The Positive Births NZ podcast

Two positive birth stories are possible! This episode is dedicated to all the mums navigating a second pregnancy, having already had one positive birth and wondering if they can have another. It’s a very normal doubt.
Kaitlin shares with us her two births to Reuben and Rone. Her first birth was in a hospital in Melbourne, the second a homebirth in Christchurch.
Within this episode we hear about :
·      Mindset preparation being very important,
·      Use of hypnobirthing techniques, affirmations, and mental rehearsal
·      Comparison of care in Australia vs NZ system, during pregnancy and postnatally
·      Jamie’s continuous emotional and physical support throughout labour and his advocacy in hospital. Plus the best ever oxytocin boost for Kaitlin in Rone’s labour – you have to listen to around 1 hour 3 mins for this one!
·      Unique baby reveal picture, involvement of 4year old in pregnancy and birth
·      Kaitlin catching both her babies
·      Decision making process for a home birth, the benefits of homebirth (& not having to leave the house in 2 weeks postpartum)
There’s so many nuggets to take away from this episode.
If you too would like to learn practical tools, techniques to feel calm, confident and prepared for your birth, head to www.positivebirths.co.nz for a range of options.
If you’re in the same place as Kaitlin was in her 2nd pregnancy and you’d like a refresher on hypnobirthing techniques – either reach out to [email protected] to book a private one-on-one session or check out the Short and Sweet Online recorded course https://www.positivebirths.co.nz/online-recorded-classes/
 
The Yoga classes Kaitlin attended:
Opti-mum - Kei Shana
https://www.opti-mum.co.nz/

Holly was excited about birth and happy to just roll with it– the plan was to “birth a baby”.
Inspired by attending her sister's fifth birth in her pregnancy Holly learnt some skills and tools from the Positive Births online Birth with Calm and Confidence course and you’ll hear what her favourite tools were in her pregnancy and labour.
Unable to find an LMC in her area she was enrolled with acommunity midwife which meant phoning to book in an on call midwife once she was in labour before travelling to the nearest birth centre over an hour away.
Holly shares how supportive her mum and sister were whenthey turned up and the power of having other women in the room with her.
This is a great down to earth, no sugar coated account of anintervention free, physiological first birth. Following Walter’s arrival was a 5 day hospital stay due to suspected infection and breathing issues.
You can find Holly’s gorgeous Instagram page at @grownbyholly where she shares her love of growing food and flowers, type B baking and her dairy farmer wifeing.
 
If you too would like some skills and tools for your birthhead to www.positivebirths.co.nzfor a range of hypnobirthing options – live and online.

Clementine shares the journey of the births of her twochildren and the profound difference preparation and support can make. Her first birth with her son Theo began with very little antenatal preparation, andbecame a difficult hospital experience that left her feeling overwhelmed and unsupported at times.
In her second pregnancy Clementine recognised that herprevious experience had impacted her deeply. Determined to approach birth differently, she began actively educating herself through books, podcasts, positive birth stories, and conversations with her midwife. She focused on mindset, physical preparation, affirmations, and creating an environment where she felt calm, safe and in control. Over time, her fear was replaced with confidence and trust in her body.
Baby Evie was born at home, Clementine was surrounded bysupportive midwives and in the comfort of her own space, experienced the calm, empowering birth she had hoped for.
Her story is a powerful reminder that birth experiences can be transformed through knowledge, support, and intentionalpreparation — and that it’s never too late to reclaim confidence in your body and your birth.

If you would like to feel calm, confident and prepared for your birth come along to the Free Webinar held live on Monday 30 March. Register at www.positivebirths.co.nz/free-webinar/
or you can watch a recording here https://www.positivebirths.co.nz/free-webinar/)
Plus check out the range of course options available to you at positivebirths.co.nz

Bailey’s labour didn’t start the way she planned for it to,but from the work she had done in her pregnancy she was feeling “far more excited than scared,” and that shift from fear to excitement became one of the most powerful parts of her journey.
In this episode Bailey talks about preparing for what she callsher “ultra marathon” preparing for something challenging, understanding how her body works, and using hypnobirthing tools.
You’ll love to listen to Bailey clarify her “whys” – how shewrote down her reasons for wanting a physiological birth.
Even after having to pivot to an induction setting, she created a calm birth space, used her breath, protected her environment, and worked with her body.
And then comes that experience — lifting her baby onto her “the most incredible moment of my life.”
Bailey’s birth is a reassuring story for anyone navigatingthe possibility of induction. It’s proof that preparation, mindset, and trust can transform the experience — even when the path takes a turn.
 
If you'd like to have the advantage of a positive mindset and hypnobirthing tools, check out your options - live and online courses with Helen at www.positivebirths.co.nz

What do you do when your homebirth dreams are shattered because your baby is discovered to be in a footling breech position at 40+3??

There is so much for you to gain from listening to this episode with Tanay, where she shares her journey that did not go anywhere near to plan — and yet became one of her greatest lessons in surrender, strength, self-trust and healing.

What began as a firm decision to avoid hospital at all costs unraveled into a breech diagnosis, an attempted ECV, a change of midwife, more plan changes, spontaneous labour, progress to 9cm and then ultimately a c-section birth in the very place she had initially feared the most.
 This story provides an example of what happens when you pursue all options and don’t give up.
Tanay kindly shares how we worked through her fears, by using somatic hypnotherapy to untangle the events that caused her to feel very anxious in hospitals. She was then able to proceed in a calm, relaxed and empowered manner.

Tanay shifted her focus to what she could control, rather than what was outside of her control and this mindset paid off for her really well. This is a powerful conversation about control, surrender, mindset and healing. Because sometimes the most positive births aren’t the ones that go to plan — they’re the ones where we grow the most.

If you would like some help to release your fears or untangle any traumatic past events please reach out to [email protected]

Tanay and Hadley completed the Positive Births Ultimate course in their pregnancy which includes ongoing support - such as the extra hypnotherapy sessions we were able to do at week 40 of her pregnancy. You can find details of all course options at www.positivebirths.co.nz