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Being Human: Conflict and Division or Palliative Measures?

7th October 2025 By doulamaddie Leave a Comment

Differences

There are only two things certain in life, they say, death and taxes. Of course, that's wrong - all of us walking around on this earth were once born. That's a certainty too. I have spent the last two decades learning about the importance of a good birth. And now I am learning why a good death Continue Reading

Birth in 2073: Persephone Meets Haidies

7th February 2023 By doulamaddie 2 Comments

Persephone

  This extract has a fair dues warning. If you feel it might be too difficult to read about birth trauma, lack of consent and assault, even in fictionised form, don't read on. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Walter sits in the Continue Reading

Umbrella of the Love Gods: The Clitoris, Female Sexuality and Birth

25th November 2022 By doulamaddie Leave a Comment

Clitoris anatomy 2

Button, Devils' Doorknob, Bald Man in a Boat...the English words for the female clitoris are far and few between and not particularly positive or enlightening. As a woman in her 50s, born and bred in England, I have a suspicion that my lack of vocabulary to describe this part of my body is a symptom Continue Reading

Shame and Blame in the Birth Game: Part 2

13th July 2022 By doulamaddie 1 Comment

Lonely woman

'I have failed.' I hear it almost every day. It's women who whisper this. Men don't. Men say, 'I was robbed', 'It wasn't fair', 'There wasn't enough time', 'Ah well, that's just the way it is.' Our bodies are branded. Labelled and judged: “Failure to progress” "Incompetent" "Lack of Continue Reading

All That Matters is a Healthy Baby

11th April 2022 By doulamaddie Leave a Comment

Sad mother

It matters. Of course it matters, more than anything else. When you give birth, the most important thing is that you and your child come out the other side, alive. Alive is GOOD. It's the BEST, for most of us, most of the time. But is that ALL that matters? Really? Does it matter that you Continue Reading

Are You Sure She Wasn’t Asking For It? Shame and Blame in the Birth Game: Part 1

19th May 2021 By doulamaddie 2 Comments

Intelligenttea5

The story of the female holiday maker in Cyprus who was raped and then not believed has brought back some strong memories and emotions for me. It's more than 25 years ago now, half a lifetime. And yet, the fear and fury can still be brought to the surface so easily. This poor woman has been Continue Reading

Modern Birth: The End of Pregnancy As We Know It?

19th May 2021 By doulamaddie Leave a Comment

The great feminist Gloria Steinem once said, Democracy begins with owning our bodies. By that measure, women have rarely lived in a democracy When I think about birth, and more specifically, the politics of  the modern, mechanised birth factories, that quote often comes to mind. Recently, I've Continue Reading

Being Loved in Abobo: What Africa has to Teach us About Supporting Mothers

4th February 2020 By doulamaddie 1 Comment

Becky abobo 3

I am honoured to host this article by my friend and colleague Becky Young. Becky is a doula and breastfeeding counsellor who recently travelled to the Ivory Coast. Read on for her reflections on parenting in this wonderful country and how it throws our way of life in Europe into stark relief.  Continue Reading

Complementary Therapies in Maternity Care: are we blind to the bias?

12th November 2019 By doulamaddie 4 Comments

Yoga

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

Pat & Archy of The Patriarchy

18th May 2019 By doulamaddie Leave a Comment

Chloe s 1321769 unsplash

Oh Pat&Archy, you have the lion's share. You're playing footsie with the FTSE, Stuffed shirts on all the boards you Chair. Oh Pat, why are you so greedy and so fat? Oh Archy, why must you always play the autocrat? Dear Pat&Archy, why do you hate us so? You rape and take, or turn away Continue Reading

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