Fear Free Childbirth Podcast with Alexia Leachman

When it comes to birth, dads are often left out in the cold. I mean this metaphorically and in reality. During pregnancy, a lot of the focus is on the mum. Dad is often neglected from appointments during pregnancy and a lot of the communications directed towards pregnant couples are actually for mum. Poor dads aren’t really being spoken to in all of this. And yet, they should be. There should be m...

When I was pregnant for the first time, I remember vividly coming back from that first doctor’s appointment. It was the one where the doctor said to me “yes you’re pregnant!”. So now I’m a bit dazed and in shock, and she says to me “well, congratulations! I’ll probably next see you with baby. Good luck!” And I remember thinking WHAT?! What do you mean you’re only going to see me after baby’s born?...

This time last year I was 11 days over my due date so I was never more than a few hours away from hearing the word “induction”. Being an older mum also put my in the high risk category, so I was under some pretty intense pressure to induce from my consultants too. This experienced forced me to educate myself on various aspects of induction; the risks of induction versus the risks of waiting, espec...

When you’re pregnant, you’re bombarded with so much information about what you should and shouldn’t do that it can be hard to have a guilt free day when you can just think about what YOU want. So the last thing I want to do is to add to this cacophany of recommended behaviour during pregnancy, but I’d like to show you a slightly different perspective to things. Today’s podcast is NOT about all the...

This post is inspired by and dedicated to Alia, one of my podcast listeners. I decided to touch base with Alia as I knew she was due around now and she replied to let me know that I was emailing her ON HER DUE DATE! Her little mister still hadn't made an appearance but that she was feeling great and looking forward to the birth. When I was replying to her, I immediately thought of lots of things I...

I'm thrilled to be able to share with you another fabulous positive birth story. Today I'm chatting to Shakira Akabusi all about her pregnancy journey and her birth. Shakira is a personal trainer, fitness coach and a writer and commentator. If you're a Brit, you might recognise her surname; her dad is the former UK athlete and gold medalist Kriss Akabusi, so you could say that she has health and f...

Well, today's podcast is the first one back after my August break and boy am I pleased to be back! I had some great news while I away; I found out that the podcast is a finalist in the UK Podcasting Awards which is amazing! Unfortunately as I was on holiday in places with no wifi and very poor phone reception, I wasn't able to make a huge song and dance about it. The award ceremony is in a couple...

When you're pregnant, the emotional ups and downs that come from having a boost in your crazy hormones can mean that there are days when being pregnant just sucks. Or, there are days when you're just DONE with it. Let me have this baby already! Towards the end of my second pregnancy, this was definitely where my head was at and I knew it wasn't a good place to stay for very long. Feeling frustrate...

In today's podcast I chat to mum of two gorgeous little girls, Laura Morrison. I recorded this conversation with Laura a few months back now and she's just annouced that she's expecting her third... So a huge congratulations! As I was listening to my conversation with Laura again, it really struck me how Laura epitomises the Conscious Mama . Laura used her pregnancy journey to take time to reflect...

When I first found out I was pregnant, I had a bucket-load of what I call, head trash. Head trash is a term I give to those negative thoughts, feelings and emotions that stop you from being at your best, and for me that translated as having a serious amount of deep-rooted fear around all things childbirth. This fear resulted in loads of emotional stress as the countdown timer rapidly approached D...

I truly believe that doulas are the unsung heros of the world; the work they do in supporting mums and dads in bringing their babies into the world is truly magical. The thing is, until you're pregnant, it's quite possible that you will have never come across the work of a doula and might not even know what they do. So as part of my mission in helping women prepare for a fear free birth, I want to...

Meditation is widely known for its fabulous benefits and many people swear by it for helping them get through life. It's known to help calm down negative emotions like stress and anxiety as well as t help promote feelings of calmness and resilience. So it's no surprise that it can help you during your pregnancy journey and to help you prepare for a positive birth experience. But actually it can he...

In this episode I'm thrilled to be able to shre with you another fabulous positive birth story. Today I chat to Emily Haslam-Jones, a pregnancy yoga teacher, who had little Isaac earlier this year. I know Emily from my local Home Birth Group here in Nottingham (UK) and so today's podcast chat is live and in person, as opposed to via Skype. And... we did it with two tiny sleeping babies in the room...

Today's podcast is not just for pregnant mammas; it's for the dads-to-be too! Well, let's not forget that dads have fears too and if we are to prepare for a fear free birth, then we need to help dads to clear their fears too. If dad can be well prepared and fear free for the birth, then he is much better able to be the rock you need him to be during the birth. So, to help me tackle the important s...

In today's podcast I chat to Lisa  Jane Merridue from Doula Mamma who is a Conscious Birthing Doula based in Brighton here in the UK. If you've listened to any of my positive birth stories then you will have heard many of them talk about hiring a doula to help them to prepare for their birth. The thing is not many people know what a doula is, and have maybe never even heard of one. Before I was pr...

We often hear why we should be considering natural birth, but usually this is positioned as something to consider from the mother's perspective. But that's not what I want to talk about here. Instead, I'd like to offer up reasons why we should be thinking about a natural birth but from baby's perspective. What is a natural birth? Well, a natural birth is unmedicated one. That is to say, free of th...

In this week's podcast I'm delighted to share another positive birth story. This week I chat to Belah Rose, who's the host of the Delight your Marriage podcast and the author of the book, Delight your Husband. Belah is a mum of 2 little boys from New York City and she shared her birth story with me when her latest poppet was only 3 months old, so it was all super fresh in her mind. During our chat...

Unfortunately having a fear of childbirth or labour is pretty common but the thing is it needn't be because there are now many techniques available to us that can effectively clear fears. Unfortunately most of these require you to visit (and pay) someone who is not only trained in using them, but can use them well... not always easy! But, today I'm going to share with you a technique that not only...

Staying fit during pregnancy is an important consideration for zillions of reasons, but it's especially important when it comes to preparing for labour and chidbirth. Just as the name implies, labour involves quite a bit of hard work and is demanding both emotionally and physically, so to give yourself the best chance of labour going smoothly, staying fit during pregnancy really needs to be near t...

Well, the time has come for me to share another postive birth story. And today it's a positive natural birth story. One of the best ways to stay in a positive mindset in the lead up to your birth is to immerse yourself in positivity around birth. At least that's what today's mum thinks and that's exactly what she did. Melissa is a mum from my local home birth group who had her little girl a month...

I believe that one of the main sources of fear when it comes to childbirth and labour is fear of the unknown. Given the complex nature of childbirth, now knowing how things may unfold can be pretty scary, especially for first time mums. One way to alleviate these fears is to educate yourself around labour and childbirth. But this too can seem overwhelming at times. There are so many books and so m...

Being pregnant sucks. Well, it can suck; especially if you experience hardcore pregnancy symptoms. And even more so if the pregnancy symptoms just keep on coming, or get even worse. It can feel really frustrating and overwhelming, particularly as you are severely limited in the medication you're able to take. And then when a quick google check or a trip to the doctors tells you that you have to pu...

Hypnobirthing Finding out about Hypnobirthing can be a real turning point for pregnant women. It's a bit like the best kept secret in the world. And if you're lucky, in your pregnancy you might stumble across someone who knows about it and tells you all about it. I found out about Hypnobirthing during my first pregnancy at the end of my first trimester and it stopped me in my tracks. Pain-free? No...

Your due date is wrong! Yep! Well, it might be. In fact, more than likely. How do I know this? Because the EDD - Estimated Due Date - is one of the biggest [lies/disasters/ trick /hoaxes etc] to affect pregnant women today. And, even though people who should know better (doctors, midwives etc), know better, this lie still stands. It’s a bit like the whole Santa thing, but far more damaging. WHAT?...

In today's podcast, I'm super thrilled to be able to share with you a positve birth story. As you know it is my hope to inspire you to have a fear free birth, and for me part of that is to dispel the myth that childbirth is always painful, horrid and traumatic. Fear plays a huge role in creating those kinds of birth experiences and so it's really important to seek out positive stories in the lead...