The VBAC Link

“You only have to make one good decision at a time.” We are so excited to welcome our very own TVL team member, Ashley Marg, back on the podcast today! Ashley is our Maternal Health & Communication Strategist and you will find her beautifully writing VBAC content on our blog and in your email inboxes. You can find her first three birth stories in depth on Episode 249, but after a short recap,...

We’re bringing you a bonus episode this week!! Your new hosts Lily and Paige sit down and turn the tables on each other with a fun game of 20 Questions. They share everything from their personal backgrounds to their favorite things, silly stories, and opening up about what led them to The VBAC Link and doula work. They also talk about their hopes for the future of the podcast and how much they’ve...

We’ve been keeping this secret for months and are so excited that we get to finally share!! Join us in this tender and bittersweet episode as we honor Meagan for the legacy she has created through her work hosting this podcast. Meagan has changed SO many lives, and our TVL team is so happy she’s sticking around to help this movement continue to grow and thrive! And let’s give the warmest welcome t...

For this last episode of 2025, we wanted to emphasize just how unique all VBAC journeys really are, and Amanda’s story does just that! Women of Strength, VBACs are possible in sooo many different scenarios, even the ones that weren’t planned or prepped for.  Amanda thought she was having a planned C-section, but with a little gentle encouragement from her care team, she ended up with an unplanned,...

This Christmas Eve episode is something a little different and very special! For over 400 episodes, you’ve heard our founder, Meagan Heaton, encourage, educate, and validate women through all types of birth stories. Now, she’s slowing down and speaking that encouragement directly to YOU . This episode is just a warm moment to simply pause, breathe, and feel supported. This episode is for all women...

Kela is an inspiring mama who joins us today sharing her HBA2C story! All three of Kela’s pregnancies were planned home births, yet her first two ended in cesarean after long labors labeled “failure to progress”, concerns of chorio, tachycardia, and fever. Though the odds were stacked against her, Kela never let go of the dreamy home birth she knew in her bones was possible.  With the support of a...

“Peace on earth begins with birth.” In this powerful episode, Meagan sits down with Anna Lundqvist, founder of Sacred Birth International. Anna is a seasoned midwife from Sweden whose work has evolved into educating birthing families, doulas, and birth professionals on how to protect birth as a sacred, primal, and physiological event. Drawing from years of attending births around the world, Anna n...

Women of Strength, you won’t want to miss this one!! In today’s episode of The VBAC Link Podcast, we welcome Sarah, a mom of three boys, an active duty Air Force officer (AND a spouse to one as well!) about her incredible VBA2C during an overseas PCS move from South Korea to Florida.  Sarah’s first birth was a c-section for breech presentation. Her second was a scheduled c-section timed around her...

Catie, a pediatric physical therapist from Northern Kentucky, joins Meagan on the podcast today sharing her three birth stories– a vaginal delivery, c-section, and VBAC! Catie struggled with hyperemesis gravidarum (among other complications) during all three pregnancies but wasn’t officially given the diagnosis until she was hospitalized with her third. By that time, she had researched hard and wa...

We are so excited to welcome back our favorite registered dietician and bestselling author, Lily Nichols! Lily is here to chat with us about her third book, Real Food for Fertility. She explains how while the title focuses on fertility, this book goes far beyond that, diving into how nutrition supports hormone health and overall well-being at every stage of life. Meagan and Lily talk about nutriti...

Kari joins us today from Huntsville, Alabama sharing her story of two induced but very different births. Her first was an unplanned Cesarean after a 39-week induction and the second was a medically induced VBAC due to preeclampsia.  With her second baby, Kari saw a new provider who was VBAC supportive, hired a doula, and went to a chiropractor. She also found out that she had a velamentous cord in...

“I want to be the light I wish I’d had in my darkest moments.”  As we close out Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month, we are sharing Abbie’s two birth stories and honoring the memory of her firstborn, Rowan. Rowan was born prematurely via emergency Cesarean at 29 weeks during the height of COVID and passed several weeks later in the NICU. Abbie shares what it was like to come home from the ho...

We are so excited to welcome back our friend, Rachel! She shared her first precipitous VBAC story all the way back in Episode 56. This time, she joins us again to talk about her next two VBACs— one of which included an unexpected diagnosis of gastroschisis and the other surprisingly beginning with PROM (premature rupture of membranes). Rachel opens up about navigating gastroschisis and how her car...

Today we’re revisiting one of our earliest episodes — Episode 13 Kelie’s VBA4C in Utah! Our audio quality has come a long way since those early days 😅, but Kelie’s story is still one of our most inspiring. “Kelie’s VBA4C section story is one of many awe-inspiring moments! She truly has been through it all with each of her cesareans and her VBAC. Her first baby was born weighing less than two poun...

About her VBA2C, Chloe says,  “I’ve been dreaming of my VBAC for 8 years. When my HBAC turned into a scheduled CBAC, I wasn’t even sure I’d get the option to have a VBA2C. It took a lot of planning & hard work & I knew as a first time labouring mom that it would be a longer labor but I completely underestimated just how long…  Dreams came true New Years Eve as fireworks went off & my h...

Women of Strength, we are making waves.  We are so excited to be sharing our second Maternal Assisted Cesarean story on the podcast today! There are so many beautiful details within Brianna’s entire episode that you will not want to miss.  In the small town of Crosby, Minnesota with a population of less than 3,000, Brianna was the first MAC under a brand-new policy.  About her birth, she says:  “W...

Why is it that most avenues of healthcare delay preventative intervention, but when it comes to birth, there is so much more of a fear-based “just in case” mindset? Elisabeth, her doula (and our TVL team member!) Ashley Marg, and Julie Francom talk about how most of the time we can trust the physiological process of birth, yet providers often don’t.  Elisabeth’s first birth was a whirlwind. After...

Jennifer is a mom to three boys, each born in a different decade. Her first birth started out spontaneously but, after going to the hospital early and experiencing many interventions, ended in an emergency Cesarean under general anesthesia with an inverted T incision. For her second birth, Jennifer was excited to try for a VBAC but learned about her special scar and, trusting her doctor’s advice,...

In today’s episode, Julie Francom talks with Diana, who shares her Cesarean and two very different VBAC stories.  Diana’s journey began with a Cesarean birth including a velamentous cord insertion and a long, difficult recovery complicated by painful breastfeeding abscesses. For her second baby, she planned a home birth VBAC and euphorically welcomed her baby at home—only to need a hospital transf...

Did you know that The VBAC Link is made up of a whole team of VBAC doulas?  Our Co-founder and Owner, Meagan Heaton, is joined today on the pod by TVL team members Lily (Director of Social Media & Community Engagement) and Paige (Production Admin & Community Liason) chatting all about questions we see from you in our community— topics like induction methods, providers, where to find info,...

Today we are revisiting another one of our favorite episodes! Episode 188 featured Lindsay’s amazing story of preparation and perseverance through doubt during her COVID VBAC. Lindsay’s first birth was a planned home birth which ultimately resulted in a hospital transfer and emergency C-section. She was left feeling unprepared and unheard and committed to fighting for a VBAC next time.  Lindsay wo...

In today’s episode, Meagan chats with our friend, Hannah, who is a mom to three little ones under the age of 4. Hannah has had two VBACs that were both unique in their own ways. Her first birth was an induction that led to an unplanned Cesarean. She was induced for the convenience of avoiding the upcoming holidays and to prevent her baby from getting too big if she chose to wait for spontaneous la...

Our co-founder, Julie Francom, hosts today’s episode with Heather from Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Heather talks today about her journey with IVF for her first pregnancy and conceiving spontaneously with her second.  Heather’s first birth involved infertility, ovulation inducers, IUI’s (including a chemical pregnancy), solo appointments during COVID, and a C-section due to fetal tachycardia.  She c...

We are so excited to have Deb Flashenberg on the podcast today! She is the founder and director of the Prenatal Yoga Center in NYC. Along with being a prenatal yoga teacher, she is also a doula, Lamaze childbirth educator, Postpartum Corrective Exercise Specialist, Spinning Babies Parent Educator and mother of two.  After a tough first birth experience, Deb became incredibly passionate about all t...

Happy Wednesday, Women of Strength! Today we are joined by our friend, Nichole, from Nevada who shares her SEVEN birth stories. Nichole has had a wild ride when it comes to birth. Every story is so different and so unique. This episode is jam-packed with things like placental abruption, NICU time, preeclampsia, a surprise HBA2C, induced VBA2C, changing providers, and two VBA3C stories.  Her last b...