maddie Photo by Jason Leung on Unsplash “There is more than one kind of freedom,” said Aunt Lydia. “Freedom to and freedom from. In the days of anarchy, it was freedom to. Now you are being given freedom from. Don’t underrate it.”― Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid’s Tale I’ve been watching season 5 of The Handmaid’s Tale again recently, … Read more
Photo by John Cameron on Unsplash Developing Doulas Course Facilitator, Katie Fryer-Olliffe, shares a deeply personal reflection on her journey into doula work, the importance of community over competition, and how she embraces activism rooted in connection, care, and integrity. Shortly after having my first child in 2007, I began exploring different careers that might … Read more
At the risk of you all getting the impression that I only ever think of my stomach, I am reminded today of the way I used to eat biscuits when I was a child. First, I revelled in the anticipation: just knowing they were there, a whole packet of bourbons or jammy dodgers hidden in … Read more
It’s deeply ingrained, this habit of putting hats on newborns. Search online for images of newborns and almost all of them are togged up in a woolly hat, for all the world like they are about to go outside for a snowball fight. So why do we do it? And why do so many midwives … Read more
Photo by Sarah Dorweiler on Unsplash Life is complicated. The world is complicated, so that means pregnancy and parenting is complicated, sometimes overwhelmingly so. On a micro level, the million and one choices we have to make every day, the conflicting advice – and the differing needs of all the kids and everyone else we … Read more
by Tracy Sealey I have a confession to make. I am a doula and an antenatal teacher but I am done talking about the medicalisation of childbirth. DONE! For years, we’ve been locked in this endless, circular debate about whether childbirth should be “natural” or “medical,” and it’s getting us nowhere. All we’re doing is … Read more
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