Out of the dozens of birth experiences I've witnessed,

there's a common theme I hear often about empowering birth experiences:

Mom had an intimate birth team who she felt safe to be vulnerable around. A team that trusts her intuition, & encourages her to lead.

This is the way women brought our babies into the world for millennia.

humans are innately communal, especially in birth. classical paintings portray birth scenes  with midwives, mothers, and sisters. she had a village that encouraged her to rest. Checked in with her repeatedly, and made sure she was healing. They were women who already played an active role in her life, not a room full of strangers vanishing after the umbilical cord is cut.

Obstetricians shattered this dynamic, and convinced us it was for our own good.

They're still using outdated policies that are no longer backed by scientific research. As Roe v. Wade was overturned, Labor and Delivery units closed en masse, leaving sprawling maternity care deserts in their wake. The providers, administrators, lawyers, & shareholders are prioritized. And mothers are abandoned. In 2020, the United States maternal mortality rate ranked us 65th worldwide, behind 35% of all global nations. For black women, whose maternal mortality rate in 2025 was 46.3 per 100,000 births, they'd be in 90th place - half way down the list.

We are not meant to birth this way.

Women need community.