About me...
I guess you want to know a little bit about me?
It's a long story, but I'll keep it short (kinda)...
After school, my life was all about travelling with my backpack. I didn't want the 'norm' of marriage and kids. I was hungry to dive oceans and climb mountains. I travelled for 4 years around Australia and Asia, picking up jobs along the way. Working as a scuba diving instructor in Thailand and India sparked my interest in teaching (oh yes, those breathing skills underwater defo get mentioned in my birth prep classes!). I also began my massage training in India....it was meant to be!
Then I met Nik and everything changed. Having my own children opened my eyes to the magical world of pregnancy and birth!
Giving birth, and becoming a parent, is a huge journey, a life-changing experience. Sometimes I felt like I was swimming smoothly in the gentle current of those sparkling waves.....other times I felt like I was being dragged along by an underwater monster, with no way of stopping. The ups and downs of parenting are REAL!
Anyway, let's go back to birth...
When I was pregnant with my first baby, Forest, I was scared of birth, shitting my pants. I'd heard so many scary birth stories, including my own 5 sisters' births too!). People just love to tell you all the details don't they? We went along to the midwife's 2 hour birth class which didn't help. Instead it just made us even more scared. She spent the 2 hours showing us the 'tools' they use to drag babies out of vaginas. Eeeeek!
But then I stumbled across HypnoBirthing. Let's just say that Nik wasn't keen when I first told him about this amazing course we could take. He's a Scientist and the word 'hypno' put him right off. It all sounded a bit fluffy and airy-fairy. Of course, I managed to convince him. He didn't fancy watching me suffer during birth, so he agreed to give it a go.
It was awesome! Nik and I learned so much cool stuff. We felt prepared and ready. Ready to be flexible too, which was a good thing as our birth took a turn down a different path, and we ended up having a c-section. But do you know what? I felt so good after the birth that I wanted to spread the HypnoBirthing LOVE and trained as a HypnoBirthing educator!
A couple of years later, and after a move to Singapore, we found out we were pregnant again. Daisy came into this world, was plonked onto my chest, and you know what I said to Nik? 'I want to do that again!' Yep! Daisy's birth was the BEST I could ever imagine. I felt invinsible! VBAC (Vaginal Birth after Caesarean) feels like a huge accomplishment on it's own, but I had birthed her with no pain relief, totally in control and feeling like a POWERFUL human! I felt AMAZING!
Both of my very different births taught me so much. Read more juicy details here: HypnoBirthing births
You know, it's not just about being prepared with information, learning how to breathe, birth positions....the usual stuff....it's about finding the right team too. Building a birth team that supports you in every decision you make, is a birth changer. For real. This is why I became a birth doula. I'm your buddy next to you, on that journey into that unknown world of birth and motherhood, making sure your wishes, choices and decisions are heard, that you feel safe, and giving your partner time to pop out for a pee.
Did you know that in India after a woman has given birth, she'll have a massage every day, for 30 or 40 days? Massage does not only feel frigging AWESOME, it helps healing and helps you feel supported in those crazy first weeks of motherhood.
Babies also LOVE massage! (who doesn't?!) Your baby's first communication tools include touch. Your hands are like magic to your little human...literally magic! I teach baby massage classes privately and in groups. Meeting up with a group of other mama bears, to massage your babies, will feel like a homecoming....having other mums to chat with, to share wins, to share tears. Your tribe.
I remember taking Forest along to baby massage classes, and every single time he would decide that the nice clean towel was the best place to have a poop. Then I saw that all the other babies were doing it!
And when it all gets a bit too much? You can reach out to me as your postnatal doula, to help you through the first few weeks/months of motherhood. Growing your little human takes a team, a village.
I'm grateful to have helped 1000's of families while I lived in Singapore, the UK, and now here in The Netherlands, feel supported in their huge journey of pregnancy, birth and motherhood
I'm here for you!
Miranda
Training and Education:
Ayurvedic massage course - India (2004)
Introductory Thai massage - Thailand (2003)
Level 3 Holistic Massage (ITEC) course - UK (2009)
Pregnancy, labour & Postnatal massage (FHT, CThA, IICT) course - UK (2016)
Advanced Deep Tissue massage & Trigger Point Therapy course (FHT, CThA) - UK (2016)
Warm Bamboo Massage course - UK (2017)
HypnoBirthing (The Mongan Method) Educator training (& yearly updates) - UK (2012)
Developmental Baby Massage teacher training (Peter Walker) - UK (2017)
Doula Training (Foundation & Advanced) - The Netherlands (2018)
Spinning Babies Workshop - The Netherlands (2019)
Acupressure for Birth - (2019)
Postnatal Support Network summit - The Netherlands (2021)
Pregnancy Relaxation Script workshop - UK (2020)
Pregnancy & birth Aromatherapy diploma - UK (2020)
PAIL Advocate pregnancy & infant loss awareness - Online (2020)
Coaching Skills for birth professionals - The Netherlands (2021)
Infant Massage teacher training (To Baby & Beyond) - UK (2021)
Baby Yoga teacher training (To Baby & Beyond) - UK (2022)
Toddler Yoga teacher training (To Baby & Beyond) - UK (2022)
Postnatal Doula training (Newborn Mothers) - (2023)
Postpartum Education & Care Professional training (Newborn Mothers) - in progress