The Birth Trauma Mama Podcast

In this mini episode, Kayleigh is speaking directly to providers, nurses, and healthcare workers about the real-life application of trauma-informed care. Moving beyond the buzzword, she breaks down how trauma shows up in healthcare settings, and more importantly, how communication can either help prevent or contribute to it. This episode is packed with practical, easy-to-implement scripts and mind...

In Part 2 of Olivia’s story, we move beyond the resuscitation and into what so many survivors say is the hardest part, the aftermath. From ICU recovery to postpartum trauma, returning to work, and making the deeply personal decision to grow her family again, Olivia shares a raw and powerful look at life after surviving an amniotic fluid embolism. This episode is a testament to grit, grief, and red...

April is Cesarean Awareness Month, and we’re re-releasing this incredibly important conversation to spotlight the complexities, emotions, and real stories behind C-sections. On this solo episode, Kayleigh is discussing all things c-section. She shares a few different studies highlighting the data on c-sections and PTSD, as well as how they compare to other modes of delivery. Kayleigh also touches...

On today’s episode of The Birth Trauma Mama Podcast , Kayleigh is joined by Olivia, a nurse, Navy veteran, and fellow AFE survivor, who shares her powerful and truly unique birth story. Olivia walks us through her experience of an amniotic fluid embolism (AFE) during the birth of her son, Theo, including the unimaginable reality of being awake and aware during much of her own resuscitation. Her st...

March 27th marks Amniotic Fluid Embolism (AFE) Awareness Day , a time to honor the lives affected by this rare but life-threatening complication. In this special episode of The Birth Trauma Mama Podcast , we take a deep dive into what AFE is, how it happens, and what can be done to improve survival rates . In this episode, we discuss: 🩸 What is AFE? Understanding this sudden and unpredictable com...

On today’s episode of The Birth Trauma Mama Podcast , Kayleigh speaks with author and advocate Samina Ali, who shares her devastating and powerful birth story. What began as a healthy first pregnancy quickly turned into a life-threatening medical emergency when her symptoms of preeclampsia were repeatedly dismissed by providers. Samina vulnerably shares how undiagnosed preeclampsia progressed into...

On today’s episode of The Birth Trauma Mama Podcast , Kayleigh answers one of the most common questions she hears from both clients and her online community: “Was my birth actually traumatic?” In this mini episode, she breaks down the truth about trauma, reminding listeners that trauma is not defined by how something “looked” on paper, but by how it was experienced in the body and nervous system....

On today’s episode of The Birth Trauma Mama Podcast , Kayleigh welcomes Anya to share the story of her first birth — a pregnancy that was completely uncomplicated until a cascade of unexpected events in labor led to a traumatic emergency C-section experience. Anya opens up about feeling pressured into surgery, a frightening complication with anesthesia in the operating room, and the terror of feel...

On today’s episode of The Birth Trauma Mama Podcast , Kayleigh shifts perspectives and shares her own therapy journey, not as a clinician, but as a client. After surviving a life-threatening birth experience and amniotic fluid embolism, Kayleigh opens up about the role therapy, medication, EMDR, and parts work have played in her healing. This vulnerable episode explores what trauma healing can act...

On today’s episode of The Birth Trauma Mama Podcast , Leslie shares the story of her daughter Cora born via emergency C-section after a full-term pregnancy and the unimaginable grief of losing her shortly after birth. She also opens up about secondary infertility, pregnancy after loss, a traumatic COVID birth, and the long road of healing that followed. This episode is a powerful reminder that gri...

✨ Special Rerelease Episode ✨ In this important conversation, Kayleigh sits down with Dr. Pria Alpern to talk about EMDR therapy and its powerful role in healing birth trauma. If you’ve ever felt stuck in intrusive memories, body flashbacks, or overwhelming anxiety after your birth experience, this episode offers both education and hope. We break down what EMDR actually is, how it works, and why...

In this episode, Kayleigh sits down with Annie to share her powerful story of birth trauma, medical complications, and the long road of postpartum healing. Annie opens up about how quickly plans changed, the fear and confusion that followed, and what it has looked like to process trauma while learning to parent. This conversation is honest, validating, and a reminder that trauma isn’t defined by o...

In this episode, Kayleigh talks about something that comes up again and again in our community: how, when, and whether to share your birth trauma story. From conversations with pregnant friends to posting publicly or presenting professionally, this episode explores navigating boundaries, safety, and connection, without shame. You are allowed to share your story. And you’re also allowed to protect...

In this listener series episode, Kayleigh sits down with Nicola, a physician who shares her own experience with birth trauma, placenta previa, a massive hemorrhage, and a terrifying NICU journey with her son. Nicola opens up about what it’s like to be on the other side of medicine, how “knowing too much” can increase anxiety, and the deep loneliness that can come with traumatic birth and a NICU st...

In this episode, Kayleigh dives into a topic we don’t talk about enough: partner and family trauma after birth. Birth trauma doesn’t just impact the birthing person; it can deeply affect the non-birthing partner and the entire family system. From helplessness in the delivery room to tension in relationships afterward, this conversation explores what we know (and what we’re still learning) about ho...

In this powerful and necessary episode, Ruby shares her story of birth trauma, medical dismissal, and her daughter Rumi’s diagnosis of HIE (hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy). Ruby walks us through being sent home multiple times while in labor, giving birth to a baby who was not breathing, surviving a life-threatening postpartum hemorrhage, and navigating the NICU and devastating uncertainty that fo...

In this episode, Kayleigh sits down with Mallory—aka The Formula Mom—to talk all things formula feeding, combo feeding, and her brand-new book Bottle Service . They dive into the real, messy, emotional side of infant feeding: the lack of education around formula, the grief of not being able to breastfeed, the pressure of “at all costs” narratives, and why nuance, support, and compassion matter mor...

In this episode, Kayleigh sits down with Abigail to talk about her first birth complicated by low amniotic fluid, a late preterm induction, and a long, emotionally exhausting NICU stay, and how that experience shaped her postpartum mental health and feeding journey. Abigail also shares her second birth story, including intentional preparation, advocacy, and what it looked like to face another NICU...

In this episode of The Birth Trauma Mama Podcast , Kayleigh sits down with Derek Grassley, RN CEN, CFRN, CCRN, NRP, FP-C WP-C - a flight nurse and ECMO specialist, to break down what ECMO is, when it’s used, and why it can be life-saving for critically ill pregnant and postpartum patients. This powerful conversation pulls back the curtain on critical care, emergency transport, and the realities of...

In this powerful Listener Series episode of The Birth Trauma Mama Podcast , Kayleigh is joined by Andrea , who shares her story of an unexpected pregnancy complicated by severe placenta accreta , a nine-hour delivery surgery, massive hemorrhage, ICU recovery, and a long, complex postpartum healing journey. Andrea walks listeners through receiving a terrifying accreta diagnosis at her anatomy scan,...

✨ Special Re-Release ✨ Parenting After Birth Trauma As our children grow, many of us begin to notice something unexpected: the ways our birth trauma continues to show up, not just in our bodies and minds, but in our parenting . In this special re-release episode of The Birth Trauma Mama Podcast , we revisit a conversation that feels just as relevant, if not more so, today. Kayleigh offers a brie...

In this deeply moving Listener Series episode of The Birth Trauma Mama Podcast , Kayleigh is joined by Kailee , who shares her story of infertility, recurrent placenta previa, NICU stays, medical trauma, and ultimately surviving placenta accreta with a life-saving hysterectomy. Kailee walks us through two high-risk pregnancies marked by hemorrhage, emergency cesareans, prolonged antepartum hospita...

What does it really mean to give yourself permission,  especially when you’ve been conditioned to put everyone else first? In this thoughtful and deeply resonant episode of The Birth Trauma Mama Podcast , Kayleigh is joined by Dr. George James , psychologist, speaker, executive coach, and author of I Give Myself Permission . With over a decade of shared history, Kayleigh and Dr. James reflect on g...

In this powerful episode of The Birth Trauma Mama Podcast , Kayleigh is joined by Alex , a mom of two and congenital heart disease survivor, who shares her journey through two high-risk pregnancies and two traumatic births . Alex opens up about living with complex congenital heart defects, undergoing open-heart surgery as an infant, and entering pregnancy knowing she would always be medically high...

In this clinically grounded episode of The Birth Trauma Mama Podcast , Kayleigh is joined by Kina Wolfenstein, LCSW , therapist, educator, and certified trainer in Coherence Therapy , for a deep dive into a lesser-known but incredibly powerful trauma modality. Together, they explore what coherence therapy is, how it differs from more familiar approaches like EMDR, CBT, and IFS, and why it can be e...