This book is for you if:

You have ever given birth

You have ever compared your birth experience with someone else’s

You never had the time to reflect on the life-changing experience of birth and the post-partum period

You have ever felt shame or guilt about your birth experience or parenting choices,

or that you ‘don’t want to make a fuss’

You want to take control of your birth story and find your confidence in the fourth trimester and beyond

You are wondering how to have an empowering and positive birth experience in the future

This book is for you.

From the moment we are born and throughout our lives, one of our biggest wishes is to be heard. As babies we cry, as toddlers we may throw ourselves down in rage. Throughout our lives, this need shows up in different ways, but the desire is the same: as human beings we need to be listened to, to be validated and to be understood. Whether your birthing plan got thrown out of the window or the birth was seemingly straightforward, childbirth and early parenthood are some of the most transformational, mind and body experiences you can ever undertake, but so often we aren’t afforded the time and space to reflect and reframe those experiences. The pressure to adjust, to be ok, to ignore any difficult emotions and to get on with it can be stifling. The Birth Debrief is here to help.

In her work as a Midwife specialising in post-partum recovery and care, Illiyin facilitates birth debriefs, seeking to empower women and birthing people of all backgrounds to take control of their experiences, feel seen and centred in their pregnancies and births, normalising conversations around birth trauma and healing and examining the nuances that are associated with it. Time and time again, it is the lack of advocacy, autonomy, control or consent, rather than the physical aspect of the birth that lingers and informs parenthood. Split into three main sections of Birth, The Postnatal Period and Beyond the Fourth Trimester, The Birth Debrief will offer practical solutions to navigating pregnancy and transitioning into postpartum life, well beyond those first six weeks.