The Year was 1975.It was International Women’s Year. Colour TV came to Australia and The Netherlands won Eurovision with ‘Ding-a-dong’.It was the year Frederick Leboyer published Birth without Violence. In the led up to 1975, women fought to be heard. In the 45 years since, the fight continues.Whilst gains have been made, some very fundamental needs have been neglected. And not for lack of voices.By 1975, the way we were born had changed dramatically. Fr […]
Birth, for the modern human, is not without difficulty. Does a positive birth come down to luck,or is it a matter of Good Management? or could it be something else? We are high-level thinkers and social beings…this impacts our ability to birth. Some women experience birth without the need for assistance. And some women are …
There is an unspoken reality lurking in the undertones of maternity care.It is sinister and unconscious, a toxic unawareness that seeps into all communications and puts the weight of expectation onto The Woman.I will call this The Game of Birth. The Elephant in the Womb. The unspoken rules of the maternity system. It is a game about power, about control. A game of Dark and Light. The aim of the game is to keep it light. The rules are simple, but never implicit.&nbs […]
We hear a lot about evidence-based care, but just as with ‘shared-decision making’, it is often misunderstood. Evidence-based care is comprised of 4 components: The best available research evidence (ie population level understanding, which requires multiple sources) The level of skills, training and experience of the care provider The values and circumstances of the decision …
You have probably heard of ‘The Cascade of Intervention’. It is the idea that once an intervention occurs, the rest shall follow. This is considered a ‘Slippery Slope’. It is, however, more nuanced than a cascade and there is more than one slope. If we think of physiological birth as a flowing river, there are …
There once was a self-declared expert and leader Who took on the role of information feeder He feed us the news As we sat in our pews Believing he was the bullshit weeder. Not the best limerick, granted…but it expresses my feelings right now. That my feelings are in limerick form highlight the ridiculousness of …
seen. not heard. obedient. unquestioning. confined. bound. safe? seen. not heard. controlled. authorised. approved. convinced. brainwashed? seen. not heard. afraid. unsure. reliant. compliant. seen. herd. seen. heard. respected encouraged supported capable compassionate? seen. heard. innovative creative supportive confident critical. seen. heard. brave certain sane humane seen not herd.
Recently a well known, loved and respected, author tweeted And the response was one that rocketed humanity into a new heights of wtf. how did we get here…. There once was a time when things were what they were. It is what is. Accept it. Move on. Men are the Bosses. Well. White ones. And …
It all seems from my bubble, That the world is in a muddle. I recently joined twitter, so I could dance among the birds Sharing important thoughts, through links and limited words, I know I’m in a bubble, which is vulnerable and strong There are many looking in, who think my thinks are wrong, Looking …
