In 2021, Birthlight will continue working with Amurtel, an NGO that uniquely focuses on the wellbeing of refugee pregnant women and mothers in Greece. Françoise gave a training there last year to empower community leaders in refugee camps to be able to support other women. Next year we would like […]
New Book “Hormonal Harmony” by Susanne Haegele “Hormonal Harmony – A Natural Guide to Women’s Wellbeing” by Susanne Haegele, Birthlight Wellwoman graduate. Puberty, fertility, maternity, menopause… these major phases of a woman’s life have something in common: the deep impact of hormonal changes. This book shows you how to be […]
Fear no more; integrate special babies into your Baby Yoga class with confidence Jay Ehrlich, “Yoga with special babies” tutor Fear … we all feel this from time to time -that is human nature – instinct, but it is what we do with this emotion that counts most.I have worked […]
Jiggles & cuddles help babies grow Baby Yoga is an ideal practice for creating the balance between stimulation and calm that helps babies grow. Finding this balance is of supreme importance during the time of COVID, as we go out less on shorter and rainy days. Our home environments are […]
Spot interview with Dr Stella Acquarone, founder of the Parent-Infant Centre www.infantmentalhealth.com. Stella Acquarone’s pioneering work with parents and infants is relevant to all that we do in Birthlight, but most particularly to Baby Massage/Baby Yoga teachers and Infant Aquatics teachers. Some Birthlight members may remember her inspiring presentation about […]
Francoise Freedman, founder and director of Birthlight, will be a keynote speaker at the upcoming “Birthing the New Humanity” conference. The organisers say … At this time of change and global uncertainty something new is being born within our global family! This positive movement for change: We call it Birthing The […]
‘Don’t you miss that ‘sleep’ at the end of class!?’ Vicky was asking the other mums about Yoga Nidra at the end of the Pregnancy Yoga session when she arrived for her first Baby Massage and Yoga session with young Oliver. She soon realised that indulging in such deep relaxation […]
A new, updated edition of the book “Yoga for Pregnancy, Birth and Beyond” by Francoise Freedman will be coming out in December. This book gives you step-by-step yoga postures specially adapted for each trimester, and relaxation techniques and simple breathing exercises will show you how to adjust to the physical […]
Relaxing jointly with your baby triples benefits. You relax, (s)he relaxes,the two of you relax together. Relaxation is an essential part of all yogapractice: it integrates breath and movement and enlivens the subtle energiesof the body. It is a skill that your baby acquires for life, at a time when […]
The first episode of the ‘Bringing up Britain’ programme (Radio 4 Episode 13 October2020 ) explored various facets of the relentless micro-management and monitoring that are now part and parcel of being a parent. The Helicopter style of parenting, constantly hovering over babies and children, responds to a desire to […]
Liz Doherty Birthlight Pioneer As co-grandmothers, Liz and I started our conversation talking about our grandchildren. Liz has three, from baby to pre-school age. She has been very much involved in her two daughters’ pregnancies and with the babies from birth onwards. She looks after them two days a week […]
With the world’s health jeopardised by the twin threats of Covid-19 and the climate crisis, the range of how we deliver our teaching and training has to be expanded if we are to reach families and teachers effectively. Lockdown revealed a spectrum of approaches to online teaching; from the clammer […]
Kicki Hansard, author, educator, mother and founder of BirthBliss Academy (www.birthblissacademy.com) grew up in Swedish Lapland – the land of the Northern Lights and the midnight sun – on the shores of a lake, surrounded by deep forests. She trained as a doula in 2002 with BOND which was run […]
Founder and Director of Birthlight. She is a pioneer, Senior Yoga Teacher, acclaimed writer and lecturer of Social Anthropology at the University of Cambridge. Françoise interlaces her academic research at Cambridge with Birthlight’s mission. She combines her expertise as a senior yoga teacher, swimmer and birth attendant with new ideas to […]
World Breastfeeding Week is definitely worth universally celebrating -and promoting! – as a key factor for human health and wellbeing The 2020 theme, ‘Breastfeeding for a Healthier Planet’, links infant feeding with ecology. Breastfeeding is linked to all 17 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals not only because it […]
Dianne Garland is an international speaker having travelled and taught in all corners of the world, including India, China, America, Europe and the UK. In 2005 she launched her company Midwifeexpert.com. She can be contacted to book either classes or discuss availability via dianne@midwifeexpert.com Dianne Garland is an international speaker […]
Nurture: nourishing with care and love for growth and abundance. I was fortunate to share the lives of Amazonian indigenous people who showed me nurture in action with their babies and their plants. Daily splash baths for babies, a practice that many groups share in the Amazon basin, are not […]
Introducing new babies to water: the risks of chlorinated swimming pools and the benefits of home tubs In the UK, parents do not need to wait until their babies have completed their immunization. The NHS gives the go ahead for babies to go swimming before vaccinations that generally start at two months […]
The Science, Magic and Nurture of Planet-Wide Baby Holds I have only recently come across ‘The Hold’ promoted by Dr Hamilton, a paediatrician in Santa Monica, California. It has been seen by many people, but I missed it. The Hold is very similar to a practice I learnt from Amazonian […]
Are you thinking about training to be a Baby Swimming instructor or sending staff from your swim school to upgrade skills? Here are 5 reasons why you should go to Birthlight After enjoying having my four children swim like fishes before their fourth birthdays, each in their different styles, as a […]
So much has changed in our lives and around us, so fast, since the beginning of the UK lockdown. I hope that you are finding new sources of creativity each day with your families, rhythms for daily activities and an upbeat spirit. Uncertainty is unfamiliar to most of us, but […]
Birthlight training has a very personal origin. It all started with a small group in Cambridge. In the 1980s, as a young mother, at the prompting of a few friends, I interwove the strands of the rich life I have been blessed with in a small experimental class. I was […]
Motor skills that help human adults enjoy sport and fitness begin in infancy. In the first two years of life, many of the primitive and postural reflexes that cause babies to move involuntarily are integrated and replaced by voluntary movements. In water, new babies’ salamander-like movements that create an illusion […]
Once upon a time, not so long ago, yoga for pregnancy was considered to be dangerous. Birth preparation programs that included exercise were sensational media material. Fathers were still pacing in the corridors of maternity hospitals smoking proverbial cigars. If they were admitted on delivery units, they stood nervously behind […]
Tummy Time helps me develop strong lower back muscles and good head control after birth, but I need you to be involved. Please join me on the floor so we can have fun doing yoga together. I like your cobra pose but watch, I can do it without arms! Recent […]
From the beginning, all Birthlight activities have been in circles, both on land and in water. Circles integrate teacher and students as equals. Teachers are leaders, who stand among their students rather than standing opposite them. This creates empathy and participation all around. In circles, we are connected but we […]