I am frequently told stories by clients, or witness conversations between pregnant people and their care providers that perplex me. On one hand, care providers often seem to feel they have a duty to ensure my clients comply with the care pathway they deem to be 'appropriate'. On the other, my Continue Reading
Lou’s Tongue Tie Journey
This latest Tongue Tie story is from Lou Hirst, mother of two and doula. Her story shows that tongue tied babies can still put on lots of weight and their ties can therefore be easily missed. It is not until someone skilled enough to be able to assess the whole breastfeeding relationship spends time Continue Reading
In the Eye of The Storm: Ocular Melanoma, Maternity Care and Me
In May this year I was diagnosed with a very rare cancer called ocular melanoma. This means I have a tumour in my eye, behind my retina. This kind of cancer can spread to the liver, so as well as radiotherapy treatment for the tumour, which involves a hospital stay to have a radioactive plaque Continue Reading
Natural homebirth – not just for hippies! Guest post by Paula Cleary
Today's post is a guest piece by my lovely friend Paula Cleary, doula and childbirth educator in Norfolk. This article went rather viral a while ago (funny how that is such a loaded word these days) but has been homeless for a while. Paula would like it to live here for a bit and for that, I am very Continue Reading
Complementary Therapies in Maternity Care: are we blind to the bias?
I was scared. VERY. I am dreadfully phobic of enclosed spaces and didn't know how I was going to cope with an MRI. For a while I considered putting it off but I realised that being a doula has given me a number of useful tools. First, I reached out to a friend who was able to use her Continue Reading
A Handful of Gemstones: Doulas Celebrate Wonderful Midwives and Doctors
I recently wrote a post about some of the things that are said to parents to cajole, manipulate or threaten them into accepting interventions. This is a widespread problem but the last thing I would want is for my readers to think that I have an unrelentingly negative view and experience of the way Continue Reading
Inducements For Induction: is it really a choice when push comes to shove?
INDUCE: verb gerund or present participle: inducing succeed in persuading or leading (someone) to do something. "the pickets induced many workers to stay away" Of course, the definition we usually use in maternity care is: bring about or give rise to. "none of Continue Reading
When We Let the Ad Men Decide the Health Of Our Children…
Cow & Gate, one of the UK's biggest baby and toddler brands, has shifted its entire consumer PR work to Frank PR and launched a major campaign promoting toddler nutrition. So said the press release back in 2016 on PR Week And so the PR machine cranked into action; millions spent on Continue Reading
Breastfeeding Support? What’s THAT?
What does support mean? When it comes to breastfeeding your baby, the dictionary definition may, or may not be too helpful: Support /səˈpɔːt/ verb 1. bear all or part of the weight of; hold up. 2. give assistance to, especially financially. noun 1. a thing that bears the weight of Continue Reading
Women’s Voices
Where to, Love? said the taxi driver. Up with the lark, ain't yer? Station, please. Tickets please, next stop, Kings Cross. 30p for a wee, then mind the gap, tube to Baker Street. Past tourists gathering outside 221b Leafy streets and round the bend, the Royal College. The rarefied air and Continue Reading