The Natural Birth Podcast

In this special update episode, I take you behind the scenes of my world right now. 🌿 I share about the beautiful in-person gathering I just hosted on my land with the women in my Sacred Birth Worker Mentorship — a weekend filled with sisterhood, ceremony, and deep connection.I also share some exciting news: I’ve launched a brand-new podcast! 🎙✨It’s called The Sacred Birth Work & Biz Podcast, and it’s dedicated to those of you who feel called to birth work or are already on the path. It’s where I’ll be sharing my personal journey, stories, and the wisdom I’ve gathered about building a soul-aligned, feminine way of doing both birth work and business.If you’ve ever been curious about my story, the mentorship, or how to step deeper into your own calling, this update is for you.Here are the 3 Episodes out Now:Episode 1: Seeker to Woman's Work facilitator - My Life & Business Journey before my Calling to MidwiferyEpisode 2: Answering the Call to Midwifery – From Home Birth's in Byron Bay to Creating Natural Birth Education OnlineEpisode 3: From Midwife to Midwitch – The Dark Night That Birthed Sacred Birth InternationalThank you for listening!Connect on IG @sacredbirthinternationalWebsite sacredbirthinternational.com

Today on The Natural Birth Podcast we have PhoebePhoebe is a pediatric acupuncturist and herbalist who supports families through natural healing. She’s also a gardener, a student of culture, and a lifelong learner. Phoebe lives off-grid in an intentional community, in a home her husband built, where she shares life with her three teenage step kids, two dogs, and their six-month-old baby girl.Today she shares the story of birthing her breech baby girl, supported by her midwife, squatting as her husband catches their baby.A story full of birthing wisdom I can’t wait to share with you all.Curious about Phoebe? Find her on Instagram as @abundantnaturalhealing

Today on The Natural Birth Podcast we have TaylorTaylor is a mama of two from Maryland, United States. She has her bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies and Psychology and along with being a stay at home mom, she spends her time seeking out new ways to fuse her passions for the Earth and the mind into a nourishing and well rounded lifestyle and career.Whether she is dancing, creating native community garden spaces, foraging, or passionately sharing her love of sacred physiological birth, you can always find Taylor searching for deeper connections with the land and people around her. Today she shares about her 2 birth stories. Her first in the hospital which Taylor found to be a positive experience, but still with lots of interventions and medicalisation and then her second, a freebirth with just her family present.Curious about Taylor? Find her on Instagram as @t.schroyer21Want to work with Anna or join The Sacred Birth Worker Mentorship?Find Anna’s Website, about her Mentorship & How to Work with Her, as well as all Links & Resources she mentions in the episode here:⁠www.sacredbirthinternational.com/links-podcast

Today on The Natural Birth Podcast we have Lucie.Lucie is a mama of two from the Czech Republic.She is a wife and a doula who has been holding space for women in the birth space and her community for over 10 years including pregnancy circles, birth blessings and different workshops.Today we get to hear about her first pregnancy and birth as an expat in Ireland with only her doula present as her husband and home birth midwife didn’t make it on time and arrived shortly after the birth!Her second baby was also born at home in the Czech Republic with her midwife and friend while her husband and son slept in the next room. Lucie felt very inward during her births and trusted her process while knowing that she had her chosen support women around her if she needed it. Both of Lucie’s stories show us the magic of home birth and to trust in your body's intuitive wisdom!Curious about Lucie? Find her on Instagram as @dula_pribramWant to work with Anna or join The Sacred Birth Worker Mentorship?Find Anna’s Website, about her Mentorship & How to Work with Her, as well as all Links & Resources she mentions in the episode here:www.sacredbirthinternational.com/links-podcast

I know I know, if you’ve been listening the last 2 weeks you are now expecting no 4!And no 4 is epic! It’s called “The Wisdom of Letting go and Lean into the Pain in Birth” with Stephanie. But I couldn’t retrieve the video recording of it and because the poddy is now on YouTube as well I decided to not share it.But YOU can go to thenaturalbirthpodcast.com to find it at no 4 of the top 10 episodes of all time (meaning since 2020).BUT don’t get too disappointed because this is truly one of my favs. I interviewed Aimee just as I was about to start the first round of the Sacred Birth Worker Mentorship in 2023.I didn’t know it was going to be called that at the time and used the working name the spiritual midwife program as I was still known as The Spiritual Midwife. Anyway, today on The Natural Birth Podcast we have Aimee Aroha. Aimee is originally from New Zealand, today living in Australia and she is a Wild Mother and Transpersonal Birth Mentor.She generously takes us through her first hospital birth at the young age of 24 and her initiation into motherhood.We then dive into red threads, birth imprinting, rites of passages and women’s power in her rites and birth.Aimee continues to share how her life took a turn as she moved from the big city smoke of Sydney into nature in Northern NSW, meeting a new partner and then becoming pregnant again and how this time she made very different choices.She employed an independent home birth midwife for her second pregnancy but ended up birthing before her midwife arrived, and when she became pregnant a third time she decided for a fully wild pregnancy and free birth with just her family.Curious about Aimee? Find her on instagram as @aimeearohaWant to work with Anna or join The Sacred Birth Worker Mentorship?Find Anna’s Website, about her Mentorship & How to Work with Her, as well as all Links & Resources she mentions in the episode here:⁠www.sacredbirthinternational.com/links-podcast

So you might be wondering why I’m not sharing our top 2 today but out top 3?That’s because our top 2 is A Midwife's Top Tips on How to have a Natural Birth and I think its just time that has brought this episode up so high on the rankings. My more recent Anna Solo Episodes are so much better than this first one which I shared in 2020 just a couple of months after starting out as a podcaster. But if you wanna hear baby podcaster me sharing my midwifery tips back in the day, then head on over to thenaturalbirthpodcast.com to listen in.Oh yeah, I have a new website for the poddy!You can see and listen to the top 10 podcast episodes there, as well as all previous episodes of course!Anyways, Today on The Natural Birth Podcast we have Kemi Joy Johnson which is our no 3 most loved episode.The OG episode was called “6 Steps to a Natural & Empowering Birth with Kemi & Anna”.Kemi is a Mother and a former registered Midwife turned Birthkeeper & Birth Activist.She de-registered as a midwife a few years back and is now a Whistle Blower, Truth Speaker & Teacher.And we are coming on the podcast today together to have an honest conversation about the reality of our current maternity system and what you need to know and the steps you need to take to optimize your chances of having a Natural and Empowering Birth Experience whether it is in the hospital, birth center or at home!Get ready for some edgy talk and truth bombs.To have a Natural & Empowering Birth in our modern world means taking full responsibility and claiming your rite of passage!You can also download the 6 Steps that we talk about in the episode in a handy PDF to refer to as you prepare for your upcoming birth!Find it in my free resources via the link below.Curious about Kemi? Find her on instagram as @kemibirthjoyjohnsonWant to work with Anna or join The Sacred Birth Worker Mentorship?Find Anna’s Website, about her Mentorship & How to Work with Her, as well as all Links & Resources she mentions in the episode here:www.sacredbirthinternational.com/links-podcast

Hi my loves!I have something special planned for you for the next 3 weeks as I am stepping out of the podcast studio and into the Sacred Birth Worker Gathering here on my land. Tomorrow the first mentees and graduates fly in or drive on in to my land and for the next week we are going to have so much fun!We are going on excursions to sacred sites and historical places I love and then spending the weekend in deep ceremony and sisterhood on my land.I can’t wait!And after the gathering I am taking a couple of weeks off to go to a spa with my best friend and then heading away for a midwifery conference in the south of Sweden.But!Do not despair! I’ve got you covered!I thought I’d bring back some oldies but goldies!I looked through my top 5 episodes of all time and thought “These are too good to not reshare!”.So we are starting out with no 1, Ellen Fisher’s 5 Home Birth Stories.If you don’t know Ellen, she is a mama of 5 living in Hawaii. She is a home birthing and home schooling mama who loves growing her own food and is a vegan of 18 years.She’s also a podcast host of her own podcast called The Ellen Fisher Podcast.In today’s episode you get to hear about each of her 5 natural and empowering home births. She dives on into the pearls of wisdom she gained from each and every one of them and the difference between them. Being our no 1 this episode is not to be missed!Curious about Ellen? Find her on instagram as @ellenfisherWant to work with Anna or join The Sacred Birth Worker Mentorship?Find Anna’s Website, about her Mentorship & How to Work with Her, as well as all Links & Resources she mentions in the episode here:www.sacredbirthinternational.com/links-podcast

Today on The Natural Birth Podcast we have JennaJenna is a stay-at-home mom of two who finds joy in motherhood, creativity, and the beauty of everyday life. With an English degree and a passion for writing, she explores themes of romance, faith, and family through poetry and storytelling. She hopes to one day publish her poetry and create short films that bring her words to life. When she’s not writing, she enjoys reading, exercising, and spending time outdoors with her family and two dogs. Through her work, she seeks to inspire and connect with others on the journey of motherhood and beyond. You can find her on WordPress at findingmatrescence.wordpress.comToday she shares her two birth stories. One a hospital birth after navigating prodromal labour and coached pushing with her baby aspirating meconium (or so she was told) to a her dream birth that she had visualized - a day time home water birth.Here are Jenna's pearls of wisdom for you.Want to work with Anna or join The Sacred Birth Worker Mentorship?Find Anna’s Website, about her Mentorship & How to Work with Her, as well as all Links & Resources she mentions in the episode here:⁠ www.sacredbirthinternational.com/links-podcast

Today on The Natural Birth Podcast we have Debra Pascali-Bonaro, the globally renowned speaker, filmmaker, author, doula trainer and host of the Orgasmic Birth podcast, where she opens door to exploring love, intimacy, and pleasure in the transformative journeys of birth and parenting.Debra is a mother, grandmother, and a sought-after expert featured in parenting publications and media worldwide. She serves as Co-Chair of the International Childbirth Initiative and Chair of the International MotherBaby Childbirth Initiative, advocating for safe, respectful and equitable  maternity care.A Lamaze International childbirth educator and DONA International birth and postpartum doula trainer, Debra directed the award-winning documentary Orgasmic Birth: The Best-Kept Secret and co-authored the book Orgasmic Birth: Your Guide to a Safe, Satisfying and Pleasurable Birth. She teaches online classes for parents and advanced workshops for doulas and midwives and also leads the transformative Eat Pray Doula Retreats in Bali each year with Midwife Robin Lim, inspiring doulas, midwives and birth professionals worldwide to support and embrace the power of birth.And today ladies and the 5% of gents listening to this poddy here is “The Orgasmic Birth Lady’s” Birth Stories.Curious about Debra? Find her on instagram as @orgasmicbirthWant to work with Anna or join The Sacred Birth Worker Mentorship?Find Anna’s Website, about her Mentorship & How to Work with Her, as well as all Links & Resources she mentions in the episode here:⁠ www.sacredbirthinternational.com/links-podcast

Today on The Natural Birth Podcast we have Megan.Megan is a mama of two who’s had two hospital births. She really wanted a home birth but her husband was not comfortable with that and so she wasn’t either.To have a natural birth in a hospital today is almost impossible, especially without a kick ass birth advocate by your side and lots of education beforehand. You’re stepping into their territory that pathologises birth with their interventions, policies and guidelines. This is just a fact.To have a natural birth today you need to get lucky with who’s on shift, have a really quick birth or for the birth suits to be really busy so they have to leave you alone or have a birth support person there to advocate and protect your birth space.It’s important to understand the reality you are choosing in order to make informed decisions. With this in mind, here are Megan's stories for all of you who are planning a natural hospital birth. Both Megan’s births were with midwives but in different states. One in Alabama and one in South Carolina. She shares that her first was empowering as it was vaginal birth after induction. And just because you have midwives does not equate a better birth outcome. It all depends on their birth philosophy, their education and experience as well as where they work and for whom.Megan’s second birth was an even better experience because she got to labor and birth in the water. She did however agree to a painful membrane sweep and to IV antibiotics for GBS+ status, which we will dive deeper into for your knowledge as many women face this decision in pregnancy.If you are, like many women, planning a natural hospital birth then please go and download my free ebook on the most common routine hospital birth procedures so that you can make a birth plan according to your wishes and that will help you optimize your chances of a natural birth.Find it at sacredbirthinternational.com under free resources or via the link in the show notes.Want to work with Anna or join The Sacred Birth Worker Mentorship?Find Anna’s Website, about her Mentorship & How to Work with Her, as well as all Links & Resources she mentions in the episode here: www.sacredbirthinternational.com/links-podcast

Today on The Natural Birth Podcast we have Karina.Karina is a mama of two from Australia and the creator of The Cosmic Mother Pregnancy Oracle.After feeling disconnected during her first pregnancy, and ending up with a home birth transfer and a medicalized first birth, she sensed an opportunity for healing with her second.She recognised in hind sight her disconnection and mind played a big part in her first birth experience.So after doing the inner work during the second pregnancy and choosing an independent home birth midwife she really trusted her second was a 4 hour painfree birth experience. This experience opened her to a deeper connection with herself, with something greater, and with the mysticism of motherhood. The pregnancy and birth of her daughter became a return to inner knowing and a deep trust in both the experience of birth and her own capability.Curious about Karina? Find her on IG as @cosmic__motherWant to work with Anna or join The Sacred Birth Worker Mentorship?Find Anna’s Website, about her Mentorship & How to Work with Her, as well as all Links & Resources she mentions in the episode here:www.sacredbirthinternational.com/links-podcast

Today on The Natural Birth Podcast we have JessicaJessica is a mama of one from Dorset, UK.She is a first time mama who chose to have a wild pregnancy and a freebirth. She has been obsessed with birth for about 4 years now after discovering she no longer wanted to have a relationship with the medical system and had to work out how to do that when it came down to pregnancy and birth. She now works as a birth keeper and educator. Supporting mothers and educating them about physiological birth and helping them get their dream births. This work lights a fire in her belly!Today we get to hear all about her undisturbed birth at home with just her partner. And she has a very interesting story about the birth of her placenta which I have never heard of before and I am curious to know if you have.Pop into our FB natural birth podcast community and share your experiences! Join via the link in the show notes.If you’re curious about Jessica. Find her on Instagram as @birthasdesignedWant to work with Anna or join The Sacred Birth Worker Mentorship?Find Anna’s Website, about her Mentorship & How to Work with Her, as well as all Links & Resources she mentions in the episode here: https://www.sacredbirthinternational.com/links-podcast

Today on The Natural Birth Podcast we have JasmineJasmine is a mama of one from Auckland, New Zealand. She works as a HR Business Partner while studying law and she used to be a professional nanny which gave her a deep appreciation for caregiving and family dynamics .She’s very connected to her spirituality, and that connection gave her the confidence to trust her body and have a home birth. It was the best decision for her and she is so proud of herself despite many opinions and comments made around her and to her during her pregnancy which continued post birth - the experience taught her many lessons and pieces of wisdom she wishes to share to inspire other women to chase their dreams as they can come true.Curious about Jasmine? Find her on instagram as @mumwithnannywisdomWant to work with Anna or join The Sacred Birth Worker Mentorship?Find Anna’s Website, about her Mentorship & How to Work with Her, as well as all Links & Resources she mentions in the episode here: https://www.sacredbirthinternational.com/links-podcast

Today on The Natural Birth Podcast we have CarlyCarly is a mama of 3 from Australia. She’s a Midwife, Lactation Consultant and Parenting Mentor.She’s had the privilege of supporting families from different cultures through the childbearing journey into parenthood and invite people to take ownership of their experiences during their childbearing, infant feeding and parenting journeys and recognise that they are the experts. She believes that people's intuition can be their greatest asset and I couldn’t agree more.Today Carly shares her 3 fast unassisted free births. She shares that one was Epic, one was Challenging and one was Easeful.I loved my conversation with Carly and I hope you do too.Curious about Carly? Find her on instagram as @seed_pod_ Want to work with Anna or join The Sacred Birth Worker Mentorship?Find Anna’s Website, about her Mentorship & How to Work with Her, as well as all Links & Resources she mentions in the episode here:www.sacredbirthinternational.com/links-podcast

Today on The Natural Birth Podcast we have Hanna.Hanna is a mama of one from the US.She is a therapist, photographer, doula and all around birth and baby nerd who spent her entire 20s preparing to become a mother; while also navigating grief, being a caretaker, and her own mental health/career challenges. Hannah desired a birth beyond it being a medical event, she craved a spiritual celebration to honor the transition from maiden to mother and birthed her first baby safely and swiftly in her home with her childhood sweetheart and birth team. Curious about Hannah? Find her on IG as @hanhazel.therapyWant to work with Anna or join The Sacred Birth Worker Mentorship?Find Anna’s Website, about her Mentorship & How to Work with Her, as well as all Links & Resources she mentions in the episode here:www.sacredbirthinternational.com/links-podcast

Today on The Natural Birth Podcast we have Patricia. Patricia is from the US now living in South Korea and is a former Air Force military, now a veterinarian, birth doula and yoga teacher.Her and her husband are a military family stationed in South Korea due to her husband's job. They moved there when Patricia was 35 weeks pregnant and today we get to hear about her fast unplanned home birth with just her husband and doula present. And her dad somewhere in the mix too, but she’ll tell you all about it ;)!Curious about Patricia? Find her on instagram as @birthandbreathe_inkorea Want to work with Anna or join The Sacred Birth Worker Mentorship?Find Anna’s Website, about her Mentorship & How to Work with Her, as well as all Links & Resources she mentions in the episode here:www.sacredbirthinternational.com/links-podcast

Today on The Natural Birth Podcast we have Jesse.Jesse is a mama of 3 boys under 3 and she lives outside of Idaho, USA.She is a stay at home mama and have known she wanted to be a mother ever since she was a little girl.In today’s episode she shares her journey of wanting a natural pregnancy and birth from the getgo, being an avid listener to this podcast from her first pregnancy, but how she was convinced by medical professionals it couldn’t happen for her.She went through two births in hospital that left her feeling incapable and sad. The first with an OBGYN and the second with a hospital midwife. She was told she could contract normally and wouldn’t be able to birth without medical assistance.For her third baby however she went with a private birth center midwife who embraced Jesse and her fears and helped her deal with them head on.And finally, surrounded by a birth team that believed in her and supported her in the way she needed she had her perfect, magical, blissful birth as she explains it. She even had a partial shoulder dystocia or sticki shoulders that the midwife swiftly resolved.Jesse feels with each day that passes that she loves her birth more and more and that she feels so happy and healed.Curious about Jesse? Find her on instagram as @jesslawrence2020Find Anna’s Website, about her Mentorship & How to Work with Her, as well as all Links & Resources she mentions in the episode here:www.sacredbirthinternational.com/links-podcast

Today on The Natural Birth Podcast we have Sarah.Sarah is a super fan of the podcast. She has been listening since the beginning in 2020 and this is the 3rd time she comes on to share her own natural birth story and it’s an honor to have her back. Her previous episodes are called “A Natural Birth Center Birth” & “Sarah Changed her Midwives and had her Stargazing Baby at 40 weeks” if you’d like to listen to them first.It’s wonderful to follow Sarah’s birthing journey and the deepening embodiment of sovereignty and self through all.Here is her 3rd Natural Birth Center Birth!Happy Mother’s Day to all the Swedish Mamas listening to the show. Today is your day here in Sweden and I celebrate and honor you.I treated my own mother to an infra red sauna session and dinner during the week and I hope that you are being extra loved up and cared for today.Whether you are a Swedish mama or not, I am gifting all my listeners a mother’s day special 2 for 1 offer on The Natural Birth Course & The Nourishing Postpartum Course. Use the coupon code MOTHERSDAY25 at the checkout for The Bundle to get both courses for the price of just one. And my online community the village is also of course a part of the offer. Inside The Bundle, you’ll find everything you need to feel prepared on every level—physiological, emotional, spiritual, and practical.You’ll learn:​What your body actually needs to birth naturally and undisturbed​How to work with your body, womb and contractions, not against them​What to do when fear or doubt shows up in pregnancy, labor and birth​How to prepare body, mind and soul on all levels​And how to plan for your postpartum so you don’t fall into the common “afterthought” trap. Making sure it is nourishing and healing and the best start for your baby and you.But knowledge is just one part of it.That’s where The Village comes in—your sacred online gathering space included in The Bundle.This is your circle. Your virtual sanctuary. Where you’ll be surrounded by women who get it—mamas preparing just like you, birth workers, and me, holding space for your journey.In our monthly live Q&A calls, you can bring your fears, your questions, your excitement, your “is this normal?” moments—and be met with honesty, wisdom, and warmth.Whether you’re navigating medical pressure, choosing where to birth, or just need to be reminded that you can do this—The Village is where you’ll be reminded that you are not alone.In the village you also get access to monthly classes and circles in embodiment, yoga, art, journaling and other lovely LIVE circles. It’s a wonderful community ready to embrace you.1 years access!So if you are pregnant right now, or wanting to become pregnant then this deal is for you.You can also gift this deal to a partner, friend or sister who’s pregnant. What better mother’s day present is there than support and guidance through the biggest, most life altering event there is?The 2 for 1 deal ends in a week. So don’t hesitate, get the deal today with the coupon code MOTHERSDAY25 at the checkout for the bundle. The BundleFind Anna’s Website, about her Mentorship & How to Work with Her, as well as all Links & Resources she mentions in the episode here:www.sacredbirthinternational.com/links-podcast

In this heartfelt and powerful episode of The Natural Birth Podcast, I’m offering you a special gift in honor of Mother’s Day. 💝I’ve gathered together 35 mamas pearls of wisdom from across the globe—each one a sacred story holder who has walked through the rite of passage of birth and had a natural and positive experience.These women share their most potent advice from the other side of labor and birth.Whether you're preparing for your first birth, healing from a past one, or supporting others on the path—this episode is a soulful, story-filled well of birth wisdom you can return to again and again.So make yourself a cup of tea, find a quiet moment, and soak in the collective knowing of women who’ve had the birth you're looking for.Happy Mother’s Day, beautiful one. May this episode nourish and inspire you.🎁 And don’t forget to check out the Mother’s Day 2 for 1 Bundle ! Use the coupon code MOTHERSDAY25 at the checkout.

Today on The Natural Birth Podcast we have Stacey.Stacey is a mama of two from the US.She is a mental health therapist who is certified in peri and postnatal mood disorders. She is also a trained EMDR therapist and yoga teacher. Stacey discovered this niche in therapy through her own healing journey after her first born was born at 32 weeks and was in the NICU for 30 days.Today she spends the first part of this episode sharing about her first birth that was supposed to be natural birth on a natural birthing floor in a hospital but ended up being premature and heavily medicalized. She shares about this birth as it informed how she prepared for her second and the people who joined her.The second was a home birth with the midwife and doula that she got to know in her postpartum with her first baby.They helped her with breastfeeding and emotional support and she trusted them deeply and ended up having her longed for natural birth in the comfort of her own home together with them and her partner.She mentioned wishing that she had had a doula for her first birth that could have informed her more along the way throughout her premature birth journey.And I couldn’t agree more.Especially if you are planning a hospital birth, hire a birth worker that is there for you.And download my free ebook on routine hospital birth procedures via the free resources link in the show notes.You can also find all the graduated Sacred Birth Workers and current mentorship students on sacred birth international if you want to find a kick ass birth advocate and space holder close to you.Now let’s dive into the episode.Find out more about The Sacred Birth Worker Mentorship, Anna's Courses & How to Work with Anna, as well as all the Links & Resources she mentions in the episode here:www.sacredbirthinternational.com/links-podcastFollow @thenaturalbirthpodcast on insta for more natural and empowering birth stories!