Seasons of a Birthkeeper
When birth work was first ignited in me, I was a young woman entering my own childbearing years. I was learning about pregnancy, birth and motherhood not only through books and teachers, but through my own body and through my own babies. My children and my work grew alongside one another. The seasons of my family and the seasons of my work became deeply intertwined. Now, almost three decades later, something feels different. My children are grown. They are young adults making their own way in the world. They are now around the age that I was when I was becoming a mother myself. As I look at them, I realise that I, too, am standing at the threshold of a new season. Not yet a grandmother, perhaps, but certainly no longer the young mother who first stepped onto this path. This week I also quietly moved into inactive status with my professional midwifery certification. It was not a decision made in a moment. Like many decisions that matter, it unfolded over time. There were practical realities, changing requirements, and many months of trying to find a way forward. But alongside all of that was a growing sense of acceptance. Sometimes life gently asks us to pause, not because we are giving up, but because we are being invited to listen more deeply. Although there is definitely an aspect of experiencing the loss of something I worked hard to achieve, it also feels like an opportunity to stop for a while and ask a different question. Who am I, in relation to birth, in this season of my life? For many years I have cared deeply about building bridges between different worlds. I have been grateful to study and work within traditional, academic and medical spaces. Each has taught me something valuable. Each has helped me understand birth from a different perspective. I have appreciated being able to move between those worlds, and I remain deeply thankful for the opportunities my professional certification has opened for me. But over recent years I have also found myself reflecting on something else. Can the deepest work of birth ever be fully held by institutions? Not because institutions are without value. They have an important role. Good legislation can protect women. Education can deepen understanding. Professional standards can help create safer care. Yet the healing of birth itself begins elsewhere. It begins in homes. In quiet rooms. In relationships. With women and with babies. In communities willing to sit beside one another with humility, love and presence. I don’t know whether I will return to active certification. I don’t know what new forms this work may take. Birth has taught me many things over the years. One of the greatest has been that life cannot always be forced into our timelines. There are moments for action. And there are moments for waiting. There are seasons for pushing. And there are seasons for allowing something new to gather itself before it enters the world. Perhaps this is one of those seasons. And for now, that feels like that is...
Read MoreA Gentle Orientation to Birth First Aid
When people first encounter the Birth First Aid for Mother and Baby course, questions often arise, not just practical ones, but deeper, quieter ones too. This page is here to offer a gentle orientation and to answer some of the questions we’re most often asked. Birth First Aid is not about fear or anticipation of emergencies. It’s about preparedness, calm thinking, and being resourced enough to respond with care when something unexpected arises. Do I need to be a trained midwife to take this course?No. This course is open to anyone attending births at home: including doulas, traditional birth attendants, student midwives, birthkeepers, and parents. It’s designed to meet people where they are, whether they are just beginning or deepening an existing practice. Is this course only for home birth attendants?The course is designed with home and low-resource settings in mind. That said, many hospital-based birthworkers, especially those working in rural or under-resourced environments, find the principles and skills supportive and grounding. What if I can’t attend the live sessions?All live sessions are recorded and shared within 24 hours. Many participants join live when they can, and catch up later when needed. You’ll have access to the material for several months. How long do I have access to the course?You’ll have access to the course content from 24 February 2026 until 4 August 2026, allowing time to revisit material and integrate what you’ve learned. Are payment plans or scholarships available?Yes. We offer flexible payment plans in USD, EUR, GBP, and ZAR. Scholarships, sliding scale options, and returning student discounts are also available, because accessibility is a core value of this work. Is this a clinical or protocol-based course?No. While practical skills are taught clearly and carefully, the course is rooted in traditional midwifery, physiological birth, and respectful care. It’s about thinking clearly, not following rigid scripts. If you’re feeling a quiet pull towards this course, trust that curiosity. You don’t need to be certain or “ready” in any particular way — just open to learning, reflecting, and preparing with care. You can read more about the course and enrol here And if questions remain, you’re always welcome to reach out directly to...
Read MoreClosing the Bones of 2025, Opening the Spiral of 2026
As this year draws to a close, I find myself reflecting on what it has meant to move through 2025 together, not just in content, but in relationship, presence, and shared inquiry. Our final Study Spiral of the year, Closing of the Bones & Honouring Lineage, arrived as a fitting threshold. It felt like a conscious closing of the bones of the year itself, an invitation to gather what has been lived, learned, and felt across the Study Spirals, and to allow it to settle. Closing of the Bones is an ancient rite found in many cultures, most widely recognised through Latin American traditions and the use of the rebozo. In our final gathering, we explored it not as a technique, but as a rite of passage, one that supports integration after birth, loss, illness, initiation, or profound life change. A central thread of the session, and of the year as a whole, has been lineage and integrity. We reflected on the responsibility that comes with receiving and passing on ancestral knowledge, and on how ancient wisdom can live in modern contexts without losing its soul. As the spiral widened, we spoke about rites of passage across the lifespan and the deep human need to be witnessed and held in community. What emerged clearly was this understanding: these thresholds are not meant to be walked alone. As I close the bones of 2025, I feel deep gratitude for this community, for the way it continues to flourish, nourish, and grow with each spiral. Thank you for the depth, care, and presence you bring. At the same time, I am quietly delighted to be opening the next turning of the spiral. The 2026 True Midwifery Study Spirals The 2026 Study Spirals will unfold as thirteen monthly gatherings held across the year. Together we will explore newborn care, reproductive health, birth justice and legal terrain, grief and creativity, elderhood, herbs, freebirth, and the reclamation of midwifery, always held within an intentional, respectful, global container. You can view the full 2026 schedule and details here:https://true-midwifery1.teachable.com/p/true-midwifery-study-spirals-2026 As we move toward the solstice and the festive season, True Midwifery will be entering a summer pause from 19 December to 19 January, honouring the seasonal rhythm here in South Africa. I am trusting this time of rest and integration, and looking forward to returning in the new year, ready to gather...
Read MoreReturning to the Source: Sitting Again with my Mentors in Birth
Fifteen years ago, as a student midwife and doula, I was beginning to question my place in the world of birth work. Though the language of “trusting birth” was everywhere, the practices I witnessed told a different story. Coaching, managing, intervening—whether subtle or overt—seemed baked into even the most “natural” birth environments. I felt uneasy, isolated, and uncertain. At that time, I found myself drawn again to the writings of Michel Odent. His words gave shape to something I instinctively felt but couldn’t yet articulate: that birth, as an involuntary process, cannot be helped—only protected. I searched to see if he had written anything about doulas and discovered something unexpected: a doula course in London, taught by Michel and a woman named Liliana Lammers. It was happening just days before I was due to attend a birth in Edinburgh. I changed my travel plans. Those three days became a turning point in my life. I remember the feeling of finding my teachers—my mentors. Sitting in circle with Michel and Liliana, I experienced a kind of cellular realignment. Their presence, their stories, their science, their reverence for undisturbed birth helped clarify and confirm everything I had been feeling. It was like being handed a compass. That experience birthed something else too: my book, The Basic Needs of a Woman in Labour, was a direct attempt to capture and share the essence of what I received from them. Over the years, I’ve had the honour of reconnecting with them—teaching alongside Michel, attending their online courses, and most recently, sitting with them in person again in Amsterdam. But now, with Michel having just turned 95, and his public teaching naturally becoming more rare, each opportunity to sit at their feet feels even more precious. This weekend, I’ll be supporting the upcoming Paramana Doula Course, and I’m filled with both reverence and joy. It’s open to anyone who wishes to protect and honour the physiological process of birth—from doulas to midwives to anyone called to this path. Whether you are just beginning or coming full circle, I warmly invite you to join us. Paramana Doula CourseWith Michel Odent and Liliana Lammers12–14 July 2025 | OnlineRecordings available for all participants True Midwifery community members receive a 10% discount.To book: moonfeather7@gmail.com | +44 7443 656855 And as a gift to honour this return, my book The Basic Needs of a Woman in Labour will be available as a free Kindle download during the course dates (12–14 July):https://mybook.to/basicneedsENG With love and trust in the birth...
Read MoreEmbracing Traditional Midwifery
Here is the video from my talk at the 2015 Cape Town Midwifery and Birth Conference where I shared my journey and path to midwifery.
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