Through the Labyrinth Blog
BFW Dictionary: Archetypes
There are so many words that are special to Birthing From Within, words that we use in very specific ways that are important and meaningful — but not always entirely self-explanatory. The purpose of the BFW Dictionary posts is to shine a clarifying light on the language used by BFW and its practitioners and to…
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Between the Shades of Gray in Childbirth Education
Childbirth educator Nicole Green remembers the first time she faced a class of pregnant parents preparing for birth. She recalls feeling pressure to “know all the answers,” since couples searched online, read reviews, and selected her to help them to learn what they needed to know to “get this right.” In the seeking stage, often…
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Monthly Letter || Birthing From Within and Midwives: The Place of Non-Judgement
Every month, Birthing From Within sends a letter to our membership and the public, containing our reflections on happenings in birth, in the world at large, and in our organization. See a collection of our monthly letters on the blog here; sign up to receive our newsletters directly in your inbox. Dear Friends, National Midwifery Week falls at the…
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Heart Centered Pregnancy Deck
Last year, Birthing From Within co-director Nikki Shaheed published the Heart Centered Pregnancy Journal for expecting parents and birth professionals seeking to cultivate intuition, connection, and resilience in the childbearing experience. Now, she has followed it up with a wonderful new tool, the Heart Centered Pregnancy Deck! This interactive card deck offers 35 reflections related to…
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Monthly Letter || Grandparents Day: On Becoming an Ancestor
Every month, Birthing From Within sends a letter to our membership and the public, containing our reflections on happenings in birth, in the world at large, and in our organization. See a collection of our monthly letters on the blog here; sign up to receive our newsletters directly in your inbox. Dear friends, I just found out that I…
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Resources on Trans Birth and Trans Allyship
Over the past several weeks, we have encountered many folks on our Facebook and Instagram feeds who have expressed interest in learning more about the trans birth experience – and many folks who clearly need some education about trans allyship, both in the birth context and in general. We decided to make a one-stop shop…
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How Birthing From Within Shapes My Lactation Practice
I was lucky to come across Birthing From Within in the early years of my practice as a birth worker. As I learned more about feeding babies and became a lactation counselor, I started noticing ideas I’d learned from my BFW training showing up in my lactation practice. Now that I see dozens of families each…
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Organizational Equity Beyond the Current Moment
When we distributed our statement of solidarity with Black Lives Matter and those taking action against racist police violence, we received an interesting email from a course participant. They expressed appreciation for our statement, and respectfully requested that we provide more details about what Birthing From Within is doing to combat racism in the world,…
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Monthly Letter || The Art of Listening
Every month, Birthing From Within sends a letter to our membership and the public, containing our reflections on happenings in birth, in the world at large, and in our organization. See a collection of our monthly letters on the blog here; sign up to receive our newsletters directly in your inbox. Dear friends, As the United States finds itself…
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Monthly Letter || Pride Month: Wider Possibilities
Every month, Birthing From Within sends a letter to our membership and the public, containing our reflections on happenings in birth, in the world at large, and in our organization. See a collection of our monthly letters on the blog here; sign up to receive our newsletters directly in your inbox. The United States – and the world –…
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Black Lives Matter
Birthing From Within extends our deepest condolences to the families of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and all of the other far-too-many victims of state-sanctioned racist violence. We are aware that there is nothing new about this phenomenon: indeed, state-sanctioned, white-supremacist violence played an integral part in the founding of the United States, and…
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Monthly Letter || Mother’s Day: Complexity and Community
Every month, Birthing From Within sends a letter to our membership and the public, containing our reflections on happenings in birth, in the world at large, and in our organization. See a selection of our monthly letters on the blog here; sign up to receive our newsletters directly in your inbox. Dear friends, In many parts of the United…
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