The Pregnancy Playbook Podcast

We meet midwives at some of the most intimate moments of our lives… but do we ever truly know the person underneath the uniform?Today on The Pregnancy Playbook, I’m joined by Amy Houghton, a midwife whose story might surprise you. Before stepping into birthwork, Amy earned a degree in physics, gave birth in India, and developed a deep belief in holistic, whole-person care.She’s not just a midwife. She’s a woman who has lived, questioned, explored, and created a completely fresh approach to antenatal education that blends science, intuition, and real-life wisdom.In this episode, we explore:• Who midwives really are behind the training and scrubs• How Amy’s physics background shapes her understanding of birth• What giving birth in India taught her about care, culture & physiology• Why she built her own antenatal method — and what makes it different• How holistic care and evidence-based midwifery can work together• What parents actually need to feel held, informed, and confidentThis is an honest, human conversation that takes you beyond the standard antenatal class and into the heart of what birth support can be when we see the full person behind the profession.If you’ve ever wondered what your midwife believes, what shaped her, or how her life experience influences the way she cares, you’ll love this episode.Perfect for anyone preparing for birth, choosing antenatal classes, wanting midwife-led insight, or looking for a more holistic, human approach to pregnancy preparation. CONNECT WITH AMY HOUGHTON🌐 Website: https://www.theamiableapproach.co.uk📸 Instagram: @theamiableapproachFollow Aimee✨ Website: aimeestrongman.com✨ Instagram: @aimee.strongman✨ Explore my birth courses (including Birthology): https://www.aimeestrongman.com/birthology ✨ Read Aimee's Substack: https://gatherandglow.substack.com?utm_source=navbar&utm_medium=webWith thanks to Z!zzy Studios - https://www.zizzystudios.co.ukNicci the Stylist - https://niccithestylist.co.ukJewellery by David Reale Goldsmithsoutfit: Host's own

If you’re pregnant and feeling flooded with opinions, advice, and a million mixed messages… take a breath.This episode is designed to bring you clarity, confidence, and calm — the things every woman deserves in pregnancy.In this episode of The Pregnancy Playbook, I’m joined by Megan Rossiter, founder of Birth Ed, whose grounded, evidence-led approach to birth education has supported thousands of women. Together, we’re unpacking what truly matters when you’re preparing for birth, and why the right education can completely shift your experience from overwhelming to empowered.We dive into:• What good birth education actually is• Why understanding your physiology changes your mindset• The gaps in standard antenatal classes• What partners really need to know• How knowledge supports confidence, calm, and choice• What to focus on (and what to let go of)Megan brings a refreshing blend of honesty, science, and real-world insight and this conversation will help you cut through the noise and reconnect to what’s important: your body, your choices, your birth.If you want a birth that feels informed and aligned with you not just what you’re “told” to do then this is your episode. Hit play and let this be the moment things finally make sense.Perfect for anyone exploring birth education, positive birth preparation, antenatal classes, partner support, hypnobirthing, and confident pregnancy planning. CONNECT WITH MEGAN ROSSITER🌐 Website: https://birth-ed.co.uk📸 Instagram: @birth_edFOLLOW AIMEE🌐Website: www.aimeestrongman.com📸Instagram: @the.maternal.alchemist💻 Explore my birth courses (including Birthology): https://www.aimeestrongman.com/birthology ✎ Read Aimee's Substack: https://gatherandglow.substack.com?utm_source=navbar&utm_medium=web🎙️With thanks to Z!zzy Studios - https://www.zizzystudios.co.ukNicci the Stylist - https://niccithestylist.co.ukJewellery by David Reale GoldsmithsOutfit: Host's own

Welcome to The Pregnancy Playbook Podcast @TheMaternalAlchemist, we are so thrilled to have you here! I hope you are going to love what you hear with some amazing guests this first season really shaking up how we think and feel about birth in 2026!
So what can you expect - well consider this like your coffee break where you can listen in to all things preconception, pregnancy birth and beyond as I sit down with some incredible guest to get their take on this rite of passage.

This episode I am talking with the power house that is Milli Hill; writer, activist and all round advocate for women's health. She is brilliant, bold, and refreshingly honest and the woman behind The Positive Birth Book and Give Birth Like a Feminist as well as her new book baby The Ultra Processed Woman.This is one of those juicy, fireside-feeling conversations where you forget the microphones are even on.

We dive into the real stuff:
✽ What a positive birth actually means (and what it definitely doesn’t)
✽ The sneaky ways language shapes how women feel in pregnancy
✽ Why “poor words” and throwaway phrases can derail confidence
✽ What women really need from the maternity system
✽ How to stand your ground, trust your body, and protect your power
✽ And yes… a little feminist fire, because birth is allowed to be political, powerful, and personal all at once

If you’re pregnant, planning, or just curious about how women can birth with more joy, authority, and ease and this one will land straight in your heart.

CONNECT WITH MILLI HILL
📚 The Positive Birth Book: https://uk.bookshop.org
📚 Give Birth Like a Feminist: https://uk.bookshop.org
🌐 Website: https://www.millihill.co.uk
📸 Instagram: @milli.hill
Read Milli's Substack: https://millihill.substack.com?utm_so...

FOLLOW AIMEE
🌐 Website: www.aimeestrongman.com
📸 Instagram: @the.maternal.alchemist

Explore her birth course BIRTHOLOGY
https://www.aimeestrongman.com/birtho...
Read Aimee's Substack: https://gatherandglow.substack.com?ut...

With thanks to Z!zzy Studios - https://www.zizzystudios.co.uk
Nicci the Stylist - https://niccithestylist.co.uk
Jewellery by David Reale Goldsmiths
Outfit: Host's own