WHO ARE WE?
My name is Josie and I am a mother of two beautiful daughters currently living in Australia.
This website is based on my conviction that connected intrinsically to the struggle for women’s equality and freedom and restoration of the Divine Feminine is that elemental act of female power… birth. How we give birth has far-reaching implications, affecting the physiology and psychology of our children’s lives and influencing our mothering; including breastfeeding, attachment and post-natal depression among others. That makes birth not just a women’s issue but also an issue for humanity.
Part of me is angry this significant and sacred event has been exploited and manipulated in the corridors of profit and power. But part of me is also guided (to paraphrase Senor Guevara) by feelings of great love to stand with my sisters across the world in reclaiming, protecting and sanctifying birth once again.
I also believe in the power of women united sharing stories… and by Goddess, pregnant women need to hear the good stuff.
These are books/people/groups that guided and inspired my pregnancy, birth and mothering…so far:
- Basically anything by Sheila Kitzinger
- Fredrick L Boyer ‘Birth without Violence’
- Gowri Motha ‘Gentle Birth’
- Sarah Buckley ‘Gentle Birth Gentle Mothering’
- Sarah Napthali, ‘Buddhism for Mothers’
- James McKenna’s sleep research
- La Leche League
- The websites www.kellymom.com and Ronnie Falco’s www.gentlebirth.org
- Ten Moons The Inner Journey Of Pregnancy The Preparation For Natural Birth by Jane Hardwicke Collings
- Sue Gerhardt, ‘Why Love Matters, how affection shapes a baby’s brain’
- Michel Odent: ‘The Scientification of Love’
- Thomas Verny: ‘Tomorrows Baby: The Art and Science of Parenting from Conception through Infancy’
- Jean Liedlow ‘Continuum Concept’
- William Sears ‘Night-time Parenting Book’
- Dr Harvey Karp ‘Happiest baby on the block’
- Steve Biddulph ‘Should Under Threes go to Nursery?’
- Deepak Chopra ‘Magical Beginnings, Enchanted Lives’
- Meredith F. Small, ‘Our Babies, Ourselves, how biology and culture shape the way we parent’
- Professor Margot Sunderland, ‘The Science of love’
- The work, wisdom and experience of Ina May Gaskin
I wish to express my gratitude to all the divine mother/baby love contributors of the Internet for so many helpful ideas, tips, techniques, specialist knowledge and solidarity.
Big thanks to my dad who built this website in his spare time away from creating new and wondrous theories of evolution and Neanderthals. And to Emily who put the power in empower… thank you so much!
Danny Vendramini is an author, film-maker, photographer, traveller and evolutionary detective. He lives in Sydney and is the author of the acclaimed book “Them and Us” His websites are at www.themandus.org and www.thesecondevolution.com
