"Four years ago, three Australian women embarked on a mission to find out why an increasing number of women were emerging from their births physically and emotionally traumatised.
After interviewing and filming, women, midwives, maternity leaders and commentators in Australia and elsewhere in the world, they came to the conclusion that the modern maternity system is broken. It has become normal to disregard the importance of a woman’s experience of birth and the impact this experience has on the way she navigates through the rest of her life. In most developed countries, women are experiencing incredibly high intervention rates during their pregnancies and births, yet this is not leading to better short or long term outcomes for them or their babies
Globally, women have lost connection and trust in one of the most transformative, powerful, primal and pivotal rites of passage they will ever undertake.
Birth Time is a movement striving to change the fear and control based practices and politics governing maternity care provision throughout the world.
Birth Time aims to stimulate conversations that empower women, their partners’ and maternity care providers, to trust and celebrate women’s ability to grow, birth and mother their babies.
Birth Time challenges the dominant narrative and management model for pregnancy, labour, birth and mothering, encouraging women, maternity care providers, maternity institutions and funders to design and fund models and care facilities that reflect the needs of women and protect and promote the normal physiology of pregnancy, labour and birth and mothering.
It is time to give birth, it is BIRTH TIME".
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I am so proud to have hosted the one off screening of this powerful documentary, here in Wellington, Roxy Cinema, Miramar, Wednesday 14th April, 7:30pm. I couldn't have done it without the help of Vida Rye, Suzi Hume and Rachel Brown, and the doula community.
To find out more please visit the official website To view the trailer click here.
IF YOU MISSED OUT THERE IS A SCREENING IN UPPER HUTT, Thu, May 13, 2021 6:15PM! TICKETS AVAILABLE HERE https://tickets.demand.film/event/10828
Want to help? Use your voice here...
Be part of an Action planning group for your area! On Thursday 20th May 2021 at 7:30pm we will be discussing the documentary feedback and creating an action plan via an open Zoom meeting here. You are very welcome to join the zoom. https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81269385438
You can share your feedback/reflections on the documentary here https://forms.gle/5rELrMUiVcgDSPez6
Current Online Petitions in NZ:
Petition of Kirsten Van Newtown: Save our maternity sector from crisis
https://www.birthtime.world/action-steps
Have you been upset/distressed by what you have seen? You can access support here....
Anna's Birth Services Traumatic Birth Recovery
https://www.mybirthstory.org.nz/
https://www.littleshadow.org.nz/
1737 number for free phone support
Thank you to our panelists who included:
Monica Power (she / her) - Parent.
Having experienced x5 extremely different births, ranging from a peaceful home birth through to recently navigating a clinical high risk pregnancy, Monica believes strongly in the importance of informed choice and holding space for parents and baby at the centre of the birth experience. Monica has worked in the education sector for over 20 years and lives the happy blended whānau life in Lyall Bay.
Anna Driver (she / her) - Birth Worker
Anna passionately believes that all births can be transformational, and that parents have the right to the best possible birth for them; if postnatal emotional and mental wellness and parenting are going to get off to the best start.
As such, Anna is very grateful to have the opportunity to support the Wellington and Hutt birthing community with multiple offerings.
Anna is a dedicated accredited birth doula and qualified KGHypnobirthing teacher; running courses in Wellington. She also supports parents postnatally with the 3 Step Rewind program to help bring relief from symptoms of trauma following a difficult/traumatic birth. Anna is also a committed facilitator for Birth Wise, and a new volunteer supporting young Mums at House of Grace.
Prior to the homebirths of her two children, Anna was a practicing social worker with experience in Family Support and CCDHB mental health service.
Mark Huthwaite (he / him) - Perinatal Psychiatrist
Dr. Huthwaite is a senior lecturer in psychiatry in the Department of Psychological Medicine and the Associate Dean of Student Affairs at the University of Otago, Wellington. He is also a perinatal psychiatrist in CCDHB’s Regional Specialist Maternal Mental Health Service and is a committee member of the RANZCP’s Special Interest Group in Perinatal and Infant Psychiatry. Mark is a founding member of the World Maternal Mental Health Day Committee. He has published research on sleep in pregnancy, the use of psychotropic medication in pregnancy and the use of hypnosedative medication. He has extensive experience in the field of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and the management thereof.
Deb Beatson - Midwife
"Tenā koutou, Ko Deb Beatson tōku ingoa. I am the new CMM of Te Awakairangi Birthing Centre, alongside Eleanor Martin. I have practiced for many years in Whanganui, both as an LMC and a core midwife and have also worked as a caseloading midwife in a birth centre in Brisbane. For the past 11 years I have worked as a kaiako/lecturer for Otago Polytechnic School of Midwifery. I’m passionate about supporting whānau to make informed decisions about their experience and ways to support normal physiology. Nāku, nā, Deb"
Ngarangi Pritchard - Midwife
Kakanui te maunga
Matariwa te punawai
Mataatua te waka
Te Ehutu te hapu
Te Kaha te marae
Te Wha ̅nau A Apanui me Ngati Porou oku iwi
Ko Ngarangi Pritchard ahau.
I have worked in women’s health for 47 years and as a midwife for 26 years. I have had the privilege of caring for Ma ̅ori and Pacific wha ̅nau as a Midwife. Working in partnership with my people is what fills my kete and is what has kept me sustainable in this profession.
Ed Hyde (he / him) - Obstetrics and Gynaecology specialist
I am an obstetrics and gynaecology specialist working at Hutt Hospital; I am British by birth and Kiwi by choice. I studied medicine at the University of Bristol and emigrated to Aotearoa New Zealand in 2007. My specialist training took me to a wide variety of secondary and tertiary hospitals across New Zealand. I am married and we have a son. My interests include high-risk pregnant care, perinatal mental health, postgraduate trainee supervision, clinical governance and quality improvement.
I am passionate about providing evidenced-based individualised pregnancy care and improving health equity and justice for the pregnant people / women / wāhine of the Hutt Valley. I believe in the power of listening to pregnant people and respecting their perspectives, beliefs and concerns. I want people to be able to make the right choices for them, by helping them become empowered in their decision-making, and to feel safe in their birth.
Rachel Brown (she / her) - MC and moderator of the panel.
Rachel Brown has worked in the perinatal space since she had her first son almost 15 years ago.
She is a long standing facilitator and board member at Birth Wise Wellington, delivering antenatal education to expectant parents across the Wellington area.
She has a Masters in Counselling and works in both private practise and for Little Shadow, where she offers counselling to new and expectant parents and couples who are struggling across the perinatal phase.
She has three sons, all of whom totally delight and wow her.
Thank you so much to our sponsors.....
Much love,
Anna xx
BA (Hons), MSC Social Work, Dip(KGH)
