9 + 9 The Honest Pregnancy and Birthing Podcast

Breech, Nuchal Cord, Tongue-Tie and how not to be flustered

Anuva went into this thinking “Mind over Matter” and she did it. This episode is for all those moms-to-be who are confused, lost, bewildered and maybe even intimidated by the current state of their pregnancy. Coming from a more conservative family, Anuva stood her ground (on most things) and chose where to put her energy. In pregnancy, energy is scarce, so what we can learn from this episode is to spend it on the things that are important to you and that you can change, don’t waste your energy worrying. I know, that’s easier said than done. But Anuva did it and that is encouraging! Pregnancy is a rollercoaster, every time you think you mastered a challenge, a new one shows up around the corner. What I learnt in this episode is, accept what you can’t change. But don’t accept defeat right in the beginning. Research, see what’s possible. Try the unexpected even if it’s weird (safety first though!!). Talk to other women, find your village. And go in there like the boss that you are. If you don’t feel like a boss yet, then use this time to get to know yourself and your needs - yes even if you feel angry, tired, sad and stressed. You don’t need to meditate to know yourself, because once that baby is out, you will need to remember who you are when you are tired, angry or stressed (or all of them haha. No, children are fun!). In fact, they are so much fun that Anuva is already just weeks away from delivering her second baby! 🥳 Anuva would like to recommend the 2 women especially who have helped her turn her journey around: 🧘🏻‍♀️Melissa Genovesi (Hypnobirthing Coach): https://www.instagram.com/melissa_shantibirth [https://www.instagram.com/melissa_shantibirth] https://shantibirth.com/ [https://shantibirth.com/] 🙆‍♀️Sonali Santhanam (Pre-natal yoga and Pelvic Floor Expert, PhD) https://www.instagram.com/birthbasix/ [https://www.instagram.com/birthbasix/] https://birthbasix.com [https://birthbasix.com]  🤰A general note: This podcast is based on personal experiences by mothers. 🫶 The makers of this podcast are not doctors. Information shared, even if medically founded, is purely personal. For medical questions, we urge you to speak to your physician and/or relevant medical professional. 🎙️ 🎧 This episode was produced by Harkat Studios . 🎶 Intro music by Akoth Jumadi (⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/artist/1yzpHN73mIqHg8uP8KnyYo?si=ZzNUZAtTRFOffvz8BDDTYw⁠⁠) [https://open.spotify.com/artist/1yzpHN73mIqHg8uP8KnyYo?si=ZzNUZAtTRFOffvz8BDDTYw]

Sit-Down with a Doula

400+ births down and a lot of stories to tell!I finally (!!!) sat down with Sanam, a doula with over 15 years of experience. She became a doula before she even had children, she'd never seen a newborn and hadn't even heard of the word 'Doula' before. But a rather filmy chain of events led her down that path and listening to her I took away one major learning: Go with the flow!That she herself ended up saving her unborn son's life without even knowing that he was alive leads to a more practical insight: Choose your caregivers, your gynaecologist, your midwife, your doula, your hospital well! Educate yourself. The first, and probably easiest, step to learning is to just listen to other mothers' stories - and Sanam for sure has more than one story to tell! Topics we cover: - Emergency C-Section - Waterbirth - Homebirth - Cervical Cerclage (a medical procedure in which a doctor places stitches around the cervix (the lower part of the uterus that opens into the vagina) to help keep it closed during the pregnancy. These stitches are then removed closer to the due date allowing the cervix to open naturally during labor) - Breastfeeding - What does a doula actually do! Books/Resources which Sanam recommends reading for parents-to-be:⁠ 📕 Hypnobirthing by Marie Mongan⁠⁠ 📕 Breastfeeding Atlas by Barbara Wilson-Clay⁠⁠ Spinning Babies [www.spinningbabies.com]⁠: a physiological approach to preparing for and caring for birth) AND YOU CAN GET IN TOUCH WITH SANAM HERSELF HERE: www.instagram.com/newbeginningzz [www.instagram.com/newbeginningzz] www.new-beginningz.in [www.new-beginningz.in] In case you are interested in becoming a doula, this episode is full of real-life anecdotes that will give you a realistic picture of the job of a doula! Here are resources in case you would like to find out more about becoming a doula:⁠ - ⁠CAPPA⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/cappaindia/?hl=en] www.cappaindia.com⁠ (The world's Largest Birth Professionals training organization), which offers training for: Labor Doula (CLD) , Childbirth Educator (CCCE) and Lactation Educator (CLE)⁠⁠ [ www.beginedindia.com] - Begin Ed India: ⁠ [ www.beginedindia.com]Online Lactation Course to become Advanced Certified Lactation Professional (ACLP) A general note: This podcast is based on personal experiences by mothers. The makers of this podcast are not doctors. Information shared, even if medically founded, is purely personal. For medical questions, we urge you to speak to your physician and/or relevant medical professional. 🎙️ 🎧 This episode was produced by Harkat Studios . 🎶 Intro music by Akoth Jumadi (⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/artist/1yzpHN73mIqHg8uP8KnyYo?si=ZzNUZAtTRFOffvz8BDDTYw⁠⁠)

Pregnancy & Birth as spiritual experiences

Who would have thought that the easiest way to find your spirituality and actually connect with higher forces is to 'simply' (lol) have a baby? For those searching for a way to connect with 'the divine' or even just trying to find a tiny piece of spirituality in their everyday life: This episode presents a hack - get pregnant, have a baby! Initially, we were supposed to talk about home births in this episode - and we do - but we also talk about babies giving us magic dreams. And how Rakhi's babies told her to have a home birth, before she even KNEW that such a thing exists. And about Sex. But just a little bit. It was an uphill task to make it possible. And along the way she hit a few more road blocks, like infections and premature crowning! Was she able to keep it in? Did she have to have a C-section? Here are some accounts which Rakhi found helpful: @sanctumbirthcenter @birthvillageindia You can find out more about Rakhi's work here: www.rackheetrust.com Instagram: rakhitrust_official Email: me@rackheetrust.com A general note: This podcast is based on personal experiences by mothers. The makers of this podcast are not doctors. Information shared, even if medically founded, is purely personal. For medical questions, we urge you to speak to your physician and/or relevant medical professional. This episode was produced by Harkat Studios. Intro music by Akoth Jumadi (https://open.spotify.com/artist/1yzpHN73mIqHg8uP8KnyYo?si=ZzNUZAtTRFOffvz8BDDTYw)

Episode Oooops

Life is when a birth happens. How does a Doula even keep friendships and family life alive with such a tiring schedule? Is meeting new moms (and babies) enough to keep socially charged? These and many more questions I shall as NEXT EPISODE. Because this one had to be postponed due to (honestly sort of expected but unfortunately timed haha) circumstances. Hopefully we will hear all about this birth, too when our guest will be on my couch. Fingers crossed!!

A near home-birth in Swedish winter (and what followed)

“Sweden”. What comes to mind is cold, beauty, precision, high tech, nature. One of these holds true for Eileen’s story. It was cold (-11 celsius). The rest? - not so much. You will be surprised to hear that baby’s heartbeat is monitored for large parts with a wooden Pinard Horn. That baby’s size is not calculated via ultrasound but by measuring the belly. That she didn’t see a gynecologist even once in her entire pregnancy. It may sound appealing to have such a low touch approach. No labour induction before 42 weeks. No medical interventions. A midwife-run system. Government-funded hypnobirthing courses. It did for Eileen. Until she was on the bathroom floor surrounded by towels and only a husband who had prepared for birth by reading Penny Sinkim’s “The Birth Partner” but did not actually imagine he would become the person indeed birthing the baby. So far, so traumatic. Haha. Eileen’s gallow’s humour will make this episode entertaining but boy, or rather girl, just when you think it is all over, it isn’t. It’s a unique story in a unique setting (although she assured me that extreme and frightening stories like these are “more common than not”) which is highly unlikely to happen to you. But nonetheless, it’s always worth being prepared and maybe also appreciating the situation you are in! When you think about the so-called “First World”, think again. This episode isn’t for the faint-hearted.Now go and make yourself a sandwich (listen at timestamp to find out why I am writing this here) and tune in. Note: We had audio issues during the recording of this episode. I apologize and recommend you listen to it with headphones and turn on the subtitles. Books mentioned in this episode are: Penny Sinkim: The Birth PartnerKatharine Grave: The Hypnobirthing book A general note: This podcast is based on personal experiences by mothers. The makers of this podcast are not doctors. Information shared, even if medically founded, is purely personal. For medical questions, we urge you to speak to your physician and/or relevant medical professional. This episode was produced by Harkat Studios and edited by Mahreen Alam. Intro music by Akoth Jumadi (https://open.spotify.com/artist/1yzpHN73mIqHg8uP8KnyYo?si=ZzNUZAtTRFOffvz8BDDTYw [https://open.spotify.com/artist/1yzpHN73mIqHg8uP8KnyYo?si=ZzNUZAtTRFOffvz8BDDTYw])