Kati is a KG Hypnobirthing Instructor.  Check out this previous interview all about hypnobirthing with Heidi Danaher.

Kati Edwards Bio

I’m also a spoken word artist and created a set of poignant birth poetry. I’ve performed at some of the major conferences including Women’s Right’s in Childbirth, Oslo, Norway, the MAMA Conference, Scotland, The Women’s Voices Conference held at The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, London and the Doula UK Conference, London.

If you’d like to know more about my speaking engagements, spoken word poetry or you’d like to book me for a study day or conference, please click on the highlighted links.

Time Stamps

Kati at first dismissed the suggestion of home birth as not for her. She had grown up with the idea birth was to be feared. Her mother had handed over everything to a charismatic obstetrician  to take care of her but did not have a great experience.
As Kati met people on her journey who had different views about birth and began to look at the evidence for iatrogenic harm and she changed her mind to home birth. Key point is to be informed about your options

731  Kati's birth was harder than she imagined and she still managed it. and shares her beautiful Christmas birth story here. In hindsight there were some factors that  may have made the birth harder.  Including five midwives in the room, an ill husband and her mum helping out- a little over crowded. Not knowing who was going to be her midwife after shift change was stressful and made labour longer/

14.08 Second birth was easier, once she overcame some challenges of not being listened to in pregnancy  by her midwife and so changing carers to 121 midwives ( a gold standard caseload midwifery model that is sadly no longer running)This birth was filmed for the BBC.

18.13 Kati chose to film her first birth as she was encouraged by seeing real birth videos of women giving birth calmly but they were all second time mums as no first timers had volunteered.

Second time she got to know producer well so she felt familiar and safe and she stayed in the back ground on the day.

23.33 With her second under 121 midwives she experienced a model of care that didn't do routine Vaginal examinations but used other methods to ascertain how far along she was unless she wanted or needed one.  For you communication with your body will let you know if you should choose to have one or not. Know you have a choice.

28.23 Comparing caring for a horse in labour and a human and how you wouldn't move a horse and humans don't want to move to an unfamiliar place either.

30.39 The curse of 'Miss Polite' Experiencing disturbance in the birth space but not wanting to speak up about it.  Talk to your 'good girl; in advance and take steps that she won't scupper your plans by being too nice and polite to speak up.

33.00 Do not let someone touch you to appease them even if they are being nice if you don;t want it you can say no. Explain to your partner in advance that this may happen.

35 .00 No is a complete sentence - Quoting Deborah Neiger from Yorkshire Stork Doulas. Let go of cultural obligations and say what you need.

36.43 Knowing your midwife reduces interventions more than any machines. Kati would also like to see more doulas as standard including postnatal care.  Kati would like to see better understanding of risk so you can make better decisions . See the BRAIN acronym.

Remember induction is not fool proof and you may not meet your baby quickly it may take days.

4145. With KG hypnobirthing  we take women on a journey so they feel calm confident and empowered so birth is safer when women feel like that and not safe when we feel so scared. Find a Postive Birth Movement Group local to you.  Don't leave it until last minute.

44.10 Kati describes how it felt giving birth and shares her analogy of getting lost in a whiteout at the top of a mountain whilst snowboarding.

48.21 Birth physiology says we like to feel unobserved and safe and these were the conditions that got me in Kati's second birth. 

Kati has a psychology background and feels we should take psychological wellness more seriously which means asking and listening to how women are. 

52.01 Say what it is that you need and make own decisions, don’t be coerced into interventions. Do some practice. Surround yourself with positive birth stories as well. . Those who prepare and put in practice tend to have better experiences

Trigger warning. We do mention risks of death and a dead baby story at one point in this interview. Not in any detail but be aware if this may be something that is difficult to hear for you.

Kemi Johnson - Bio 
Scroll down for resources on induction and time stamps.

Time Stamps

Kemi shares how she felt the calling to be a midwife from the age of 15 and how she resisted it until she eventually just had to do it!  Her fears and back pedalling helps her understand women's fears. 

4.30 She used to minimise herself and felt small, wanting to be no bother and this all changed when she had her son and his birth was not good for either of them. Now she no longer hands over responsibility to someone just because of a badge and a few letters.

7.17 Kemi's first child  talking to her in the womb with opinions on what she was eating where she was going. He guided her in everything except for the induction where she was too fearful with adrenalin and excitement which drowned out his voice.  Your baby has a personality and voice, tune in to listen.

Why are we using the word risk on a woman carrying out a bodily function that has been done for millenia? The current paradigm of considering a woman in danger or dangerous is crazy . We can no longer pretend this level of intervention and interference  is best for baby as there are plenty of studies and science that prove otherwise.

12.11 We have to point out the interventions save lives whenever we say they are being used too much but who is pointing out they also kill? This happens. Would the baby have died if there had not been the intervention?

14.00  Know what induction entails and that it is not a guarantee. Kemi thought she would pop a pill then meet her baby in 20 minutes so was excited. Instead she met with a cascade of interventions and a traumatic birth.  

It’s a special thing to let a baby out and have a cocktail of hormones, a dance.  Just like in a dance if there are a couple of things out of place it makes things more  difficult.

1840 The mismatch between the 80% who say they want intervention free birth as 'natural; as possible and the reality.

Kemi is a KGHypnobirthing teacher, and the advantage of a course and hiring an expert is they can read everything so you don;'t have to and crunch down on what is relevant and needed to you and guide you on your path. 

24.53  If you are facing induction ask for more information . Don’t do what I did, Go  woo hoo and grab my case! 

26.00 How Kemi's role in debating society helped her find her voice and despite a strong voice she still notices that it is often the man who is listened to in the room. We need to start in school and celebrate women's bodies including menarche so we are confident to speak up before we become mothers

32.00  You will have skills you learnt in other areas of your life that you can draw on. There are dormant skills that get awakened in pregnancy.kills learning early that you would need later. Something in life that is a skill they can draw on go inside to find it.

Find your voice and use it. Our voices are going to get louder and louder.  Try attending a Positive Birth Movement Group and feel the support of like-minded peers.

35.00 Choose your place of labour carefully to avoid fighting in pregnancy and labour.

3735 The birthing field. There is a bigger energy than Kemi she can feel working through her.  Let it help and guide you.  Find a quiet place where you can hear this.

Be aware that you may have confidence but the system doesn't  or it wouldn't be giving 90% of women sweeps to get labour going.

4328 Kemi wants a revolution and to work herself out of a job. 

46 We are reaching a tipping point: First they laugh, then they hate us, then we win.

47.46 We can know all about what will happen and have practised hypnobirthing relaxation techniques but we have to deal with fears or wont be able to make decisions and access skills,  Be around people who are confident in birth, It's the only way we get onto the planet

Mandy Rees Bio,

(Scroll down for Time Stamps.)

Time Stamps

Mandy compares birth to running a marathon and she knows both having given birth to two children and run ten marathons. She feels the marathon is more mindset than physicality and it was giving birth that gave her the confidence to run. Just as you would train for a marathon we do need to prepare for birth

7.40  How the system creates an atmosphere of fear and that following the system blindly takes away people choices putting them on  a route that serves the system and not that mum and baby.

10.45 Classing you as high risk for a big baby may become a self fulfilling prophecy as it creates fear and may be inaccurate but were you told that?  Check the information and evidence base to make a decision.

Look after your body in pregnancy to keep the positioning optimal and the body in good shape and create space for the baby.

Consider whether you really want growth scans. Can you trust your body is growing a baby without?

18..00 Learning to trust your own intuition and act on it is a big one. This is a challenge as the longer you wait the scarier the pressure from the system to induce. Check what the risks really are, get the proper statistics. Your instincts will tell you if your baby is ready.

22.00 Remember the baby is not an inanimate being and is trying to help you so go inside and focus and communicate with your baby and with touch. Practising breathing with connection in pregnancy will feel like a safe place you can repeat with the baby to reassure your baby once born.

26.00 Our logical society struggles with what it sees as weird or woo woo and  mums may feel a bit weird talking to baby in pregnancy. This is not new. Try sitting there with hand on baby and asking them how they feel and explore their fears and your fears and explain that you have confidence in them.

30.45 It boils down to stop scaring mums, stop making them frightened and frightened of making choices.  Do not accept the dead baby card thrown at you.

The current problem of go in for normal appointment and see that they are booked in for two sweeps and an induction  and they don’t know that it is optional.  Mandy wants everyone women to know they don’t have to do this. Can cancel them or choose

34.00  We shouldn't have to go through a poor first time to learn how to say no and get birth that we want.  Mandy sees some miracle transformations over time in her class so don't be afraid to take steps to release your fears.

37.15 We need to hear more positive birth stories. They are out there but women hold back and can be shamed for having a great story. If you have a negative story find someone who is not pregnant to unpick that with.

 42.58 Mandy shares her hardest challenge was bringing the baby home over the actual birth and how becoming a mother helped her learn to ask for help.   Asking for help is strong not weak Know that struggling is not failing and you are not a bad mum.

52.10  Don’t allow system to do it to you. It is  your body, your baby, your choice. Find out the information you need so that when the  time comes for birth you understand what you want. Never be disappointed. Know it is not your fault know three are choices out there

I've guided hundreds of mums and babies through pregnancy and birth and been there to support even more women in their post-natal journey. I believe that the stronger the connection between mothers and their children, the easier our journeys are. We are a mother for life and we need to be supported. I have created in Blossom what I needed as a new, anxious and overwhelmed mum. My classes and coaching are designed with mothers and their babies at their very heart. They are for mothers to come together and to grow; physically, emotionally and spiritually.

Joy Horner Bio

Time Stamps with link to the book Joy referenced. 

Joy shares her winding route to being a midwife twice, in the 80's and now and how things have changed.

5.06 Joy had two different birth experiences despite preparing in a similar way and wants women to know this can happen. In her first he was brow presentation which can lead to a necessary C section which it did for Joy. 

Her second was 'popped out in time for tea ' in a straight forwards hospital birth.

9.30  How both births were transformative in their own way and made her a better midwife. A good lesson is you can't intellectualise your way through birth.  Joy learnt the difference between obstructed labour and normal labour and can spot this quickly now to support women better.

14.33 All about breech birth.  Joy has been on a journey with the famous and now deceased midwife Mary Cronk.  Yes there are additional risks to breech birth but there are also additional risk factors with a caesarean so putting risk into perspective is useful.  Stop frightening the life out of women with risks.

Make sure your care provider is skilled and up to date. If they say breech is more dangerous than c-section of mention the Hannah Trial,they are not up to date with current research. .

19.29 Being on all fours and using gravity negates the need for half the manoeuvres that a skilled midwife knows and can use if necessary. Breech or head down Joy has rarely, never? seen any woman choose to lie on her back with her feet in the air.

23.15 Some useful things to know about breech babies so they don't feel like an emergency if they happen to you.

28.55 Why Joy is becoming more hands off the more she practices and why her role as witness is so important.

33.19 Using art with pregnant women uses the artistic side of brain The right side. Joy recommends the book, Birthing from within by Pamela England.

Exercise - Give five minutes to draw 'The Gates of birth' or sometimes  'The baby within'  A powerful way to see what comes out, in once case it revealed trauma that needed to be released that the woman had thought was complete.

39.00 Thinking of yourself in pregnancy and postnatal as reflecting the four season in nature. 

40.00   Joy recommends a mother blessing over a baby shower and to pass a list around to get friends to commit to postnatal support tasks.

Don’t ask for better demand better and expect it.

48.00  Joy reminds you that human rights issue don’t stop in labour and birth. You can do what the hell you like and your body is designed for this.  We don’t need all this intervention and interference. We haven’t evolved out of being able to birth and most people can give birth successfully with happy and healthy outcomes without even seeing a midwife or doctor.

 Joy's take home: You’ve got it.

She believes that birth is a natural event for which we've been beautifully designed, and that peace on earth really does begin with birth.

Zoe Challenor Bio

Jennie Harrison Bio

Clare Ford's Bio and Free Gift

Click to download Clare's three tips to manage stress in conception and early pregnancy.

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Time Stamps

Every birth is different with different family dynamics,

First recommendation as a mum to be is to get informed without getting overwhelmed by information. Make a plan that fits your values.

4.48  Along with information you need to be empowered so as not to hand power over and trust your intuition. Bring your heart and soul into the equation along with your mind.

6.48  Build your intuition muscle in advance so you know what your inner voice sounds like and can call on it when needed.

Use anchors- e.g. mudra or hand movement to trigger relaxation.

9.34 The power of intention - spoken out loud and written down. Intuition is your surf board and connection to Source is the sea. You need your intention to get on the board and in the sea.

3 Small Steps to confidence you can take every day. 1.  take three slow breaths. and ask, What is wrong with now? 2. Notice your thoughts and what you say to yourself and accept those thoughts that are trying to keep you alive so 3, choose to change those thoughts when unhelpful.

1552 Let go of your perfectionism. You don’t have to give birth perfectly, you don't have to look perfect as you walk out of hospital. Imperfection is the new perfect. 

19.44  The importance of connection on the maternal bond with your baby. New studies in epigenetics have proven long term benefits can change trajectory of child and adult life already starting in the womb by taking time to connect every day for just a few minutes. This may massively boost your confidence afterwards as you continue to intuitively parent  and help reduce possibility of postnatal depression

21.28 Clare's journey through Post Natal Depression and out the other side.  It's not classist it's not sexist , don't feel guilty. 

25.21 Beautiful Souls Vision Statement – my mission is to raise the vibration of our next generation.  How conscious connection and maternal bond in utero is crucial. We are birthing new outside the box thinkers, creative people and visionaries who will move humanity forwards  and they need a different start to fulfil their potential. 

27.00 Working backwards to the womb to heal-supported by epigenetics a lot of emotional traumas that present been teaching twenty years later on in life can be prevented by taking action now in pregnancy by connecting with your baby and being consciously aware of thoughts.  This knowledge and science is cutting edge stuff so don’t feel guilty if  it's new to you. Never too late to heal.  ​

31.22 Become aware of our thoughts and environment and how others energy is affecting us and make caring choices for ourselves  accordingly

Use your voice. Tap into your intuition. Ask questions about procedures and be prepared to change caregivers. Stand in your no.

Practice standing in your no. and delegate supporters to do it on your behalf so you don’t have to do it in labour as you need to feel safe and heard.  you are the Goddess in that space you are the key person bringing new life into this world what greater gift can you gift to humanity so step up to this and be that.

Make sure your inner and outer team are all on the same page. What you are doing is huge and humbling at the same time. Miracle sacred. You are that too. You are amazing.

Lorna Phillip's Bio

Time Stamps.

Lorna is a mum to two adults born 89 and 93 and Grandma to two little boys age 3 and 1. She retrained as a doula when during a deputy manager role with Sure Start Children’s centre she realised the importance of women's birth stories and how many were not as positive as they could be.

3.50 What makes a difference in a nutshell is being listened to and responded to with respect not like a naughty school girl who wants too much.

Tips to help  if you are not being listened to.  1 Know you can ask questions. 2 ask for time 3.Know its not your fault if you don't understand at first.

If still not happy sack them off.! Do your research just as you would choosing a school for your child.

8.00  What is the nonsense of " This is my plan for you, this is what we are going to do."?

Take someone along for appointments, write down your list of questions and tick them off.

11.45 Know you have time. Presented in a you’ve got to make your mind up now , ask for time there usually is some.

14.25  How quickly atmospheres can change both in a positive and negative direction in the birthing room and how to ensure you keep the right atmosphere in the room. 

18.30. What you do as a doula is more about how you are rather than what you do.

19.30 Getting your needs met and being a Good Enough Parent

26.28 But a doula is not for me. Who is the type of person that benefits from doula care? 

27.00  Part of Lorna's vision for the future includes more honesty and transparency of the real challenges of parenting when there is so much fakery on line.

29.00 What is confidence? 

33.00 Starting off on the back foot.  How asserting yourself can be even tougher for WOC when you may face people.s assumptions of you.  How to deal with prejudice: Once you've exhausted questions and discussions  Lorna remind women they do have the choice to change caregivers 

Sack them off!

40.00T What we need is nothing short of a birthing revolution.  We need those who are  observing these things to be confident to call it out.

 Drop perfection  and just be good enough

Rebecca is the author of two books:

Rebecca Schiller's Bio

Time Stamps:

We start with how in a short space of time Rebecca went from a dream job with American Human Rights NGO to  becoming a Doula and co-founding a charity working with human rights in childbirth after the birth of her first child threw her into a completely new world. 

3.20   Consent and the long term larger impacts of subjects that may seem of minimal importance in larger conversations such as a healthy baby is all that matters. Plus the mismatch that exists between women's rights ( in UK) and the idea of consent and equality and the reality on the ground.

 14.30   A summary of the main rights and knowing that you should have everything explained to you in a way that's relevant to you and that you can understand.  Know that you can for whatever, reason irrational or rational or for no reason at all decline anything that is offered to you without undue pressure or coercion. 

17.39  Being lucky in her first pregnancy when she did not know her rights or the system. For example was under the clock for induction after my waters broke and would have had the induction because she didn't know she could refuse, but labour started just in time. 

21.00  Looking at what leads to birth trauma- and what protects you from feeling traumatised no matter what happens in your birth. Particularly being listened to, aware of what is going on and having some level of control over the process. 

26.30 The special patriarchal trick that is a red herring for women and birth workers: To debate which kind of birth is best and put our energies against each other instead or joining together.

3030  Defining positive birth so that positive and medicalised are not in opposition  to each other particularly as  currently most women do have some kind of intervention and are in hospital.  Her No Guilt Pregnancy guide helps you to consider what you need that transcends place of birth and can be achieved no matter what kind of birth you have.

32.20 Elective c-sections are one of biggest area of her work in human rights with some of the most distressing stories.  The hard no in response to the request creates distrust, anxiety  and fear. Encouraging kindness and support instead of the brutality of the system

40.43 How both of Rebecca's children surprised her with their births and what she learnt about herself in the process.

46.30  The importance of investing in support as you can never prepare for the surprises but can be supported through the unexpected.

Reframing language so that on a subtle level a woman's body belongs to her not to the establishment.  My house my rules. Why home birth is a great choice for people-pleasers and rule -followers.

1hr09  The woman is always the greatest expert in the room and her birth.

Remember  You Matter

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