Birth Debrief
The safe & supported space to explore and come to terms with your birth experience.
Feel heard and validated, whatever your birth experience.
60 MINUTE ONLINE SESSION
UNPACK THOUGHTS, FEELINGS & EXPERIENCES
FIND RELIEF & START TO MOVE FORWARD
What is a birth debrief?
The saying is true: birth never leaves you as it finds you.
As a birth and postpartum, I have a front-row seat to the transformations my clients go through as they navigate the challenges of pregnancy, birth and postpartum.
But this phase of life has an unforgiving pace for those living it.
Finding time to process the events and emotions around the challenges faced and transformations experienced is rare.
“During the debrief I was able to talk through everything that happened and through your questions and prompts, was able to compile a list of my own questions that needed answering. That alone was really helpful and made me feel a lot lighter. I felt heard and understood. ”
That’s where my birth debriefs come in.
Here’s you’ll find dedicated time, space and support to explore the events and emotions of your pregnancy, birth and postpartum.
With gentle acknowledgement and validation, you’ll be able to unpick and unpack what has happened to you.
And through the process, you’ll find the grounded sense of clarity that’ll help you to move forward through your postpartum with greater confidence.
How does a birth debrief work?
Your pace, your space, your story.
Birth comes with strong emotions and talking about what happened to you can feel like a really ‘big’ thing.
As a mum-of-two myself, I get that.
That’s why I make sure my birth debriefs are done in such a way that they feel manageable and supportive, and wholly under your control.
Here’s how it works:
Your booking form:
When you book your birth debrief, I’ll send you a booking form to complete ahead of our session. This is largely administrative, but it gives you the opportunity to mention any thing you’d like me to be aware of, sensitive of or would like to avoid completely.
The day before:
I’ll send you an email confirming our time slot and with a link to our Google Meet session so everything is clear and settled.
Our session:
Over the course of 60-mins, I’ll invite you to talk about and reflect on the experience of your baby’s birth, using specific prompts and questions to help you explore what you felt at the time, what you feel now, and how you’d like to move forward.
At no point will I be casting judgement, telling you what was right or wrong about your experience, or telling you what you felt.
This is your story & I am here to help validate and acknowledge it.
Dedicated relaxation:
Talking about your birth experience is likely to bring up a lot of emotions; giving yourself time and grace to decompress is really important.
Immediately after our session, I will send you a link to a relaxation track that you can do at a time that suits you best.
Your follow-up chat:
Two weeks after your birth debrief, we’ll meet again in a Google Meet for a 10 minute check-in; we’ll talk about anything that has come up for you since your debrief, and I’ll support you with information, strategies and signposting to help you move forward more positively.
“A non-judgmental, safe space - I felt understood when talking about the emotions and stress that comes alongside pregnancy and how that adapts in birth and becoming a new parent. It really helped me to make sense of things.”
The ‘need to know’ details
Who?
Unlike the NHS, I am able to debrief anyone who has experienced a birth: you could be the one who has given birth, a partner or a support person within the space (eg: grandparent, sister, doula or midwife).
When?
My bookings calendar is regularly updated to show my availability. All you have to decide is which slot works best.
I recommend leaving at least six weeks between a birth experience and a debrief (unless you are a doula or midwife, in which case it’s a little different!) to allow the dust to settle and priorities to come to the surface.
There is no time limit on when you can have a birth debrief: it could be weeks, months or even years before you book your debrief and that’s absolutely fine.
Where?
I use Google Meet for my birth debriefs and you’ll be sent your login link the day before your scheduled time; in-person sessions can be arranged for an additional fee.
How much?
Birth debriefs cost £50 per person and include the debrief, the follow-up chat and any materials or resources I send to you following our time together.
“My birth debrief helped me feel empowered by understanding areas of my birth I had come to terms with and how I still had a lot of control over my future despite my new ‘mum identity’”
Frequently asked questions
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Yes, of course! All of my birth doula packages include a birth debrief but I am able to debrief any birth, whether I was there or not.
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I promise you this isn’t going to be an issue. As a doula, I am both trained and skilled in supporting people through incredibly intense emotions and events, whilst also protecting my own mental and physical health.
Whatever you need to say or explore, I am here to hold you as you do.
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Yes, absolutely!
Feeling validated, heard and acknowledged is such an important part of a birth. While that’s commonly associated with negative birth experiences, it’s just as important for people who have had positive births. Especially in a world where anyone who has experienced an incredible birth feels the needs to keep quiet about it incase they make others feel bad.
Whatever you want to talk about or explore, I am here for it.
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I recommend taking at least six weeks after birth before you debrief; this allows things to ‘settle’ a little before you revisit birth.
If you’re a birth professional (eg: midwife or doula) you may want to debrief sooner so that you can get back to work at full strength sooner. This is totally fine & please book your session at a point that feels right.
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There is no time cap on when you can debrief a birth experience you have had.
You may choose to debrief weeks, months, years or decades after the event. The most important thing is that it feels like the right time.
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No, they are quite different.
The NHS birth debrief service is done by midwives using your medical notes; there’s often an explanatory element to these debriefs (eg: why this or that happened) and is an excellent space for finding answers.
As a doula, my birth debriefs exist outside of the medical space; we focus on perception, emotions, consequences and reactions.
Rather than explain what did happen, my role is to help you make sense of the events that unfolded:
how you felt at the time
how you feel about them now
the consequences of these events
how you want to move forwards
Many of my clients find it beneficial to do a debrief with me before their NHS one to figure out what they want to prioritise in their NHS debrief.
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Yes, absolutely. There is no time limit on when you can do a birth debrief with me.
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Yes, absolutely. Because my debriefs take place online, I am able to offer them to families anywhere in the world.
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Yes, you absolutely can.
Birth debriefs are a great tool for anyone who has experienced birth, either in the first person or as a witness or support to it.
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Yes, I can do birth debriefs in person. If you’d like to do this, contact me directly to arrange times, dates, places and associated costs.
Book Your Birth Debrief
The calendar below shows my most up-to-date availability for birth debriefs.
If the slots don’t work for you, email me directly & we’ll find a time that does.
Before you go, have you thought about…
Finding community & solidarity at ‘The Nest’?
Postpartum doula support to make this period of life feel easier?
Birth doula support for your next pregnancy and delivery?
The postnatal knowledge that helps…
These 7 questions always come up in my antenatal courses and birth prep sessions;if you’re thinking about Truro Birth Center (Treliske Hospital) you need to know the answers.