Ireland's Birth Stories

In this weeks episode I share my chat with @kate.canavan who talks me through her three pregnancies and two births. Kate opted for private care with her first pregnancy. She shares her experience which wasn’t one she expected in terms of support from her HCP and those around her during the birth of her son.Kate made the decision to give birth to her second baby in the comfort of her own home. She laboured with the support of her midwife and husband but the decision was made to transfer to hospital.She gave birth in hospital to another healthy little boy, this time her experience was thankfully much more positive.

In this next episode I share my chat with Claire who talks me through her two birth experiences. She was induced at 42 weeks with her first little boy and underwent and emergency c-section to bring her second baby into the world safely. At the latter stages of her second pregnancy it was discovery her baby was surrounded by a significant amount of fluid which led doctors to make the decision to bring her little boy into the world at 32 weeks.Thankfully the diagnosis wasn’t as severe as originally suspected but her little boy did spend some time in NICU.Claire also talks about her experience with fertility treatment, multiple early pregnancy losses and so much more that I know many of you will relate to.Thank you Claire

In this next episode I share my chat with Emma who talks me through her one pregnancy and the birth of her son. I vividly remember received Emmas email last year, she told me she suffered with PNA & PND but was ok the road to recovery. Although Emma was in a good place at the time she wasn’t aware of how tough the following months would be.Emma was diagnosed with gestational diabetes but managed this with both diet and exercise. She then talks me through her induction and the birth of her son. She admits she didn’t feel the rush of love that is spoken about so much but in reality not always felt.I truly appreciate how far Emma brought us into the depts of her depression. I think this honesty is so powerful as I know she isn’t alone in her experience. I do want to highlight she shares feeling suicidal thoughts at the height of her depression.As Emma said ‘if anyone is listening, you are worth trying to get better for, always!’ 

In this next episode I share my chat with Gillian who talks me through her two pregnancies and births. Both Gillian’s boys have come into the world quickly, especially her second little man who was born in the assessment unit much to everyone’s suprise. Gillian knew the birth of her baby was imminent so put all her energy into staying calm and focusing on what was about to come. She then talks me through her diagnosis of PNA. She shares how she felt, the support she received and she adjusted to life as a mother of two.The release of this episode has lined up perfectly with Patrick’s first birthday too.Enjoy!

In this episode I share my chat with Aideen who talks me through her two pregnancies and births. Aideen is a nurse, midwife and most recently and IBCLC so it's really nice to hear her perspective. She gave birth to her first son in hospital quiet quickly after an induction. Both she and those supporting her were surprised at how quickly she progress from 4cm to baby arriving into the world. We then chat through her second pregnancy after overcoming a tough postpartum period through early Covid with very little supports and the isolation that so many of us felt with new borns in our arms. Aideen decided to go down the homebirth route second time around supported by the Domino midwives. Similar to her first birth Aideen little man came quickly out into the world with one expulsive push. Enjoy!

In this episode I share my chat with Shauna who talks me through her four pregnancies and three births. The birth of her first son was incredibly tough resulting in a due to the lack of support and communication within the hospital. Her son was birthed with the assistance of a forceps which hugely impacted her postpartum healing process for a number of reasons. Although the care within the hospital was poor, she was supported by a midwife for a number of days when she returned home. This is where she received the TLC she needed to help her establish breastfeeding and start the road to recovery. Shauna also suffered two early pregnancy losses which she shared previously in depth when we chatted on the "Between Us" episode linked. Shauna' second experience was just so beautiful and poles apart from her first, right down to her very first interaction in labour.....the taxi driver!Enjoy!

In this episode I share my chat with Alice who talks me through part two of her story, the birth of her son. Alice got to the the very familiar stage in her pregnancy where she felt so ready to meet her baby. She went into labour spontaneously but was later induced for reasons which I will let Alice share. After some time the decision was made to bring her son into the world via C-section Alice also chats through her early days as a mother including solo parenting and breastfeeding.Thank you Alice for sharing your story!

EP130 - Alice, Pregnancy and Birth Preparation at 38 weeksIn this next episode I share my chat with Alice who I spoke to in April last year as she prepared to give birth to her first baby. Alice was also preparing to enter motherhood as a solo mum with her sister as her birth partner. She talks me through coming to terms with the prospect of motherhood as a single person and how she was shown amazing support from the team in the maternity hospital. She also talks about birth preparation, her preferences and how excited she felt at the prospect of giving birth.This is part one of Alice’s story, we will share her birth story later in the week.

In this weeks episode I share my chat with Rosie who talks me through her two pregnancies and births. Rosie had two beautiful, positive experiences, one in hospital and one at home supported by her husband and her midwife.She also shared a tough couple of weeks following the birth of her first baby highlighting the importance of visiting a women’s health physio.