What happens when we lose trust in the extraordinary wisdom of the female body? In this deeply inspiring episode of Alive and Loving It, Rosy Daniel and Karen Mellers are joined by pioneering midwife, educator and advocate Sheena Byrom, founder of All4Maternity, for a powerful conversation about trusting our bodies during pregnancy and birth, women’s choices, empowering midwifery and the importance of staying connected to our innate physiology.
Sheena has been a midwife since 1978, giving her more than four decades of experience witnessing the changing landscape of maternity care. She shares the extraordinary story of the moment she first caught a baby during her midwifery training - an experience that left her in tears and opened her eyes to the profound beauty and power of birth.
The conversation explores the increasing medicalisation of childbirth, including rising rates of caesarean sections and induction of labour, and the culture of risk and fear surrounding modern maternity care. Sheena emphasises that birth can never be completely risk-free, but that maternity services need to recognise when intervention is genuinely necessary while also understanding the potential for medical harm when intervention becomes routine.
Importantly, Sheena stresses that this is not about saying one type of birth is good and another is bad. A caesarean birth can be necessary, empowering and life-saving, and every woman deserves to have her choices respected without judgement. The essential principle is to balance giving women and midwives unbiased, understandable information with building trust in ourselves and our bodies as women as we prepare for one of the most powerful and beautiful moments of our lives.
We explore the importance of knowing your body, understanding anatomy, staying mobile during pregnancy and labour, preparing emotionally, and developing trust in your own innate physical intelligence. Sheena shares why continuity of midwifery care and supportive relationships can make such a difference and why doulas and trusted birth companions can provide the vital connection and reassurance to let our bodies relax into their natural function.
There is also practical wisdom for pregnancy and birth, including skin-to-skin contact, optimal cord clamping, avoiding unnecessary separation of mother and baby, early breastfeeding and supporting the physiological processes surrounding birth. Sheena and Rosy share the power of visualisation during labour including Sheena’s beautiful image of crossing a river with each contraction.
Through All4Maternity, Sheena is helping to educate and support the maternity community through evidence-based, peer-reviewed journals, online learning, imagery and inclusive resources designed for midwives, student midwives, doulas, childbirth educators and others involved in maternity care.
This is a heartfelt conversation about trust, connection, informed choice, physiological birth, women's empowerment and the extraordinary wisdom of the body.
In this episode we explore:
- Sheena’s journey into midwifery
- The magic and emotional power of witnessing birth
- The changing landscape of maternity care
- Caesarean birth and induction of labour
- Risk, fear and the medicalisation of birth
- The importance of informed decision-making
- Why women need unbiased, accessible information
- Knowing your anatomy and understanding your body
- Birth plans and navigating modern maternity services
- Continuity of midwifery care
- The role of doulas and supportive birth companions
- Staying close to physiology wherever and however a baby is born
- Skin-to-skin contact and keeping mother and baby together
- Optimal cord clamping
- Early breastfeeding and family connection
- Birth trauma and the influence of social media
- Visualisation and preparing emotionally for labour
- Supporting and valuing midwives
- Empowering women to trust themselves and their bodies
Find out more about Sheena and All4Maternity through their website www.all4maternity.com
Read the Journals – Practising Midwife and Student Midwife.
Chapters
- 00:00 Introduction to Sheena Byrom and the series
- 01:00 Sheena's journey into midwifery and early experiences
- 02:43 Building confidence in social media presence
- 16:08 Rise in caesarean and induction rates and concerns
- 20:58 Medicalization of childbirth and risks involved
- 34:55 The importance of respectful, physiological birth
- 44:43 Supporting bonding and early family connection
- 50:12 Trusting intuition and visualizing a positive birth experience
- 52:02 Closing thoughts and gratitude for Sheena's insights
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