Ash has had three unique and beautiful births, Ash story includes a positive induction, and GP shared care in a ru...

Cait is a primary teacher, wife to Charlie and mum to her incredible little boy Clancy. Clancy does things his way. Literally! – you will understand exactly what I mean when you listen. By the end of this interview, you will also be saying “that’s so Clancy”. When I first met Cait, she said to me “nothing is off limits, I love birth, I love babies and I am a chronic over sharer”. This is one of th...

Welcome to season 3! We couldn’t think of a better person to kick off season three during bereaved parents’ month than Rochelle from @ Rochelle is a mum, wife and incredible rural women deeply embedded in her community. She knows grief and loss more than most people.   Rochelle candidly shares her journey of staring her family. She discusses the loss of Edward, the journey to her son Jock and...

Dr Rachael Knight is the Clinical Director of Riverina IVF Wagga Wagga and Life Fertility Clinic Melbourne. She has been helping couples achieve their dream of having a family for over 20 years. Racheal speaks about this as her passion, and motivator to help people become mums. It’s the way she says it that clearly demonstrates what drives her.  Rachael is an experienced Fertility Specia...

Her Herd presents Katie from Her Herbs (yes Katie I both know that is a bloody mouthful – say it 10 times fast just for fun) a true creative and thoughtful natural therapies solution for rural families.    When I first met Katie, and she was running me through the principles and purpose of her business Her herb she stated that it had been built upon the pillars of accessibility for all....

Sarah is someone who I am incredibly proud to call a friend. Our friendship has emerged out of a surprising place, online through share experience, and mission to support, help, and advocate for rural communities and people.    See Sarah and her husband Steve run the Wish Collective, a small grass roots rural creative solution supporting families going through fertility treatment. The Wi...

Megan is an incredible woman. FULL STOP.    The work she does supporting rural families, the life she has lived, the wisdom she has is INCREDIBLE. Megan is the mother of 5 beautiful boys, she is a wife, a loving grandmother, and an incredible writer.    Megan works in the Hospital to Home program doing the incredibly important work of supporting families who been bereaved after...

Brittany has one hell of a story to tell. If I had to summaries her journey to three beautiful boys in a sentence it would be: “This is the journey of a women who lived and learnt, and from that did it different.” That’s right, from three births Brittany has had three incredibly different experiences. When we initially spoke, we noted that due to the nature of the podcast we didn’t really have tim...

Kate-Lyn and her partner Jack have been working towards building their family together for the last three years. Kate-Lyn a health twenty-three-year-old reach out to me late last year with her story that she felt she needed to share. As I opened her email, while sipping my tea, and sat with my mouth open (catching flies as farmer Chris would say) for what must have been an eternity, until he final...

Words like “warrior” and “survivor” get thrown around a lot these days. I often really struggle using these words in either my personal or professional life because I never want to offend, or upset someone with the words I have chosen to describe them or their journey or story.   However, in this case, I have searched and searched the English language to try and find another word for the incr...

They say dogs are the best judge of characters.    If this is true than there could be no better character than Elle. See Elle is what we have all come to expect of the women in our rural communities, practical, creative, kind, and determined.   Elle generously shares her experience of birthing rurally with her beautiful little boy Henry. Elle a nurse herself, wasn’t quite sure what...

Where do I even start with this episode…   This is the episode to listen to if you have Endometriosis and have ever wonder about how it will affect your fertility.    This is the episode to listen to if you have ever wondered about contraception, and its long term affects and implications on the body.   This is the episode to listen to if you have ever felt discriminated agains...

We had sooo many AH-HA moments with this conversation; strap in because you too are about to have so many … This is the episode for you if you have ever wondered about the connection between, mind, body, and health after having a baby. If you didn’t know what postpartum depletion was before starting this episode your about to learn all about it from the best.  Helen Johnson is a mother t...

In part 2 of this amazing three way conversation, we find out from Ash and Lani how they make it through their grief with Cav to be able to face IVF and pregnancy again. Ash and Lani both speak so well about how their miscarriage affected them individually and as a couple, and how they managed to come back to pregnancy and make it this far. Strap in because this conclusion is well worth the wait....

HOLD ON, because this is a big one – actually it is so big it is a two-part episode (I have tried my best to make it a cliff hanger, but don’t worry there are spoilers throughout). This is a big one because, it’s a three-way conversation. Ash and Lani both generously gave up one of their Saturdays and sat and talked me through their journey to become a family.    I don’t think I can put...

This is the chat to listen to if you’re a rural woman in health. It’s amazing how one experience can change the trajectory of the rest of your career. This is what happened for Jess. A rural physio her whole career took a sharp turn left when she herself needed support and didn’t know where to find it. Fueled by this it is Jess passion to support rural women in pregnancy and birth. I love the way...