#031 Brittany PT2 - the difficult road from wanting a home birth to freebirthing remotely. An empowering dive into the reality of freebirth

03/03/2024 2h 0min

Listen "#031 Brittany PT2 - the difficult road from wanting a home birth to freebirthing remotely. An empowering dive into the reality of freebirth"

Episode Synopsis

Thanks for tuning into part 2 of the amazing conversation I had with Brittany. After taking us through her first 2 birth, one heavily medicalised and one where she almost accidentally birthed her baby at home, Brittany reflected and decided to take a different path for the birth of her third son  

In this episode we chat all about 

✔️how Brittany’s second birth and postpartum influenced her to do differently this time 
✔️finding out that her GP who doesn’t support home births, used to be an obstetrician but had to stop practicing because he had multiple lawsuits against him for malpractice ! 
✔️chatting with a friend who was having a freebirth really opening Brittany’s eyes to the possibility of free birthing at home 
✔️planning a home birth with a private midwife, 10 hours from home as Brittany lived very remotely, feeling happy and supported in her decision and excited to give birth with her private midwife
✔️realising that the home birth she had planned probably wouldn’t work due to the logistics of her husband not being able to take a whole month off work, not knowing when baby will arrive
✔️feeling uncomfortable with the idea of a freebirthing even though her husband was supportive and a friend had given her resources 
✔️carefully studying potential risk factors for neonatal death
✔️Brittany becoming an expert on her own body and starting to trust herself and her sensations. Also reading a first responder handbook got Brittany going “oh is that it? It’s pretty straightforward!” 
✔️A few days before labour beginning, Brittany’s doula drove through flood water for 15+ hours to get to her so she could be present for the birth 
✔️Receiving an unexpected phone call from the GP that Brittany had seen, advising her that she didn’t support home birth and wasn’t comfortable with her choice to birth at home without medical help 
✔️What medical negligence is and the fact that a woman is her own sovereign body and can make decision against medical advice even if they result in the harm of her unborn baby 
✔️Brittany being at peace during her birth, ticking things in her head, reassuring her that everything was fine 
✔️Baby boy being born calmly in the birth pool, caught by Brittany, being totally fine after a one hour labour! 
✔️Brittany’s placenta not coming out for a little bit despite trying feeding, sitting on the toilet, tincture release and gentle traction until her doula gave her a homeopathic pill which peeled off the placenta straight away! 
✔️Having a cord burning ceremony 
✔️Reflecting on how her freebirth went and feeling saddened by the fact that she didn’t experience that for her first two births 

Follow Brittany and her adventures on her socials page https://www.instagram.com/brittanybflinn/ 

You can watch Brittany’s birth video through this link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6XNPj1ts6g 

If you are currently pregnant, thinking of trying for a baby or know someone who is, please check out my FREE YouTube series “I’m pregnant! Now what?” Where I take you through how to navigate the system, how to effectively question and say “no”, what is consent, what models of care are available and so much more, it is available on my YouTube channel @Cuppawithadoula 

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Thank you for listening and I hope you enjoy this episode! 
Alicia :)

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