With Love Mama

From 3cm to 9cm in 10 Minutes: The Birth I Never Expected What happens when you prepare for birth, keep an open mind and still find yourself experiencing something you never could have imagined? In this episode of With Love Mama , we’re sharing one first time mum’s unexpected journey into motherhood. She went into labour expecting an epidural. But when she discovered she had progressed from 3cm to...

Building strength in pregnancy isn’t just about exercise it is about training and it’s about supporting your changing body, preparing for birth and laying the foundations for your postpartum recovery. 🤍 In this episode of With Love Mama, I’m joined by Natal Strength Coach (Jo Lavin) to talk about strength training through pregnancy and postpartum, what movement can look like during these differen...

You’ve probably started your hospital bag checklist. You’ve bought the baby clothes, researched what to pack and made sure you’ve got all the postpartum essentials ready. But what if I told you that your hospital bag is one of the least important things you can prepare for? In this episode of With Love Mama , I’m challenging the way we approach birth preparation especially as first time mums. Beca...

What do the first 24 hours after birth actually feel like? Everyone prepares you for labour and birth but what happens once your baby is actually here? In this episode, we’re talking honestly about the first 24 hours after giving birth and what you can really expect as a first time mum. From the surreal moment you meet your baby, the first breastfeed and those first newborn noises, to postpartum b...

Have you ever heard of subcutaneous emphysema? Three births. Two VBACs and one incredibly rare complication that she never saw coming. After her first birth ended in an emergency caesarean following 15 hours of labour and foetal distress, she went into her second birth determined to have a VBAC. She did except this birth was anything but straightforward. Her second labour involved bleeding, two ho...

This is the story of my second birth a 70-minute labour and birth at home , completely unmedicated and physiological. After my first birth was also an unmedicated water birth, I knew I wanted to birth at home again but this labour unfolded incredibly quickly. From the beginning of active labour to meeting my baby girl was just 70 minutes! I share what made this birth so beautiful for me: no medica...

What happens when pregnancy suddenly becomes high-risk and you’re living rurally, far from immediate medical care? In this episode, we hear one mother’s powerful journey through gestational hypertension, preeclampsia and the terrifying moment she nearly lost her baby at just 31 weeks. From intensive rural maternity care and an induction at 39 weeks, to a MET call and two hours in a hypertensive cr...

Breastfeeding is often painted as something that should just come naturally but what happens when it doesn’t? In this episode, I’m sharing the honest and raw reality of my breastfeeding journey with my second baby. From pain, sensitivity and latch struggles to supply worries, pumping, combination feeding and the emotional rollercoaster that comes with it all. No perfection, just the truth about my...

Pregnancy asks so much of the body but postpartum asks even more. In this episode, I’m joined by Clare Ramirez from Wildflower Medicine for a deeply nourishing conversation about pregnancy, postpartum depletion and what our bodies truly need during the transition into motherhood. We talk about why so many women arrive at postpartum already depleted, what happens when we don’t adequately replenish...

Hey mamas, I’m officially 2 weeks into 2 under 2. Let me share my experience, thoughts, feelings from the past 2 weeks. It’s honestly just a raw convo in so many directions today touching on how this postpartum experience is so different, postpartum with a toddler, navigating becoming a second time mum. Follow my Instagram for more doula / pregnancy content through the week! ⁠@tanikalace⁠ Follow m...

Your due date arrives and your baby isn’t here. For many mums, the due date can start to feel like a finish line like a date you’ve been counting down to for nine months. But what happens when you cross it? In this episode, I’m sharing my experience of being “overdue” in pregnancy and what it felt like emotionally to move beyond my due date and into the unknown. We’re talking about the mental shif...

5 Things Worth the Money From a Doula What are the things that are actually worth spending money on during pregnancy, birth and postpartum? In this episode, I’m sharing 5 things I genuinely think are worth the investment as a doula and mum from pregnancy essentials to postpartum support and products that can make those early days with a newborn that little bit easier. Just practical recommendation...

Welcome to another episode of the podcast mama and we are joined again by Dr Chelsea Mill! Is your baby posterior (sunny-side up) ? Wondering if there's anything you can do during pregnancy to encourage your baby into a more optimal position for birth ? In this episode, I'm joined by a pelvic floor osteopath to unpack one of the most common questions expecting mothers ask: Can I help my ba...

After being diagnosed with gestational diabetes in the third trimester, this pregnancy shifted from low risk to high risk almost overnight. Suddenly, every appointment centred around blood sugar levels and recommendations for intervention. In this honest and vulnerable conversation, we unpack what it really felt like to navigate the gestational diabetes diagnosis and the decisions that ultimately...

Whether you're feeling amazing or still wondering when the "pregnancy glow" is supposed to arrive, the second trimester brings a whole new chapter of pregnancy. In this episode, I'm walking you through exactly what every first time mum needs to know during weeks 13-27 of pregnancy . As a pregnancy and postpartum doula, I'm sharing practical, informed guidance to help you unde...

Whether you're planning an elective caesarean birth or simply want to feel prepared for every possible birth outcome, this episode is one every first time mum should hear. Too often, caesarean births are spoken about as something to fear or something that has "gone wrong." The truth is that with the right preparation, education and support, a caesarean birth can be calm, connected, e...

What happens when your waters break at 34 weeks but your body and baby aren't ready for labour yet? In this birth story episode, I sit down with a mama who shares her experience of preterm prelabour rupture of membranes (PPROM) , navigating an unexpected change from her planned home birth to a hospital birth while remaining deeply connected to her intuition and birth preferences. Together, we...

If you're pregnant with your first baby, chances are Hollywood has shaped more of your beliefs about birth than you realise. From dramatic waters breaking in the supermarket to women screaming through every contraction, movies and TV have created a version of labour that is entertaining but often far removed from how physiological birth actually unfolds. In this episode, I'm breaking down...

Just found out you're pregnant? First of all congratulations !!! Second… now what? If you're a first time mum wondering what to do after a positive pregnancy test, you're not alone. The moment you see those two pink lines, life changes in an instant but nobody really talks about everything that comes next. In this episode, we're diving into the real first trimester experience beyon...

If someone told you birth could feel pleasurable, would you believe them? For most women, the words orgasmic birth sound impossible, confronting or even unbelievable. We've been taught that birth is something to fear, endure and survive not something that could feel powerful, ecstatic or deeply pleasurable. In this episode, I'm joined by Debra Pascali-Bonaro , the creator of the Orgasmic B...

The moment you find out you're pregnant, the advice begins. What supplements should you take? Which birth class should you choose? Should you create a birth plan? What should you eat? How should your baby sleep? What pram should you buy? Suddenly, everyone has an opinion and before you've even met your baby, it can feel like you're already getting motherhood wrong. In this episode, we&...

You’ve been researching homebirth, listening to birth stories and feeling a pull toward birthing in your own space. But every time you bring it up, your partner seems hesitant, worried or completely against the idea. If you’re feeling torn between honouring your instincts and wanting your partner’s support, this episode is for you. In this conversation, we’re exploring why homebirth can feel so co...

In this powerful birth story episode, I sit down with a first-time mum who shares her incredible 33 hour labour journey through the Midwifery Group Practice (MGP) program. From labouring at home for most of her birth, to discovering her baby was posterior, navigating intense back labour and eventually facing a vacuum assisted birth and episiotomy afte and raw yet inspiring. Together, we explore th...

Most first-time mums spend months preparing for birth- the hospital bag, the birth plan, the breathing techniques, the playlists but today we speak about what you need to prepare AFTER. Postpartum isn’t a short recovery period or an afterthought to “just get through.” It is a profound physical, emotional and identity shift that begins the moment your baby is born. Yet, so many women enter it exhau...

If you're a first-time mum preparing for labour and birth, this episode is for you!! As a doula, I've supported women through pregnancy, labour, birth and postpartum, and there are a handful of things I wish every first-time mother knew before labour begins. Not the generic advice you'll find on social media but the practical, reassuring truths that can completely change how you experi...