Sister Birth Blog

reexamining our relationship with “need” as freebirthers and self-sufficient homebirthers by Sister Birth

Pointers for first time moms planning a home birth.

Have you seen this? This peaceful, unassisted water birth on a porch at the edge of a meadow… the one where the baby received a little assistance from her mother to finish being born? It’s worth watching. And have gratitude for the brave and bold @thealliewoods for livestreaming and sharing her very personal moments with the world. And […]

All about incorporating a cord burning ceremony into your home birth.

pictured here: me and my just-born daughter with two of her older siblings standing by. Photo credit: Annica of Sprout and Blossom “What do I do with my kids during my home birth?” It’s a question I hear a lot of. And there isn’t one right answer, but here are some thoughts. It’s important to […]

We live in an age of online community. There are Facebook groups for nearly EVERY topic, interest, and qualifying personal characteristic you can imagine. I participate in lots of those communities and am genuinely grateful for the role they play in my life: a place to speak freely about topics I know everyone in the […]

I’m not going to lie: having a low-intervention or intervention-free, physiologic birth in a hospital takes some serious commitment and a lot of proactive preparation. Why? Well, maybe it’s like trying to live in a totally foreign country that doesn’t understand your language, culture, values, or needs. The country isn’t designed to accommodate anything about […]

When I first started looking into reading material to assist me in preparing for a natural birth, the most widely recommended books by far were those by Ina May Gaskin. I can’t say that I disagree with that recommendation at all, because her work is truly phenomenal and important. So consider the following list not […]

What is a mother blessing? Why do you need one? Here’s a definitive guide to having one with Christian spirituality.

A while ago, a friend who wanted to attempt a completely unmedicated birth with her third child asked me how she could begin to prepare. Instead of a quick, short answer, I ended up writing her a long list of suggestions. This is Part 1, which focuses on things that can be done ahead of […]