Guided Birth

09/13/2025

09/03/2025

“It is not a sleep crutch (what even is a sleep crutch...a phrase sleep trainers made up?).

It is not a rod for your own back.

It is not a source of guilt or shame.

Human infants are the most immature social mammal when they’re born. They’re attachment instincts, their biology and physiology are powerful drivers to make them try to keep us close. Why?

Because they believe their survival depends on it because they don’t know they were born in 2021 when we have central heating and locking doors and formula, as opposed to the Pleistocene.

But even if they knew all those things, they would still choose YOU. Because YOU are the only way they can thrive. YOU cannot be replaced by modern-day mother replacements (which abound on baby lists!). They’re in love with you. You are quite literally their safe place. Their secure base. You are their world.

And something tells me you wouldn’t choose separation either. Because you’re a social mammal too. Because you’ve experienced the magic of nursing your baby to sleep. Of shared moments at 3am when you feel like you’re the only two awake in the world. You’re the only two that know one another in this way.

And you’re not just “getting your baby to sleep” - sure sleep is a byproduct but what you’re really doing is co-regulating your infant as she finds sleeps, you’re showing her that the world is a safe place, you’re showing her she can trust you, you’re showing her that she matters, that her needs matter, you’re wiring her brain for secure attachment.

So, mama...stop googling “is it ok to breastfeed my baby to sleep?” and instead celebrate it. Celebrate yourself and the choice you’re making. The gift you’re giving your baby and your relationship. She may forget the details but she will never forget how you made her feel.”

📷: ❤️
❤️

09/02/2025

Such beautiful and powerful words!
🧡💛

08/08/2025

I love the perspective of “we’ve been training for this our whole lives”!!!😂😂😂

04/27/2025

❤️

Sleeping near your baby is natural, normal and instinctive. ⁠
⁠
It's only in certain countries that sleeping near your baby is seen as a bad habit to be broken, or a short term solution to be removed as early as possible. ⁠
⁠
But in those countries, mamas often feel isolated, guilty, filled with self doubt. Because society has told them it's wrong. ⁠
⁠
But the reality is that it's not wrong. It's very, very right. ⁠
You do NOT need to move your baby out of your room until you feel ready to do so. ⁠
⁠
You are NOT ⁠making a rod for your back or spoiling your baby. ⁠
⁠
You are doing what billions of women all over the world have done, since the dawn of time. And by raising awareness of this, we can breakdown the patriarchal narrative that has stripped women of their intuition for so many generations. We can re-empower mothers to do that we do best. ⁠
⁠
(Next to or near your baby could mean bedsharing or it could mean co-sleeping. Safety note - please check out your local safety guidelines before bedsharing. The have excellent guidelines, and I discuss sleep safety in detail on my Happy Healthy Sleep online course, too.)⁠
⁠
Pic credit

The Gentle Mama

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03/08/2025

I have successfully completed midwifery school and received my certificate!!❤️
I decided International Women’s day was the perfect opportunity to announce my accomplishment!🎉

02/25/2025

Great reminder!

Babies ALWAYS cry for a reason.
Babies can NOT self soothe.
Babies can NOT be spoiled.

Now that we've addressed those three points, lets dig a bit deeper...

I think we're falling into a detrimental trend of putting adult expectations onto children at younger and younger ages, in which we're even seeing these expectations placed in early infancy.

- We expect babies to self soothe.
- We expect toddlers to be speaking full, intelligible, sentences and be potty trained.
- We except preschoolers to sit for prolonged periods of time, know how to read and write, etc.

But I wonder where this rush is coming from?

1. Is it that parent's are feeling a sense of pressure?

If you're feeling pressure, please remind yourself that parenthood and childhood is not a competition of who does what first, well, better, best, etc.

2. Are we comparing and thinking that one child's development is representative of how all children should and could be?

Please know that every person is different, and these differences are present from the start. How you baby sleeps, eats, communicates, plays, their interests/approaches to learning etc. are all unique, and we must respect who they are and how they're growing. Just because one baby has begun walking at 10 months, doesn't mean all babies could, should, or will hit that. This does not mean the 10 month old baby who has become walking is a gifted person, and it doesn't mean your 10 month old baby who isn't walking is "beyond." They're simply different. Of course we have developmental milestones that we can use as a guide to ensure possible developmental delays are addressed, but let's not get wrapped up in unhealthy and unnecessary expectations. Back to point 1, it's not a competition.

3. Do we think pushing development translates to advanced development?

Pushing children to do things before they're developmentally able to do so can have both immediate and longterm negative psychological and physiological effects. This is shown when we ignore our babies cries, force potty training, force academics, and so on and so forth. Please note, just because a baby's cry has been ignored (resulting in an overall reduced amount of crying), it does not suggest they are "soothed." Similar concept, we can say we "teach our children x,y, and z," but teaching does not suggest learning.

We must remember that certain stages of development happen at just that; stages! and should never be rushed or forced prematurely.

We must also remember that our expectations, experiences, perspectives, decision-making skills, abilities, etc. are drastically different from that of a baby or child. Something you think they should do or know because you're able to, is setting everyone up for failure.

The attached image is really wonderful chart created by Sarah Ockwell-Smith (I just revised it a bit, making the text a bit bigger). Read more about her ideas regarding Self-settling here: https://sarahockwell-smith.com/2014/06/30/self-settling-what-really-happens-when-you-teach-a-baby-to-self-soothe-to-sleep/

At the core of healthy development is a baby/child's sense of security and love. It's an absolute necessity we must honor and provide from day one. So let's close with where we began...

Babies ALWAYS cry for a reason.
Babies can NOT self soothe.
Babies can NOT be spoiled.

02/12/2025

Such a great reminder that we can have duality in our feelings. ❤️

"No one ever warned her -

About how much she'd miss.
While doing the work that she loves.

And no one ever told her,

How hard it might feel,
Putting her dreams on pause,
To nurture her world in her lap.

And no one ever mentioned,

That loving her baby,
Might not always equal
'Loving every moment' of motherhood.

And no one ever admitted,

That mothers cry too.
When their world feels so new,
Just like their baby's does.

And because nobody told her,

She thought she couldn't say it.

So she instead spoke her secrets,
In every moment she was alone, but not.

In the quiet hours, she whispered,

Before this, I was someone else, and I miss her so very much.

In the lonely moments, she spoke,

I don't want to be anywhere else, but it's hard to not have a minute alone.

In the moments when everything else was on pause, she shared

Someday I'll get back to those other things I love; I can't wait to show you who else I am.

And in the moments when she was missing, she softly assured,

I love you so much, and though this is so very hard, I'll never regret a minute with you.

And as she told her story to her baby -

The one she thought she couldn't say,
She began to understand the truth about motherhood. The one that no one had told her:

That it is a complicated but lovely journey, full of moments of missing, but lifetimes of love. Where there is boundless happiness, but also some sorrow. And that it is always, always okay to feel both.

And she realized that there was nothing wrong with her story - Because although she hadn't heard one like it before, it was honest. And it was real.
And she was free, and she was happy.

And her baby was happy, too.
To be loved by a mother who had so much to share. But most of all, love.💜"
| Words Fourth Trimester Collective Image Taynee |

Fourth Trimester Collective

🌸🌸🌸 OUR BEAUTIFUL ISSUE 57 IS ON SALE NOW 🌸🌸🌸

It's packed full of inspiration, tips, advice and real-life experiences to guide you on your journey through pregnancy, birth and motherhood - whether you are expecting a new arrival this year, are adjusting to life with a new baby, or are deep in the trenches of parenthood.

Get your copy now - available locally and internationally online.
Find your local stockists here: https://linktr.ee/TheNaturalParentMagazine
https://thenaturalparentmagazine.com/product-category/shop/magazine/

You can pick up a copy from your local Countdown or selected stockists in NZ, from your local newsagent in Australia, from WH Smith High Street stores, selected Waitrose & Partners and independent bookstores across the UK, or online from anywhere in the world. 🌸🌸🌸

12/24/2024

Sharing my favorite birth story of all, because it never gets old. 🫶 ✨FLESH✨ Jesus’ birth was no Insta-perfect manger scene with glowing orbs.😇 The most iconic birth in history took place in lowly, un-sanitized manger among farm animals.

Oh, what a birth story! The King of the universe came to Earth and put on FLESH to live among us.👑

“The Word became FLESH and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” -John 1:14

I wonder, did Mary experience pain? Did she get scared and ask how long it would take? I don’t know, but, like most home births, it was probably messy, bloody, vulnerable and intense.🩸

Our modern society doesn’t like dirty and unfiltered. In fact, we CENSOR birth and death. It’s too uncomfortable for our virgin eyes, perhaps.🙈

We like to clean up birth, numb the intense feelings with drugs and make it pretty, shiny and sterile. 🧼 Even in postpartum, we tell mom to “cover up.”🤱

We censor manger scenes and we censor modern motherhood.

Yet, birth is anything but clean and dignified!
✨Birth is the breaking of waters,
✨The gushing of fluids,
✨Moans too deep for words,
✨Expulsion of a placenta,
✨Blood running down the leg,
✨Skin-to-bloody-vernix-coated-skin.

🐂Among stalls intended for animals, the King of kings was born to a 16 year old girl.

His flesh felt cold air, his belly felt hunger and his body felt pain. He was comforted by the gentle touch of his mother and fed by the nourishment of her breastmilk.

In life and death, He demonstrated what pure love looks like, vulnerable and unashamed.❤️

Jesus left this world the same way he came into it: naked and exposed.

Flesh makes us human. It is not a curse. It is the greatest privilege of our existence and one the angels look down upon with envy.

🎄This Christmas, may you experience the outrageous, unconditional love of Jesus.

🤰May you embrace motherhood, like Mary did, it all its undignified, sacrificial, messy glory.

“We love because he first loved us.” - John 4:19
Words: “Flesh” by (2020)
Image: The Creation of Man (2017) by

08/20/2024

This test may be very beneficial for a few babies, however most families are not truly informed on this test or what happens after the test, and that is the real problem.

08/14/2024

Love how she so simply explains the difference between table salt and sea salt!
*This is why your midwife keeps telling you to add sea salt or trace minerals to your water. 😄😎