grounded guidance
for the new paradigm
“How would it be to live in a society where we are all, through giving birth or being born, in possession of our own power and our own deep knowing? Where science and technology are our tools, rather than our masters? How differently would we treat our babies? How differently would we treat each other? How differently would we treat the earth?”
welcome to village birth
I’m jonelle — birthkeeper & spaceholder
My practice is in service to the genius of birth and the integrity of the mother-baby dyad. An eternal student drawing on both traditional & modern wisdom, I work with women and families who are interested in the intact unfolding of birth — supporting them to align with their values & their inner knowing, and to navigate the birth portal with clarity, confidence & joy.
Our prevailing culture tells a tired story about birth that is not serving us, treating our primal rite of passage as a mechanical event and a medical emergency. Women are beginning to wake up, however, from this centuries-old spell to the true nature of birth, choosing to give birth in (and to) the new story — that is, grounded in the exquisite intelligence of the body, a wise relationship with our tools, and a capacity for courting the great mystery.
I walk alongside women as they navigate the rocky terrain of this paradigm shift, doing so with a respect for the value of both information & intuition, offering guidance that is undogmatic, grounded & nuanced. My offerings include birthkeeping / doula care, birth story integration, coaching, and closing ceremony facilitation.
You can find my writing on birth and related topics on my Substack.
align with the new
birth paradigm
Your body is intelligent and multi-dimensional, not a machine to be tinkered with when it ‘fails’ to give birth on a predictable timeline.
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You are exquisitely open and sensitive during birth, and feeling safe is key to its intact unfolding. You should be held and supported by those who understand and deeply respect this radical openness and need for primal safety.
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Birth is a natural rite of passage and an opportunity for deep transformation, designed to initiate you into motherhood by showing you how powerful you are. It is not a punishment, a pathology, or an inconvenience to be remedied.
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Tools and skills wisely used can be helpful, but when used routinely they disrupt the normal unfolding of the birth process.
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Yours and your baby’s experience of birth are not separate, but intricately interwoven. You form a sacred dyad, both fully involved in the birth process, connected by a vast network of channels, communicating constantly.
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Your body, your baby, and your birth belong to you.
offerings
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Birthkeeping / Doula Care
Have me walk alongside you throughout your pregnancy, and hold space for you during and after your birth.
My aim is always to cultivate a warm, genuine and deeply trusting connection between us; and the support I offer is intuitive, loving, nuanced, and client-led — attuned and responsive to your particular needs, desires, and journey through the birth portal.
Includes pregnancy preparation and connection, birth support, and postpartum care. -
Birth Story Integration
No matter how your birth unfolded, whether easeful or challenging, blissful or traumatic, your birth rite of passage remains incomplete until your story is witnessed. Have me hold space for you to cross this final threshold by processing and integrating your birth story.
Though it can be a tender journey, it can have a profound effect on your life, allowing you to gain clarity, insight and acceptance — to emerge more whole and in possession of your power.
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Closing Ceremony
A Closing Ceremony, also known as Closing of the Bones, is an ancient, profound and beautiful honouring of the mother as she emerges out the other side of the birth portal, and re-integrates into normal life, transformed.
Including story witnessing, massage, and wrapping of the full body with rebozo, this ceremony offers closure on many levels, and brings a mother back into herself after a period of profound openness.
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Coaching / Birth Preparation
My coaching sessions are for those who don’t necessarily want my support at their birth, but want to prepare for birth or postpartum, including women or couples choosing sovereign birth.
I hold loving and grounded space for you to truly know your options, orient to your truth, identify and dissolve blocks, and source clarity and confidence in your journey towards and beyond birth.
