“WHY IS NATURE always called Mother Nature? Perhaps it’s because like any mother, she quietly manages so much of our living without our ever realising there’s a woman at work.” "...So begins this ten-minute informational film produced by the Walt Disney Company in 1946, commissioned by hygiene company Kimberley Clark and shown to an estimated 100 million students in American schools. The oddly-charming video talks viewers through the pituitary gland, which is responsible for the production of human growth hormones – and, at the onset of puberty, the hormones that kickstart the menstruation process. Something of a landmark, the video is thought to have been the first mass-distributed film to use the word ‘vagina’ in its script. It doubled as a covert commercial ploy from Kimberley Clark: the companion book advocated the use of sanitary pads (an industry dominated by its Kotex products) instead of tampons (dominated by Procter & Gamble’s Tampax brand). We won’t discuss the rest of the video – spoiler alert, you know? – but rather leave it up to yourself to watch in your own time."

I am a Midwife Because...Part II

Trust Birth

Dear newly pregnant mom,

"You have just found out that a new life is becoming within you. Isn’t it amazing how a miracle can seem so normal and ordinary.

No matter how this journey started or how it ends – you are now a mother. The membership fee to remain in this worldwide sorority, is this only, unconditional love – for yourself and your baby. The birth of your baby, however it happens whether at home or in the O.R. is the final initiation, a rite of passage into this immense power of women.

This is your training period. The choices whether easy or difficult start now. This new life depends on you to do your best. And there will be many days when it seems like your best is not good enough. It is.

Use this time to read. Those who love you will want to shower you with love and advice. In these moments, ask them a list of their favorite and least favorite books – read them all. As you read, try not to read as a scholar who tries to retain every word but instead as an adventurer looking for gems of knowledge and wisdom – a hidden treasure. Read to increase your personal wisdom that lay deep within you. It’s ok if the books that resonate with you are on the black list of the most popular parenting site or moms groups – this just means that you will need to use faith and wisdom to walk this journey. Remember that it’s ok to have your specific personal needs and limitations. These make you special.

The birth of your baby matters. For many this will be one of the biggest initiations they will ever experience. You will need:

courage

strength

resolve

sacrifice

time

patience

endurance

kindness

anger

fear

acceptance

excitement

surprise

doubt

pain

laughter

quietness

relief

softness

sadness

trust

WISDOM

You need to feel all of this and more because these are qualities you will need as a mother. You need to know that the birth of your baby may or may not go as you plan. How it ends is not really the important lesson, but what you learn about yourself from how it ends. Will you take the lessons from your birth and allow them to make you a stronger, wiser woman and mother?

I suspect you might feel like this initiation is too big for you. It’s not. We allow you to be surrounded by love and experience. Ask for help. It’s the responsible decision to bring a guide with you on this journey you have never been on before. Asking for help is often more courageous than trying to walk into the unknown unprepared.

As you welcome your baby into the world. Trust yourself. Believe that whatever you are feeling or not feeling is normal – if it wasn’t, it would be different."

Do your best. Trust yourself. Welcome.

With open arms,
Your birth mentor,

Mama Sayana