Happy Homebirth

Ep 272: When Ultimate Surrender Leads to Ultimate Redemption

How would you feel if everyone around you, including the medical staff you’ve met with, says you shouldn’t have another baby– but you and your spouse suddenly feel very strongly that you’re being called to…. Have another baby?  What would you do? 

 

This week we’re speaking to Jess, a mother who had to make this difficult sounding decision.  Should we grow our family in the face of adversity? You’re going to love this story, I just know it.

 

Episode Roundup:

1. So if you listened to my re-introduction story, you’ll notice that the exact same themes that I spoke about– About hearing God’s voice and leaning into what he’s saying even when it sounds, frankly, illogical– were present here in Jess’s story.  She and her husband Grant both felt and overwhelming peace and need to have their third child, despite their well-meaning community’s pleas for them to reconsider.  I find so much comfort in this ability to hear something clearly coming from somewhere outside of yourself, and to put your faith in what you are sensing.  This is so deeply connected to intuition.  Mothers KNOW what to do– whether that’s the intuitive knowledge that everything is okay and they’re doing exactly what they need to be doing even when the situation looks questionable, OR when things seem fine, but a mother knows something is not fine and needs more attention.  What a beautiful gift.
2. Next, let’s talk about the healing power of birth– Birth can bring healing beyond just yourself or your spouse.  In this story, we hear how Jess’s third birth acted as a soothing balm to their oldest daughter, Willow, who had experienced such pain during the traumatic hospital stay and birth of her baby brother.  
3. And that point brings me to my last point.  We were designed to heal.  We were designed to heal both physically, and emotionally.  How beautiful is it to hear this story– were Jess’s body, which was spoken over so negatively– that it wouldn’t be able to have a healthy pregnancy and birth again, that it was incapable of the pregnancy and labor processes— it healed and it experienced new life.  Along with physical healing, Jess and her entire family experienced emotional and spiritual healing.  How amazing that we have been designed with so many opportunities to grow, to rewire, to renew our thoughts.  This family did just that, and what a joy it was to listen to how it unfolded. 

Okay, my friends.  Let that one reverberate in your mind over the next week.  How beautiful.  That’s all I’ve got for you today, and I’ll see you back here next week.

 

Links:

Samaritan Ministries

Happy Homebirth Academy

Interview Application

Ep 271: Giving Birth in a Midwife Desert

Let’s say you want a midwife.   You’re desperate to give birth at home, and you’re ready to throw your money at the woman willing to attend your birth.  What happens when you can’t find anyone to come? 

 

This week we’re speaking with Caroline and Alex, who are the parents of a beautiful family of 4 little ones (now growing #5).  This episode was recorded in November or December of 2023, I believe, but it never got a chance to air because of my sense that it was immediately time to close the podcast.  BUT… this story is just so good, you have to hear it.  With the updates we’ve made to the podcast and our desire to focus more on one story per interview, this episode has been edited to focus on their most recent pregnancy and birth. 

 

Episode Roundup:

 

1. I want to take a moment to emphasize just how difficult it must have felt for Caroline and Alex to so desperately want a midwife and a homebirth, and yet to not be able to find anyone to provide care.  The reality is that there are large pockets of area throughout the country and, gosh, certainly globally, where there is lack of maternal care.  You don’t have 1,000 options. You’ve barely got any options.  I love the way that this couple chose to face this situation with a sense of openness and trust.  Caroline sensed that the Lord was calling them into giving birth unattended, and she trusted.  And what’s more, the Lord worked it out to where Alex was able to be comfortable and confident, too.  This 
2. I also appreciate how this was not taken lightly.  There was preparation, mentally, spiritually, and in Alex’s case, even physically.  He was able to receive hands on training from their former midwife! What a gift.
3. I want to touch on pain and the desire to have a pain-free birth.  Listen, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that desire! I love it, and I know that it’s so possible!! But I also think there is so much beauty and strength that comes from having a birth that’s challenging.  That’s not pain-free.  That’s intense and animalistic.  Motherhood is intense.  Motherhood is challenging.  Motherhood causes you to be in it for the long haul, even when you’re exhausted.  Which brings me to my final little point–
4. Caroline mentioned how Alex saying “it’s so cute” was like her little cup of water in the marathon- the bit of hydration she needed to make it to the finish line.  How special are those moments– those moments we make with our spouse or our birth team– those intimate little sayings, touches, glances, that give us the strength we need when we needed it.  What a blessing.  And what a blessing this story was.  

 

Links

Happy Homebirth Academy

Ep 270: First Time Homebirther and Hospice Nurse Shares Paralles of Welcoming Life and Concluding It

We love talking about homebirth here, right?  I mean, it’s kind of our thing.  But what about the other end of the life spectrum.  What about death?  

 

This week, we are speaking with Mariah Lassiter, a a Hospice Registered Nurse who had her first baby at home..  As she has supported patients in her career, Mariah has begun to recognize how many similarities there are in the birthing and dying processes, and how both do not have to be viewed as scary, and in fact can be beautiful.  We’ll hear her incredible birth story with her first child, and then dive into what she’s learned in her time as a hospice nurse.

 

Episode roundup

1. Let’s start by connecting with our educational tidbit: Not all first births are long!  If you’re experiencing the intensity that Mariah described, do not be afraid to reach out to your midwife.  Part of her job is checking on you, so don’t worry about “calling her too early.” If you’re worried, her support can be extremely helpful.
2. Intuition is everything.  Mariah felt that she needed to give birth at home throughout her pregnancy, and with the quickness of her birth, the reality of that truth became very clear.  Listen to your intuition.  If you feel like you don’t have intuition or don’t know how to tap into it, pregnancy is the most perfect time to tap in.  Turn off your phone, turn off your screens, heck, turn off this podcast and focus inward.  You’ll be surprised at how much you can learn and feel.
3. Finally, our bodies know how to be born, they know how to give birth, and they know how to die.  It’s really quite freeing to see the similarities in these experiences, and to trust that they were created this way with purpose.  If you’re looking for an amazing, grounding, life-altering perspective on dying, I cannot recommend the book Imagine Heaven enough.  Wow.  I read this book on Near Death Experiences last year, and the amount of peace and beauty that it brought to my life was just incredible and unexpected.  You are beautifully designed and deeply loved.

 

Links

Samaritan Ministries

Imagine Heaven Book

Happy Homebirth Academy

 

Ep 269: A (Re)Introduction: My Story and What’s Next with Happy Homebirth

In this episode we'll discuss

• My origin story
• How Happy Homebirth was created
• Why I stepped back from the podcast and business in Jan 24
• Why we're back, and most importantly, where we are going!

 

Links

Samaritan Ministries

Jamie Winship 4 Part Series

Bob Hamp Freedom Series

Imagine Heaven Book

Happy Homebirth Academy

Ep 268: Emotional and Physical Healing From a Hospital Transport, and a Healing Second Birth with Michelle Varela

When things go unexpectedly during your first birth, how do you plan for a second birth with the hope and expectation that they'll go better?

 

This week, we are speaking with Michelle Varela. Michelle is one of those rare and amazing women who knew that she wanted to give birth at home from a very young age. So when her first birth took an unexpected turn, it was confusing and disappointing, and there were certainly questions as to how things would be handled next time.

 

Episode Roundup:

 

The importance of our care providers. They make a huge difference. How things unfold does depend greatly on that.

But the second thing that's on my mind is just how incredible the body is, how beautifully designed it was and is, how beautifully designed it is to heal itself. While Michelle struggled with a 4th degree tear during her 1st birthing experience, she did not let that come in her way in terms of her second birth experience, and thank goodness that she didn't even know that other people might say, oh, that's too dangerous. She just did what she knew was best for her body, and what ended up happening was a beautiful birth with zero tearing. 

Our bodies are so incredible. They're so incredible at healing. They're so resilient. So if you have found yourself in a place where you've given birth before and it didn't go the way that you wanted, desired, expected, or planned, Know this. Your body is resilient.

Your mind is resilient. Your heart is resilient, and next time it can be different just like it was for Michelle.

Last thing before I jump off, I did wanna share that Michelle's husband actually works with mothers postpartum. He helps with things like diastasis recti, pelvic floor dysfunction, and just overall achieving of physical goals.

Instagram: @codylanecollins 

 

 

Ep 267: Letting God Be Big in Your Birth with Rachel Petersen

We want a healthy baby and a healthy mama, right? But is it okay to ask for more than that? What if we have specific ideas and hopes and dreams for our birth? Is it okay to pray about that? Is it okay to ask the Lord for more?

This week, we are speaking to my friend Rachel Petersen. Now Rachel did just that. She had desires and she let the Lord know about them. So we're going to learn what that looked like and see how it unfolded for her in her birth experience.

Now, just a little bit more information on Rachel. She is certified through the Institute of Integrative Nutrition and the Herbal Academy. She specializes in women's hormones, cycle sinking, fertility, the fertility awareness method and prenatal and postpartum nutrition. So she's somebody that you're going to want to check out. She's on Instagram @nourish.thegood

 

Episode Roundup:

 

The first one being that Rachel shows us how it's okay to make your requests known to God. In fact, he tells us to, specifically, make your requests known to God and he will answer. Now, does it always look like the answer that Rachel received?

No, not necessarily. However, he does work all things for good. So even when the outcomes don't look the way we had expected, even when they look completely different from how we expected them to look, we know that we have a loving father who does care for us and, like Rachel said, He is aware of us.

He sees us. So whether your birth turns out as spectacularly as Rachel's does, or whether it turns out differently than expected, let God be big in it. Look for Him, He's there. Jesus, Emmanuel, God with us, He is there. So let's look back and see, where was He? Where was He in my experience?

Ep 266: Finding the Stubborn Root Cause to Your Child’s Mystery Ailments Through The Gillespie Approach

 

2024 Trainings

Greenville, SC

Gillespie Approach-Craniosacral Fascial Therapy

 

Previous Episode:

 

Ep 175: The Gillespie Approach: How Craniosacral Fascial Therapy Can Optimize Health for Your Infant

Ep 265: Striking the Balance Between Success in Business and Motherhood with Kyleigh Banks

 

Birthworker.com/happyhomebirth

 

 

Previous Episodes with Kyleight:

Ep 98: Kyleigh’s Out-of-the-Box Homebirth Preparation

Ep 258: How To Turn Your Passion For Birth Into A Full-time Career As A Doula with Kyleigh Banks

Ep 264:The Opposite Of A Traumatic Birth with Regina Lowenfield

Once you've experienced a traumatic birth, the best you can hope for from that point on is just-- a birth without trauma, right? It's best to just play it safe- not to push the envelope....?

 

Regina has been married to her husband Miles for 11 years and mother to their 3 children. Currently the Lowenfields live in Southern Indiana where they are building an events venue on their 75 acres. Today we'll hear how Regina and Miles experienced trauma, tried to cope, and then went big with their most recent birth experience.

 

Before we jump in, I want to share an important update with you all. The release of this episode coincides exactly with the 5 year anniversary of this podcast. I am just so thrilled to look back over the last 5 years and to celebrate the 264 episodes that have been shared in that time.

 

I also want to let you know that I am now going to be going on hiatus with the podcast. I am so excited to focus my energy on a few projects that the Lord has been drawing me into over the last year, and most importantly to spend every waking moment soaking up the beauty of my three little ones. I'm not sure if anyone's told you, but holy moly time goes FAST and one day you wake up and your oldest is seven years old and you wonder what the heck happened.

 

So in the meantime, know this: I am still honored to provide you with the deepest homebirth childbirth education through The Homebirth Collective or Happy Homebirth Academy, both of which are self-paced and accessible in the show notes, at myhappyhomebirth.com, or through my instagram bio.

 

I'm not going to be checking in on instagram or facebook often, so if you need anything, the best way to reach me is at hello@myhappyhomebirth.com.

 

 

If this podcast has meant something to you, would you take a moment now to leave a review? It would mean so much to me.

 

 

Episode Roundup:

 

 

 

If you've experienced a traumatic birth in the past, don't feel that you have to settle for 'not traumatic'. The opposite of a traumatic birth is not merely 'not traumatic', but it's ecstatic, and that's something that you can prepare for, pray for, and quit often attain.

 

Alright, my friends. What an honor this has been. I look forward to coming back in the future with more beautiful stories, but in the meantime, I am praying for all of you. That you'll enjoy your pregnancies, your births, your babies, your children. That you'll feel the love of the Lord covering you like a blanket, realizing that it's somehow even deeper and stronger than that insane love we feel for our babies. I'll see you back here next time.

Ep 263: VBA3C?! You’re Not High Risk Until You’re High Risk with Jan DeAngelo

You can't have a homebirth after 3 c sections, pre-eclampsia and being a "geriatric pregnancy", can you?

 

This week, we're speaking with Jan DeAngelo, 43 year old mother of 4 babies who changed EVERYTHING in between her third and fourth births. We'll hear how she took control of her care and her family's wellbeing, and gave birth with confidence to her most recent little one.

 

Episode Roundup

1. You're not high risk until you're high risk- Jan's midwife said this, and I find it such a beautiful way to approach each pregnancy individually. She wasn't focusing on the past, but looking at Jan and her pregnancy NOW. Instead of forcing fear and uncertainty onto her client, she trusted her abilities as a care provider, yes, but more importantly-- she trusted Jan's ability to give birth.
2. Your mindset plays such a role in your birth. As we shared, in the past, Jan's doctors pathologized her pregnancy and birth up and down, and Jan accepted what they had to say. Because of this, she saw herself as high risk- as a disaster waiting to happen. This totally changed for her fourth birth, when she realized that she was designed to give birth. She changed her mindset and recognized that her body and her baby were not pathologies. She was able to approach this pregnancy and birth with excited anticipation, along with the knowledge that she could and would do things differently.
3. Let's end with this-- it can be different this time. Maybe you've had a cesarean or several, maybe you've had preeclampsia or gestational diabetes or any number of "pathologies" in the past. Remember that this experience doesn't have to be the same as last time. Give yourself space to imagine something different. Visualize it, feel it. Find support who feels it, too. Of course, consider your own risk tolerance, but know that however events do unfold, you can experience your birth from a perspective of being the authority.