Jessica Austin | Birth Activist photo: humanizebirth.org I seem to be extremely drawn to two things in my most recent few years of life: birth work and hanging ’round men who are not necessarily sustainable fits for me. At first glance, these two passions may seem utterly unrelated. However, I would like to take a […]
Doulas & Breastfeeding. Photo by Nick Van Snellenberg Breastfeeding is such a hot topic to discuss because there are so many benefits for the mother, the child, the environment and the health care system. Breastfeeding is an important part of the pregnancy and birth process and is by far the best way to provide your […]
Photo by Nick Van Snellenberg Doulas and childbirth educators often talk about having a trust in women. In prenatal classes and doula visits, we encourage women to trust their intuition, trust they and their bodies know how to birth their children, trust they will intuitively do the “right” things during labour and birth. But do […]
Photograph by Jo Bourne I joked several weeks ago that I was considering rebranding my doula and prenatal class business, Birth Takes a Village, to Moving Takes a Village. This was because over the last few months I have helped move three separate friends into three separate apartments. This month, I’ve been moving myself. This is getting […]
Not every “job” do you get to stare deep into another woman’s eyes, her staring back almost inside you. Her need and want for you. Watching her transform into a mother as she works through blocks and leaps hurdles. How could you not fall in love. ~Michelle Maclean, Birth Doula How many people say every […]
Dear [partner, mother, father, sister, friend], I understand you have some concerns about my plans / wishes to plan a home birth, and have asked for some resources to educate yourself on the topic. You can find a LOT Of information about the research on home birth safety in the article “The Science Behind Home […]
One of the most amazing things about attending births for a living is sharing in the moment where a woman becomes a mother. I talk so often about that moment when a woman reaches down to hear newborn baby for the first time with an incomparable look on her face of “I DID IT!”. If […]
Your doula and prenatal instructor may have suggested you prepare a list of priorities and preferences to discuss with your birthing care provider so the two of you can see if you have the same ideas about what kind of care you can expect during your birth. So, you’ve educated yourself about options, know type […]
Photo: Jessica Austin With the cloudy season upon us here in Vancouver, affecting many of our moods, I feel it is an appropriate time to talk about mental health in the postpartum period. While some cultures don’t even have a word for postpartum depression because it simply is not common, we frequently hear about it […]
I am a pretty expressive person. Those of you who read my blog posts regularly probably already have a sense of this! In person, I often talk with my hands and seem to (apparently) amuse my friends with pronounced facial expressions. As a result, my birth friends have taken up creating captions for facebook photos […]
The placenta is one of the most amazing organs of the human body. Whenever we can, we try to show our doula students a real placenta in doula training. Check out this video tour of the anatomy of the placenta, amniotic sac and umbilical cord! If you are interested in our Wise Woman Way of […]
