Phoebe: When “Normal” Postpartum Pain Was Actually Osteoporosis
From Kiwi Birth Tales by Jordyn Kayes
May 18, 2026 · 1h 17m · Season 1 · Episode 263
About this episode
Phoebe shares her challenging journey through motherhood, including a rare postpartum condition and the impact of birth trauma.
This episode of Kiwi Birth Tales is proudly sponsored by Woolworths NZ in support of the Little Miracles Trust. This week on Kiwi Birth Tales I speak with Phoebe about her journey to motherhood with her daughter Amelie. Phoebe’s pregnancy was mostly textbook until late in her third trimester when repeated growth scans showed her baby was measuring large. After discussions with Auckland Hospital, Phoebe chose to be induced at 38-39 weeks due to concerns around shoulder dystocia and baby’s size. In this episode Phoebe shares her two-day induction, intense labour, emergency csection birth and the scary moments after Amelie was born and unable to breathe independently, resulting in a short NICU stay. We also talk through Phoebe’s incredibly difficult postpartum experience. Around 12 weeks postpartum she developed severe back pain which was eventually diagnosed as Pregnancy and Lactation Osteoporosis (PLO), a rare condition that caused multiple spinal fractures while breastfeeding. Phoebe speaks honestly about birth trauma, postpartum mental health, physical recovery, self advocacy and navigating another pregnancy after such a challenging first experience. In this episode we cover…
People in this episode
Host: Jordyn Kayes
Guest: Phoebe
Topics covered
- postpartum pain
- osteoporosis
- birth trauma
- NICU
- motherhood
- self advocacy
Keywords
- postpartum
- osteoporosis
- birth trauma
- NICU
- motherhood
- self advocacy
- breastfeeding
- induction
- emergency csection
Sponsors
Woolworths NZ
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Little Miracles Trust, Auckland Hospital
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