Doing It At Home - The Home Birth Podcast

Have you seen “These Are My Hours” yet? Well if you haven’t, this is your official suggestion and reminder. If you caught our last episode (number 156) - you’ll remember Matthew’s conversation with Scott Kirschenbaum, the creator of the documentary film that shows the process of birth completely through one woman’s perspective. And in today’s episode, I get to speak with this powerful woman and mo...

What if men were just as excited about birth as mothers were? Today is a very special episode. Matthew gets to chat with Scott Kirschenbaum, the director and producer of the new birth documentary film “These Are My Hours,” an intimate immersion into one woman’s experience of giving birth. The film is told and viewed completely through the perspective of the birthing mother Emily (whom we are inter...

When is the best time to wean? And how do you know when to begin? And if I do it too early will it mess up my baby forever? And why am I feeling so conflicted about it?? Chances are if you’ve weaned your kid, most or all of these questions went through your head. After 21 months of breastfeeding we’re beginning the weaning process with baby Maya, and it’s been an interesting journey to say the lea...

Who has experienced their ups and downs throughout pregnancy? Our DIAH for today’s birth story is not shy about sharing the fact that pregnancy can be an emotional time. For Chanté and her husband Patrick, they were finishing school, starting their chiropractic practice and moving. And oh hey, yeah - preparing for a baby! Chanté shares with us when she first learned about home birth and a number o...

What are your thoughts on cannabis usage during pregnancy, birth or postpartum? Maybe you haven’t even thought about it before, or known it was a thing (Sarah and Matthew raise both hands lol). A listener reached out recently and asked us to cover this topic. She was curious about other mamas who have used cannabis and can speak to their experience. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphon...

If your baby is in a breech position, can you still give birth at home? That answer varies from woman to woman and state to state. But breech alone does not need to be a factor that removes all of your options. It’s a variation of normal. And we’re chatting about that today with our guest Paula Schnebelt, Licensed Midwife and the midwife who cared for DIAH mama Brooke Nielsen in the birth story fr...

When is the best time to get pregnant? Are you ready? How do you know when you’re ready? Are you ever really ready? We tackle this topic - with the full intention of simply sharing some of our experience and lessons. Remember - we’re never gonna tell you how to live your lives or what’s best for your family planning! But we do have some reflections on our own journeys, and if some of them resonate...

Did you set intentions for your birth(s)? The last time we spoke with Kayleigh Johnson, DIAH mama from episode 77, she was setting some powerful intentions and visions for her upcoming birth. Today, we get to hear the full birth story! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What do Ali Wong, uncensored birth photos and one of our listeners have in common? They’re all getting talked about in today’s episode! We couldn’t record another episode without mentioning the latest hit Netflix comedy special featuring Ali Wong, titled “Hard Knock Wife.” We talk about how much we appreciate pregnancy, birth and motherhood “real talk” in the mainstream comedy world. Because it’s...

If you have a successful home birth, does that mean the next one is completely free of fear and anxiety? Simple answer: no! Extension to the simple answer: every woman, baby and birth is different and it all depends on a number of things. In today’s episode we’re chatting with Sam Peters, a DIAH vet mama who joined us back in episode 70 to share the home birth story of her son Brooks and how she w...

Alright birth junkies, who is ready for 4 birth stories in one single episode?! Cuz that’s what we have for you today. We’re chatting with student nurse-midwife Shoshanah Blaiss about her journeys in birth. From c-birth to vbac to hbac, Shoshanah walks us through the different elements and situations around each pregnancy and birth. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When did you first learn what Hyperemesis Gravidarum was? For us, it was when Kate Middleton was suffering from it during her pregnancy. But even then we didn’t know much about it or the extent to which it can impact a pregnant mama. Fast forward to one of our recent episodes, number 136, where we interviewed Jennifer Griffin about her experiences with HG, and our eyes were really opened. Learn mo...

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. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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 w...

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. Lea...

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...

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...

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 N...

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! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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 g...

In today's episode we answer listener email and discuss having the birth that you want, no matter where it takes place. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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 Insti...

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...

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. En...

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! L...