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Lisa's resources are below this description

What an episode. When Lisa is told again and again that her recurring miscarriages are “just bad luck,” she knows that's not it. She follows her intuition, pushes for deeper testing, and finally gets an answer. Lisa has a balanced chromosomal translocation, a rare genetic rearrangement that makes naturally conceived pregnancies far more likely to end.

That diagnosis forces impossible choices. Lisa and her Swiss husband look at IVF realities, adoption barriers, and the heartbreak of more loss, then choose donor egg IVF. But because egg donation is illegal in Switzerland (a topic discussed in the episodes), they travel to a Greek fertility clinic and learn the logistics and emotions of cross-border care, donor screening, anonymity, and what it means to build a family this way.

The first transfer works, but pregnancy still brings health anxiety, intense symptoms, and the lingering fear that good news can disappear.

Then comes birth. Lisa shares her fears of childbirth, why she planned a hospital birth in Kantonspital Winterthur with doula support, how an induction is recommended after late-pregnancy measurements, and what it’s like to move through a long, brutal labour when pain relief doesn’t fully touch the intensity.

We also unpack the cascade of interventions, vacuum-assisted delivery, brief newborn oxygen support, retained placenta surgery, a severe postpartum haemorrhage, and the months of triple feeding and guilt that follow. It’s a raw, honest story about resilience, anger, tenderness, all so generously shared by the honest and candid conversation with Lisa.

If this conversation helps you, please subscribe, share it with someone who needs it, and leave a rating and review so more parents and parents to be in Switzerland can find these stories.

Here are Lisa's resources:

Fertility specialist in Zurich: https://www.kinderwunsch-zuerich.ch/

Lisa's clinic in Greece where was matched with her egg donor: https://www.newlife-ivf.co.uk/

Christine was Lisa's doula: www.lilybee.ch

Lisa can be contacted here for connecting about issues like balanced translocation, fertility assistance, donor eggs: lisa.schwander712@gmail.com

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Giulia's resources are below.

Wow, what a story. You will want to stick around for the postpartum discussion and her incredibly brilliant moment which left not a dry eye on the recording that day.

A birth plan can be thoughtful, informed, and deeply held and still get rewritten in real time. Guilia came into labour hoping for a low-intervention, midwife-led experience at Triemli Hospital in Zurich, supported by preparation, hypnobirthing tools, and the belief that staying open to Plan B matters. What follows is a powerful Swiss birth story about patience, endurance, and the strange mix of grief and gratitude that can sit side by side when labour stretches past 24 hours and a very difficult postpartum diagnosis of Hirschsprung's Disease.

We talk through monitoring post due-date and induction choices, including acupuncture, a castor oil cocktail, and the moment an unexplained bleed changes things. Giulia shares what helped her cope during intense contractions, why the birth pool felt like relief, and how it felt to keep trying position after position while dilation and descent stayed stubbornly slow. When exhaustion takes over, she chooses an epidural, and eventually a caesarean section becomes the safest next step. The care and steadiness of the midwives becomes a central part of how she remembers a tough birth with warmth. Her incredibly willingness to truly "try it all" (and then some!) is such a powerful part of this story.

Then, nine days postpartum, everything shifts. Feeding struggles and poor weight gain turn into an emergency visit, NICU separation, and a rare diagnosis: Hirschsprung disease, a gastrointestinal condition that blocks the colon. Giulia walks us through pumping and visiting daily, learning colon flushes at home, and waiting months for major corrective surgery. We also zoom out to the postpartum realities people don’t warn you about, from C-section recovery and breastfeeding pressure to freelance work, childcare costs, and finding a village in Zurich.

If this story resonates, subscribe to Swiss Birth Stories, share it with a parent who needs hope, and leave a rating or review so more families can find these honest conversations. What part of Giulia's journey did you relate to most?

Support the show

Please connect with us! See below for how to contact and interact with us:

To share your story: https://www.happydayhypnobirthing.ch/swiss-birth-stories

All episodes:

https://swissbirthstories.buzzsprout.com

Our websites:

www.swissbirthstories.com

www.juliathedoula.ch

www.lilybee.ch

Instagram:

@swissbirthstories

@juliathedoula.ch

@lilybeezurich

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@swissbirthstories

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Kateryna's resources are below this description

What happens when a healthcare system’s “just in case” meets a mother’s calm, clear questioning: “what’s actually happening right now?”, "How is my baby doing?"

Originally from Ukraine, we meet Kateryna to explore her five-year fertility journey, her two planned home births in the Zurich area, and the tightrope walk between hospital protocol, fact-finding and personal autonomy. From a low fluid scare and a breech presentation to a successful ECV (a procedure to turn the baby before it is born) followed by a rare bleeding complication, she takes us inside the decisions that turned anxiety into agency and pressure into preference.

We move through practical strategies for navigating late-pregnancy curveballs: how she assessed induction recommendations with a clear head, what respectful monitoring sounds like, and where to find breech-friendly care in Switzerland. Kateryna’s first home birth unfolded with movement, hypnobirthing, and water; her second arrived in a sunlit pool in under a minute after a forest walk and mindful positioning.

Her approach was never “home at all costs.” Hospitals were registered, transfer plans ready, and informed consent constant- proof that safety and softness can coexist when parents are trusted.

Postpartum is where her philosophy crystallizes. The first time, she rushed back to life and paid for it with prolonged bleeding and discomfort. The second, she committed to forty days of rest, clear boundaries, and targeted support, including a rented therapeutic laser for nipple healing and a lotus birth that demanded slow, attentive care. The result: steadier breastfeeding, deeper sleep, and a remarkably calm baby. We also talk about changing doctors at 38 weeks, the red flags that signal misalignment, and the green lights that say you’ve found your team.

If you’re weighing home birth, facing breech, or just craving a gentler postpartum, this story offers concrete tools and uncommon peace. Listen, share with a friend who needs a confidence boost, and subscribe for more Swiss birth stories and expert insights. Your review helps more parents find evidence-based, heart-forward care.

Kateryna's resources:

- Hebammen https://www.instagram.com/haerzchlopfae_hebamme?igsh=MzM5ZTE5YjB2aThz

- Doctor to turn breech baby https://frauenarzt-genesis.ch/dr-el-idrissi/

- Doctor to give birth vaginaly with breech https://www.hirslanden.ch/de/corporate/aerzte/3/dr-med-werner-stadlmayr.html

Postpartum midwife https://diehebammenpraxis.ch/

Rent laser https://www.wochenbett-huber.ch/

Yoni steaming and recovery massage https://www.christine-ehling.com/

Photos https://w

Support the show

Please connect with us! See below for how to contact and interact with us:

To share your story: https://www.happydayhypnobirthing.ch/swiss-birth-stories

All episodes:

https://swissbirthstories.buzzsprout.com

Our websites:

www.swissbirthstories.com

www.juliathedoula.ch

www.lilybee.ch

Instagram:

@swissbirthstories

@juliathedoula.ch

@lilybeezurich

Tiktok:

@swissbirthstories