The birth-ed podcast
Optimal Cord Clamping, with Amanda Burleigh
When to clamp the cord that leads from placenta to baby has become a contested issue in recent years. Today’s guest, Amanda Burleigh, has fought long and hard to introduce evidence-based practice and advocates delayed cord clamping for better baby health. Amanda talks openly about her personal journey to discover the benefits of delay and how it works in practice. We also bust some myths that women have encountered during delivery, including the facts behind cord blood donation and storage....
5 7月 2024 - 56 分 44 秒
Positive Hospital Birth, with Lily Yuula
Some women choose to labour in hospital, others feel they arrive there through the course of their care. If you find yourself in a delivery suite or labour ward for your birth, this episode aims to help you feel the most comfortable and prepared to be there. I’m speaking to Lily Yuula, a midwife who specialises in holistic care in a hospital setting, about what your expectations should be on a ward, what is in your control, and how you can make your birthing experience a positive one. Find ...
27 6月 2024 - 54 分 18 秒
High BMI pregnancy and birth, with Alice Keely
Why is so much importance placed on how much you weigh in pregnancy? Is a mother with over 30 BMI really at a high risk of complications in birth? This week, I’m speaking to Alice Keely, the Heavyweight Midwife, about the stigma attached to plus size parents, what to expect in pregnancy and labour if you’ve been labelled high risk, and how to approach interactions with healthcare professionals so that you feel more cared for and in control. Find more from Alice at www.theheavyweightmidwife....
20 6月 2024 - 01 小時 04 分 40 秒
Postnatal exercise and bouncing back, with Hollie Grant
Our culture surrounds us with pressure to look a certain way and be a certain way, and no more so than after pregnancy. The focus on whether you ‘bounce back’ after birth can be overwhelming. My guest this week challenges us instead to focus on postnatal rehab, functional movement and enjoyment. Hollie Grant is a Pilates PT and founder of The Bump Plan. Together we talk about when you can start moving your body after birth, where to start if it’s been a while, and what to look out for i...
13 6月 2024 - 50 分 04 秒
Breathwork in pregnancy and beyond, with Carolyn Cowan
If you’re a regular listener to the show, or you’ve done a Birth-ed course, you’ll know that I really value breathwork in labour, but I hadn’t realised the calm that breathwork can bring to pregnancy until I read today’s guest’s book. This week I’m talking to Carolyn Cowan, embodied psychotherapist, yoga teacher and author of Breathing for Pregnancy. Carolyn explains why and how conscious breathing works, gives a short breathwork demonstration and shows how to integrate the practice int...
6 6月 2024 - 44 分 52 秒
C-Section recovery, with Clare Bourne
C-section recovery is one of those subjects that is rarely mentioned before you experience it. So this week, I’ve got together with Clare Bourne, a pelvic health physiotherapist, to talk you through what you need to know to recover well. We cover everything from how to get out of bed in those first few hours, to exercise, to long term recovery and scar massage. For more information on Caesarean Sections, see Season 2 Episode 6 - Caesarean Birth with Consultant Obstetrician, Florence W...
30 5月 2024 - 58 分 03 秒
Birth Centres, with Issy Bourton
This episode is essential listening if you’re trying to decide whether to labour in a birth centre or midwife-led unit. I’m exploring everything birth centres, with my friend, midwife, Issy Bourton. Issy and I look at what a birth centre/midwife-led unit is, how your experience there can differ from a hospital birth, what you can expect to happen during your labour, how to request a birth centre labour if you are not low risk, and transferring to a labour ward. For more information abou...
23 5月 2024 - 53 分 52 秒
Mixed Feeding, with Lucy Ruddle
Many parents feel that they have to pick a side on the feeding debate - breast or bottle. But the reality is that often families find themselves a compromise, whether that is adding an occasional bottle to their routine, or switching to formula during the day, and breastfeeds when mum gets home from work. Despite this, information about how to go about mixed or combination feeding has been scarce, until now. My guest this week, Lucy Ruddle IBCLC, is author of a guide to mixed feeding, Mixed U...
16 5月 2024 - 52 分 07 秒
Candid Birth & Connecting with Your Body, with Emma Armstrong
With social media platforms increasingly censoring candid images of birth and women’s bodies, I got together this week with The Naked Doula, Emma Armstrong, to talk about why we need to see real women’s experiences online. Our wide-ranging chat touches on using the correct words for female anatomy in schools, how we set realistic expectations for birth, and how reconnecting with your body through periods, birth and the menopause is truly empowering. Emma Armstrong is a mother, a birth coach...
9 5月 2024 - 50 分 21 秒
Continuous Foetal HR Monitoring, with Dr Kirsten Small
Continuous Foetal Monitoring can be uncomfortable, anxiety-inducing or misleading, but there’s plenty of evidence for its use, right? That’s the question Dr. Kirsten Small set out to answer after her long career in obstetrics. Her research led her to question everything about trace monitoring, from the case for low and high risk differentials to how centralised monitoring changes care in the birth room. In this episode, I’m speaking to Kirsten about her findings, and how you can make an inf...
2 5月 2024 - 01 小時 10 分 32 秒