In this episode Erin Holland takes us from the very beginning, when a routine AMH blood test sent her and her husband Ben looking for answers, through four egg retrieval cycles, two spontaneous pregnancies that ended in loss, an ectopic pregnancy treated in Melbourne while she was away for work, a stage two Asherman syndrome diagnosis and twenty rounds of IVF. She then walks us through a pregnancy that looked straightforward until the 28 week scan, when her daughter dropped from the 17th centile to between the second and third.  What follows is weekly monitoring, a breech baby, a caesarean booked for the exact day her fertility specialist had predicted months earlier, and a four hour birth that did not go to plan. 

Today's episode is brought to you by CuboAi helping parents feel more at ease while their baby sleeps.

The CuboAi Smart Baby Monitor 3 features crystal-clear 2.5K video, night vision, covered-face and rollover alerts, plus AI-powered crying and coughing detection. Paired with the Sleep Sensor Pad, which sits safely beneath the mattress, it can also monitor baby's breathing movements without wires or wearables.

With sleep analytics and real-time alerts straight to your phone, CuboAi offers extra reassurance so you can rest a little easier.

Australian Birth Stories listeners can save an extra $20 on the CuboAi Sleep Safety Bundle with code ABS2026. This offer can be stacked with existing sales, including Black Friday and Cyber Monday promotions. *Valid 9 November – 31 December 2026.

In this episode Erin Holland takes us from the very beginning, when a routine AMH blood test sent her and her husband Ben looking for answers, through four egg retrieval cycles, two spontaneous pregnancies that ended in loss, an ectopic pregnancy treated in Melbourne while she was away for work, a stage two Asherman syndrome diagnosis and twenty rounds of IVF. She then walks us through a pregnancy that looked straightforward until the 28 week scan, when her daughter dropped from the 17th centile to between the second and third.&nbsp; What follows is weekly monitoring, a breech baby, a caesarean booked for the exact day her fertility specialist had predicted months earlier, and a four hour birth that did not go to plan.&nbsp;
Today's episode is brought to you by <a href="https://au.getcubo.com/products/cuboai-smart-baby-monitor">CuboAi </a>helping parents feel more at ease while their baby sleeps.
The CuboAi Smart Baby Monitor 3 features crystal-clear 2.5K video, night vision, covered-face and rollover alerts, plus AI-powered crying and coughing detection. Paired with the Sleep Sensor Pad, which sits safely beneath the mattress, it can also monitor baby's breathing movements without wires or wearables.
With sleep analytics and real-time alerts straight to your phone, CuboAi offers extra reassurance so you can rest a little easier.
Australian Birth Stories listeners can save an extra $20 on the CuboAi Sleep Safety Bundle with code ABS2026. This offer can be stacked with existing sales, including Black Friday and Cyber Monday promotions. *Valid 9 November &ndash; 31 December 2026.

A Podcast of Mothers' stories of childbirth. Weekly interviews with mothers giving their first hand accounts of child birth in Australia. Designed to help educate and inform first time pregnant women, parents wanting to have better subsequent births and birth enthusiasts who love to hear and tell birth stories. An entertaining and heartfelt resource for pregnancy, labour and delivery and postpartum.

A Podcast of Mothers' stories of childbirth. Weekly interviews with mothers giving their first hand accounts of child birth in Australia. Designed to help educate and inform first time pregnant women, parents wanting to have better subsequent births and birth enthusiasts who love to hear and tell birth stories. An entertaining and heartfelt resource for pregnancy, labour and delivery and postpartum.

Australian Birth Stories

642 | Erin Holland - Twenty Rounds of IVF,  IUGR Baby, planned Caesarean, great breastfeeding experience

Jo Hunter has been at the heart of the home birth movement in Australia for almost thirty years. She birthed three of her four babies at home, became the National Convener of Home Birth Australia, worked as a doula and childbirth educator, and then studied midwifery and went straight into private practice. In this episode she unpacks an urgent and very current problem: from December, an insurance requirement means the second midwife at every home birth must be endorsed, and the flow on effect could see more than half of Australia's privately practising midwives close their books. She explains how we got here, what the rallies on 21 November are asking for, and why this is a choice issue that matters even if you never plan to birth at home.

To find out how you can support head to Home Birth Australia

Jo Hunter has been at the heart of the home birth movement in Australia for almost thirty years. She birthed three of her four babies at home, became the National Convener of Home Birth Australia, worked as a doula and childbirth educator, and then studied midwifery and went straight into private practice. In this episode she unpacks an urgent and very current problem: from December, an insurance requirement means the second midwife at every home birth must be endorsed, and the flow on effect could see more than half of Australia's privately practising midwives close their books. She explains how we got here, what the rallies on 21 November are asking for, and why this is a choice issue that matters even if you never plan to birth at home.
To find out how you can support head to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.homebirthaustralia.org/">Home Birth Australia</a>

Midwife Jo Hunter-  Why Home Birth Is on the Line in Australia

In this episode I chat with Laura, a midwife and first time mother from Melbourne who birthed her daughter Ariella in the very hospital where she works. Laura takes us through an unexpected pregnancy discovery during a fertility ultrasound, a frightening early bleed on the same day, a week of frustrating prodromal labour, and a swift, mostly physiological birth that shifted to continuous monitoring in its final stage. She also speaks candidly about a painful and little known breastfeeding complication called nipple vasospasm, something she had never come across in five years of midwifery practice. This episode is a wonderful listen for newly pregnant mothers, doulas and midwives alike, offering an honest look at how even those who work in maternity care can be surprised by pregnancy, birth and breastfeeding.

Mother Dose by Land Lab is one of those rare finds that cuts through all the confusion. What has really impressed me is that it’s been formulated by doctors, dietitians and naturopaths – every single ingredient is there for a reason, backed by evidence and aligned with current prenatal guidelines.

It includes the good stuff like choline for baby’s brain development, folate in its most active form, and a clinical dosage of ginger that’s actually proven to help with morning sickness. Over 75 health professionals have peer-reviewed the formulation, and they all said the same thing – it’s an amazing blend that delivers the kind of care every woman deserves.

Whether you’re pregnant or trying to conceive, Mother Dose takes the overwhelm out of choosing a prenatal.

And this time, Australian Birth Stories listeners can also save $15 on Mother Dose with the code: ABS. Just head toland-lab.co to redeem the offer.

In this episode I chat with Laura, a midwife and first time mother from Melbourne who birthed her daughter Ariella in the very hospital where she works. Laura takes us through an unexpected pregnancy discovery during a fertility ultrasound, a frightening early bleed on the same day, a week of frustrating prodromal labour, and a swift, mostly physiological birth that shifted to continuous monitoring in its final stage. She also speaks candidly about a painful and little known breastfeeding complication called nipple vasospasm, something she had never come across in five years of midwifery practice. This episode is a wonderful listen for newly pregnant mothers, doulas and midwives alike, offering an honest look at how even those who work in maternity care can be surprised by pregnancy, birth and breastfeeding.
Mother Dose by Land Lab is one of those rare finds that cuts through all the confusion. What has really impressed me is that it&rsquo;s been formulated by doctors, dietitians and naturopaths &ndash; every single ingredient is there for a reason, backed by evidence and aligned with current prenatal guidelines.
It includes the good stuff like choline for baby&rsquo;s brain development, folate in its most active form, and a clinical dosage of ginger that&rsquo;s actually proven to help with morning sickness. Over 75 health professionals have peer-reviewed the formulation, and they all said the same thing &ndash; it&rsquo;s an amazing blend that delivers the kind of care every woman deserves.
Whether you&rsquo;re pregnant or trying to conceive, Mother Dose takes the overwhelm out of choosing a prenatal.
And this time, Australian Birth Stories listeners can also save $15 on Mother Dose with the code: ABS. Just head to<a href="http://land-lab.co/"> land-lab.co</a> to redeem the offer.

640 | Laura - physiological birth, public hospital, midwife, early pregnancy bleed, The Birth Class

Today I chat to Mel about her path into motherhood. Mel met her partner Antonio later in life, after having come to terms with the idea that she might never become a mother. Living with emetophobia, a fear of vomiting, shaped nearly every decision Mel made in pregnancy, from her choice of care provider to her decision to have an elective caesarean. This is a candid conversation about recurrent miscarriage, navigating severe nausea and a genuine phobia throughout pregnancy, and finding calm through a planned caesarean birth.

Aussie sleepwear brand ergoPouch makes TOG-rated swaddles and sleeping bags that take the guesswork out of dressing your baby for sleep. They’ve just launched their Heritage collection, a curated collection of their most loved prints from the archive, given a fresh new look. Think Coastal, Meadow, Taupe Marle and the much-loved Savannah, all in 1.0 TOG organic cotton Cocoon Swaddle Bags and Sleeping Bags. Australian Birth Stories listeners get 20% off sitewide with the code AUBS from the 19th of October to the 2nd of November. Head to ergopouch.com.au. T&Cs apply.

Today I chat to Mel about her path into motherhood. Mel met her partner Antonio later in life, after having come to terms with the idea that she might never become a mother. Living with emetophobia, a fear of vomiting, shaped nearly every decision Mel made in pregnancy, from her choice of care provider to her decision to have an elective caesarean. This is a candid conversation about recurrent miscarriage, navigating severe nausea and a genuine phobia throughout pregnancy, and finding calm through a planned caesarean birth.
Aussie sleepwear brand <a href="https://www.ergopouch.com.au/">ergoPouch</a> makes TOG-rated swaddles and sleeping bags that take the guesswork out of dressing your baby for sleep. They&rsquo;ve just launched their Heritage collection, a curated collection of their most loved prints from the archive, given a fresh new look. Think Coastal, Meadow, Taupe Marle and the much-loved Savannah, all in 1.0 TOG organic cotton Cocoon Swaddle Bags and Sleeping Bags. Australian Birth Stories listeners get 20% off sitewide with the code AUBS from the 19th of October to the 2nd of November. Head to <a href="https://www.ergopouch.com.au/">ergopouch.com.au</a>. T&amp;Cs apply.

642 | Erin Holland - Twenty Rounds of IVF, IUGR Baby, planned Caesarean, great breastfeeding experience

Australian Birth Stories

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