Postnatal
Why I want to change the nature of postnatal support
Earlier this week I wrote a blog that’s been playing on my mind for many years. It’s called “why I wish I had hired a postnatal doula” In this blog I explain how challenging I found new motherhood, how lonely and upset I felt through those early weeks and how I longed for some support…
Read MoreWhy I wish I had hired a postnatal doula
When I was pregnant with my son I hired a birth doula, the wonderful Maddie McMahon. This was the best thing I have ever done and it has had positive effects beyond anything I could have expected, because it didn’t just impact how positive my pregnancy and birth were, it led to a complete transformation…
Read MoreThe lost art of postnatal wrapping
Years ago, before I started working as a doula, I taught antenatal classes. When I was asked about using a girdle after the postpartum I told women I thought this wasn’t a good idea. You see my grandmother wore a corset most of her life. Due to this she had her stomach or back muscles…
Read MorePostnatal Recovery Massage, a new kind of postnatal massage inspired by closing the bones.
I’ve been offering and teaching a postnatal massage called closing the bones since 2014 with Maddie McMahon. Maddie and I never intended to teach this technique, we just wanted to share it with our community as we had been urged to do. But then women started to ask us to show them. So we put…
Read MoreClosing bones, the completion of one cycle and growth of a new cycle
Sophie Fletcher attended the closing the bones training in 2017. This is her account what the ritual did for her. Closing bones, the completion of one cycle and growth of a new cycle
Read MoreMotherhood is f**king hard and you’re not meant to be doing this on your own
Those of you who follow my blog know by now that most of my posts are inspired by something that happens to me in my work as a doula. Today is one of those days. I’ve just had a conversation with a new mother of two, who has a baby and a preschooler, and who…
Read MoreHow closing the bones can help after baby loss
This week is baby loss awareness week. I started writing this post thinking I was going to write a post specifically about miscarriage. But when I started writing it, I felt that it needed to be about baby loss in general. Because you cannot measure grief by what it looks on paper. Your grief can…
Read MoreWhy baby books and “experts” can really harm you after you have a baby
I just read a great piece of research by professor Amy Brown, that shows that reading baby books that recommend strict routines for babies is associated with poor mental health. “New research from academics in the Department of Public Health, Policy and Social Sciences has explored the link between parenting books that encourage parents to try and put…
Read MoreWhat new mothers really need
I’ve just finished looking after a new mum as a postnatal doula. As I supported the new mother, once again I was reminded of the fact that our culture’s focus, when it comes to postnatal recovery, is completely wrong. Our culture got it wrong because it focuses entirely on the new baby, when it should…
Read MoreClosing the bones, a journey in-between worlds-by Virginia Valli
Please visit our sister website to read Midwife Virginia Valli’s account of closing the bones Closing the bones, a journey in-between worlds-by Virginia Valli
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