Welcome to the March Q&A!

We begin today’s episode with a conversation about the strange, intrusive, and sometimes downright insulting comments women receive in public while pregnant. We also share a listener story about a home birth that took an unexpected turn when a woman’s mother, meant to support her during labor, ended up creating some chaos after drinking too much wine.

Next, we address feeling unusually irritable toward an older child during pregnancy, what to consider after experiencing shoulder dystocia in two previous births, and whether an intact bag of waters could contribute to tearing during a very fast birth. We also discuss whether it ever makes sense to remain in an uncomfortable labor position in hopes of helping labor progress.

As for Quickies, we cover questions about nursing pillows, pregnancy spacing, breastfeeding and fertility, bras for labor, sleep regressions, breast pumps, retained placenta, building a freezer stash, one of Cynthia’s favorite homemade salad dressing recipes, and the most famous people we’ve ever met. Thanks for being here, and enjoy today’s episode.

PS: Check Patreon for more from Cynthia on salad dressings!

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Down to Birth Show

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In this episode, Abby shares her VBAC birth story following an emergency cesarean. Determined to experience a vaginal birth, she prepared carefully while navigating limited provider options in Alabama. What unfolded during labor and delivery underscores how provider behavior, rather than maternal physiology, often determines birth outcomes. Abby describes how a manual vaginal extraction caused a nearly catastrophic fourth-degree tear, requiring three subsequent surgeries in the months that followed and significantly disrupting her early postpartum period with her newborn.

We ask Abby whether she has considered legal action against the doctor and hospital, and we explore how birth trauma shapes future decision-making. Abby explains why she is choosing a repeat cesarean for her third baby after this traumatic vaginal birth, and what autonomy and dignity can still look like within surgical birth.

She also reflects on how faith, support, and intentional processing helped her move forward, and what she hopes other women will take from her story.

Learn more about Abby here: http://www.abbyevelynphotography.com

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When Trisha was pregnant with her second baby, she read Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering — a book that completely reframed how she understood labor, and to this day remains her favorite book on pregnancy. Trisha's second birth unfolded in just three hours, a stark contrast to her first. That book was written by Dr. Sarah J. Buckley, and we've long dreamed of getting her on the show. That day has finally come!

Dr. Buckley is a New Zealand–trained family physician and leading researcher on the hormonal physiology of childbirth, and today she walks us through the science of oxytocin and why it matters so profoundly in labor. We explore how the maternal brain modulates pain, how safety and privacy influence hormone flow, and why certain features of modern maternity care can unintentionally trigger stress responses that disrupt physiological birth.

This episode is a deep dive into the biology of labor — and what women truly need for it to unfold as designed.

In this episode, we discuss:

• The "Safety Triad": Why feeling private, safe, and unobserved is a biological requirement, not a luxury.
• The Pitocin Paradox: The shocking truth about synthetic "oxytocin", its unknown half-life, and why it doesn't offer the same brain benefits as the real thing.
• The Epidural Gap: How numbing the sensation of labor interrupts your natural hormonal feedback loop.
• The Baby’s Experience: What the fetal catecholamine surge is and what it means for your newborn’s first moments after birth.

Sarah Buckley

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Down to Birth Show

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Six seasons later, we are revisiting one of our first episodes of this podcast: Using evidence-based care to plan your birth.

Much of what happens in labor is presented as standard, routine, or unavoidable—but that doesn’t mean it’s evidence-based. Birth care hasn’t become more complex because women need more intervention. It’s become more complex because intervention has become the default. If you’ve ever wondered whether what’s happening in labor is truly backed by research—or simply “standard protocol”—this episode is for you.

In this conversation, we get back to the basics, examining how modern birth is typically managed, where that approach aligns with evidence, and where it too often doesn’t. This episode gives you an evidenced-based framework, so you can better evaluate the care offered and recognize when something supports physiologic birth or when it may quietly interfere with it.

Listen with your partner, take notes, and use this episode as a guide for thinking more clearly about the choices that shape your birth.

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Down to Birth Show

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Welcome to the February Q&A! We begin with a brief reflection on a mother's need to find time for play (not with her children but for herself) and creativity during early parenthood, before diving into your questions. Today’s episode addresses a common pattern in maternity care: past birth experiences being used by providers to justify predetermined interventions in subsequent pregnancies.

One listener asked, do women need to get out of the tub for fetal heart rate decels, and is this based on policy or physiology? Is Pitocin given after heavy bleeding in a prior birth justifiable for routine use in a subsequent birth? Additionally, we explore the long-term impact of episiotomies and membrane sweeps performed without consent, and address myths about posterior (OP) babies and whether those conditions are mother-specific or unique to each pregnancy. Finally, we talk about water breaking before labor and how much time most women realistically have before intervention is generally recommended (and whether it is actually needed).

As always, we close with quickies, including our best beauty tips (no, it is not a product you can buy).

Thank you for the excellent questions. Call us anytime at 802-438-3696. That's 802-GET-DOWN! Oh, yeah, if you loved this episode, leave us a 5-star review, and thank you!

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Down to Birth Show

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In today's episode, mother of two, Samantha Collignon, joins us to share two very different birth experiences separated by thirteen years. She gave birth to her first baby at 18 with minimal support and limited understanding of her options. At 31, married and deeply informed, she approached birth with education, confidence, and a strong sense of autonomy, resulting in a profoundly different and blissful birth experience.

Samantha reflects on how age and life stage shaped the way she was perceived by medical providers, shares how IVF factored into decision-making during her second pregnancy, and why an induced labor can still be a everything you wished for in birth.

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Down to Birth Show

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In this episode, we talk to Moran of @2lifedoula, a doula whose journey into birth work was born from her own harrowing transition into motherhood. Moran candidly shares the story of her first birth—a clinical, disconnected experience where lack of preparation and resurfaced childhood trauma led to a "full-blown panic attack" and postpartum depression.

Knowing that wasn't how birth was meant to be, Moran transformed her approach for her subsequent birth, ultimately having a euphoric, spontaneous homebirth. This transformation sparked her 14-year career as a doula and inspired her new book, written for the woman she once was: unprepared, overwhelmed, and unaware of her own strength.

Moran explains why birth is a portal of transformation, regardless of the outcome, and offers a roadmap for women to heal and advocate for themselves, whether you are a first-time mother or a birth professional.

2lifedoula

Birthing Without Trauma & Fear

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Down to Birth Show

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Tearing is one of the most common fears around birth—and one of the most misunderstood. In this episode, we talk about what really causes tearing, what the research shows, and what you can do to reduce your risk. We cover perineal massage, positions for birth, breathing and pacing, water birth, warm compresses, and what makes recovery smoother.

Through the episode, we review our followers' real-life "tearing" stories, and provide our commentary, which includes labial tears, scar tissue, pelvic floor recovery, over-stitching and unnecessary repairs, how beliefs and fear affect pushing, poor suturing techniques, the harm caused by routine episiotomies and the so-called, absolutely outrageous, “husband stitch”.

This is an honest, evidence-based conversation about the perineum—how to protect it, how to heal, and what every woman can know before giving birth.

Watch our full Preventing Perineal Tears workshop on Patreon.com/DownToBirthShow.

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Down to Birth Show

Call 802-GET-DOWN

Watch full videos of all episodes on YouTube! Please note we don’t provide medical advice. Speak to your licensed provider for all healthcare matters.