Mother's Embrace - Pregnancy, Birth and Postnatal Services

Mother's Embrace - Pregnancy, Birth and Postnatal Services Doula and Hypnobirthing teacher
Breastfeeding Peer Supporter
Trauma informed

πŸ“ Shaftesbury, Dorset, UK

I have always felt a calling to a supportive, nurturing role and throughout my life have been drawn to working with children and their parents. Being able to support families right from their beginning, and supporting and empowering women as they step into their new role as a mother is the greatest honour. Through Mother's Embrace my aim is to provide support for expecting mothers and their famili

es, educationally, emotionally, and physically throughout their pregnancy journey; to support you through pregnancy, labour & birth, and into postpartum as you journey from woman to mother.

A friend asked me the other day when I thought postpartum ended, what I told her seemed to genuinely surprise her and I ...
09/09/2026

A friend asked me the other day when I thought postpartum ended, what I told her seemed to genuinely surprise her and I wonder how many others are wondering the same without thinking about what that question really means. In no way word for word (because 5 years on from my first birth 'mum brain' is still a thing!) this is what I told her...

I don't believe postpartum ends at six weeks.
Or six months.
Or even two years.

Postpartum is not simply a period of physical recovery after birth; it is the beginning of a lifelong 'becoming'.

Matrescence (the transition to motherhood) is monumental and lifelong. It reshapes your body, identity, relationships and priorities. It changes your sense of time, your understanding of love, and your very sense of self.

And unlike a pregnancy, there is no 'due-date' for when you'll feel like you've truly become a mother - you meet your baby at birth, but you continue meeting yourself as their mother for the rest of your life.

As your child grows, so do you - the mother of a newborn is not the same mother of a toddler, the mother of a child just starting school is not the same mother of a teenager, and the mother of an adult child is not the same woman who first held them in her arms. Every new stage asks something different of you, each version of your child calls forth a new version of you.

There are births within the birth; moments when you realise that the mother you were yesterday is no longer the mother your child needs today.

Postpartum is not something we leave behind, it is a state of being that begins when we become a parent and continues, in different forms, for as long as we are here, even if our child is not. Motherhood is not a chapter it is a lifelong relationship with a constant 'becoming'. Postpartum by its very definition means 'after birth' and is that not what mothers are for the rest of their lives?

At the root, this is why I believe mothers deserve care, tenderness, witnessing and support long after society decides they should be 'back to normal'.

There is no going back. There is only the 'becoming'. Postpartum is forever 🀎

Your Baby Is Growing.Tiny hands are forming. Little feet are wriggling. A heart is beating. A brain is making millions o...
11/08/2026

Your Baby Is Growing.

Tiny hands are forming.
Little feet are wriggling.
A heart is beating.
A brain is making millions of new connections.

And yes, I know you feel tired, and heavy, and big in the realest sense of the word - why do we still think we can squeeze through that tiny gap?!

You are doing hard, miraculous work and it's easy to get caught up in nursery lists and hospital bags, but your baby needs something else long before that perfect outfit... You.

They need a parent who feels calm, empowered, supported, and confident. If that's not you yet, let's chat about how we can get you there!

It's never too late to invest in your birth ✨

Get in touch to book in a complimentary call to explore how I can support you:

πŸ“© [email protected]
πŸ“¨ Send me a DM
πŸ“„ Fill in my contact form via my website
πŸ”— Link in bio

Transferring to the hospital when you feel the need can cause labour to pause, stall, or lose its pattern. Swipe through...
02/08/2026

Transferring to the hospital when you feel the need can cause labour to pause, stall, or lose its pattern.

Swipe through to see my top tips for minimising the impact and supporting your labour to continue progressing ➑️

Keeping the environment dark helps support oxytocin production (the hormone which drives your contractions).

Simple ways you can do this include;
✨ Dimming the lights
✨ Using warm gentle lighting like fairy lights or battery powered candles
✨ Having blinds to put up over the windows to block sunlight during day time labours. As in this mage from a recent client's labour, these suction style blinds work brilliantly (bin bags also work in a pinch!)
✨ Wearing an eye mask if you can't make the room dark

Warm muscles work more effectively, keeping your blood flowing and supporting progress.

Any way you choose to do this is fine, whether that's warm clothing, snuggly blankets, cuddling with your partner, or being in warm water

There are plenty of other ways to assess progress in labour besides a cervical exam. Having someone's fingers inside you while you're vulnerable and in pain isn't going to be conducive to oxytocin production.

Try to minimise this where possible to support progress continuing uninterrupted

An environment that allows you to focus and go inward is really beneficial. In a hospital setting where there are lots of people, monitors, and alarms, some of the following can be great ways to keep your space calm and quiet:

🀫 Speak in hushed voices
🀫 Play your own music or meditation tracks
🀫 Keep the door closed and put a sign up to ask people to be quiet as they come in
🀫 Take some headphones so you can really zone out and be uninterrupted even when people are in the room with you

Keeping gently active will support your body in getting baby into the optimal position for birth, this is important because your body will do this first before dilation, and at many points during dilation, so supporting it to happen helps ensure labour progresses smoothly.

Simple ways to do this include:
πŸ§ŽπŸΌβ€β™€οΈ Using a birth ball or peanut ball (rock & roll, don't bounce)
πŸ§ŽπŸΌβ€β™€οΈ Avoiding lying on your back where possible
πŸ§ŽπŸΌβ€β™€οΈ Following you

Your Body Is Growing a Human.Your body is creating a whole human being.A heart. A brain. Tiny fingers. Tiny toes. A nerv...
21/07/2026

Your Body Is Growing a Human.

Your body is creating a whole human being.
A heart.
A brain.
Tiny fingers.
Tiny toes.
A nervous system.
A new soul that is already, somehow, making demands.

Completely from scratch, inside you.
That is goddess level work.

So if you feel tired, emotional, overwhelmed or like you need a little extra support, please remember: you are doing something extraordinary.

You don’t have to do pregnancy, birth or postpartum unsupported.

🀎 I’m here to support you, listen to you and remind you that you’re doing brilliantly, even on the days when you’ve eaten cake for dinner.

If you're pregnant and thinking about your support team, reach out for a complimentary call and let's discuss how to make sure you feel held and cared for during this transformational time ✨

Next course starts soon!
09/07/2026

Next course starts soon!

Our next course starts Wednesday 29th July and there are still a few spaces left!

Don't miss the chance to secure yours - book now via our website
πŸ”— Link in bio

Join us for 5 weekly sessions, covering a huge range of topics to prepare you and your partner for labour, birth & beyond.

Book now and get πŸ₯‘πŸ’š

Today is bittersweet.I have been pregnant or exclusively breastfeeding continuously for the last 6 years and today, on m...
08/07/2026

Today is bittersweet.
I have been pregnant or exclusively breastfeeding continuously for the last 6 years and today, on my youngest son's 3rd birthday, that chapter of my motherhood comes to an end.

It is both a heartbreak and a relief. A chance to have my body belong only to myself again.

I have been blessed with two relatively easy feeding journeys, both of which have come to natural conclusions without tears and frustration (though both journeys involved lots of tears and frustrations along the way!). There have been sleepy feeds, sandy feeds, bath feeds, glam feeds, sad feeds, celebratory feeds and everything in between.

I am so grateful to have had the experiences I've had. I am in awe of my body and what it has achieved. I am overjoyed to have had the privilege of nourishing my children with my body.

Tonight we sang & cuddled, fed & snuggled, and he said goodbye to Mummy's milk.
And tonight, in his own words,
"Mummy's milk goes to the moon for the tiny babies."

1756 days of feeding.
What an honour it's been 🀍

Sending love to all Dads this Father's Day πŸ’™
21/06/2026

Sending love to all Dads this Father's Day πŸ’™

Louder for the new mum who doesn't think her struggles are 'bad enough'...I see you & you should be receiving support 🫢🏼...
12/06/2026

Louder for the new mum who doesn't think her struggles are 'bad enough'...
I see you & you should be receiving support 🫢🏼

A gorgeous review from a wonderful postnatal client ❀️Words like this mean so much when you do work that reflects your p...
11/06/2026

A gorgeous review from a wonderful postnatal client ❀️

Words like this mean so much when you do work that reflects your passion. I love supporting every client I work with and knowing they appreciate and enjoy my support too means the world. It's truly an honour and reviews like this help me continue supporting families so I'm grateful for every one πŸ₯°

Personally I don't think any of these should be surprising or non-mainstream views on the postnatal period, but I know t...
09/06/2026

Personally I don't think any of these should be surprising or non-mainstream views on the postnatal period, but I know that's unfortunately not the case.

So here you go.

✨ Enjoying every second of your postnatal period is not realistic nor is it a helpful comment to make. Many (I would venture most) new parents find it an incredibly challenging time and a huge adjustment and the reality is, even if you do absolutely love it, your hormones are all over the place and likely means you'll have days when you feel sad even if you're not.

✨ You are the main caregiver for your baby. Your baby is receiving top notch, obsessively considered care from you (and your family, midwives and health visitors). You on the other hand, will receive a minimal check up at best from the GP. So I am far more concerned about making sure you feel supported, able to recover in whatever way you need, and have access to any information or specialist services you might need. My job is to hold you, so you can hold your baby.

✨ 6 weeks is a ridiculously short time to be thinking about recovery after birth. It took 9 months for your body to grow your baby, it's going to take more than a few weeks for you to recover. Yes, your stitches might have healed in 6 weeks, but there's so much more healing to be done including emotional and psychological healing. You deserve to understand what the healing process is, and have it acknowledged that it might be a prolonged time of needing support.

✨ Anyone who says 'breast is best' or 'fed is best' when talking about infant feeding is sadly misinformed, or has an agenda. Neither of these statements are helpful and both carry guilt, expectation and pressure. The only acceptable view on feeding is 'informed and supported' - what can I do to support how you want to feed?

✨ Grieving the life you had, person you were, or relationship you had before having a baby is normal, common, and absolutely an ok way to feel. Becoming a parent is an enormous transformation (ask me about Matrescence) and is difficult to navigate even if you had a straightforward birth experience. For those with birth trauma the adjustment can be even harder.

Continued in comments

Address

Shaftesbury
SP7

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