In this conversation with Madeline McKenzie, you’ll hear us discuss:Madeline's story that lead her to start her therapy and coaching business whilst on maternity leaveNavigating motherhood and businessHow Madeline deals with criticism / comments when her reels go viralHow she got clear on her messaging and key audienceThe benefits of running a launch and Madeline's version of success The triggering side of launching something newPerfectionism and tools to heal and work through itWhat The Millennial Trifecta isHow The Millennial Trifecta shows up in motherhoodMEET MADELINE MCKENZIEMadeline is a toddler-mum and mental health social worker living in the Northern suburbs of Naarm/Melbourne. Sit with Self is her therapy and coaching business which she started on maternity leave in 2022. Her specialty is working with high-achieving millennial women on what she has affectionately coined The Millennial Trifecta: Intellectualising, People-pleasing and Perfectionism.MADELINE MCKENZIE SAYS "All of my parts feel like my life is threatened, with this comment from a stranger. My body thinks that a bear is about to attack.  I find it super helpful to go outside, I've got a medicine ball and I connect with that urge to run away.I literally slam that ball as hard as I can and just help to mobilise the fight, flight energy that's telling me that something really life threatening is about to happen. So that has really helped me, rather than just going straight to calming."Connect with Madeline McKenzieInstagram -@sitwithselfWebsite - www.sitwithself.com.auConnect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.auMADELINE MCKENZIE SAYS"  Perfectionists becoming mothers is just a whole thing on its own. You're so used to placing your value in tangible outcomes and getting external validation. The shift to motherhood with no control can be a real unraveling for mothers, where they feel like failures because they are desperately trying to control and burn out because they're trying to control the uncontrollable"Music by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

In this beautiful conversation with Stephanie O'Brien  Steph shares about what it's like to enter the maternity system as a plus size person, and the kind of treatment you may or may not receive. We also talk about postpartum care, doula work, business in motherhood, which includes creating an online course.You’ll hear us discuss:Steph's personal experience of navigating her own plus size pregnancies The challenges plus size people may face in the current maternity care systemSteph's birth plan for her elective ceaearean Steph's positive and healing ceasarean and love bubbleHow motherhood and being in business looks for StephSteph's program BMI is Bullshit, the resources included and feedbackMEET STEPHANIE O'BRIENSteph is a postpartum doula, passionate about supporting mothers in the fourth trimester. It was her own experience of postpartum in 2018 that sent her on a path to discovering how we can better support mothers after the baby arrives.She likes to advocate and educate about plus-size pregnancy to help remove the fatphobia and weight stigma that exists for plus-size women and birthing people.She’s a mother to two boys, a wife, a gift-giver, a hugger, and witty with a heart of gold (and a little bit sweary).STEPHANIE O'BRIEN SAYS"From the beginning of my care at the hospital, I said, I'm, I'm not stepping on a scale. I don't want to talk about my weight.  That's my rules and my boundary. And they were respectful of that, which was great, but the whole experience in and of itself still wasn't perfect in terms of the way I was treated because of my size."Connect with Stephanie O'BrienInstagram -@postpartum_with_stephWebsite - www.postpartumwithsteph.comConnect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.auSTEPHANIE O'BRIEN SAYS" Don't expect to become a six figure business owner in two days. or at all.Building a business takes so much time and there might be people where it's a lot quicker, but we don't know their circumstances. The reality is it can take years before you can rely on your business as your sole source of income and that's okay. That doesn't mean you're failing, doesn't mean you're not a real doula, or whatever your profession is. That is the reality of business, keep doing it if you love it."Special offer from Steph - $15 off discount off her plus size pregnancy course BMI is Bullshit. Use code TOGETHER15Music by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

In this episode Rachael shares how she is finding her mojo for social media. From a place of overwhelm and self-doubt to embracing authenticity and setting realistic goals. In this episode Rachael covers:Her recent struggle with social mediaReassessing social media's role in her businessSetting realistic goalsNavigating the digital landscape with confidence and purposeEmbracing authenticityPrioritising self careCelebrating small victoriesRACHAEL ROSE SAYS"Your voice matters, and your presence on social media can make a difference.”Connect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.auLinks mentioned:Simone Grace Seol - Garbage Post Challenge https://www.simonegraceseol.com/podcast/garbage-post-challengeSupport a Mother experiencing Domestic Violencehttps://www.gofundme.com/f/community-care-for-single-mum-experiencing-dvMusic by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

Episode Themes: Navigating Business, Motherhood, and Growth: Behind the Scenes of a 6-Year JourneyIn this episode, Rachael takes us behind the scenes of her thriving business and the joys and challenges of running a business while raising a family. In this episode Rachael covers:Overcoming challenges in starting something newBusiness milestones and managing expectationsBalancing business and family lifeA transparent discussion on financial targets for 2024, with insights into how previous launches have contributed to current goalsA shift from reliance on Instagram to a more diversified marketing approachRACHAEL ROSE SAYS"If I could only take that advice and apply it to myself, I'd probably save myself a lot of tortuous thoughts and extra time. Include the buffer of nervousness in creating something new - and just allow it to be what it is”Connect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.auRACHAEL ROSE SAYS"I know that there was a lot of stuff that I had to go through around feeling deserving, feeling like it was okay to be abundantly rewarded for my work. I didn't grow up with money. My family of origin did not have money. There's a lot of stuff that I've had to sift through."Mentioned in this episode Simone Grace Seol's Podcast Episode 268. The myth of fast business growthMusic by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

In this conversation with my friend Haley, she has come to share the story of her father's death. There's so much beauty in this story and there's so much sacredness in how Haley tells the final weeks and days and hours and moments of her father's life.You’ll hear us discuss:Who Haley's father wasHow his cancer diagnosis effected his lifeHow being with her dad as he took his last breath was a positive experience for HaleyHow Haley and her family brought in the power of music at the timeHow Haley navigated her dads death with kidsHaley's Dad's Memorial How the experience has changed Haley foreverHALEY SAYS“And I guess I used the term visions because I think,  the medical profession would, probably term them as hallucinations, but I don't like to use that term because it's not how it felt to witness. It felt like he was in this place between two worlds, neither here on earth nor there, wherever he was going. He was sitting at this place on the edge of death, essentially. And he was able to see and feel things that are there that our brains, don't allow us to see."MEET HALEYHaley is a mother who is open, inquisitive and passionate. She has three beautiful children and each of their births has been a journey of discovery, travelling beyond the realms of what she thought was possible and emerging with a new sense of self. Her births have shaped her, inspired her and taught her to understand the world from a new perspective.HALEY SAYS"And it was  this real contrast of something so profound that had just occurred in this room in his home,  yet simultaneously something so normal.  As I sat in that room peacefully next to dad and looked outside his window,  the world went on oblivious to this transformation that occurred in this home. "Connect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.auFull Transcript attachedMusic by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

In this beautiful conversation with Jessie McGarry,  Jessie shares how she became a doula  with a large client load to how she is supporting other doulas with their businesses. We get to hear a clip from Jessie's fourth birth and how the last year of motherhood has been for her.You’ll hear us discuss:How Rachael and Jessie met 4 years ago and the growth Rachael has witnessed in Jessie in that timeHow Jessie built a business with small children aroundHow Jessie's business changed as her capacity changedJessie speaks about the tension of the mother in business juggleThe mistakes Jessie made in her doula business when starting outWe get to hear a clip where Jessie is meeting her baby after her fourth birthHow choosing free birth and having a free birth, impacted Jessie as a woman, mother and doulaMEET JESSIE MCGARRYJessie is a pregnancy, birth and postpartum doula, and a biz mentor to other doulas. She is here to guide women to reconnect to their power within, where everything they need already exists, awaiting to be utilised! Giving permission for women to not only acknowledge their unique desires, but to unapologetically go for it, without fear of sacrificing their truth, needs or expression….in birth and in biz!JESSIE MCGARRY SAYS"It's easy to give so freely before you can start getting burnt out.I have learnt you have to replenish yourself. You have to be nourished financially, in order to keep showing up to your fullest potential. It's a disservice to you. If you are not getting paid your worth, because it means your passion will dip, which means you're not showing up to the best of your ability, which means your clients are not getting the best of you."Connect with Jessie McGarryInstagram -@jessie.thedoulaWebsite - www.thebrightbirthco.com.auConnect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.auJESSIE MCGARRY SAYS"I wanted to feel my baby come out of my body. I just wanted to feel that. I don't know if it's a biological thing, a primal thing. It was what I wanted personally for me. There was this little tiny whisper of doubt, like what if you can't and I really counteracted that by focusing and imagining the moment where I say I did it. When it actually happened, I was like, Holy shit. I did, I did it. I did do it."Music by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

In this beautiful conversation with Emma Hayes,  Emma shares how losing her mum at the age of 22 has shaped her life and had a profound influence on the way that she birthed her babies. We also talk about what it means to be a "motherless mother".You’ll hear us discuss:How Emma's mothers death shaped her lifeWhat it means and what it's like to be a "motherless mother"Some of the ways that Emma connects in with her mum spiritually, energetically and with her grandmother and ancestorsSelf care strategies to Mother herselfHow healing music is for Emma and how it connects her to her ancestorsRituals Emma uses to support herself in her griefMEET EMMA HAYESEmma is a loving mother, mentor, human design guide, women’s circle facilitator and yoga teacher. Through her honest lens of motherhood and life, she inspires, nurtures and educates. She guides you to embrace your full, unique self, by deeply seeing you as you are. EMMA HAYES SAYS"I've learned so much along this journey of mothering without my own mum. That I have to be the mother to myself  first. I'm always going to be there for my children, but if I show up for myself in a mothering,  nurturing way,  then I can be there for them way more easily."Connect with Emma HayesInstagram -@themotheralchemyWebsite - www.themotheralchemy.comHuman Design Readings Booking Page - https://EmmaHayesBookings.as.me/Connect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.auEMMA HAYES SAYS" Showing up as myself and doing things in my own weird way is part of honouring my mum. Because that was something that she started to instil and demonstrate to me"Special offer from Emma - 15% off discount on Human Design Readings. Use code TOGETHERMusic by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

In this solo episode Rachael talks all about Mother Blessing and how these ceremonies can honour a mother's rite of passage into birth and motherhood. You’ll hear Rachael discuss:What is a Mother Blessing?How is a Mother Blessing different to a Baby Shower?Why have a Mother Blessing?When is the best time is to have a Mother BlessingWho do I invite to a Mother Blessing?How Mother Blessings can facilitate community building and connectionAn example of a recent Mother Blessing she facilitated, the structure of the ceremony and the rituals included and whyMEET RACHAEL ROSERachael is a women’s circle facilitator and course creator, she has inspired hundreds of women to overcome imposter syndrome, rekindle their confidence, start their own circles, and grow aligned businesses.Rachael's teaching style is humorous, engaging, compassionate and no bullshit. She's a little sweary and full of storytelling.  Her dream is of 10,000 women’s circles starting, spreading joy and connection like wildfire.If you want to deepen your understanding of women's circles and ceremonies, Together: Women's Circle Facilitator Training is available to join at anytime. https://rachaelrose.com.au/offers/together/RACHAEL ROSE SAYS" I've seen how meaningful Mother Blessings can be, how connective they can be as a ceremony, and how much they can fill a mother's cup in those final weeks and days of their pregnancy.."Connect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.auRACHAEL ROSE SAYS"We're honouring these rites of passages in ceremony and circle and we're remembering. This is in our blood and bones to come together as women like this and to recognise that this is a monumental life transition.This is not just something we blink and miss. This impacts the rest of our lives forever and it deserves slowing down and getting still and celebrating."Music by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

In this beautiful conversation with Toyah Hicks, we talk about Toyah's abortion experiences, which happened 15 years ago. Toyah tells her story from a place of deep processing, healing and understanding. You’ll hear us discuss:Toyah's personal experience with her abortionsHow Toyah held both grief back then and relief and joy for what is now How Toyah views her abortions as a Rite of PassageHow Toyah's healing started once she was witnessed in communityRituals Toyah bought in to integrate her abortionsToyah advice on how to support someone who's processing their abortionTraditional postpartum care and yoni steaming MEET TOYAH HICKS Toyah Hicks is Vaginal Steaming Practitioner, Healing Birth Practitioner, Postpartum Care provider and Māmā to her 3 year old Son. She is deeply committed to the path of the Feminine and the Reclamation of our sacred Rites of Passage, specifically those woven through the pregnancy, birth and postpartum continuum.TOYAH HICKS SAYS"With a Rite of Passage, there's the preparation, then there's the experience. The final piece is the witnessing by the community. And I really don't feel that I started to heal from my experience until the witnessing really began, and had my own kind of ritual and ceremony around it many, many years later."Connect with Toyah HicksInstagram - @mothercareaotearoa & @rosewombsteamingWebsite - www.rosewombsteaming.comConnect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.auTOYAH HICKS SAYS" I did a lot of journaling in the early days and then I began meditating. I did some plant medicine ceremonies. Really beautiful ceremonies where I experienced a lot of,  just profound relief. I began meditating and connecting with the spirits of the babies that I had had."Special offer from Toyah - discount code for yoni steaming herbs and herbal postpartum care products Use Code "TOGETHER" FOR 15% OFFValid til 15th of September 2023Music by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

In this conversation with Alicia Armstrong, we talk about Alicia's business, including what it's like to take the leap from being a teacher, working within the schooling system to starting her own business and what the challenges and the joys have been over the last 18 months. There's lots of nuggets of wisdom in here for both parents and carers who look after children and want to foster learning and time in nature as well as any women in business who are thinking of starting something who want to create change in their community and who have a grand vision.You’ll hear us discuss:Alicia's personal story from mainstream schooling to being an alternative educatorThe leap from being an employee to starting a businessHow Alicia has created sustainability in her businessThe Havens Big values on community and connectionHow alternative education is beneficial for teachers as well as studentsWhy play is so important for childrenChallenges and lessons Alicia has learnt in starting and building her businessAlicia's BIG vision for The HavenMEET ALICIA ARMSTRONGAlicia is an alternative educator who runs programs for children centred around connecting them to nature, to themselves and their community. Alicia creates spaces for children that fosters natural development and holds space for their emotions. The importance of play and creating relationships with families is deeply embedded into the work Alicia does at The Haven.ALICIA ARMSTRONG SAYS"Kids connect through play, so they find others who are willing to play. Sometimes it's alongside them or with them in, a certain game they're playing or imaginative play.Kids find people who are on really similar interests or wavelengths when they play and people are drawn to them, this is how they learn."Connect with Alicia ArmstrongInstagram - @the haven.educationWebsite - thehaveneducation.comSubStack - aliciathehavenConnect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.auALICIA ARMSTRONG SAYS" It's not necessarily that it's been hard to market or get our name out there. It's the sort of wavering of business that I think happens to everyone,  my lesson has been to take the positives out of each. So when we're having a really big term full of numbers, then it's really nourishing financially and it's really amazing to see families get to know each other and participate in big groups.Then when our numbers are on the lower end, it's where we can be in there and create strong foundations and connections with families and kids and take away different things. But in the end, it's still all really beautiful."Music by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

In this conversation with Laura Shelley-Butler, we talk about her travelling homeschooling lifestyle with three kids under eight.  Laura shares how it practically looks for her family, as well has her beliefs and approach to unschooling.You’ll hear us discuss:What Laura's homeschooling set up looks likeWhat Laura is calling in for unschooling and what she'd changeScreens and road learningHow lockdown learning and homeschooling are a different kettle of fishSelf development as a parent and resources for parentsWhat Laura would say to someone who says "I'm not a teacher"MEET LAURA SHELLEY-BUTLERLaura is a dedicated home educating / unschooling mama to 3 beautiful children. Laura is passionate and adventurous, currently taking advantage of the freedom home education allows travelling full time with her family. Laura is also a doula, circle facilitator, runs an online book club and writes a substack all about unschooling.LAURA SAYS"The connection with nature is not something that I grew up with and it's something that I've been able to cultivate more within myself and to expose to my children, which I think will be amazing for them as they grow up."Connect with Laura Shelley-ButlerInstagram - @this.wild.mamaSubstack - thiswildmamaConnect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.auLAURA SAYS" It feels right and good. And it's been overwhelmingly positive. I am completely flawed by how much my kids learn, what their interests are, how they, unfold as these amazing human beings that are gonna go out into the world and do amazing things."Music by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

In this conversation with Alyssa Booth, we covered a lot of ground. We started with Alyssa's conception journey and her path to motherhood. Her three fast births, and then moving into doula work and studying and starting her business. We talk about imposter syndrome, money and charging for your worth and your value.You’ll hear us discuss:Alyssa's story on becoming a mother and her 3 birthsHow Alyssa became a birth doula and logistically what that looked like for herAlyssa's volunteer advocacy work with Better Births IllawarraAlyssa's business and how that's changed over the yearsWhat Alyssa loves about being a doulaWhat Alyssa loves most about being a motherCharging, visible pricing, outsourcing, being a business ownerMEET ALYSSA BOOTHAlyssa is a birth doula, childbirth educator, a Christian, a wife, a mum of 3 and someone who is passionate about people feeling loved and valued. She loves being involved in her community and does this often, within her business and volunteer roles.ALYSSA SAYS"It took us about 18 months to actually fall pregnant. Then I was sick the entire time but still treasured and really loved pregnancy. I think because it was such a long, longed for thing that when it finally happened, I didn't even care that I was getting up and throwing up throughout the day and night sometimes.It was just a beautiful thing that I was finally happy to be experiencing."Connect with Alyssa BoothInstagram - @cherish_birthWebsite - http://www.cherishbirth.com.au/Connect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.auALYSSA SAYS"A midwife had been recommending Illawara Birth classes. But she was told to stop, because the obstetrician didn't want their clients being taught by someone who's just a doula.And that sentence, just a doula, has stuck in my head and every time I have an idea or bookings get into a lull or something, just a doula, you're just a doula.I really have to dig myself out and be like, I've been in the birth world for a long time now. I am okay to teach these classes. I'm not giving individualised medical care. I'm teaching childbirth classes.Historically that would've been done by women in the villages in the communities. I'm not doing anything wrong. I'm not acting out of scope. I have to talk myself off a ledge quite regularly."Music by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

In this conversation with Jessie Harrold, we talk about her creative process of writing her second book and what that looked like practically, with two children. Jessie's own matrescence experiences and the work that she does with mothers around this transformation and identity shift. You’ll hear us discuss:Jessie's personal story with Matrescence Jessie's process of writing her new book Mother Shift Reclaiming Motherhood as a Rite of PassageHow Jessie started Women's circles and why they are a big part of Jessie's lifeWhy Jessie created MotherShift as an online programJessie's personal experience with creativity and Motherhood We hear Jessie's experience of being a Doula before having kidsMEET JESSIE HARROLD Jessie Harrold is a coach, women's mentor and doula who has been supporting women through radical life transformations and other rites of passage for over a decade. Jessie works one-on-one with women and mothers, facilitates mentorship programs, women’s circles and rituals, and hosts retreats and wilderness quests.  She is the founder of MotherSHIFT, the internationally acclaimed matrescence support program, and its sister program for postpartum professionals, The Village.  Jessie is also the author of Project Body Love: my quest to love my body and the surprising truth I found instead, as well as the forthcoming title with Shambhala Publications, Mothershift: Reclaiming Motherhood as a Rite of Passage.  Jessie’s work has been featured in Spirituality & Health, Green Parent, Expectful and Explore Magazine.  She is also the host of The Becoming Podcast.  Jessie lives on the east coast of Canada where she mothers her two children, writes, and tends to the land.JESSIE SAYS"I wanted to write my book during National Novel Writing Month but I was solo parenting and I didn't want to let go of this dream. I would set my alarm for 4am and write for 2 hours, because that's my best time to write.The part that took four years was writing a book proposal, shopping it around to agents. Getting a lot of rejections, building my social media platform, doing a tonne of articles, podcasts and all kinds of things to Increase the strength of my platform."Connect with JessieInstagram - @jessie.es.harroldWebsite - http://www.jessieharrold.com/Connect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.auJESSIE SAYS"When we fail to grieve in motherhood, what we find ourselves doing is either scrambling back to the way things were. I usually see that leading to suffering among mothers because things are not the way they were, they just can't be right now."Jessie has kindly provided her Momifesto Workbook for our listeners to dive into and explore more of this topic. Full Transcript attachedMusic by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

In this conversation with Amy Sagar. We talk about her personal story that started with Amy joining the  funeral industry at the age of 16 and what personally lead Amy to join the not for profit organisation Tender Funerals as their first Funeral Director. This was a really juicy conversation where we talk about death as community care and how meaningful and transformational it can be to involve community at all levels of the death and grieving process. We talk about rituals and ceremonies that can be held to honor and revere our loved ones who have died.You’ll hear us discuss:Amy's personal story about how she joined the funeral industry at age 16How caring for the dead can be transformationalRituals for grieving and saying goodbye Different options for caring for our family members bodyHow rituals after our family member has passed can create a gentler bereavementThe impact community death care is creatingDeath literacy starting with our children and how to navigate talking about deathMEET AMY SAGARAmy Sagar is a Funeral Director and has spent 15 years supporting families and communities in caring for their dead and creating meaningful funeral ceremonies. Amy was the founding funeral director of the not-for-profit funeral home Tender Funerals which recently featured on ABC's Australian Story."Provide care for that person, which means washing and dressing their body. It's a ceremonial last act of caring for someone's body. When we have the funeral ceremony, that's the final thing that happens before the disposal of the body, We can hopefully get to a point at the end where we can say goodbye, let go of that person so that their body can be cremated or buried. But if we're only saying hello to their body for the first time in that ceremony, it's harder to say goodbye."Connect with AmyInstagram - @my.wilder.selfConnect with Tender Funeralshttps://tenderfunerals.com.auhttps://tenderfunerals.com.au/illawarraInstagram - @tenderfuneralsillawarra@tenderfuneralsConnect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.au"It's absolutely different for everyone. Part of grief is joy, bliss and laughter. They are all within the spectrum of grief, if we let our children see the full range, then that also normalizes that for grief. You don't have to always be sad."Full Transcript attachedMusic by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

In this conversation with Charlotte Squires she share her personal story with receiving a stage four cancer diagnosis at the age of 23. Charlotte talks about what life was like immediately before she found out she had cancer, what the healing and recovery process looked like, how willing she was to go into the depths and breadth of the human experience, to feel the anger and the grief, and the sadness and the loss, and how that ultimately opened her up to more joy and light and love.You’ll hear us discuss:The advocating and health bias Charlotte experience in getting diagnosedHow Charlotte felt about her diagnosis and what it was like to share with othersHow Charlotte's thinking shifted to accepting and her spirituality grewCharlotte's holistic approach to healing that she called inHow the year after treatment was the hardest year of Charlotte's lifeHow Charlotte's cancer experience prepared her for motherhood and opened the door to her being The Living DoulaMEET CHARLOTTE SQUIRESA Mother, doula, space holder, educator and meaning maker. She is a talented nurturer who has dedicated her life to supporting, uplifting and cheering on women in many different arenas. She is based on the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria however works with women and families from all over the world." I never thought I could die. I  didn't feel that was true for me. the further I moved into the feeling, I realised I had to feel the fear of death. The further into the healing that I went the more okay I became with death because I realised if what was to happen, then I'd reached a point of acceptance. I felt this  affinity with my light of what was inside of me."Connect with Charlotte via Instagram @thelivingdoulaWebsite: https://www.thelivingdoula.com/Connect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.au "If I can trust my body to heal, I'm going to be able to trust my body to grow and birth my child. in many ways I'd already started the preparation in healing, in recovery."Full Transcript attachedMusic by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

In this conversation with Alysha Fameli we hear how Alysha transformed what was a really difficult initiation into motherhood, into a beacon of light for others. We hear about how Alysha's passion to advocate for other women not experiencing what she did has led her, to dedicate years of her life to studying birth trauma.You’ll hear us discuss:Alysha's first pregnancy and birth within the hospital systemHow being told to ignore her body wisdom when in transition impacted AlyshaThe impact of disrespectful treatment on her birth and mother/baby bondingHow birth trauma influenced Alysha's postpartum periodUsing science and research as a way to plan her second birthThe difference in receiving continuity of care in her second pregnancyGetting involved in birth advocacy in her final trimester with her second babyAlysha's second birth being an unplanned homebirth The Australian Birth Study and why Alysha is dedicated to this research MEET ALYSHA FAMELIAlysha is a mother, psychologist and PhD researcher at the University of Sydney. Alysha’s two very different birth experiences led her into a new passion, academic research, where she hopes to translate science into practice for new mothers."“I remember asking a midwife, if it was okay to pick my son up, and she looked at me like I was crazy. Then I remember trying to learn how to breastfeed and it was really painful. We found out later, he had a lip tie and a tongue tie and I was told, no, it's fine. It's supposed to hurt - while they grabbed my breasts. It was a surreal experience, like it wasn't happening."Connect with Alysha via Instagram @australianbirthstudyWebsite: http://australianbirthstudy.com/Connect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.au"I am deeply moved and touched by every story that I hear. I feel really honoured to hear these harrowing experiences of women's births and I feel an enormous amount of pressure in a research space To carve out reverence for these stories. It's really hard because academia is a patriarchal system, and I'm trying to come at this from a feminist perspective and carve out space  for reverence."Full Transcript attachedMusic by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

In this conversation with Haley, we hear her inspiring story of birthing her third baby (who was 5.4kg!) at home at 44+3. Haley shares her birth story medicine, her mindset, powerful experience and rituals she engaged with for her healing pregnancy, labour and lotus birth. You’ll hear us discuss:Haley's experience with EMDR for healing birth traumaHaley's pre-conception and calling her third baby inHaley's reflections and experience from 42 weeks pregnant onwardsHaley's labour, the support she received and the power she birthed in The imprint of normalising birth and family placenta careHaley describes the waiting phase of her pregnancy with such incredible insight. “Going beyond 44 weeks is place of openness & vulnerability, where each day is sometimes broken up into agonising minutes. A place where doubts & fears need to be separated from reality. An invitation to go within, to sit with discomfort & receive the lessons of trust, surrender & connection. For it was only until I was broken, that I would be called fourth to meet my baby”.MEET HALEYHaley is a mother who is open, inquisitive and passionate. She has three beautiful children and each of their births has been a journey of discovery, travelling beyond the realms of what she thought was possible and emerging with a new sense of self. Her births have shaped her, inspired her and taught her to understand the world from a new perspective."I'd worked through my fears with a fear releasing ceremony and turned those into affirmations. So when a fear came up, such as the wellbeing of my baby,  I'd invite that fear in and I would really analyse where that fear was coming from."Connect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.au“With my two children by my side I lifted my baby out of the water…. That moment was so profound that I could feel my daughters birth making an imprint on all of us. It was as if we were all reborn”."I feel really complete now after having my third daughter, that phase of pregnancy and birth, it's this flow of water, that cascades down a mountain. Each birth is this waterfall then the cascade of water continues down this mountain. I'm at that point now, where the cascade of flowing water has finished and it's this place of stillness and reflection, it feels like a place I can just return back to in my journey onwards and the lessons, of my pregnancies, my births and my babies, that will just continue to trickle into other aspects of my life"Full Transcript attachedMusic by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

Welcome to Together the Podcast! From my heart to yours, in this solo episode I share why I started the Podcast and what my hopes are for this space. What I hope to share here and what my hopes are that you take away from listening.You’ll hear me discuss:Who I am and my visionHow sitting in Women's Circles has changed my lifeWhy I have 30 seconds of Edwina Massons music at the start of each episodeThe power of story tellingWhy I started this PodcastMEET RACHAEL ROSEI am a mother of two, I have a daughter and a son.  I'm a Women's Circle Facilitator, a doula, a mentor for mums in business, and a course creator.I have a circle facilitator training called Together the same name of this podcast, and my vision is to inspire 10,000 women to start their own women's circle. I am deeply passionate about the magic of gathering women together and women sharing their stories. Sitting in circle my first, over 10 years ago, it has totally changed my life."This podcast is a place where I want to share powerful, meaningful conversations with other women and for us to imagine that we are sitting across from each other around a fire in a gathering and connect through time and space. I believe that storytelling is healing, shame melting and pain dissolving and it is an anecdote to loneliness."Connect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.au"This is not a money maker for me. This will cost me money to make. It feels like a service that I can give. It feels like a free way that people can access my work and my teachings and the power of women's circles. It feels like a place where we can share inspiration and collaborate and create together."Full Transcript attachedMusic by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'

In this conversation with Nicole Garratt, Nicole shares with us her personal story of how she  went from being an exhausted shift working mum of 4 with little support to flowing in her first year of private midwifery practice. Nicole shares her story of when she first thought that things could be different to the practical steps she took to start thinking about her business, how she started and how she has been changing things along the way to bringing her to a flow that works for her and her family.You’ll hear us discuss:How Nicole's life looks now vs when she was a hustling hospital workerNicoles love of instagram and how it is helping her to grow her businessNicole's shares her toolbox that keeps her life sustainable and nourishingThe lessons Nicole has learnt in her first year in business as a private midwifeHow Nicole set her business up to be sustainable and nourishing for her and her family.What Nicole's favourite thing is about being a private midwifeNicoles advice to other women and other mothers who want to leave a job that's maybe no longer in alignment, or one that is just way too much in that patriarchal hustle and grind culture and start a businessMEET NICOLE GARRATTNicole is Mama. Midwife. Tea drinker.  Book reader. Having worked in both the public and private hospital environments, Nicole recently made the move into private practice and has consciously built her business in a way that supports her family and herself.  She has swapped shift work and constant hustle and grind, for alignment, flow and joy.  It doesn’t all go smoothly,  but there’s more room for flexibility and peace and it’s blooming wonderful."I'd always wanted to be a private midwife. I think that imposter syndrome of, I'm not good enough, I'm not smart enough, I'm not whatever enough to do that got in the way. But it was always there in the back of my mind. So then I'd sometimes hear people doing similar things, even if they were doing it part-time, and I'd think, oh, that'd be so cool."Connect with Nicole via Instagram @bloomingmidwiferygcConnect with Rachael RoseInstagram: @the_rachael_roseWebsite www.rachaelrose.com.au"I would have moments where I was hyperventilating going, oh my God, I cannot keep this all in the air. And it felt really scary to feel like you are on a slippery slope of how the hell am I gonna keep this shit together. Whereas now, I have days where I'm busy and I have days where I didn't fold the washing, but tomorrow's a new day and I've got space in my day to do that."Full Transcript attachedMusic by Edwina Masson 'The Feminine Spitfire'