Drawing Her Own line
22 weeks pregnant at The Farm, Killalea Beach, Australia. Photo Credit Aaron Hughes
Growing up in an ocean loving family, I always imagined raising one of my own by the sea
Surfing was never just a hobby or a sport to me, it shaped the way I wanted to live my life. I was involved with other sports growing up, including soccer and rowing, which gave me discipline and confidence in my body, but surfing was the thing I loved most. It was the thing I wanted to still be doing when I was old.
A major turning point for me was moving to South Africa in my early twenties for an internship with Christian Surfers. Before that, I mostly surfed alone or with guys. Suddenly I was surrounded by women who were just as obsessed with surfing as I was, including older women who were already mothers. They completely changed my perspective on what adulthood and family life could look like. We’d go on surf trips together, and I watched these women make space for themselves to still surf, travel, and be in the ocean while raising kids.
That season of life ended up shaping almost everything that came after. Seeing those surfing mothers made something click for me. I realized I wanted a partner who valued that lifestyle too, and that one day I wanted to raise a surfing family of my own
My surfing improved, I eventually moved into commentary work, and it also led me to Aaron. We met in 2014 through our shared work in surfing and a big part of why we connected was that we came from similar family backgrounds and shared the same priorities around family, travel, and the ocean. Over the years, our work took us all over the world, living between places like South Africa, Hawaii, California, and Australia while working different surf competitions, and all of it helped shape how we wanted to eventually raise children.
Our journey to having our daughter, Dylan, was much harder than we expected. After trying to get pregnant for years, we experienced a miscarriage in 2022 almost immediately after finding out we were expecting. That period was incredibly painful, but surfing and the ocean became a huge part of my healing. I remember needing the water so badly afterward. Just sitting on my board in the ocean felt like the only place where my body and mind could settle.
After years of painful periods and pushing for answers, I was eventually diagnosed with stage two endometriosis. In a strange way, finally having an explanation brought relief. We could stop wondering why things were so difficult and start figuring out a path forward. Aaron and I decided to pursue IVF, but that came with a lot of timing decisions because I was committed to commentating at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
In the lead-up, we both focused heavily on our health and fertility, and after the Olympics, one round of IVF led to our pregnancy with Dylan
By the time I became pregnant, it never really crossed my mind that I wouldn’t surf through it. So many women in my world already were. Seeing surfers like Kelia Moniz, Honolua Blomfield, and Carissa Moore openly surfing while pregnant made it feel completely normal. They were sharing photos and clips of themselves surfing at every stage of pregnancy, and the response around it was overwhelmingly supportive.
It felt less like something radical and more like a natural extension of the life we already lived
Shannon & her bestie, Rachel Tilly, sharing waves with baby Dylan Photo Credit Aaron Hughes
Pregnancy itself was physically challenging at times, especially early on with intense nausea, but overall I felt really strong. I think years of sports prepared me for pregnancy and birth more than I realized at the time. Surfing in particular had taught me how to trust my body and stay calm under pressure. Throughout my pregnancy I kept moving, surfing, swimming, and doing pilates. I also worked closely with my physio, always adjusting to what felt safe and comfortable as my body changed.
Ready for the ritual ocean dip
I was never trying to prove anything by surfing pregnant. I’m a very calculated person, and I only surfed waves and boards that felt well within my comfort zone. As I got further along, paddling became the hardest part because my belly completely changed the balance of my board, so I naturally moved toward smaller waves. But even late into pregnancy, popping up still felt surprisingly normal to me because surfing was so deeply ingrained in my body after a lifetime of doing it.
Teaching Dylan how to pick her own lines too
I thought my final surf happened around 34 weeks, when Aaron had to help push me into a few waves because paddling had become so difficult. But a few weeks later, during a beautiful warm winter day at home in Australia, he convinced me to go for one more. I swam out while he took my longboard, and he pushed me into a tiny little left that ended up being one of the most joyful waves I can remember having. I just rode it simply, trimming and turning, completely present in the moment. After that wave, I knew I was done surfing for the pregnancy. I also had no idea at the time that Dylan would be born later that same week.
Shannon & Dylan in their own salty waters
Even though I have a completely irrational fear of sharks, I felt surprisingly calm and confident in my birth decisions. Living in South Africa and eventually settling in Australia meant I’d spent years around conversations and stories about shark attacks. Surfing can sometimes feel strangely passive, you’re out there knowing there are things completely outside your control. Pregnancy and birth felt different to me. After everything we’d gone through to get pregnant, I wanted to be an active participant in the process. I wanted to make informed decisions, build a team I trusted, and stay connected to what my body was doing instead of feeling swept along by fear or pressure.
So when the obstetrician strongly pushed for an induction because of the IVF pregnancy and gestational diabetes, it didn’t sit right with me. I understood the reasoning, and I wasn’t against intervention if it became necessary, but I didn’t want to start with something chemical when everything else was looking healthy and low-risk. My midwife, birth educator, physio, naturopath, and I had spent months preparing for a calm and supported birth. Together we came up with a middle-ground plan I felt comfortable with: trying a membrane sweep at 38 weeks and then reassessing from there.
Before we even got to that appointment, my water broke
At 4 a.m. I woke up to go to the bathroom and felt a pop. At first I thought I was just peeing, but then it kept going and I realized, “Oh, my water actually broke.” I called out to Aaron and neither of us reacted with the excitement you see in movies. We were more like, “Wait… no. Not yet.” Aaron had only just come home from work up the coast, and we had planned to spend the next few weeks getting everything ready. The nursery wasn’t sorted, the car seat wasn’t installed, and all we really had prepared was half a packet of adult diapers a friend had dropped off.
The hospital told us to come in eventually, but not to rush. They confirmed I was in very early labor and expected the baby would probably arrive sometime after midnight. So after a short visit to go through all of the checks, we left the hospital and spent the morning buying baby supplies, postpartum things, and clothes I could breastfeed in. Looking back, it feels ridiculous that we were shopping while I was in labor, but at the time everything still felt very manageable.
Riding curbs to encourage Dylan out
Around midday, the contractions suddenly shifted. They started feeling like very intense period pain, which oddly made me feel calm because I’d lived with painful periods for so long from endometriosis. I recognized the sensation, I wasn’t panicking. I started moving around the house, swaying on a birth ball, walking, and doing the things I’d learned in birth classes. Meanwhile, Aaron was washing the windows in our living room because he wanted us to have a clear view of the ocean and mountains once Dylan was home. I remember being in labor thinking that was such a sweet and funny priority.
As the contractions intensified, all I wanted was to get in the ocean. The waves were tiny, the water was glassy, and the sun was out. I remember slowly walking toward the beach between contractions feeling this overwhelming instinct to float in the water. Aaron kept reminding me that because my waters had broken, the ocean unfortunately wasn’t an option anymore.
By early afternoon I was in a completely different headspace. Aaron hooked me up to a TENS machine, which helped a lot, and started timing contractions. Even then, we still thought we had hours and hours to go because everyone tells first-time moms labor takes forever. The hospital had basically assured us we wouldn’t meet Dylan until after midnight. But suddenly the contractions got much closer together, and when Aaron called the birth unit they told him to get me to the hospital right away.
The drive there felt endless. I was draped across the backseat focusing completely inward. By the time we arrived I already felt the urge to push, but I kept second-guessing myself because I thought surely it couldn’t be happening that quickly.
Once we got upstairs everything moved fast. The staff initially thought I still had plenty of time because I was a first-time mom, but I knew my body was pushing. They kept insisting I needed to pee, while I kept insisting the baby was coming. Eventually they checked and realized I was fully dilated and Dylan was already right there.
I remember feeling strangely clear-headed between contractions. At some point I shifted mentally into athlete mode. I stopped thinking about birth as something scary and started treating it like the most intense endurance event I’d ever done. I remember thinking, “I trained for this, I can do this.” Years of surfing, rowing, training, and learning how to stay calm under physical stress suddenly felt useful in a completely different way.
Pushing was harder and more physical than I expected, but I felt really supported by the midwives. They knew I wanted to avoid tearing if possible and coached me through slowing down at the right moments. I also remember the funniest random details like them telling me the baby had dark hair, which somehow completely surprised me in the moment.
Then suddenly she was out
The Golden Hour
Everything changed tone really quickly after the birth because I began hemorrhaging once Dylan was on my chest. The room went from peaceful to chaotic within seconds as more doctors rushed in. I honestly didn’t realize how serious it was at first because birth is messy and I was completely focused on her. I still remember arguing about intervention while holding her, until my midwife gently reminded me that my whole birth philosophy had never been “no intervention no matter what.” It was that I wanted to avoid unnecessary intervention unless there was a genuine emergency. And this was one.
Once they explained things clearly, I immediately agreed to the medication and treatment they recommended to stop the bleeding and avoid surgery. Thankfully everything stabilized very quickly after that. Within minutes the room felt calm again. Dylan stayed on my chest, found the breast almost immediately, and latched on her own. Besides needing a little help clearing fluid from her lungs, she was completely healthy.
Dylan & Aaron locking eyes
Within 24 hours of being born, Dylan was back listening to the same ocean I’d wanted so badly during labor. And within six weeks of giving birth, I found myself surfing again in almost identical conditions to my last pregnancy surf, warm winter weather, tiny clean waves, and no wind. My best friend Rachael was visiting, and we surfed a soft little beach-break together. It felt emotional and familiar all at once.
Recovery still took time. It was probably another three months before I truly felt strong again in my body. Motherhood has completely changed the rhythm of my life, especially around surfing, but not in a negative way. I waited a long time to become a mom. I’m okay with surfing less or differently for a while because this season is something I wanted very deeply.
What matters most to me is that the ocean still stays part of our family life. Sometimes that’s surfing, sometimes it’s swimming. As long as I get my head underwater, I’ll feel really good for the day. Aaron and I try really hard to approach parenting as a team and include Dylan in everything we do. She already loves being outside and in the water, especially when the weather is wild.
Watching her experience the ocean now feels even more meaningful to me than surfing ever did on my own
This time Shannon behind the cam & Dylan tandem surfing with Aaron- making sure mommy got her surf footie.
Shannon Hughes is a surf commentator at events of all descriptions, including the Olympic Games. Growing up in a surfing family in Huntington Beach, California, she eventually competed herself, and has since worked in a number of roles across the sport with a particular passion for women’s surfing. After nearly a decade of marriage, traveling and living near some of the world’s best waves together, Shannon and Aaron now reside on the South Coast of NSW where they share their love of being a surfing family with their now 13 month-old daughter.
