After leaving an unhealthy relationship, Theresa made a solemn vow to herself: she would never again say yes when her intuition told her no, or no when it told her yes.

So when she became pregnant with her first baby, she knew the conventional, conveyor-belt obstetric path wasn't for her. Instead, she sought out bodywork, worked with a naturopath, and developed a deep relationship with her body and her baby. The plan was to freebirth at home.

But when labor began and she noticed thick meconium, she immediately knew the right thing to do was to face her biggest fear and transfer. Her twins (!) were born safely via cesarean section, but she experienced abusive treatment from medical staff that left her with lasting trauma.

Recorded just about one year postpartum, Theresa is still moving through the healing portal. She shares beautiful reflections on trusting yourself, the nuances of engaging with the medical system, and reclaiming sovereignty.

If you love the show, I would greatly appreciate a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts!

Follow me on Instagram @healingbirth

Do you have a birth story you'd like to share on the podcast, or would like to otherwise connect? I love to hear from you! Send me a note at contactus@healingbirth.net

Intro / Outro music: Dreams by Markvard

Podcast cover photo by Karina Jensen @karinajensenphoto

Joli sat down with me in person to share her incredible first birth story, a first for this podcast!

Raised hearing her mother speak so positively about her own home births, Joli always envisioned a similar path for herself. When it came time to welcome her first baby, she felt deeply committed to a physiological birth and chose to work with a midwife at home.

After a smooth, uneventful pregnancy, everything shifted during the final stages of labor when her baby was discovered to be breech. At that point, there was no turning back. What followed was an intense and transformative experience that ended with her baby being born safely at home.

In the weeks after the birth, Joli found herself reflecting on her baby's breech presentation and processing the depth of what she had experienced. What ultimately remained was a profound sense of strength. She shares that if she were to discover a future baby was breech, she would choose the same home birth path again without hesitation.

If you love the show, I would greatly appreciate a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts!

Follow me on Instagram @healingbirth

Do you have a birth story you'd like to share on the podcast, or would like to otherwise connect? I love to hear from you! Send me a note at contactus@healingbirth.net

Intro / Outro music: Dreams by Markvard

Podcast cover photo by Karina Jensen @karinajensenphoto

Taylor sat down with me to share her story just twelve weeks after her second homebirth. She says she felt reborn after both of her birth experiences, but describes this most recent one as especially healing. It came after an early second trimester miscarriage and a traumatic D&C, which led her to explore femininity, softness, loss, spirituality, and more. Fear emerged at different points during the pregnancy, but she returned to faith in the unknown time and time again.

If you love the show, I would greatly appreciate a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts!

Follow me on Instagram @healingbirth

Do you have a birth story you'd like to share on the podcast, or would like to otherwise connect? I love to hear from you! Send me a note at contactus@healingbirth.net.

Intro / Outro music: Dreams by Markvard

Podcast cover photo by Karina Jensen @karinajensenphoto

Why do so many women leave birth feeling overwhelmed, unheard, or even traumatized? And what actually helps create a better birth experience?

In this episode, I'm joined by Erica Manto Paulson, a certified doula, childbirth educator, and certified clinical hypnotherapist who has supported families in birth for more than 20 years.

Erica's passion for this work began after her own VBAC experience, where the support of a skilled doula transformed her birth. That experience inspired her to dedicate her life to helping women feel informed, supported, and empowered throughout pregnancy and birth.

Erica brings not only deep knowledge, but also a genuine heart for this work that shines through in her every word.

In this conversation, we explore:

• Why pregnancy and birth are nervous system experiences, not just medical events
• How to find the right care team
• Patterns Erica has seen in positive birth outcomes versus traumatic ones
• Words of wisdom for women who have experienced a traumatic birth
• How feeling heard, safe, and supported impacts labor, postpartum recovery, and mental health
• What advocacy really looks like in birth, and how families can speak up without creating conflict
• The powerful role doulas and support systems play in creating calmer, more confident birth experiences

Find Erica on Instagram @nurturecincy

Her website: www.welcometonurture.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/nurturecincy

If you love the show, I would greatly appreciate a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts!

Follow me on Instagram @healingbirth

Do you have a birth story you'd like to share on the podcast, or would like to otherwise connect? I love to hear from you! Send me a note at contactus@healingbirth.net

Intro / Outro music: Dreams by Markvard

Podcast cover photo by Karina Jensen @karinajensenphoto

Eva was working in a maternity home, a residential program that provides housing, prenatal care, and support for pregnant women in need, when she became pregnant with her first baby. Clear in her vision for birth, she chose midwifery care and planned a physiological, unmedicated birth at a midwife-run birth center.

Her labor was smooth, relatively quick, and deeply supported. But the weeks that followed were far more difficult than she expected. Reflecting now, Eva realizes that while she prepared carefully for birth, she had not prepared for postpartum, that tender, life-changing time when your body is still shared ground.

Today, Eva is a birth and postpartum doula. Her passion for supporting new families was born from her own experience navigating the beautiful and challenging transition into motherhood

Find Eva on Instagram @lunanataldoulacare

And at www.lunanataldoulacare.com

If you love the show, I would greatly appreciate a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts!

Follow me on Instagram @healingbirth

Do you have a birth story you'd like to share on the podcast, or would like to otherwise connect? I love to hear from you! Send me a note at contactus@healingbirth.net

Intro / Outro music: Dreams by Markvard

Podcast cover photo by Karina Jensen @karinajensenphoto

At the end of her first pregnancy, Celine's plans for the birth unraveled. Her baby was breech, and the natural birth she had envisioned was replaced with a scheduled cesarean.

Though the surgery itself wasn't traumatic, it shook her confidence. She was left wrestling with painful questions: Why didn't my baby turn? Is my body broken?

Her healing began in the presence of women who believed deeply in birth and in her. Their unwavering faith helped her reclaim her own. When she became pregnant again, Celine chose a different path. She planned a home birth, supported by a midwife and doula, and consciously turned away from the fear that so often surrounds VBAC.

When labor came, it came swiftly. Before the midwife could arrive, Celine birthed her baby in the quiet of her own bathroom, immersed in warm water, guided by instinct alone. The experience was powerful, psychedelic, and profoundly redemptive.

She did not just give birth that day. She reclaimed herself.

If you love the show, I would greatly appreciate a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts!

Follow me on Instagram @healingbirth

Do you have a birth story you'd like to share on the podcast, or would like to otherwise connect? I love to hear from you! Send me a note at contactus@healingbirth.net

Intro / Outro music: Dreams by Markvard

Podcast cover photo by Karina Jensen @karinajensenphoto

This is part two of Natalie's story. Be sure to listen to Part One if you haven't already.

After the devastating second-trimester loss of her second baby, Natalie entered her third pregnancy carrying a lot of fear. Labeled as high risk, she once again had to navigate frequent interactions with the medical system, the same one that had dismissed her concerns so many times in her previous pregnancy.

Her beautiful, much-longed-for son was born healthy. But in the process, Natalie once again came close to losing her life.

Through the ups and downs, the tears and fears, the pain and the joy, Natalie shares that it was God's faithfulness that carried her through. She named her son Noah, a forever reminder of that faithfulness.

If you love the show, I would greatly appreciate a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts!

Follow me on Instagram @healingbirth

Do you have a birth story you'd like to share on the podcast, or would like to otherwise connect? I love to hear from you! Send me a note at contactus@healingbirth.net

Intro / Outro music: Dreams by Markvard

Podcast cover photo by Karina Jensen @karinajensenphoto

Content note: This episode includes the story of infant loss. If you are not in a space to hear about this topic, I trust you know what to do.

From the very beginning of Natalie's second pregnancy, she felt that something was wrong. As early as the first trimester, she experienced breathing issues, swelling, and eventually severe headaches. When she brought these symptoms to her care providers, they were dismissed as simply "pregnancy."

In her second trimester, she was finally diagnosed with HELLP syndrome. To save her life, she had to deliver her baby via emergency cesarean at just 23 weeks and 6 days gestation. Her daughter, Serena Joy, survived in the NICU for five days.

In the midst of such unimaginable shock and tragedy, Natalie found peace and healing through her faith. In that hospital room, she felt the presence and peace of God, as well as deep compassion and love for others who were walking through difficult seasons.

This is only part one of Natalie's story. Tune in next week to hear part two.

If you love the show, I would greatly appreciate a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts!

Follow me on Instagram @healingbirth

Do you have a birth story you'd like to share on the podcast, or would like to otherwise connect? I love to hear from you! Send me a note at contactus@healingbirth.net

Intro / Outro music: Dreams by Markvard

Podcast cover photo by Karina Jensen @karinajensenphoto