“I really couldn’t have asked for a better birth!”

A week after welcoming her second child, daughter Vera Mae, Shonee Bowtell has shared her birth story with fans on social media.

Taking to Instagram on November 26, the Australian Survivor favourite revealed that she began preparing for the delivery as soon as she found out she was pregnant, texting the MGP midwife who welcomed her son Vally into the world.

“I mentioned I would love my original midwife to come to my birth too,” she wrote in a multi-part post, explaining that the midwife had since moved into a management position.
Shonee Bowtell has opened up about the birth of daughter Vera following her arrival on September 18. (Credit: Instagram)
Thankfully, she was more than happy to be there “no matter the time or day”, much to Shonee’s relief.

As her due date neared, the 33-year-old says baby Vera was sitting “so low it was seriously uncomfortable to even walk”.

Still, with her mum unable to look after Vally under after her due date, she had everything crossed she wouldn’t go into labour until her mum arrived, which is exactly what happened.

While her labour started off “pretty chill” with “irregular contractions”, by 2pm that same day, her contractions intensified.
The Australian Survivor favourite admitted she was “still shocked” at how quickly her second child arrived – a stark contrast from her first. (Credit: Instagram)
At 6pm, while the family had dinner, for the first time in her pregnancy, Shonee says she didn’t feel like eating, texting her midwife that she was in labour instead.

“I remember saying ‘WFT another one!!! How is this possible!!’ Because they were coming so fast,” she wrote of her contractions.

Hooking herself up to a TENS machine for the car ride to the hospital, Shonee kept her eyes closed in an effort to “stay in the zone”, fearing she would give birth in the car.

Shonee admits she is “still shocked” at how quickly Vera arrived, fearing she was “being dramatic” going to the hospital so soon – having laboured for 16 hours with son Vally.
Following a water birth, Shonee got out of the birthing pool to breastfeed new little one and deliver the placenta. (Credit: Instagram)
She and partner Matt Jamieson did delayed cord clamping after the birth, with Matt cutting the cord like he did first time around.

Having given birth in a birthing pool, which assisted with the pain she was experiencing, Shonee got out to breastfeed and deliver the placenta.

“I was soooo happy it was all over and I really couldn’t have asked for a better birth!” she reflected, adding the family got the all-clear to go home after four hours.

“Birth is such a wild experience,” she concluded. “It’s absolutely crazy what you can go through and endure without even a Panadol!!!”
After just four hours, mum and baby got the all-clear to go home, with Shonee declaring, “I couldn’t have asked for a better birth!” (Credit: Instagram)

When did Shonee Bowtell have her baby?

Australian Survivor legend Shonee Bowtell took to Instagram on November 18 to share the news that she’d given birth to her second child with her partner, Matt Jamieson.

She posted a black-and-white photograph of herself cradling her baby daughter and revealed her adorable name.

“Our daughter Vera Mae!!!!” she wrote in a caption.

Shonee and Matt already share a son, Vally, 23 months, and got engaged in August.

Scroll on for everything you need to know about Shonee and her family.
Survivor star Shonee Bowtell has welcomed her second child. a daughter called Vera Mae! (Credit: Instagram)

When was Shonee Bowtell on Survivor?

Survivor might be known for putting its contestants through their paces, but that has never stopped Shonee.

Shonee has taken on Survivor four times already, first signing up at the age of 25.

She first appeared on Australian Survivor: Champions v. Contenders before returning for All Stars.

The Queensland native came back for another run on Heroes v Villains, returning as a villain.

She became the first person to play Australian Survivor three times, putting herself through her paces after getting left in the wilderness.

Shonee was also the second person in Australian Survivor to be voted out from the jury.

She told Inside Gold Coast of her stints on the show: “I was just a 25-year-old who wanted to get a tan, half a million dollars, and lose some weight while I was at it.

“I just play the game in my own unique way, I say whatever pops into my mind, and that’s been enough to keep on getting called back time and time again!”
Shonee rose to fame on three different editions of Survivor. (Credit: Channel 10)
But three times wasn’t enough for Shonee, and she returned again for Australian Survivor: Australia v The World in August 2025.

The series kicked off on Channel 10 in August and saw Shonee arrive all guns blazing with quite the revenge plot.

She plotted to take down her former ally, George Mladenov, forming an alliance with Kirby Bentley to exact her revenge.

However, the fan favourite was booted off the show after US all-star Parvati Shallow and Luke Toki played their immunity idols.

“There were idols going left, right and centre, I could hardly keep up,” she said after her exit.
Shonee is back for the fourth time on Australian Survivor: Australia v The World. (Credit: Channel Ten )

Who is Shonee Bowtell’s partner?

Shonee has been dating her boyfriend Matt Jamieson since 2023.

Little is known about Matt, but he runs his own rendering business, Render X, which is based in Queensland.

It is not known when the couple officially began dating, but they went public just 10 weeks before she announced her pregnancy.

The couple confirmed their engagement in a sweet Instagram post on September 28, 2025.

“Exactly one month ago!!!!! Life just gets better and better. I can’t wait to marry the man of my actual DREAMS!!!! How lucky am I,” Shonee gushed at the time.

Matt had popped the question the month before, and they have not yet revealed if they have set a wedding date.
Shonee Bowtell is engaged to her partner, Matt Jamieson. (Credit: Instagram)

Does Shonee Bowtell have children?

In July 2023, Shonee confirmed she and Matt were expecting their first child together in a sweet Instagram post.

“Mum and dad,” she teased in the post alongside a picture of her showing off her bump.

They welcomed their son Vally just before Christmas 2023, confirming the news exclusively with New Idea.

“Giving birth was such an empowering experience,” she gushed at the time.

“Having done Survivor, I think it’s safe to say that I love pushing myself. But 20 hours of unmedicated labour was certainly character-building!”

“I really love watching Vally grow. He recently learnt to smile, and Matt and I were blown away,” she added.

In June 2025, Shonee shared the exciting news of her second pregnancy with Matt.

She shared a photograph of Vally touching her growing baby bump as they got ready to become a family of four.
Shonee is expecting her second child with Matt. (Credit: Instagram)
“Our dreams coming true for a second time,” Shonee gushed in a caption.

Shonee shared a gender reveal video on Instagram on September 3, but didn’t actually reveal the news.

The clip showed her and Matt letting off a coloured flare to reveal the gender.

But there was an unexpected twist as she didn’t actually make the news public to her followers.
Instead, the video turned black and white at the moment the flare went off, with only their overjoyed reaction being shown.

In a caption, Shonee, 33, gushed: “Soooooo we just couldn’t wait any longer!!!! Also, never thought this video would see the light of day, but I just love our reactions. We are still keeping it a surprise for everyone else though hehe! Boy or girl?”

Many fans were convinced Shonee was having a baby girl, and they were right, as Shonee welcomed her daughter, Vera Mae, on November 18.
Shonee Bowtell revealed the gender of her second child in an unexpected video. (Credit: Instagram)

Will Shonee return to Survivor?

Despite already competing four times, Shonee has not ruled out returning to the Survivor franchise.

However, she has her eye on a very different role as she wants to shake things up even more.

“I’d love to co-host Survivor – with Jonathan LaPaglia!” Shonee told New Idea in August.

However, Jonathan himself has been axed as the host, with Survivor alum David Genat taking over.

“It makes no sense,” Shonee said at the time of the decision.
Next, Shonee wants to helm Survivor with axed host Jonathan LaPaglia. (Credit: Channel 10)
“The international stars we competed against this season absolutely love JLP, and just you wait, he brings so many zinger comments to this competition. He is Australian Survivor.”

Jonathan has claimed he was blindsided by the decision, saying he was told of his axing through his Australian manager.

“I didn’t get a direct call, which, I’ll be honest with you, was disappointing,” he shared previously in a statement.

“After 10 years of helming their flagship show, it would have been nice to get a direct call from the people at the top, but I didn’t.”