Today’s episode is about something I’ve come to see as one of THE most important influences on a woman’s experience of birth and motherhood. I’m talking about connecting with our inner wisdom, living IN our bodies (instead of in our heads), and claiming our personal sovereignty.

And I couldn’t think of a more perfect guest to talk about today’s topic, than my very own sister, Rachel Hodgens.

As well as being one of my best friends, Rachel is a feminine embodiment mentor, and host of the Weaving the Wild podcast. Her work as a feminine embodiment mentor is all about reclaiming and remembering the wildish wisdom that lies deep within our bones. From honouring our cyclical rhythm and dropping back into our bodies, embracing our intuitive nature and anchoring mind, body and soul through simple, practical earth, moon and womb practices and rituals.

In today’s episode, Rachel and I talk about:

• ‘The feminine’ - what that term means, and how it’s something to be embodied and experienced rather than intellectually understood,
• Simple tools and practices to help you come back into your body, connect with your intuition, and align with the cyclical wisdom of the natural world,
• How the state of your nervous system influences your ability to hear your body’s wisdom and your intuition,
• And so much more.

Whenever I work with mamas preparing for birth and motherhood, the very first place I start is with your relationship to your body and your inner knowing. Because everything else - understanding physiologic birth and navigating the maternity system and so on - is all important to know, but it’s your connectedness to your body and your inner wisdom and your personal truth that will guide you through all the rest.

Which is why I’m so excited to share this conversation with you, mamas, because Rach is so wise and relatable, and she has a way of making everything feel simple and doable.

If you enjoy today's episode, it would mean the world to me if you left me a review over on iTunes, because that helps to get this podcast in front of other wild mamas who could also benefit from these conversations. You can also share this podcast with other mamas by simply taking a screenshot and sharing it on Instagram, and don’t forget to tag me at @drjessicahodgens!

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN TODAY'S EPISODE:

Grab your copy of my free guide, 'The Four Things you Actually Need to Know to Prepare for a Physiologic ("Natural") Birth'

CONNECT WITH RACHEL

On Instagram: @rachel.hodgens

On her podcast, Weaving the Wild

Join Rachel for a one off Soul-Led 1:1 Session

Work with Rachel in her 3 month Wild Heart 1:1 Journey - places opening up again in September 2021

Until next time - stay wild, mamas!

Jess xx

Find me on Instagram at @drjessicahodgens

www.jessicahodgens.com

Intro and outro music: "Bloom", from the album The Jasmani Garden by Deya Dova, with the kind permission of the artist.

Cover image by Briony Goodsell.

I'm living and mothering on the unceded Country of Dharawal people, and I gratefully acknowledge their ongoing work - and the work of indigenous people everywhere - in the service of thriving life on earth.

This is the second half of my conversation with the incredible Dr. Melanie Jackson. In this episode, Mel and I talk about her research into why women choose to birth outside the system.

We get pretty raw and real in this conversation. We talk about:

• Mel’s research into why women choose to birth outside the system (hint: it ISN’T because they’re reckless risk-takers - quite the opposite actually!)
• What this choice tells us about the state of maternity services and the prevalence of obstetric violence
• And what we as women, as consumers of maternity services, can do to support homebirth midwifery (because despite it being the gold standard, this model of care is only available to a small percentage of women, and is increasingly under threat).

If you missed last week’s episode, don’t forget to go back and have a listen because in the first half of our conversation, Mel and I covered everything you need to know about how to have a homebirth.

Melanie Jackson has been a privately practicing midwife, and providing homebirth services, for 13 years since 2009. Alongside her work as a midwife, she completed her PhD, called "Birth Outside the System", in 2015, and she has held positions in midwifery research, midwifery lecturing and National Policy development at the Australian College of Midwives. She’s an absolute gift to women, families and birth workers, and it’s my privilege to have her on the show.

If you enjoy today's episode, it would mean the world to me if you left me a review over on iTunes, because that helps to get this podcast in front of other wild mamas who could also benefit from these conversations. You can also share this podcast with other mamas by simply taking a screenshot and sharing it on Instagram, and don’t forget to tag me at @drjessicahodgens!

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN TODAY'S EPISODE:

Grab your copy of my free guide, 'The Four Things you Actually Need to Know to Prepare for a Physiologic ("Natural") Birth'

Homebirth Australia

Homebirth NSW

CONNECT WITH MELANIE

At her website, www.melaniethemidwife.com

On Instagram @melaniethemidwife

On her YouTube channel, Melanie The Midwife

“Transformative Birth Work”, Melanie’s online course for pregnant women and birth workers

Launching into private practice mentorship.

Until next time - stay wild, mamas!

Jess xx

Find me on Instagram at @drjessicahodgens

www.jessicahodgens.com

Intro and outro music: "Bloom", from the album The Jasmani Garden by Deya Dova, with the kind permission of the artist.

Cover image by Briony Goodsell.

I'm living and mothering on the unceded Country of Dharawal people, and I gratefully acknowledge their ongoing work - and the work of indigenous people everywhere - in the service of thriving life on earth.

If you’ve ever toyed with the idea of having a homebirth but you’ve wondered 1) where on earth to begin and 2) what it’s really like to birth at home with the support of a privately practicing midwife, then this is the episode for you!

I recently had the privilege of speaking with the wonderful Dr. Melanie Jackson, who you might know better, from her brilliant Instagram & Youtube channels, as Melanie the Midwife.

She has been a privately practicing midwife, & providing homebirth services, for 13 years since 2009. Alongside her work as a midwife, she completed her PhD, called "Birth Outside the System", in 2015, and she has held positions in midwifery research, midwifery lecturing & National Policy development at the Australian College of Midwives. She also runs a brilliant Youtube channel where she breaks down research relevant to pregnancy & birth, amongst many other incredible offerings. Safe to say, Mel is an absolute gift to women, families & birth workers, and it’s my privilege to have her on the show.

Today, Mel & I cover everything you need to know about how to have a homebirth. We talk about:

• how to find a homebirth midwife
• what it’s like having your own private midwife during your pregnancy
• what happens during the birth (and yes, we also cover what happens if you need to transfer into hospital)
• and what it’s like to have your own midwife on call for you after your baby is born, to support you during the early postpartum period.

If you enjoy today's episode, it would mean the world to me if you left me a review over on iTunes, because that helps to get this podcast in front of other wild mamas who could also benefit from these conversations. You can also share this podcast with other mamas by simply taking a screenshot & sharing it on Instagram, and don’t forget to tag me at @drjessicahodgens!

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN TODAY'S EPISODE:

Grab your copy of my free guide, 'The Four Things you Actually Need to Know to Prepare for a Physiologic ("Natural") Birth'

Spiritual midwifery, by Ina May Gaskin

Homebirth Group Australia, Facebook Page

CONNECT WITH MELANIE

At her website, www.melaniethemidwife.com

On Instagram@melaniethemidwife

On her YouTube channel, Melanie The Midwife

“Transformative Birth Work”, Melanie’s online course for pregnant women and birth workers

Launching into private practice mentorship

Until next time - stay wild, mamas!

Jess xx

Find me on Instagram at @drjessicahodgens

www.jessicahodgens.com

Intro and outro music: "Bloom", from the album The Jasmani Garden by Deya Dova, with the kind permission of the artist.

Cover image by Briony Goodsell. 

I'm living and mothering on the unceded Country of Dharawal people, and I gratefully acknowledge their ongoing work - and the work of indigenous people everywhere - in the service of thriving life on earth.

Briony Goodsell is a doula, yoga teacher, intuitive bodyworker, women’s circle facilitator, photographer and mama. She is a weaver of the womens’ mysteries, gatherer of ancient feminine wisdom, holder of sacred spaces and a guide for reconnecting women with their sacred womb wisdom and power.

And if that doesn’t make you excited to learn from this wise woman, I don’t know what will!

Briony was also my postpartum doula, and remains my much-loved friend and mentor. In today’s episode, she and I talk about:

• Briony’s experience of eating disorder and infertility, and how this led her on a journey to learn about her body’s wisdom and to find her calling as a yoga teacher, body worker and doula
• Briony’s experience of postpartum depression in early motherhood, and how she gradually found her feet as a mama by learning to stop looking to external experts, to get out of her head, and to trust her own intuition as a mama
• The link between connecting with and understanding our menstrual cycles, and trusting our bodies in birth
• The concept of "matrescence", and how having an awareness of the transformation a woman goes through during the transition into motherhood before it happens can help to alleviate overwhelm and confusion 
• The challenges of mothering in our modern times and the pressures this places on women and on relationships
• The relationship between the health of mothers and Mother Earth, and how rituals like burying our baby’s placenta can help to heal the earth and restore the balance of the Divine Feminine in all of us

I always feel so reassured just by being in Briony’s space, and I know you’re going to feel her beautiful energy through your headphones.

If you enjoy today's episode, it would mean the world to me if you left me a review over on iTunes, because that helps to get this podcast in front of other wild mamas who could also benefit from these conversations. You can also share this podcast with other mamas by simply taking a screenshot and sharing it on Instagram, and don’t forget to tag me at @drjessicahodgens!

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN TODAY'S EPISODE:

Grab your copy of my free guide, 'The Four Things you Actually Need to Know to Prepare for a Physiologic ("Natural") Birth'

"The Gentle Sleep Book", Sarah Ockwell Smith

CONNECT WITH BRIONY

At her website, www.thenestingplace.com.au

On Instagram here or Facebook here

Until next time - stay wild, mamas!
Jess xx

Find me on Instagram at @drjessicahodgens
www.jessicahodgens.com

Intro and outro music: "Bloom", from the album The Jasmani Garden by Deya Dova, with the kind permission of the artist.

Cover image by Briony Goodsell.

I'm living and mothering on the unceded Country of Dharawal people, and I gratefully acknowledge their ongoing work - and the work of indigenous people everywhere - in the service of thriving life on earth.

Maha Al Musa is a true elder and wise-woman of birth and women’s rites of passage. Of Palestinian and Lebanese origin, Maha is an independent childbirth educator of twenty-five years. She is the author of Dance of the Womb: The Essential Guide to Belly Dance for Pregnancy and Birth, and is the founder and creator of BellydanceBirth® and EmbodyBirthᵀᴹ, her signature childbirth education and preparation programs for mothers-to-be and birth professionals who care for them. Maha is an international speaker and a vocal advocate of natural birth and natural-term breastfeeding, and has been featured in worldwide media including the Discovery Channel, CNN, New York Post, Sunrise and Marie Claire to name just a few.

Maha is a true gift whose insights and teachings have profoundly shaped my own thinking about birth and motherhood, and it’s my pleasure to share her wisdom and experience with you here on The Wild Mother Podcast.

In today’s episode, Maha and I talk about:

• The opportunity that pregnancy and childbirth offer to women to heal our personal and ancestral wounding, and to connect with our deepest truth
• How undisturbed physiologic birth offers the energy of love and connection that humanity needs to raise consciousness and heal the earth
• How the fears and beliefs of birth professionals can circumvent or shut down a woman’s spiritual processing in childbirth, and the trauma that this interruption causes to women
• Maha’s inspiring story as a Palestinian/Lebanese woman growing up in Australia, her journey to reconnect with her mother and her ancestral lineage, the personal healing and expansion that each of her pregnancies offered, and her recent rite of passage through menopause.

CONNECT WITH MAHA

At her website, mahaalmusa.com

On Instagram here, or Facebook here

Read her book 'Dance of the Womb'

Join the EmbodyBirth Pregnancy and Birth Preparation online program 

Join the online EmbodyBirth Certified Practitioner Training 

If you enjoy today's episode, don't forget to take a screenshot and share it with me on Instagram at @drjessicahodgens. 

Until next time - stay wild, mama!
Jess xx
www.jessicahodgens.com

Intro and outro music: "Bloom", from the album The Jasmani Garden by Deya Dova, with the kind permission of the artist.
Cover image by Briony Goodsell.

I'm living and mothering on the unceded Country of Dharawal people, and I gratefully acknowledge their ongoing work - and the work of indigenous people everywhere - in the service of thriving life on earth.

One of the hardest things about being a mama in the modern world is the feeling that you’re doing it “wrong”. There’s so much advice about what our babies “should” be doing. They “should” be sleeping through the night, they “should” be able to self-settle, they “should” be independent. The problem with all those “shoulds”? They’re based in cultural norms, not in physiologic norms. In other words, our communities have come to hold expectations of babies and young children that are completely out of alignment with how our little ones’ bodies are designed. That’s why today’s blog post about “physiologic parenting” is something I get pretty fired up about! When we remember that our babies’ physiology is identical to the physiology of their ancient cave-baby ancestors, we can tune out the noise of the modern world and work with nature, work with our babies, and feel confident that when we do, we’re setting them up for lifelong health and wellbeing. In today’s episode, I share two things that every parent needs to know about our children’s physiologic design (unfortunately, these things aren’t widely known in our communities), and then I offer five gentle ways you can support your baby’s physiologic needs. Keen to learn about a gentle and natural way to care for your baby’s toileting needs while reducing the need for nappies or diapers (because spoiler alert: peeing and pooing into a toilet that’s strapped to them isn’t aligned with our babies’ physiologic design!)? Check out my free 5-day training, ‘Get started with elimination communication’, running next week! Get the details, and your free workbook with all the resources you’ll need to get started with EC right away, right here. If you're interested in diving deeper into any of the research or resources I mention in today's episode, you can find all the references in the accompanying blog post here. And if you enjoyed this episode, please share it on Instagram with your mama friends who'd benefit from learning all about physiologic birth (and don't forget to tag me at @drjessicahodgens - I'll do a little happy dance to see you've enjoyed the episode!). Until next time - stay wild, mama! Jess xx www.jessicahodgens.com  Intro and outro music: "Bloom", from the album The Jasmani Garden by Deya Dova, with the kind permission of the artist. Cover image by Briony Goodsell, The Nesting Place. I'm living and mothering on the unceded Country of Dharawal people, and I gratefully acknowledge their ongoing work - and the work of indigenous people everywhere - in the service of thriving life on earth.

What is a physiologic birth, and how is it different from other descriptions like “natural” or “vaginal” birth? Why might you want to have a physiologic birth? And how can you maximise your chances of having a safe physiologic birth without unnecessary interventions?

If you're wondering the answers to these questions (or if you just need a handy, easy-to-understand explainer to enlighten a family member or friend), then you're in just the right place! By the end of this episode you'll know the what, why and how of physiologic birth - and I hope also you’ll share some of my passion for this beautiful, life-changing rite of passage.

And mama - if you'd like to learn everything you need to know to plan your own physiologic birth, you might be interested in my free "The Four Things You Actually Need to Know to Prepare for a Physiologic ("Natural") Birth" - a 20 page explainer, jam-packed with all the evidence-based information and the practical strategies you need to get the safe and empowering undisturbed birth of your dreams. 

If you're interested in diving deeper into any of the research or resources I mention in today's episode, you can find all the references in the accompanying blog post, right here.

And if you enjoyed this episode, please share it on Instagram with your mama friends who'd benefit from learning all about physiologic birth (and don't forget to tag me at @drjessicahodgens - I'll do a little happy dance to see you've enjoyed the episode!).

Until next time - stay wild, mama!

Jess xx 

www.jessicahodgens.com 

Intro and outro music: "Bloom", from the album The Jasmani Garden by Deya Dova, with the kind permission of the artist.

Cover image by Briony Goodsell, The Nesting Place.

I'm living and mothering on the unceded Country of Dharawal people, and I gratefully acknowledge their ongoing work - and the work of indigenous people everywhere - in the service of thriving life on earth.

Welcome, wild woman, to the very first episode of the Wild Mother podcast!

In this welcome episode, I'm introducing my vision for the podcast, a little about what you can expect to hear in this space, and a bit about the journey that's led me here.

I talk about my passion for physiologic birth and its capacity to change women's lives, how I practice gentle parenting in a way that aligns with my and my baby's physiologic design, and why I believe that motherhood is intended to be an opportunity for healing and expansion for women (you won't hear any talk of the "juggle" here!). I also share a little about my own mothering journey and the information that enabled me to have a supported and nourishing experience of birth and early motherhood.

If you enjoy this episode, it'd mean the world to me if you hit subscribe! And don't forget to head on over to Instagram to continue the conversation - you can find me at @drjessicahodgens.

Until next time - stay wild, mama!

Jess xx 

www.jessicahodgens.com

Intro and outro music: "Bloom", from the album The Jasmani Garden by Deya Dova, with the kind permission of the artist.

Cover image by Briony Goodsell, The Nesting Place.