I agreed to Chinese postpartum confinement mostly because it felt easier than arguing about it. I didn’t expect it to change how I understand rest.

We prepare for labour as though it is the summit, but for many women the real stretch begins afterwards, in the long middle.

I love my children, and I still find myself thinking, what is this. Loving them has not automatically translated into loving motherhood.

We use “informed choice” like it ends the conversation, but choice exists inside systems, and systems are never neutral.

I used to believe hospitals were the safest place to give birth. Over time, I realised hospitals aren’t bad, but they aren’t neutral.

Some of the most important shifts don’t happen loudly. They happen mid conversation, when certainty loosens just enough to let something new in.

I’m here because I keep having the same thought, over and over again, usually at inconvenient times. You can have the birth you want, but wanting it isn’t enough.

When conversations about “safety” in birth become about controlling who can be present, we have to ask: who is this really protecting?

Recent calls to restrict doulas and unregistered birth workers risk taking us further from what women actually need — trust, respect, and real choices.

Response to Michelle Goldberg recent Op ed “Mothers Are Told That Natural Childbirth Is Best. It isn’t”

WELCOME TO THE VILLAGE FOR MAMA POSTPARTUM STORIES SERIES, WHERE WE CHAT WITH SOME OF OUR FAVOURITE MAMAS ON THEIR BIRTH, POSTPARTUM EXPERIENCE AND HOW THEY GATHERED THEIR VILLAGE.

Preparing for Breastfeeding