Doing It At Home: Our Home Birth Podcast

We’re launching a special series of episodes, each centered on one powerful theme in the home birth journey. This first set — Water Birth Stories — gathers real experiences and insights to support, inspire, and immerse you in the magic of water birth! How can you take your power back after it feels like a previous birth experience took it away? Today’s story with Karine Halle features details of trauma from a hospital birth for her first child and how she was determined to have a home birth for her second.  In between her first and second birth, she felt called into doula work and became passionate about supporting families in the birth experience.  For her second pregnancy and birth, she did everything she could to put the odds on her side to have her dream birth. *Please note that this conversation contains mention of suicidal thoughts Things we talk about in this episode: Postpartum rage GBS positive Gestational Diabetes testing Body work for birth: chiropractic care, massage, yoga, exer

We’re launching a special series of episodes, each centered on one powerful theme in the home birth journey. This first set — Water Birth Stories — gathers real experiences and insights to support, inspire, and immerse you in the magic of water birth! How does your first pregnancy and birth experience impact your second? In today’s interview, we’re chatting with Carolyn about her pregnancy and birth story of her son Solomon, while pregnant with her second child. We go over her decision to have a home birth as well as the intense first trimester sickness she experienced. Also the denial around labor starting, which we’ve heard quite a few times from mamas on the show. Carolyn shares that while the birth went very well, it was still different from what she imagined in her mind. Following her birth, she experienced postpartum anxiety that involved separation anxiety and trouble sleeping. Addressing the anxiety and getting help around it has supported and encouraged her in preparation for her next child, due

We’re launching a special series of episodes, each centered on one powerful theme in the home birth journey. This first set — Water Birth Stories — gathers real experiences and insights to support, inspire, and immerse you in the magic of water birth! In today’s episode we’re talking with Kimberly Huck, a mama who used the Bradley Method during her water birth at home. Kimberly is mama to Henry and wife to Dan. And we have a special connection with Kimberly. We live near each other and...we used the same midwives! So the same women who helped deliver baby Maya, delivered baby Henry just a few months earlier. Kimberly and I connected after she posted a cool home birth related article on Facebook that happened to make its way into my awareness (article link in the show notes). Kimberly grew up in a natural home, being unvaccinated herself. She became interested in home birth after working for a chiropractor in her early 20s who had a home birth in their family. So for she and Dan, home birth is just a par

In this episode, we’re talking with Catherine about her home birth. Catherine is a spunky, energetic mom of 2 from Canada. You can feel her enthusiasm through the speakers. Her lively nature and passionate storytelling captivates you. Catherine has a the perspective of hospital birth and a home birth. Cool fact: she got to use the same midwife for both births! And we’re honored to share that our show helped influence and support Catherine and her husband Carmen (who wasn’t so convinced to start off with) to choose a home birth. Their preparation process involved a lot of trust-building with the intention to protect the reverence of the birth experience. Isn’t that beautiful? And get this - Catherine and Carmen strategically chose not to tell anyone of their intentions to home birth. So everyone found out after baby arrived! We find this to be totally badass - being bold and true to yourself and going about things the way that resonates most with you. Catherine talks about how her home birth gave her the

In today’s episode we’re talking with Natalie Bancroft and Laura Fifield, two amazing women who are linked with a quite famous recent birth story. You see Natalie, a birth photographer and doula as well as a mama of 3, gave birth to her third baby earlier this year at home. And baby Simon weighed 11 lbs. 2 oz!!! And Laura, Natalie’s friend, birth photographer and mama of 2, was there to document the experience. Some of the amazing photos from the birth, namely one that features Natalie holding her newly birthed bundle of adorable squish with this elated, shocked, goddess-like expression of “wow!” has been featured far and wide. Publications like Today Show, Hello Giggles and even People have featured the image on their sites.  We were so grateful and excited to speak with these awesome women. They share insights from the birth photography community, which is small in their city of Spokane, WA. We get to hear about some of the memorable births they’ve been able to document. Natalie talks about her journey t

In this episode we’re talking with Katie Holman about her two home births at The Farm (yes that The Farm...the one founded by Ina May Gaskin). Meet Katie. She lives outside of Nashville with her husband, Jimmy and her two sons Cash and Elon. Katie is our first DIAH mom to have a birth story from The Farm! If you’re not familiar with The Farm, prepare to get acquainted. Founded in 1970 by a group of powerful and conscious people, looking to return the natural and sacred act of birth to the family, and have it in an environment that supported women and families. Ina May Gaskin, a juggernaut in the natural birth, home birth and midwifery world, was a founding member. Most anyone who explores natural or home birth has heard of Ina May Gaskin and has been influenced by her work and her writings. Back to Katie. Katie had watched The Business of Being Born documentary and read Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth. The message of Ina May really resonated with Katie, and that lead her to the decision to have both of her c

In today’s episode we speak with Dr. Sarah Buckley on the science of natural and undisturbed birth. Dr. Buckley is the author of the best selling book Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering, the author the report Hormonal Physiology of Childbearing, and all around natural childbirth expert. We are honored and grateful to have Dr. Sarah Buckley join us on the Doing It At Home Podcast for many reasons. To start, her book "Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering: A Doctor's Guide to Natural Childbirth and Gentle Early Parenting Choices" was a huge influence on us during our pregnancy. Sarah (our Sarah...Sarah Bivens that is) started reading Dr. Buckley's book while we were still planning for a birth with an OBGYN in a hospital. We learned about Dr. Buckley from her appearances in a DVD series called "Happy Healthy Child" (another resource we highly recommend and link to in the show notes.) Dr. Buckley's extensive research and evidence based information on pregnancy and birth, along with her own accounts of her 4 home births le

In today's episode we're talking to mama, Monica Smith. Monica and her husband Matt welcomed their son Rocky into the world 7 months ago (at the original time of recording), and they’re such a beautiful family. Both chiropractors, Monica and Matt are used to environments that support home birth and back it up with the philosophy of trusting the body and its amazing ability to heal. Monica is a well of knowledge. She’s also incredibly insightful. Her perspectives on the body, women and birth are enough to get you pumped up and inspired to take on the world! We cover all kinds of topics like tiny house (she and Matt lived in a 275 sq. ft. home for a period of time!) and simplified living, which has transferred over into their parenting styles. We explore what happens when your birth vision does not match up with the actual experience (and how that can be a great thing). Monica also went 42 weeks and 6 days into her pregnancy! Holy mama, right?! Not to mention, she ties in the value of chiropractic care for

In today's episode we're reading a truly amazing listener email from Brianna. Now, Brianna is a totally badass mama (which you'll hear in the episode). She had planned to birth her daughter in a birth pool at a birthing center, but after pushing for literally the entire night with no real horizon in sight, they decided to transfer her to a hospital, and that's where the story really picks up! Brianna connected with us on Instagram (which you can do ⁠@diahpodcast⁠), and emailed me a detailed account of her amazing birth story. I read and re-read her story because it was just too inspiring. As you'll hear, Brianna is a really courageous and strong woman who was determined to bring her baby into the world.   Offers From Our Awesome Partners: Needed: https://needed.sjv.io/XY3903 - use code DIAH to get 20% off your order More From Doing It At Home: Doing It At Home book on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3vJcPmU DIAH YouTube: https://bit.ly/3pzuzQC DIAH Merch: https://www.teepublic.com/stores/d

In this episode we have another home birth story for you! This time we're talking with soon-to-be mom Jennifer Sanchez. Jennifer lives a vegan lifestyle and so we were super curious about how that has played into her pregnancy and home birth planning. Jennifer was a lot of fun to talk to and we're excited to have her on the Doing It At Home Podcast. Jennifer is currently 6 months pregnant and planning for her first child. Her passion is about “helping others to live healthier, more compassionate and eco-friendly lives through the power of making plant-powered choices.” This has also influenced her process of choosing home birth. After making the shift into self-improvement and personal development about 7 years ago, she’s been more focused on being informed and doing research when it comes to life decisions. She watched the Business of Being Born (like a lot of our home birth moms...Ricki Lake if you’re out there, we want to talk with you!), and thought, “this is what it’s supposed to be like, this is moth

In this episode, Matthew and I talk about 8 specific things I did before and during my pregnancy, which helped me remain strong, focused, powerful and centered during our home birth. Offers From Our Awesome Partners: Needed: https://needed.sjv.io/XY3903 - use code DIAH to get 20% off your order More From Doing It At Home: Doing It At Home book on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3vJcPmU DIAH YouTube: https://bit.ly/3pzuzQC DIAH Merch: https://www.teepublic.com/stores/doingitathome Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode we're talking with Charlotte Knee -- a brand spanking new mom, hailing all the way from Ireland, who welcomed her little bundle of joy in a home birth. In this episode we get to hear some perspective on home birth in Ireland! Charlotte was kind enough to chat with us while her 6-week old baby daughter Iza hung out in the background. We understand the life of fresh parenthood, and we know time is one of the most precious things at this state. So we consider it an honor that she spent some of it with us to share her awesome story. Charlotte’s story is an example of how we continue to stay fascinated with birth in general, especially home birth. Because it’s so different everywhere you go. Living in the states, you just tend to hear about the variations in laws and practices from state to state. But there’s a whole big world out there! Charlotte has never been a big fan of hospitals. And get this - she was born at home! So continuing the tradition, she hired a private midwife and she and her h

In today's episode we're answering a listener email. This one comes to us from Hannah who is looking for feedback on how she can amicably part ways with her OBGYN.  Matthew and I LOVE our listener emails. Seriously, they energize us and inspire us to keep bringing you all awesome content. On the days when we’re feeling under the weather (like Matthew is in this episode - notice the deep, raspy voice) and sleep deprived, we remember your questions and beautiful words of affirmation. They remind us of our mission - to create empowering conversation around home birth and to inspire other moms and families to choose the birth plan that resonates most with them after understanding their options. Enter a great listener email from Hannah. Hannah and her husband were going the hospital birth route, until the details and stipulations around the birthing plan didn’t jive with them. On top of that, they’re exploring how to have the conversation with their general doctor on moving forward with care for baby after birth

In this episode we chat with mom-to-be Katie about her journey to home birth, and the days ahead. At 39 weeks pregnant, she’s prepped and ready for birth day! And this episode has a surprise special guest - Katie’s husband Chris! He joins us for the call, a first for the show. We were super excited to hear from him and get his perspective on the whole process. Both were heavily influenced by The Business of Being Born, and knew they wanted to have labor and birth be on their own terms. A self-described “birth nerd,” Katie loves to dive into researcher mode. Their pregnancy was no exception. They searched their options for a local midwife and never looked back. Katie and Chris feel like old friends to us. The conversation was effortless, fun, light and empowering. They set a great example for doing what feels best to them and creating a loving, welcoming space for baby to enter into. We can’t wait to chat with them once baby is earthside! Links From The Episode: ⁠The Business Of Being Born⁠ Offers F

In this episode we're talking with Megan Kibling as she shares her empowering home birth story with us. Megan is mom to 6-year-old Aurelia and 19-month-old Leonardo Iztali from Denver, Colorado. We connected with Megan via another DIAH mom, Marissa (whom we interviewed a few weeks before). Megan had sent a banner to Marissa to decorate her home in preparation for home birth. The same banner has made its way to other mamas since then, and Megan plans to continue to send it to friends as they want it. Besides supporting other women in their home birth journeys, Megan has an amazing story of her own. After having a great experience with her first birth in a birthing center, she felt inspired to move into home birth for the next time around. She says she felt empowered and knew a home birth was the next step. In between Aurelia and Leonardo, Megan experienced a miscarriage at 10 weeks. Megan shares openly on the fear and guilt that crept in during that time, and how she embarked on a journey of forgiveness, ba

In this episode we're talking with Christina Benton - birth photographer, birth and postpartum doula, mom and wife. Christina shares her beautiful home birth and hospital birth stories, from behind the lens, and she shares why moms and families should highly consider hiring a photographer for their homebirth.  This is a first for the Doing It At Home Podcast: an interview with a birth photographer! We were very excited to chat with Christina Benton, a doula and birth photographer. For starters, we didn’t have a formal birth photographer. If you’ve listened to our birth story you know that most of our birth team came equipped with their camera phones, which we are extremely grateful for, however it meant a bunch of lights and phones up in my business at different points in time, and the pictures themselves are scattered in their composition and quality. We weren’t really aware of birth photography and its value until after the experience. So chatting with Christina was as much for us and it is for our listen

In this episode we're commenting on a blog article that Matthew found in Romper, called ”7 Things That Happen After You Give Birth At Home.” The article covers everything from what happens with the mess, to baby's first checkup, to bonding with your new baby. This was such a great article, simple and informative, that it inspired us to do this episode! So Angela Johnson, if you’re out there and see this, thank you for writing the article and spreading the awareness. (We’d love to have you on the show by the way!) A lot of times when we’re planning for a big event, like say...birth, we’re not always focused on what happens afterwards. And it makes sense because birth can have a lot of moving parts to it. Especially with home birth, there’s a lot of planning and preparation that comes into play. So this episode goes through a lot of the likely scenarios and traits of home birth that you can expect to experience once the main festivities (launching a baby out of your body and into the world) have concluded. S

In this episode we're talking with Tammy Williams. Tammy is a 38 year old first time mom who chose to have her baby at home. She is an amazing momma who approached her home birth without fear, and had a magic experience. If Tammy could, she would shout from every rooftop about how awesome her home birth experience was and how every woman can give birth without fear. Since finding every rooftop would take some time, having her on our “podcast rooftop” will suffice for now. Unsure of whether or not she’d be able to get pregnant, Tammy had a surprise first pregnancy at 38. In a circumstance where many women might find themselves fearful and worried about the risks, Tammy powered up and she and her partner David decided on home birth after a close friend who was also pregnant at the same time shared her intentions of having a home birth. Overwhelmed with emotion in an amazing way, Tammy sought out empowering information and resources with the support of her midwives that she selected from a nearby birthing cen

In today's episode we're talking with Danielle Turk-Bly, two time mom with a third on the way. Danielle is a self described "crunchy mom" (#represent) and we have an amazing conversation on this episode. We talk about all kinds of things from the birth planning to cloth diapering and homeschooling, running while pregnant, facing your fear demons around birth, placenta previa and how that has been impacting her current pregnancy, having a community of like-minded people to support you, cultivating your voice for what you want, and intimacy with your partner during pregnancy. Danielle's first birth was in a birthing center. When it came time to plan for the second pregnancy, she and her husband Ryan made the shift to home birth. Despite Ryan being a little bit more conservative than Danielle, he was fully on board and in support of the decision. Danielle doesn’t revel in “going against the grain” or defying anyone else’s way of going about things. She just simply does what resonates most with her. I really

In this bite-sized episode, I share some realness with you. This week has been tough for me. At any point, I’ve felt frustrated, tired, stressed, over-extended, low, and a bunch of other adjectives you use when everything feels difficult. I didn’t take time for myself and had myself convinced that I wasn’t doing enough - that I wasn’t feeling productive enough. Bottom line: this was my ego playing some huge mind tricks. So for any mama out there, future and present, who has felt this way. This is for you. I talk about how I got into the dark place and what I did to get out of it. Take advantage of the opportunities to remind yourself how awesome you are - especially for pregnancy and birth planning. Experience your joy! Offers From Our Awesome Partners: Needed: https://needed.sjv.io/XY3903 - use code DIAH to get 20% off your order The FamilyAlbum app: Share your family’s precious moments with your loved ones + get 11 free photo prints delivered each month CLICK HERE. More From Doing It At Home: Doin