Birthing a Nation

Caroline Cumming joins us this week to tell us about her experience of a home birth, and what influenced her to reach the decision to follow that path. Caroline started the UplIft petition around maternity care in Ireland, in September of 2020, which would go on to have a major impact on the public debate.

Clodagh talks to us about her experience of having baby Frank, as a planned solo parent. It is an inspiring, happy story as Clodagh talks about making the decision to become a parent, her journey and the support she received, in person and online, and how life as a parent without a partner can be.

In our seventh episode we hear from Annemarie, who got in touch with us over email having been inspired by the bravery of other contributors. Hers is a deeply personal and heartbreaking story in which she shares the loss of her baby Spencer and the impact this, coupled with ongoing restrictions, had on her along with her husband Brian and their son Louis. We would urge listener discretion for this episode as the content will be triggering for some.

This week we hear from Sandy Connolly, of the Doula Association of Ireland, who tells us about her work supporting expecting and new mothers, and also how the pandemic has impacted on that work and the women she works with. We also have a wonderful update from our own Sue Murphy!

Our guest today is actor and activist Natalie Britton. Natalie shares her experience within the maternal healthcare system in 2020, why she became involved in the better maternity care movement and her hopes for a better future for Irish women.UPDATE: In light of developments this week, this episode includes a brief intro from Linda Kelly detailing the new visitor guidelines for all hospitals.