Healing Birth

Healing Birth Healing Birth is a birth trauma support organisation based in Tauranga, NZ. Carla offers personal and group support options, and online courses.

✨🪷New episode out now!🪷✨Buckle in, this podcast episode with doula, Jenna Shaw Jenna Shaw , is going to take you on a ri...
02/09/2026

✨🪷New episode out now!🪷✨

Buckle in, this podcast episode with doula, Jenna Shaw Jenna Shaw , is going to take you on a ride! We fearlessly talk about all the gnarly, taboo topics surrounding birth, delving into the conversations that raise heckles and stir curiosity.

Jenna has been birth passionate since childhood. Despite not having given birth herself, she pours her heart, soul and a sh*t tonne of trust into the women she serves.

It’s hard to convey in a short introduction the depths we explore in this interview, but to give you a taster, a couple of concepts we explore are that the clinical eye is an intervention with risks, and that birth is the ultimate medicine journey.

Other discussion topics include:
🌿 The mystery of birth as part of the medicine
🌿 Stillbirth
🌿 Free birth
🌿 Our culture and the way we live, as an intervention
🌿 Physiological birth & undisturbed birth
🌿 Thick meconium

Listen now on your favourite podcast platform
Or watch on the Healing Birth YouTube channel

Wellington/Kāpiti folks who are coming across women and families affected by birth trauma, join us!I’ll teach you the fu...
31/08/2026

Wellington/Kāpiti folks who are coming across women and families affected by birth trauma, join us!

I’ll teach you the fundamentals of holistic birth trauma support in this transformative 2-day workshop.

You’ll come away equipped with the skills, knowledge and tools to safely guide women through the beginning of their healing journey.

I’ve worked in birth trauma support for over a decade, and have served hundreds of women in that time.

I’ve also taught hundreds of people and practitioners who work with new mums about birth trauma and holistic birth trauma support.

If you can’t join us in Kāpiti, you can join the online workshop I’m holding October 15-16. Or DM if you’d like me to bring the workshop to your hometown.

Comment or DM ‘Kāpiti’ or ‘Online Workshop’ or ‘Other Workshop’ and I’ll respond with details.

x Carla

This ‘why fix what ain’t broke?’ attitude is only possible through having witnessed, time and again, that birth works wh...
27/08/2026

This ‘why fix what ain’t broke?’ attitude is only possible through having witnessed, time and again, that birth works when it’s trusted. Such a wise and skilled midwife will be the first to know when she truly does need to interfere, because ‘abnormal’ sticks out like a sore thumb when she’s so well versed in what’s normal.

‘The knitting midwife’ is one of the things I talk about in my Seen, Held & Heard workshop. This 2-day event teaches the foundations of holistic birth trauma support.

To know how to safely support someone in the wake of a traumatic birth, requires an understanding of the causes and impacts of birth trauma, including relevant pieces of birthing physiology and how the ‘trauma brain’ functions. It also necessitates a personal exploration of our beliefs and biases, and unpacking how to effectively listen and hold space for the vulnerable stories that birth trauma leaves women holding.

Seen, Held & Heard will teach you all this, and more.

Here’s what Rachel (a perinatal mental health peer support worker) had to say about her experience doing the online workshop…
“The workshop helped broaden my mind to consider the different ways mothers might experience trauma connected to their birth and gave me some fresh ideas to hold space for them in a safer way.”

And from Chanel (She Blooms counsellor) who attended the in-person workshop…
“I thought I knew most of what there was to know about birth and birth trauma - but turns out I didn’t... not in the holistic way that Carla teaches - my knowledge was clinical. This workshop opened my eyes to the system we are meant to trust and how it’s actually harming so many women. Safety is not fostered, only fear. Thank you Carla for shining the light that so many are scared to switch on!”
10/10 - information, 10/10 - facilitation

✨Join me in Kapiti, September 19-20✨
✨Or join the next online round of training, October 15-16✨

🌿DM me ‘Workshop’ for more information🌿

x Carla

Wow! This is a post I made years ago when Healing Birth was called Voice For Parents. It went viral at the time, the onl...
09/08/2026

Wow! This is a post I made years ago when Healing Birth was called Voice For Parents. It went viral at the time, the only post of mine that ever has. Interesting to see it pop up again after all these years. Cleary it’s still striking a chord with many

Become the safe space that women need to heal their birth trauma... the safe space that is all too desperately neededby ...
06/08/2026

Become the safe space that women need to heal their birth trauma...
the safe space that is all too desperately needed
by women, babies and families that deserve a better start to life as a new family.

I’ll teach you all that you need to know when you do my 10 week Healing Birth Practitioner Training programme.

We start next week! There’s still space for you.

Here’s what Kiki, mum to three (2 traumatic c sections, followed by a healing home VBAC), and now founder of Kiki Burke | Safe Harbour Birth Trauma Support had to say about doing the training...

“I remember when you first spoke to me about this course, and I had some reservations about doing it at the time because I didn’t think I was worthy or capable of being someone who could competently support other women with the healing of their birth trauma. Well, needless to say, this course lit a fire in me, and opened my eyes to how capable I truly am.”

🌿If you’re passionate about changing the status quo when it comes to birth trauma support, DM me now or comment TRAIN and I’ll send details to your inbox.🌿

x Carla

What you’ll learn & come away with...In-depth knowledge of what birth trauma is, what is causing it, how it’s impacting ...
04/08/2026

What you’ll learn & come away with...

In-depth knowledge of what birth trauma is, what is causing it, how it’s impacting women and their families, and the fundamentals of how to guide the healing process.

Understanding the basics of birthing physiology and what frequently interferes with the physiological birth process, leading to trauma, including the roles played by our conditioning, our maternity system, and our ‘trauma brain’ responses.

Awareness of our own conditioned beliefs and biases, and how to ensure they, and any potential rescuer mentality, don’t impede our ability to hold a safe space for women to share their story and find healing.

The art of listening and holding space (including in relation to working with those who experience baby loss) - something we will practice during the workshop.

Helpful responses after someone has shared their birth trauma story, and tools you can offer them for their ongoing healing journey.

Interested?
Join me in...
Tauranga, August 22-23
Kāpiti, September 19-20
Or express interest in me holding a workshop elsewhere.

Type TAURANGA, or KAPITI, or ELSEWHERE in the comments, or in a DM to me, to learn more.

x Carla

The real reasons people hesitate to join HBPT...They’re wondering...✨ Is it okay that I’m still healing from my own birt...
22/07/2026

The real reasons people hesitate to join HBPT...

They’re wondering...

✨ Is it okay that I’m still healing from my own birth experience?
✨ But I don’t live in New Zealand
✨ Will I be ready to practice this work once the course ends?
✨ What if I need to miss a couple of live sessions?
✨ How will I afford it?

If that’s you, you’re not the only one.

These are the questions I’m frequently asked, and they’re all easier to navigate than most people expect.

You don’t need previous birth-work training. For many practitioners, HBPT is where they begin.

Outside New Zealand? I’ve already trained practitioners from Australia, the USA, the UK, Sweden and Spain.

Need flexibility? Every live session is recorded, there are multiple payment options, and one fully funded scholarship is offered each intake for someone who otherwise couldn’t access the training.

The next HBPT cohort begins 10 August.

Places are intentionally limited to 12–16 practitioners, so everyone receives personalised support throughout the training.

If you’ve been sitting on the fence, send me a message. I’d love to answer your questions and help you work out whether HBPT is the right next step for you.

x Carla

This is a brilliant opportunity for those in the Manawatu who have experienced birth trauma to access a free birth traum...
20/07/2026

This is a brilliant opportunity for those in the Manawatu who have experienced birth trauma to access a free birth trauma support service 💜 Check it out if it’s of interest xx

Whoops… a day late with the last 10 of 50 quotes…Last week was Birth Trauma Awareness week. Each year, Birth Trauma Aote...
20/07/2026

Whoops… a day late with the last 10 of 50 quotes…

Last week was Birth Trauma Awareness week. Each year, Birth Trauma Aotearoa runs a ‘50 for 50’ campaign in honour of this.

What’s significant about the number, 50? In Aotearoa, New Zealand, 50 women experience a traumatic birth every day. For a little country, that’s a LOT of trauma.

The 50 for 50 campaign is about doing 50 of something in recognition of that awful stat, and to acknowledge those poor new mothers and families experiences. And it’s about raising awareness regarding this horrific amount of birth trauma that’s taking place.

This year, I’m sharing 50 quotes from women who have experienced birth trauma. Most of them are quotes relating to the trauma itself, and a few are about the healing that some of them experienced down the track.

Many of these quotes are taken from the birth trauma survey I conducted back in 2015 - something that ultimately led to me founding Healing Birth (though it was initially called Voice For Parents). I am so grateful to those women (319 of them!) who shared their stories of birth trauma with me.

If you are interested in reading the birth trauma survey report in its entirety, comment ‘REPORT’ and I’ll send the pdf through to you.

Make sure you follow the epic work done by Kate and the team at Birth Trauma Aotearoa.

And if you are interested in working with me to heal from a bad birth, or train with me to learn the art of holistic birth trauma support, send me a DM. I’d love to hear from you.

x Carla

Address

Tauranga
3118

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Healing Birth posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share