My story BACKUP
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. And these depictions 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. I realised that theres’s a real need for advocacy of birthing people, to prevent birth trauma and help people trust their bodies again.
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.
Stories of birth being like an extension of making love, with a sensuality, orgasmic energy to it. With partners trusting in the birthing person’s body and unwaveringly supporting them, through all of the goop and the intensity.
And beyond that, transcendence. With birth being a portal to another realm, where they go to meet their baby and bring them Earth-side.
It sounded life changing. Cosmic. Earth shattering. Wonderful.
Nothing like the movies, with people lying on their backs in hospital gowns under bright lights with doctors yelling at them to push.
Fast forward six years, and here I am. I’ve absorbed myself in positive birthing stories, which personally transformed my outlook from fear to excited anticipation. I’ve learnt about what happens in our bodies during pregnancy and birth, to empower myself and others with evidence-based information. I’ve trained with Camalo Gaskin, who runs the incredible Guardian’s of Intimacy Doula Immersion program. And I’m so happy to be finally ready to support others on this incredible journey.
Beyond birth, I’m also a dancer, singer, and DJ which has informed so much of my connection to my body, breath, self expression and connection with others.
My values and approach to birth
Identity inclusive
As an intersectional feminist, queer and gender-diverse person, I am a natural protector of identities, especially minorities and queer families. For me, being respected for who you are is the bare minimum. I’m here to help you navigate the system, whoever you are and whatever your family setup is.
Trauma-informed care
How does birth trauma happen, and how can we avoid it? It’s a simple recipe: fear + a lack of agency to change the situation. Or things happening at a rate that doesn’t allow you to integrate the experience. In birth, this can look like emergency interventions without clear, calm, and caring communication with the birthing person. It’s not just about what happens, it’s how it happens. Atmosphere matters. You can have a loving, empowering, gentle caesarean. Or you can have a traumatic water birth at home.
The people with you during your birth really have a responsibility to holding the space and ensuring you have a sense of agency and safety, to avoid birth trauma. Unfortunately, the clinical system doesn’t always allow people working within it to hold this space appropriately, due to pressures such as time and resources. Having a doula accompany you through birth can help establish a compassionate and caring atmosphere, even in a clinical setting.
Guardian of intimacy
Uninterrupted, the unfolding of birth is a story that your body already knows how to tell. This is called physiological birth: a beautifully orchestrated flow of hormones, movement, breath, resulting in new life. When we interrupt with hospital lights and tools, we can halt this innate self expression. When we create the right environment of intimacy, physiological birth is more likely to unfold just as nature intended. I see my role as a guardian of this intimate environment. With thanks to my mentor Camalo Gaskin for this beautiful framing, from her Guardians of Intimacy Doula Immersion.
Birth as self-expression
Birth is the ultimate self expression. And in birth, you’re probably going to make some noise. Vocalisations help us move emotion and physical sensations through the body. Expressing emotions rather than suppressing them can help prevent trauma. And using your voice creates calming vibrations through the body, takes control of the breath, and releases tension that you might be feeling.
And you’re probably going to feel the urge to move. These instinctive movements can be your body literally moving your pelvis bones to help your baby through the narrower parts of this passageway. Without you knowing them in advance, your body is expressing the motions of birth.
We will get you comfortable with vocalisation, breathing and moving intuitively to allow your body and your baby to express themselves.
Birth as breath work
You might have heard of breathwork. And if you’re pregnant, you’ve probably heard of hypnobirthing. If that term sounds whacky to you, think of it as simply using your breath to manage the intensity of birth. And we practice those techniques in the weeks and months leading up to the birth to get us ready to use those breath tools when we need them.
I see ‘hypno’ element as the mindset training we do before the birth to come into believing in ourselves and our body’s ability to do this. Pain is a nervous system experience, that is very real, but exists in our minds. So that means we have the power to change how we experience pain. The brain receives the signals that the uterus is contracting, and we can interpret them as something dangerous that is happening to us, or alternatively as waves of intensity that we welcome in, as they are part of us.
The breath is incredibly powerful in this process. Our breath is the link between the conscious and the subconscious mind. Using our breath, we can influence how we feel. Short, shallow breathing can tell our body that we are in panic, and cause a cascade of stress hormones to be released. Through long, slow, calm breaths we can tell our body that everything’s ok, and generates a sense of safety and calm in the body. This can transform your birth experience.
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!