EP29: Emilee Saldaya on Free Birth and Waking Up from the Amnesia of Birth

“Birth is normal and it is biologically meant to work, it can feel incredible and you can have an incredible postpartum; but it takes a level of curiosity, courage and willingness to take responsibility for yourself that we have been hypnotized not to do.”

Emilee Saldaya founder of the Free Birth Society boldly challenges the conventional birth process and refers to the ‘amnesia’ modern women embody when it comes to biological natural birth.  She discusses why birth is a feminist issue, why Free Birth has become more popular, her own birth and postpartum process and the reverence it deserves and why it’s a mother’s right to forego choosing a doctor or midwife to preserve her birth experience.

What You’ll Hear:

-Emilee’s journey attending births, the trauma she witnessed and how it influenced her birth preparation

-How abuse, trauma and lack of consent are normalized in birth setting

-What does the term ‘birthing in captivity’ mean?

-The difference between an unmedicated birth and natural birth

-Unnecessary surgical births and doctor’s incentives

-The connection between birth and feminism

-Emilee’s ethical dilemma with doulas and midwives in the system and her decision to attend and have a Free Birth

-How she defines her role in supporting women in a Free Birth as well as more definitions and range of Free Birthing

-The connection midwifery has to government and how women worldwide are Free Birthing in secret due to lack of support ie; VBAC

-The lack of awareness around the autonomy of our body and the lack of consent we’re accustomed to in medical setting

-Women centered humanized birth, maturation process, forgoing the good girl way and taking responsibility for our birth experience

-Emilee’s move to Maui for her birth and postpartum period and snippets of her birth story and postpartum time

-Birth as a Rite of Passage, being ‘selfish’, planning and prioritizing your birth experience

-Emilee challenges current midwifery, discusses licensing and regulation and the traditional birth attendant

-How Emilee’s birth outcome would have looked had she been in midwifery or OB care vs what she had

-Kimberly’s opinion of midwives

-What Emilee wishes everyone would know about birth, resources about Free Birthing and how to advocate to family and friends

-Emilee distinguishes between power and empowerment

-The amnesia of birthing and working through it collectively