honouring the placenta
A course for Birthkeepers who are ready to remember the interconnected wisdom of Birth and Earth
The Maori word for land, whenua, also means placenta. All life is seen as being born from the womb of the Papatuanuku under the sea. The lands that appear above the water are placentas from her womb.
In Aboriginal culture every person on the planet has a unique Miwi print on his/her placenta that holds the instructions for their life's journey (reference: Under the Quandong Tree - MinMia)
In Northern Thailand, the placenta is placed in a bamboo tube and tied to a tree. In some Caribbean countries, it's buried under a fruit tree.
Cambodians traditionally believe that the placenta is the origin of the baby's soul, and the burial site is often protected with plants or other objects
In Western culture the placenta is often called 'afterbirth' and is very much an afterthought, with the majority ending up labelled as clinical waste and incinerated. In a maternity system that is highly medicalised and increasingly clinical it is little surprise that the 'mess' of this vital organ is prefered hidden from view.
But what if we didn't hide it?
What if we stopped labelling the natural magic of womens bodys and blood as unsightly and shameful?
What if a generation of children grew up witnessing birth being celebrated as a natural, real, raw, magical rite of passage?
Reclaiming our own Postpartum Rituals
As the Western world finally wakes up to the importance of recognising and honouring the Postpartum period it's vitally important that we don't 'borrow' cultural practices that are simply not ours to claim.
We have no need to try to soulessly carbon copy ceremonies that have no innate meaning to us or the land we live on- yet i see this happening again and again, with very little recognition of the the source of these practices.
This made me reflect on the importance of culturally appropriate, individualised ritual and ceremony and how this truly is the missing piece of postpartum care.
As a traditional Doula with over 20 years experience i can hand on heart say that using a ceremony template is about as useful as every woman being handed the same birth plan to use!
This is why my 'Honouring the Placenta' course offers an immersive, reflective approach to developing ceremonies and rituals that are unique to you, your community and the land you live on and are able to easily be adapted to meet the needs of the families you support.
What does the course include?
This course was originally intended to be a module in our MotherBaby Postpartum Doula Mentorship, but it quickly outgrew this and became a course in its own right! (it's still included)
The course includes:
Certification to facilitate beautiful, Earth based Placenta Ceremonies
A small group workshop via zoom where you’ll have the opportunity to practice your space holding & facilitation skills and experience a ceremony (with recording)
A detailed handbook & journal with Ceremony ideas and reflective prompts
A recipe for lotus birth herbs and a guide to bio regional birth plant medicine
A Two hour recorded webinar (to keep) where we’ll explore the physiology of the placenta, lotus birth , traditions from around the world and the importance of creating culturally appropriate ceremonies
This is the beta round of the course and will be open to a handful of people at a heavily discounted rate in exchange for feedback and testimonies
dates & booking
The beta round of the course will run as follows:
Access to recorded Webinar and Handbook - September 15th (lifetime access)
Live zoom practical session September 29th - 10.30 until 1.30 (recording available)
Feedback and Certificates issued on the day.
Cost - £97 for this round only - will increase to £222
