Boldly going…
The trouble with consent
Consent is on everyone’s lips. From media discussion about ‘enthusiastic consent’ to medical requirements for ‘informed consent’, it seems pretty clear there is a problem with ‘consent’. If consent was what mattered, we would not need to prefix it with a qualifier.  The language we use matters, science communicators spend their time trying to determine the…
Keep readingSeven Ways to Facilitate Informed Decision Making
 There once was a woman in a Labour Ward, Who was not feeling assured Her dignity was left Upon clinical request Outside the room to be ignored. –it doesn’t have to be like this! Seven Ways for care providers to Facilitate Informed Decision Making 1. Encourage Questions Allow time for questions to be asked…
Keep readingwant a positive birth? say please
In birth, you must make informed decisions, you must provide consent But if you insist to plan it and communicate intent, then we really must insist, that the only way we’ll listen is if you make your wording sweet enough to glisten.  So many websites on ‘how to birth plan’ tell you your plan…
Keep readingThe Language of Birth Plans
The language you use in your birth plan is as important as the decisions that back it up.
Many a well researched birth plan has been discarded because the language was passive.
Have you got an Active Birth Plan?
Keep readingIn your grandmother’s womb: The egg that made you.
Within my mum, within her mum, a tiny egg was developed*, Within my matriarchal line this egg was enveloped, The time came, this awesome egg received it’s spark And Two new humans formed, ready to make their mark. Two within, and within them seven who came to be And within five of them were eggs…
Keep readinglatest posts
What would you do?
A health care directive contains many decisions, for various what ifs.  Including explicit instructions regarding what will happen with your remains, beyond burial vs cremation, is very helpful.  There are ethical considerations, and if you do not express your decisions, others will be left to decide.
Stop and Smell the Baby
How soon after having a baby can you expect ‘return to normal’?
The truth is you will never return to normal, instead you will redefine normal.
From the moment you discover you are pregnant, you begin to change. Not just physically, but your entire being is altered. This is called Matrescence.
Five Tips to KISS your Birth!
Keep it Simple Sisters!
For many women pregnancy and birth are a processed medical event, carefully managed and owned by obstetricians. It does not have to be like that. You can Own Your Birth.
Here are 5 steps that help you prepare for YOUR birth
unconscious bias
In all communication there is bias. Theirs. Yours. Others. Our bias reflects our values, experiences, fears, education, religion, age, upbringing, politics… These biases will influence how we treat…or mistreat…another. This can make collaboration difficult, especially when a power imbalance creates a bias that suggests one party has authority over another. Unchecked, it can cloud our …
Not Wishes or Preferences
What is the difference between birth preferences and informed decisions?
The Birth of a Mother
Visit birthmap.life to discover Birth Cartography. You can get the monthly newsletter and join the free Member Area. There is a wealth of resources and support opportunities. Catherine offers Birth Cartography workshops and private sessions. Her book ‘The Birth Map: boldly going where no birth plan has gone before’ is currently being evaluated for The Birth …
Finding Compassion
Compassion compels us into action when we see suffering or need. Compassion requires us to see another’s humanity. In a society experiencing a remarkable rise of narcissism, the quest for identity and competitive minoritism, have seen compassion tossed aside. The ability to acknowledge humanity in others is lost. Perhaps so much so, that what it …
Becoming Mother
We have a huge problem in our society. And it is not that women need time and support to ‘recover’ from birth. The problem is we have developed a culture of segregation: where babies and mothers are not immersed in the ‘every day’ where children are sent off to school and adults to work where …
mother meets limerick
May 12 Limerick Day (UK): The Birth plan has a bad rep in some circles. Threatening professional autonomy, setting women up for disappointment…how can you plan for the unpredictable! The original intention of the birth plan was to improve communication and give women a voice. We’ve had 40 years to get it right. It seems …
About this blog
This blog is a collection of articles written or compiled by Catherine Bell. Generally, these posts cover topics relate to pregnant, birth and mothering. Maternal feminism is a common theme, as is informed decision making. As with any blog, these are my thoughts, my ideas, my poems…you are encouraged to draw your own conclusions. There is No One Way.
Connect with Catherine:
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