Slow birth
I had a fairly smooth pregnancy. Other than feeling quite sick for the first half, it was rather uneventful, though definitely not an experience I loved. I was grateful for a healthy pregnancy and for…
I had a fairly smooth pregnancy. Other than feeling quite sick for the first half, it was rather uneventful, though definitely not an experience I loved. I was grateful for a healthy pregnancy and for…
I feel so fortunate for having had such a great pregnancy. Aside from months 2 and 3 when I felt nauseous, tired, and craved dim sum and pizza all the time, pregnancy was wonderful. I…
I am so excited to share the story of Maggie’s birth. More than 16 months after her birth, it’s ready for sharing! It took 5 months to write, and another 11 months to post! It’s…
Trusting birth. How do you figure out if a VBAC is right for you and your family. We spent many hours going over the risks of VBAC and how to feel safe letting your body…
The following story was written by Dawn, one of my favourite midwives, a birthing mother, wife, sister, daughter, community member, and close friend. She is sharing her story, so you can learn about death, perinatal loss, and Audrey's…
As the sun came up I rushed out to BC Women's Hospital to meet my client birthing her third baby. I didn't get a chance to meet this family before labour started even so I was quickly welcomed into their birth…
Barto guarding the belly and the house. Their doula arrives. Their midwife arrives. Barto keeping watch. Just before they meet their baby. Almost 4 KG! Welcome to the world little one. "Morag is…
Sometimes first-time mom's birth their babies quickly. A quick first birth is often under 10 hours from start to finish. I knew when my client's husband texted me with their contraction chart showing that contractions…
I love it when I get a message from M. that they are having another baby and I am invited to take birth photographs at their home birth. They have used the same midwives and…
To give birth, you must dive headfirst into the great mystery. Your body transforms, a new being emerges, life is never again the same. But we can't say how it will happen. And if…
It is pretty special when you get to photograph a fellow doula's birth. What a beautiful relationship this family has and what a wonderful way to bring their second son into the world. I was…
The night before Halloween my client welcomed her second baby into the world at 42 weeks and 3 days. She birthed her baby surrounded by her family. What a wonderful way to be brought into…
After many days and hours working through her birth at home, we headed to the hospital. After anther day at the hospital it was time to head to the OR to meet their baby. …
“There is a secret in our culture, and it’s not that birth is painful. It’s that women are strong.” ~ Laura Stavoe Harm When you feel the waves of contractions days and weeks before your…
Last week I got to attend this very special birth, my doula sister birthed her first baby into her hands just as the sun was about to set. Welcome to the world sweet girl. Ready…
My client had a fast and furious second birth this past week. I will be honest when I walked into the room and saw her in this gorgeous dress I was hoping the baby…
The love in this birth movie is so powerful you might find yourself drenched with tears. Grab yourself a tissue, get cozy and watch as my friend births her third baby in her living room surrounded…
E. & R.'s Home Birth Story E: I woke up in the middle of the night on Wednesday with contractions about 10 mins apart. I tried to get some sleep and by morning they were…
There is something very special with raising your family in the house you grew up in. Now imagine birthing your baby in the very same house. I felt so honoured to get to attend this…
Sometimes first births go really fast. This was my first birth of 2016, it sure started the year off with a bang! I joined my clients at home, within an hour I could tell it…
There is nothing more surprising than needing an induction, especially when you are expecting a 2016 baby. Instead they had their son just in time for Christmas, in 2015. After a night of magical hospital medication the contractions…
We made it to the hospital just as things started to progress really fast. The birth room was not ready so we had to make due in the assessment room. We thought for a little bit…
One of my best friends met her dream man, they fell in love and made a baby. I was so honoured to get to attend their home birth as their doula and birth photographer. Watching the love…
I was lucky to attend a birth this week with Natalie from Birth and Beyond, a midwifery clinic located in UBC. This mom was working hard to bring her baby into the world when I arrived. She…
I love getting asked back to my clients second and third births. I wonder if I will be asked to attend a fourth sometime. This client, who feels more like a friend at this point,…
It is a pretty big honour to be invited to a fellow birth workers birth, especially when the mom is a fellow Vancouver birth photographer! After being on vacation for the summer coming home to…
It all started early on Canada Day 2015. My client texted me in the morning to let me know her pressure waves had started. She also mentioned that she was hosting a Canada Day BBQ…
I received this beautiful email this morning. I know the images I take help my clients process their births, but when I get these emails, I really know my job choice is the right career path…
My first son’s birth was complicated. I didn't expect any of it. "They" said it would start slowly, that I could relax and take a nap, maybe do a labour activity. None of that happened.…
On the Easter weekend, my client texted me in the morning to let me know her water had broke. She was feeding her two year old breakfast when it happened, as she stood up from…
Two years ago in Vancouver, BC I attended a beautiful fast home water birth that was quick and powerful. I was contacted about 8 months ago to document this families second birth. There is nothing better…
I was at this little girls birth two years ago in the same room her sister was born. On January 17, 2015 in the wee hours of the morning we witnessed this wonderful family bringing in…
My birth was 66 hours long so I am feeling overwhelmed at how to write it all down. Things started gently Sunday night, I made groaning cake in between waves. Hubby and I were excited…
Much of the end of pregnancy is spent wondering when and how labour will start, just waiting for that first contraction. When my blood pressure started to go up at the end of pregnancy, we…
I connected with this wonderful dedicated family earlier this year. Their goal was to have a vaginal birth after caesarean (VBAC). They decided they were going to relocate to our city right before their due date…
This is dad checking out his daughters head in a mirror before she was born. With every push his smile would grow bigger and bigger. Then the moment he catches his daughter and places her…
I got to attend this beautiful home water birth earlier this week. This mom filled her apartment with a group of fully supportive, loving friends and family to bring her through the process of birthing…
On a beautiful early summer day in Vancouver, labour began slow and steady. Soon to be big brother, dug in the garden and ate freshly picked raspberries, while his mom worked hard to bring his…
I get invited into one of the most private and special times in a families life. I am always in awe in how beautiful the process of birth is. The strength, the connection, the power…
I love it when my clients share their birth stories with me and the public. It can be so inspiring to hear how other women did it. It is something we miss out on when…
Welcome to the world. It was such an honor to be at your birth. Now they are eight. To read another inspiring home birth story here. Morag Hastings is a Doula and Birth Photographer located in Vancouver,…
It all began on a Tuesday. At 41 + 1 weeks I was starting to worry that the babe would not arrive within the 42 weeks of pregnancy. I had an acupuncture treatment and then…
What is the Best Doula Training Program in the Lower Mainland? What is the difference between a midwife and a doula? A doula is an unregulated industry. Anyone can be a doula, they do not…
As a new doula owning and offering your own birth pool setup is a fantastic value add for clients. You can put together a kit at not much expense and it quickly pays for itself, either as an inclusion within a slightly higher overall fee or as an optional add-on fee that clients can choose. Hiring a doula that will bring a birth pool and take care of all the logistics is an appealing choice for clients rather than having to source all the equipment themselves.
As a birth photographer and doula , in Vancouver B.C., I have documented and supported well over a 150 families giving birth. Over the last 3 years the importance of delayed cord clamping for longer than 'until the cord stops pulsing' period has…