Following Alan's story last week here is Lucy's.  She shares her pregnancy experience and why choosing a homebirth with doula support was so important to her.   This episode was recorded first.  

Clare and Clair listen to Alan's honest and open story about his struggles with infertility and his journey to becoming a father.  He shares this in the hope that he might help others going through a difficult time and what learnings he has taken away.  He discusses his conversion from a homebirth sceptic to supportive Birth Partner and his life as a new Father.  This episode is a companion to Lucy's Birth Story where she shares her perspective in the next episode.    Find out more about...

Clare and Clair are joined by Clare's student Katie who tells us about her pregnancy and birth journey and why she decided to have a homebirth.  

Clare Maddalena is joined by Erin Fung from Better Birth to discuss Induction.   (Sorry my microphone was misbehaving!- Clair McGill).   Erin shares her own induction story and how it affected her and ultimately lead her to her work as an Antenatal Educator and Hypnobirthing instructor.  Why is there so little information given about the risks of induction? We talk about what should be discussed if you are being offered an induction, the benefits and the risks as well as the alternatives. ...

In this very special podcast, we hear from Kemi Johnson about her experiences as a former NHS and former Independent Midwife in the UK.  Kemi is passionate about her role as an experienced birth keeper and asks people to question the care they are receiving. She wants you to expect more, to ask questions and to say “no”.  For those who are not familiar with her amazing social media you are in for an awakening.  If you have always believed that medically managed birth is the safest, this may...

Have you heard of gut health, probiotics, antibiotic resistance?  These are hot topics but how do they relate to birth and our babies.   Together with her partner Alex, Toni Harman made the documentary film Microbirth asking the question  Could birth and infant feeding affect a child's long-term health? It won awards and instigating discussions and changes that are happening today.  Their follow up book “The MicroBiome Effect” brought together more information and questions about what we...

After a little break, we reflect on some of the episodes we recorded last year.   We have started to record some new podcasts with some wonderful people.  We can't wait to share them with you! 

This episode is for anyone in a long term relationship!   Dominique is a therapist initially working at Relate supporting couples and families in the UK’s first family counselling service.  She has trained doulas and antenatal teachers all over the world and is author of the book The Seven Secrets of a Joyful Birth. Although our focus is on navigating the years after bringing a baby into your family we talk about so much more.  Celebrating difference, learning the right way to have an...

Clare and Clair talk with Kate Woods about her career.  What is a Doula? Why are they important?  We discuss how she started training other Doulas (including Clare) and why she is passionate about providing Doulas for refugees, the birth of Doulas Without Borders and how they are breaking down linguistic barriers to offer even better support with Mother Tongue.  (This was recorded last year)...

Clare and Clair talk to Obstetrician Dr Victoria Medland about her work, how we can help women and birthing people to have better experiences in hospital, why language matters so much and how her own experiences of motherhood and birthing gave her a new perspective.  In the UK in 2020/2021 around 46% of Births were by Caesarean or Assisted Delivery (Forceps or Ventouse) *   https://www.tommys.org/ https://evidencebasedbirth.com/ Dr Sara Wickham https://www.sarawickham.com/ Guidelines on...

Clare and Clair speak to Midwife Mark Harris about his work supporting those suffering from trauma.  We talk about what trauma looks like and why it might occur and how the 3 Step Process Mark uses and trains others to use can help.  Find out more about Mark and find a 3 Step Practitioner here: - www.birthingawareness.com Mark's interview with Dr Caitlin Walker about the clean language model https://youtu.be/mDaXZqLgFUo Blog written by a GP and student of Clair's about her experience...

Anna Crowle is a Women's Physiotherapist whose groundbreaking work and published research papers suggest that pelvic organ prolapse is caused by tension not weakness questioning the effectiveness of commonly used approaches and treatment.

The most talked about subject by parents!  Why don't they sleep?  How can you get them to sleep?  Am I creating bad habits by doing the easiest thing to get them to sleep?  Lyndsey is an experienced paediatric nurse and children’s public health nurse, Lactation Consultant and co-founder and clinical director of the Holistic Sleep Coaching Program  She is also the author of 3 books  Holistic Sleep Coaching,  Let’s talk about your new family’s sleep and  Still Awake Responsive sleep...

A little catch up and sneaky peak of what is to come this year on the podcast.   https://mythicmedicine.love/podcast http://wecandohardthingspodcast.com https://www.facebook.com/birthingawarenesspod/

Maria Viner CEO of Bristol Charity Mothers for Mothers shares her story and experience of losing her baby son William and how this has influenced her life and the incredible work she has done supporting mothers and educating care providers.  We discuss her work with Tommys and the Royal College of Obstetrician and Gynaecologists (RCOG) Women's Network as well as the life changing work of Mothers for Mothers for those suffering from perinatal mental health illness.   *Trigger Warning - this...

This wonderful meditation is around 8 minutes and is for everyone.  Take a little bit of time to be still and listen to your heart.  

The Claires are joined by LushTums Teacher Helen Eadie who talks about her journey and things she has learned along the way.  What is cranial sacral therapy? Why is Scaravelli Inspired Yoga so special?  Why is everyone talking about fascia? What is Heartmath and how is it using science to help us with anxiety?   Find out more about Helen: - https://www.heleneadieyoga.com https://www.instagram.com/heleneadieyoga/ For more about...

Writer and founder of the Positive Birth Movement Milli Hill talks to Clare & Clair about writing her books, her experience of motherhood and the passions that led her to her work.  We talk about The Positive Birth Book and how it almost didn't happen, the impact of Give Birth Like A Feminist and why we still need to fight for woman-centred care. We also talk about Milli's latest book aimed at pre teen girls, due out this summer called "My Period: Find your flow and feel proud of your...

Clare and Clair speak to Dr Ally Grandison, Director of the Surrey Baby Lab and longtime LushTums student about her work researching how Babies perceive the world and the role language plays.  She discusses her research discoveries, how work has influenced her parenting journey,  preparing to welcome her third baby into the family and what it has meant to her to attend LushTums classes for 6 years with Clare. Ally's personal webpage:...

We talk to Claire Russell Burns, certified "Restore Your Core" Teacher and tutor on our LushTums Postnatal Yoga Teacher Training, about her experience of stomach separation (or diastatis recti) following the birth of her children.  We discuss postnatal bodies, rehabilitation and how we approach movement differently.  Find out more about Claire and her offerings at http://clairerussellburns.co.ukAre you drawn to working with people during Pregnancy and Postnatally?  Perhaps you would like to...

In this episode the Claires are joined by registered Nurse, Midwife, Author, NLP trainer and Father of 8 and Grandfather of 12 - Mark Harris.  Mark shares insights from his fascinating career as a Midwife, shares his thoughts on why there aren't more male midwives and gives tips on how men can better support their partners through pregnancy and birth.  We talk about why 30% of parents describe birth as "traumatic" and how the Birthing Awareness 3 Step Rewind Process can help those who are...

We speak to Tina Mason, Head Physiotherapist and owner of Brighton Physiotherapy Clinic about her work and what women need to know about their pelvic floor.  We talk about the importance of getting a new mummy check, even if it is years after having a baby, and discuss the lack of understanding around our postnatal bodies and why jumping straight into high impact exercise following birth may not be the best thing.  This is a must listen for anyone who has questions about the pelvic floor and...

Clare and Clair talk to long time friend and collaborator Helen Moss about her passion for Rest and why it is so important during the postnatal period and how her own experiences led her to this work.  Unfortunately Helen's microphone did not work so apologies if the sound is not great at times. Find out more about Helen's work at https://www.imaginerest.comThe recommended app "The Breathing...

For their first ever podcast meet Clare Maddalena, founder of LushTums and her business partner Clair McGill.  Find out why Clare wanted to train people to teach Pregnancy, Postnatal and Women's Yoga and how her journey as a Yoga Teacher began.  In this episode we discuss  our hopes for the podcast how becoming mothers shaped our journey  insights from giving birth  pregnancy cravings! https://www.lushtums.co.uk