Pain Free Birth

Have you ever wondered if a twin birth can truly be peaceful, unmedicated, and even pain free? In this powerful episode of the Pain Free Birth Podcast, Karen sits down with Destiny Randolph, a mom of six who has birthed two sets of twins naturally, unmedicated, and in the hospital. Destiny shares the incredible story of conceiving both sets of twins naturally, navigating the mental weight of a “hi...

Did you have a healthy baby, but still feel broken after birth? For decades, women have been told that if their baby is healthy, they should simply be grateful. But what happens when your body, your heart, and your spirit are still carrying the weight of a birth that left you feeling unheard, violated, disappointed, or ashamed? In this deeply personal episode, I unpack the hidden damage behind the...

What if your birth doesn't go according to plan, but becomes even more transformative because of it? In today's episode, actress, filmmaker, and creator Eliana Ghen shares her incredible 42-week induction journey. After being pressured toward an early induction for a suspected IUGR diagnosis, Eliana learned to advocate for herself, trust her body, and ask better questions. That decision...

Can a traumatic birth experience be redeemed, even after years of fear, postpartum struggles, and disappointment? In this powerful episode, Karen sits down with Anna Kroese, a homeschooling mom who shares her journey through three radically different birth experiences. After an induction for suspected IUGR, a difficult breastfeeding journey, and a fast but overwhelming home birth that left her fee...

What if the birth you've been praying for feels impossible according to everyone around you? After five cesarean births, Derika Brown was told over and over that a vaginal birth was out of the question. Doctors dismissed her questions, providers refused to support her, and fear surrounded every conversation about birth. But deep in her heart, she believed God was showing her a different path....

Can you trust your body completely and still acknowledge that medical emergencies sometimes happen in birth? In this episode, Karen shares a perspective she's never publicly discussed before and diving into the recent conversations surrounding free birth, birth emergencies, and the growing divide between the natural birth community and the medical model of care. This conversation is not about...

What would you do if you were 29 days overdue… and everyone around you was afraid? In this episode of the Pain-Free Birth Podcast, Karen sits down with Christine Janicke, a mom of five, who shares her incredible story of carrying her fifth baby to 44 weeks + 1 day before experiencing a beautiful, natural home birth. Christine opens up about the intense mental, emotional, and spiritual journey of w...

Could you trust your body after a traumatic birth experience? In today’s episode, Karen sits down with Connie Johnson, a mom of four from Phoenix, Arizona, who shares her incredible journey from a traumatic military hospital birth and C-section to experiencing three redemptive VBACs—including a completely peaceful, supernatural hospital birth that ended with her baby being born before the doctor e...

What started as a planned unmedicated hospital birth quickly turned into an unexpected free birth on the side of the highway. In this episode, Selina shares the incredible story of giving birth to her posterior baby in the front seat of a truck before ever making it to the hospital. From laboring alone in her bathroom to feeling her baby’s head in her own hand, this story is filled with faith, sur...

What if motherhood isn’t something you’re losing yourself in… but something you’re being reborn through?   We are celebrating 100 episodes of Pain Free Birth! In this episode, we are re-airing a powerful message from Karen on the transformation from maiden to mother and the sacred, often overlooked rite of passage that motherhood truly is.    With Mother’s Day as the backdrop, this conversation ho...

What would you do if your dream birth plan completely fell apart… and still turned out better than you ever imagined? In this powerful episode of the Pain-Free Birth Podcast, Karen sits down with Brie Kuikahi, who shares her incredible first birth story-a breech hospital birth during COVID that she describes as “better than I imagined” and “absolutely perfect.” After planning for a natural birth c...

What if the most important factor in your birth experience isn’t where you give birth… but how safe you feel?  In today’s episode of the Pain-Free Birth Podcast, Karen sits down with trauma healer and embodiment coach Monica Yates to unpack her powerful first-time home birth story and the mindset, preparation, and support that made it possible. From having a husband who was initially 100% against...

Is home birth actually safe… or have we been asking the wrong question all along? In this nuanced episode, Karen dives into one of the most debated topics in the birth world: home birth vs hospital birth and what’s truly the safest option. Instead of taking sides, this episode breaks down the evidence, the misconceptions, and the emotional layers behind birth choices so you can make a decision tha...

What if birth didn’t have to be something you “push through”… but something you fully surrender to?  In this episode of the Pain-Free Birth Podcast, Karen sits down with Zatha Aiken, a former U.S. Marine Corps Intelligence Officer turned stay-at-home mom of three, who shares her incredible journey from control, compliance, and “pushing through” to complete surrender, trust, and experiencing a pain...

What would you do if doctors told you to abort one of your twins… with no medical reason? In this episode of the Pain-Free Birth Podcast, Karen sits down with Victoria McGuckin, a mom of three who shares her incredible twin home birth story. After being labeled “high risk” and pressured into a highly medicalized birth plan, Victoria chose a different path rooted in faith, trust, and physiological...

What if your second birth could be completely different from your first...even after a long, difficult hospital birth? In this episode of the Pain Free Birth Podcast, Karen sits down with Sarah Tollison, a nurse and mom of two from South Carolina, who shares the incredible story of her 45-minute, pain-free birth. After experiencing a 36-hour hospital birth with her first baby, Sarah hoped her seco...

Are you preparing for birth by gathering more information… but still feeling anxious and overwhelmed? In this episode of the Pain Free Birth Podcast, Karen dives into one of the most common mistakes first-time moms make when preparing for childbirth: focusing almost entirely on gathering information instead of regulating the nervous system. While education is valuable, Karen explains how consuming...

What happens when you learn to meet the power of contractions instead of fearing them? In this episode of the Pain-Free Birth Podcast, Karen welcomes Petronella, a first-time mom from Sweden who shares her incredible pain-free home birth story. Despite home birth being rare in Sweden, Petronella followed her intuition and chose to give birth in the place where she felt safest (her own home). Petro...

What if labor wasn’t random? What if bonding isn’t luck? What if your brain is biologically designed to change in birth? In this profound and science-rich conversation, Karen sits down with Dr. Sarah Buckley, family physician, researcher, and pioneer in physiological birth, to unpack the true hormonal science of labor and postpartum. Dr. Buckley has spent decades studying oxytocin, the primary hor...

Can birth really be different the second time? What if releasing fear was the missing piece? In this episode of the Pain-Free Birth Podcast, Callie shares her redemptive Christian home birth story after experiencing an excruciatingly painful first labor. At just 22 years old and pregnant with her second baby, she knew she could not walk into birth carrying the same fear and tension that defined he...

Are you planning an unmedicated birth… but wondering if you’re actually doing enough to prepare? In this episode of the Pain Free Birth Podcast, Karen breaks down the five essential steps to preparing for a natural, physiological birth with intention. Not just hoping for one. Not just writing a birth plan. But truly preparing your mind, body, and spirit for the birth experience you desire. If you’...

What if going past your due date wasn’t a problem to solve? In this Karen sits down with Pinsi Lei, a mom of three and business coach from New York City, to share one of the most jaw-dropping birth stories ever told on the show. After two long, medicated hospital births, Pinsi experienced an unintentional unassisted home birth at 42 weeks. With no pushing, no tearing, and a nine-pound, ten-ounce b...

What if fear doesn’t have to be part of your first home birth experience? In this episode of the Pain Free Birth Podcast, Karen Welton sits down with Katie Brambila, a first-time mom and midwife-in-training, to share her incredible, God-filled home birth story. Katie brings a unique perspective to birth. Before becoming pregnant, she had already spent nearly three years in midwifery school and att...

What happens when a woman stops outsourcing her intuition and starts trusting her body? In this episode, Karen sits down with Polina Westcott, creator of Sensible Mama, to share two transformative home birth stories that radically changed the way Polina views birth, fear, pain, and personal authority. Polina opens up about her first pregnancy, where everything seemed medically “normal” until routi...

What if pain, stress, and even birth trauma weren’t things your body needed to “push through”, but signals your nervous system was asking for safety? In this powerful and deeply grounding episode, Karen sits down with Dr. Scherina Alli, a network spinal chiropractor specializing in nervous system regulation, somatic respiratory integration, and care for pregnant women, babies, and children. Togeth...