what happens when instinct becomes extinct?
Jane Hardwicke Collings
Less than half of women have physiological births (birth without intervention)
The medical model breeds fear and distrust in our body's and our intuitive, innate ability to birth
We have become cogs in a machine that devalues birth and tries to package it into a neat, convenient process
The truth is that birth is raw, untameable, messy, magnificent and unpredictable
It's a rite of passage that changes us in every way possible
It's an experience that shapes how we live the rest of our lives (for both mother and baby)
I have spent over 20 years tending births outside of the medical system, learning directly from the women in my community and i continue to seek the guidance of wise elders today. I truly believe that this traditional way of sharing knowledge and experience is what's so severely lacking in the care of Mothers and babies in our culture right now.
In my work as a Mentor i am honoured to hold and guide women as they walk this sacred path of remembrance.
My continued work with Mothers lights me up each and every day - i see you, because i am you,
Clare
xx
my birth tending journey...
I'm mum to two teen girls Lola & Evie, wife to Steve, caretaker of a menagerie of animals, dedicated doula & all round nurturer, unschooling our family in the Worcestershire countryside.
I'm Romany Gypsy and grew up witnessing birth, postpartum and motherhood within authentic community. However, after a turbulent journey into motherhood myself, having endometriosis , PCOS, unexplained infertility and suffering three devastating pregnancy losses along the way i lost all faith in my body's ability and started the self destructive journey of looking to 'professionals' to guide and reassure me.
This disconnection seeped into the births of my daughters - i froze and felt helpless and vulnerable. I had no trust in myself and went onto spend years in the grip of postnatal anxiety, PTSD and postnatal depression.
I made the decision to 'train' to support other mothers - i didn't want anyone else to experience what i was going through. Yet again i found myself turning to 'experts' and gurus to tell me what to do (some of whom had never actually even attended a birth!) The pattern was repeating.
Over the past 5 years i have worked with mentors who have reminded me that i hold all the wisdom and experience that i could possibly need, having attended and guided women through pregnancy, birth and the postpartum period for over 20 years. This has been transformational and as well as being a hands on birthkeeper working exclusively with women choosing to birth outside of the system, I have gone on to write over 40 courses - many of which have been used by NHS Trusts all over the UK.
I have provided GRT Cultural Humility training for leading birth and baby course providers, universities and charities.
I have supported hundreds of women from all over the world to build successful, thriving perinatal wellbeing businesses that have enabled them to not only find that vital work life balance, but to also make a huge difference to the lives of other mothers and their babies.
My work now focuses on providing other women with the mentorship that changed everything for me and in guiding and holding mothers from all over the world who feel called to birth on their own terms.
I truly believe that our experiences during pregnancy, labour and birth shape our postpartum and beyond - in fact they change us forever and i know in my heart that working closely alongside other women is the only authentic way to develop the skills that women so desperately need during this time.
My Professional Qualifications include: BA (hons) Integrated Working with Children & Families Early Years Teacher Training (QTS) 10 Moons Radical Birthkeeper Path - Joy Horner (Independent Midwife) & Jady Mountjoy (red school Mentor) Deepen Your Roots - 13 Moons Deep Ecology Study Mother Nature Circle Facilitator - Applewood Permaculture Centre Permaculture Design Certificate - ongoing study Doula Training - Birth & Postnatal Antenatal Teacher Training Breastfeeding Peer Support Biomechanics of Birth - Molly O' Brien Ayurvedic Nutritionist Certification Baby Massage & Yoga Teacher Closing the Bones Training 200 & 500 hr Yoga Alliance Registered Yoga Teacher Fertility, Pregnancy, Postnatal & Menopause Yoga Teacher Training PGCert Coaching and Teaching in Higher Education Massage Therapy - Fertility, Pregnancy & Postnatal Medicinal Herbalism & Astro Herbalism - School of Evolutionary Herbalism Babywearing Certification - Dr. Rosie Knowles 13 Moons Matriarchal Medicine School (2023 & 2024) Laura Hart Swann 13 Moons 1:1 Mentorship - Laura Hart Swann - ongoing Worcestershire MNVP Volunteer (Maternity & Neonatal Voices Partnership)
MotherBirth
