About me
Hi :) I’m Ceri, a queer non-binary doula living in Bristol, UK. I’m five years sober, and the proud co-parent of a kitten called Sappho.
Beyond birth, I love singing, dancing and DJing. I’m passionate about making spaces for people to connect to their bodies and regulate their nervous systems through dancing.
My story
I came to the birth world in 2019, when my body’s hormones were asking me to find out more about it. Everything I’d picked up in my twenties had a flavour of fear. Fear of pain, fear of damage to my body, fear of goop and blood and needles.
When deliberately seeking out birth stories, the easiest ones to find were the mainstream media, which always left me very uncomfortable. The way the birthing people were treated just seemed wrong. There was a lot of shouting, telling, and a lack of consent and agency.
This woke me up to the medicalisation of birth, and the institutional violence perpetuated in clinical settings. So I dug a little deeper. And I found stories of joy, and people trusting in their own bodies. Stories of people giving birth at home, by the fire, unassisted, riding their contractions like waves and catching their babies in their own arms.
And beyond that, transcendence. With birth being a portal to another realm, where they go to meet their baby and bring them Earth-side. Nothing like the movies, with people lying on their backs in hospital gowns under bright lights with doctors yelling at them to push.
It sounded life changing. Cosmic. Earth shattering. Wonderful. (No pressure, right?!).
The amount of hope and beauty I found, once I dug beneath the fear mongering, is ultimately what led me to training as a birth doula. I want to support birthing people and new families in this incredible transition. And I’m so happy to be finally ready to support others on this incredible journey.
Other places you’ll find me: dancing, waving queer flags, and, DJing.
My training
In 2023, I trained with Camalo Gaskin on her Centre for Doula Pathways Doula Immersion. Like most doula trainings, this is four days of immersion in all things birth, including the physiology and biomechanics of birth, the stages of labour, and how to support a birthing person, and so much more. I’m so grateful for her ongoing support and mentorship.
I’ve long been fascinated with the body, and once upon a time studied Biological Sciences degree at Cambridge (although this is absolutely not a substitute for medical training of any kind).
Get in touch
Curious? The first thing to do is start the conversation. I’m available for a free hour long coffee chat or phone call, with no strings attached. :)
I’ll be in touch within a day or two to arrange a time to speak.
You can email birthwithceri@gmail.com or use the form.
Speak soon!