I’ve been feeling a bit haunted by a recent post I shared of the “Your Body Is Powerful” card on Instagram. Not because it isn’t true, or because the reminder isn’t something deeply welcome during pregnancy and labor, but because, like all the cards, it isn’t the full picture. Sometimes these words can feel painfully untrue. A client, like others before her, recently emerged from the birth of her child feeling traumatized. A birth that had the potential to leave her with a pr

If you read my most recent posts, you know that my own grasp of the potency of the Wisdom of Birth deck has expanded and transformed since using her more and more in practice. The original and still lasting intention is for this deck to be used during pregnancy to offer guidance and insight to support people in feeling well prepared for all that birth is and can be. I envision an expectant mother flipping through the deck and guidebook being drawn to imagery and prompts t

I remember the moment I realized our Wisdom of Birth Oracle & Tarot deck was an invitation into something even deeper and beyond what I'd originally even imagined. I was working with a client who's baby was breech. She was about 33 weeks pregnant, though this pregnancy was by far the longest lasting pregnancy after multiple miscarriages. She had one living, first child, born via cesarean, and she was planning this birth at home. When she sat down to pull a card from one of

As many of you already know the inspiration for our Wisdom of Birth Oracle & Tarot deck came through a desire to make the guidance and support of a doula available to all expectant mothers and parents-to-be. To offer pregnant individuals a window into the the kinds of support they might wish for while literally giving birth. Over time it morphed into something inclusive of that original intention but also far beyond it. Case in point, my experience over the past 2 weeks lea

This is where it all began. When I was invited to attend the birth of my friend Yael’s first child (pictured here), back in 2001. She was the kind of person who loved to be touched all labor long. My hand was still cupping her sacrum when this photo was taken. Fast forward to the second birth I attended, where my friend literally could not tolerate a hand on her body. These were perfect early doula experiences, demonstrating the range that touch can play in the realm of bir

Last week I collaborated with a fellow practitioner to create content geared toward supporting postpartum recovery for new mothers and parents. I’ll be excited to share the final offering with you when it’s ready. In the meanwhile I thought I’d share some of the highlights from our work, so those of you either entering or supporting those entering the postpartum time now can already start considering these ideas for your immediate benefit. My contribution to the project lar

One of the cards in our forthcoming Wisdom of Birth deck offers the prompt "Birth is Messy". If you're familiar with Tarot, this is our "Tower" card. We loved it so much that we turned the art into a candle so this reminder, that birth is messy, would be even more readily available. A sample of this candle has been sitting on the shelf of my desk, and boy has having that prompt in eyeshot on a regular basis been helpful in recent weeks. Both in the process of dealing with

I recorded a podcast episode last week (I'll definitely share when it comes out in May) with Deb Flashenberg for her amazing Yoga, Birth, Babies podcast on the topic of how to best engage partners in birth, beyond just showing up on the day of. We talked about dispelling the false notion that doulas replace partners in any way, when in fact, one of our most essential roles is helping partners offer the best possible support they can. The most important things I shared dur

I've been thinking about a client session I had a few weeks ago with a client who was processing some grief postpartum. It is an interesting time when we experience an abundance of emotions coming up, especially when they seem to contradict each other. How can we be so full of love and gratitude while also feeling profound grief over how much has changed, over the things that didn't go the way we'd hoped during the birthing process? Just ask anyone postpartum and they wil

When you think of “Comforting Touch”, what kind of touch comes to mind? When asking myself this question, I realized that actually there are at least 5 different categories of Comforting Touch, each with distinct attributes that are supportive or “comforting” in their own way, depending on the situation, especially when it comes to birth. These are the 5 types of Comforting Touch I came up with: Massaging Touch, Counter-Pressure, Soothing Strokes, Rhythmic Touch, and Holdi