by Sophie Messager
(updated September 2021) Induction of labour is the bane of many birthworkers lives (and of many pregnant women’s too). In the area I live in, it is reaching epidemic proportions (about 35% of first time mothers) Deciding to consent to induction is a complex...
by Sophie Messager
Castor oil induction has bad press in the UK. Negative stories abound, claiming severe negative effects on mother and baby. For years, I too believed this to be true. I took it for granted that it was dangerous. A couple of years ago a doula told me that several of...
by Sophie Messager
I am writing this because I know that if you are pregnant right now, the lack of information combined with the unpredictability what maternity care might look like when you give birth might be making you anxious. I am seeing a lot of worried pregnant women and new...
by Sophie Messager
Online learning and support for pregnancy, birth and beyond-how does it work? As we navigate the unexpected and unstable changes happening in our world right now, a lot of peoples are moving from offering them face to face to online. Some of these things that may feel...
by Sophie Messager
(updated June 2021) I want to tell my story into drum healing because I hope that it may encourage others to explore this modality too. Before I moved from science into doulaing I had a friend called Peter Voshol who is a scientist and a shaman and made drums and did...
by Sophie Messager
Women sometimes get told that they cannot give birth at home with their first baby because they have an “untried pelvis”. What if we told men they couldn’t have sex at home the first time because they have an “untried penis” Just imagine... 