The Science of Motherhood

You might wonder what a doula actually does, or whether having one is worth it when you've already got a partner and a midwife by your side. There's a lot of noise out there about what the role really involves, and most of it doesn't reflect what a doula is actually there to do. A doula's real job is to be a steady, judgement-free presence, there for exactly what you need and out of the way for the rest.
There's a lot to untangle about where a doula fits, what they actually do in the room, and how that support changes depending on how your birth unfolds.
In this episode of The Science of Motherhood, Dr Renee White chats with Amanda Down, Fill Your Cup's longest-standing birth doula, to unpack what doulas actually do and how they fit alongside midwives and partners. Amanda draws on years of supporting mamas through pregnancy, birth and postpartum to explain how doulas build trust, advocate in the birth space and adapt to whatever a family needs on the day.
This is Part 6, the final instalment, of our Pregnancy and Birth series.
You'll Hear About:
What a birth doula does day to day
How doulas differ from midwives in your care
Why prenatal sessions focus on trust first
How doulas support partners through labour
What the BRAIN tool helps you decide

Wherever you land on the spectrum of support you want, you get to decide what your birth looks like and who stands beside you for it. Amanda's approach is a reminder that you don't need permission to trust yourself, only the right people in your corner.
Share this with a friend who's weighing up whether a doula is right for her birth team. And subscribe so you don't miss an episode of The Science of Motherhood.
Resources & Links
Connect with Dr Renee White
📲 Connect with Renee on Instagram: @fillyourcup_
📲 Connect with Renee on LinkedIn: Renee White
🌐 Learn more about Dr Renee White and explore Fill Your Cup Doula services
🍪 Treat yourself with our Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies
This episode is proudly supported by Fill Your Cup, Australia's first doula village, with doulas available across Melbourne, Geelong, Sydney, Newcastle, Brisbane, Gold Coast, Hobart and Perth.
Disclaimer: The information on this podcast presented by Fill Your Cup is not a substitute for independent professional advice. Nothing contained in this episode is intended to be used as medical advice and it is not intended to be used to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease, nor should it be used for therapeutic purposes or as a substitute for your own health professional's advice.

Someone in your life has probably already told you what pregnancy is "supposed" to feel like, whether you asked or not. When what you're going through doesn't line up with that, it's easy to wonder what's wrong with you instead of questioning where that advice even came from.
These are the myths mums are told to accept without question, pulled apart to show what happens to your confidence when you stop challenging them.
In this episode of The Science of Motherhood, Dr Renee White sits down with Dr Emma Black, Clinical and Perinatal Psychologist, to bust some of pregnancy's most persistent myths. Together they unpack where these beliefs come from, why they stick around for generations, and how mums can start trusting their own judgement instead.
This is part 5 of 6 in our Pregnancy and Birth series.
You'll Hear About
Why the nesting instinct myth doesn't hold up
What the 12 week rule was really protecting
How to respond when unsolicited advice keeps coming
Why gender disappointment is often grief in disguise
How to build confidence to do pregnancy differently

You're allowed to question the rules you were handed and keep only the ones that actually serve you. Trust builds when you start choosing what fits your family instead of what's expected of you.
If this conversation helped you see one of these myths differently, share it with a mama who needs permission to let it go too. Subscribe to The Science of Motherhood so new episodes land in your feed each week.
Resources & Links
Connect with Dr Renee White
📲 Connect with Renee on Instagram: @fillyourcup_
📲 Connect with Renee on LinkedIn: Renee White
🌐 Learn more about Dr Renee White and explore Fill Your Cup Doula services
🍪 Treat yourself with our Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies
Connect with Dr Emma Black
Learn more about Emma and her work:
🌐 motherhoodmyths.com.au
🌐 townsvillepsychologist.com.au
📲 Follow Emma on instagram: @emmablackpsych
📲 Follow Emma on Facebook: emmablackpsych
📖 The Pregnancy Myths Guide now available in bookstores or online
✨ This episode is proudly supported by Fill Your Cup, Australia's first doula village, with doulas available across Melbourne, Geelong, Sydney, Central Coast, Brisbane, Gold Coast, Hobart and Perth.
Disclaimer: The information on this podcast presented by Fill Your Cup is not a substitute for independent professional advice. Nothing contained in this episode is intended to be used as medical advice and it is not intended to be used to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease, nor should it be used for therapeutic purposes or as a substitute for your own health professional's advice.

Maybe your birth went exactly how everyone told you it should, and you still can't shake the way it made you feel. Maybe it didn't go anywhere near the plan, and somehow you came out the other side feeling strong. Whatever your birth looked like on paper, if it left something behind that you're still carrying, that's worth taking seriously.
This is for you if you've never quite known what to call what happened to you. It's for you if you're getting ready to give birth and want to understand what actually helps when things don't go to plan.
In this episode of The Science of Motherhood, Dr Renee White chats with Claire DiCarlo, perinatal counsellor and founder of Rad Parents, to get honest about what birth trauma really is and why it's so often missed. Claire brings both her clinical experience supporting mums through birth trauma and her own birth story, which didn't go to plan, to explore why the people around you matter more than the outcome, and what real support looks like once it's over.
This is part four of the six-part Pregnancy and Birth series.
You'll Hear About:
What birth trauma actually means
What actually makes a birth feel unsafe
Why women blame themselves for someone else's actions
When birth debriefing actually helps
How to protect yourself before you give birth

There's no timeline for making sense of your birth, and no version of your story that's too small to matter. However long it takes you to get there, you deserve the space to talk about it.
Share this with a mum who's never had the words for what her birth left behind. And subscribe so you don't miss an episode of The Science of Motherhood.
Resources & Links
Connect with Dr Renee White
📲 Connect with Renee on Instagram: @fillyourcup_
📲 Connect with Renee on LinkedIn: Renee White
🌐 Learn more about Dr Renee White and explore Fill Your Cup Doula services
🍪 Treat yourself with our Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies
Connect with Claire DiCarlo
🌐 Learn more about Claire’s work with Rad Parents: www.radparents.com.au
🌐 Learn more about Claire’s work with Beyond Birth: www.beyondbirthcourse.com
📲 Connect with Claire on Instagram: @clairedicarlo_radparents
✨ This episode is proudly supported by Fill Your Cup, Australia's first doula village, with doulas available across Melbourne, Geelong, Sydney, Central Coast, Brisbane, Gold Coast, Hobart and Perth.
Disclaimer: The information on this podcast presented by Fill Your Cup is not a substitute for independent professional advice. Nothing contained in this episode is intended to be used as medical advice and it is not intended to be used to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease, nor should it be used for therapeutic purposes or as a substitute for your own health professional's advice.

For generations, birth belonged to community, culture and country. That belonging is being reclaimed inside hospital rooms across Australia today, one birth at a time.
That's the belief driving birthing on country, a way of caring for mothers built on trust, culture and community.
In this episode of The Science of Motherhood, Dr Renee White sits down with Melanie Briggs, a proud Dharawal and Gumbaynggirr woman and endorsed midwife who manages the Birthing on Country program at Waminda, to explore what birthing on country truly means. Together they unpack the model's remarkable outcomes, the systemic barriers First Nations families still face, and the personal calling that led Melanie to this work.
This is part three of six in our Pregnancy and Birth series.
You'll Hear About
What birthing on country truly means
How Waminda's model transformed birth outcomes
Why continuity of care changes outcomes
What racism still looks like in maternity care
How Melanie found her purpose in this work

Birthing on country is a powerful reminder that culturally safe care is every mother's birth right. When community leads the way, mothers and babies thrive.
Share this episode with a mother who deserves to know her birth rights matter. Subscribe to The Science of Motherhood for more conversations that put evidence and community at the heart of birth.
Resources & Links
📲 Connect with Renee on Instagram: @fillyourcup_
📲 Connect with Renee on LinkedIn: Renee White
🌐 Learn more about Dr Renee White and explore Fill Your Cup Doula services
🍪 Treat yourself with our Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies
Connect with Melanie Briggs
📲 Instagram: @birthingoncountry_waminda
📘 Facebook: Waminda - Birthing on Country
🌐 Website: waminda.org.au/maternity/birthing-on-country
This episode is proudly supported by Fill Your Cup, Australia's first doula village, with doulas available across Melbourne, Geelong, Sydney, Newcastle, Brisbane, Gold Coast, Hobart and Perth.
Disclaimer: The information on this podcast presented by Fill Your Cup is not a substitute for independent professional advice. Nothing contained in this episode is intended to be used as medical advice and it is not intended to be used to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease, nor should it be used for therapeutic purposes or as a substitute for your own health professional's advice.

Most mamas picture birth happening in a hospital room, because that's the only version most of us have ever seen. There's another path many don't even know exists.
Hospital can feel like the only option on the table, but there's a wider spectrum of care available than most mums realise.
In this episode of The Science of Motherhood, Dr Renee White sits down with Jaimee Smith, endorsed private midwife and manager of the Launceston Birth Centre. Jaimee shares how relationship based care shapes calmer births and why continuity with the same midwife changes the experience for mums.
This is part two of our six part Pregnancy and Birth series.
You'll hear about
Why continuity of carer changes birth outcomes
What actually happens inside a birth centre
How midwives support birth after caesarean
What private midwifery costs across Australia
Why home birth differs from free birth

Understanding the full spectrum of care available means you get to choose what feels safest and most supported for your family.
Share this episode with a friend who's exploring her birth options beyond the hospital doors. Subscribe to The Science of Motherhood so you never miss an episode.
Resources & Links
📲 Connect with Renee on Instagram: @fillyourcup_
🌐 Learn more about Dr Renee White and explore Fill Your Cup Doula services
🍪 Treat yourself with our Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies
Connect with Jamiee:
Website: themidwivesmidwife.com
Instagram: @themidwivesmidwife_
Facebook: The Midwives’ Midwife
Launceston Birth Centre
This episode is proudly supported by Fill Your Cup, Australia's first doula village, with doulas available across Melbourne, Geelong, Sydney, Newcastle, Brisbane, Gold Coast, Hobart and Perth.
Disclaimer: The information on this podcast presented by Fill Your Cup is not a substitute for independent professional advice. Nothing contained in this episode is intended to be used as medical advice and it is not intended to be used to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease, nor should it be used for therapeutic purposes or as a substitute for your own health professional's advice.