80 Best Natural Birthing Blogs
If you are considering a natural birth, as more and more women are these days, then the following resources will be invaluable for you. Covering subjects such as hypnosis, midwives, and doulas, and in formats from blogs to podcasts to videos, these websites should help you work out what the best birthing experience could be for you.
| General Natural Birth Blogs | Doula |
| Natural Birthing Stories | Lamaze |
| Hypnosis | Podcasts and Videos |
| Midwifery | Other Birth-Related Blogs |
General Natural Birth Blogs
1. Active Birth Centre
Janet Balaskas is the founder of active birth, a method of delivery in which the woman is encouraged to move freely while spending the duration of labor and birth in an upright position. The site offers a free newsletter as well as information on yoga for pregnancy, professional training, and natural pregnancy approaches.
2. Better Birth
Mary, the author of this blog, is a former doula and now a Certified Professional Midwife. She is a passionate birth activist, dedicated to educating women about their bodies, abilities, and choices surrounding childbirth.
3. Birth Activist
This blog has offered stories, videos, and opinions about labor and birth since 2005. It’s a great place to learn about hot topics and trends in birthing, including product recalls, industry studies, and lighthearted parody videos.
4. Birth Sense
Described as “a common-sense guide to normal birth,” this blog offers straightforward advice on having a healthy birth. Topics covered include prenatal care, home birth, and newborns.
5. Birth Network National
In addition to hosting an informative blog, this website promotes mother-friendly care, encouraging safe, healthy, and cost-effective childbirth. As a national network, it also has local chapters throughout the country bringing birth activists together.
6. Born Free!
‘If you want the job done right…do it yourself,’ proclaims Laura Shanely, an unassisted childbirth advocate. Her website offers safety information, stories, and articles for those with a do-it-yourself attitude.
7. Natural Childbirth
Founded in 1999, NaturalChildbirth.org is operated by Alison Haasch, a licensed midwife in Arizona. She created the blog with the goal of making it the largest online resource for those interested in natural childbirth education and midwifery. Check here for a continuously growing collection of resources for birth professionals.
8. Empowered Birth
After experiencing a cesarean, this blog’s author decided not only to deliver her next child at home, but also to become a midwifery student. Read about her experiences, and her tips on how to make birth an empowering experience.
9. Fearless Birth
A blog that encourages women to take control of their birthing process. Posts are often political and written from a strongly held viewpoint.
10. First the Egg
A self-proclaimed “feminist resource on pregnancy, birth, and parenting,” this blog takes an empowering approach to pregnancy. Visitors are presented with links, practical information, and cultural commentary.
11. Giving Birth Naturally
This blog is written by a mother of three who delivered her youngest in an unassisted home birth. She aims to educate women about the choices surrounding natural birth, and includes a vast collection of articles and resources.
12. Instinctual Birth
This blog believes that just as we instinctively know how to breathe, we instinctively know how to birth. Posts cover unassisted natural births and breastfeeding.
13. Mother’s Choice
A mother of two who chose a natural home birth for her second child, after receiving a cesarean during her first, writes this blog. She’s now a natural birth advocate, and shares her experiences, studies, and research with her readers.
14. Pushed Birth
A pushed birth is one that is induced or heavily medicated without due cause. This blog challenges induced labor, and explains the benefits of natural childbirth.
15. Spinning Babies
A detailed website that teaches Optimal Fetal Positioning. Step-by-step guides, complete with pictures, demonstrate how to gain the ideal fetus position for both pregnancy and labor.
16. Spirit-Led Birth
“Inspiring women to apply faith to their childbirth:” this blog offers a spiritual perspective. Read the author’s informative and inspiring experiences, insights, and birth stories.
17. Stand and Deliver
This blog’s author earned a Ph.D. in American studies and wrote her dissertation about the modern unassisted birth movement. Blog posts cover pregnancy, childbirth, and mothering.
18. Maternal Health Issues
A network of women discusses critical and everyday birth issues here, as visitors connect with one another in a site that is part of the online community BlogHer. Read the posts, ask questions, and interact with other members.
19. Crunchy Domestic Goddess
Amy Gates, a mother of two living in Colorado, is passionate about home birth, natural family living, and all things “crunchy.” Read her blog posts about natural birth and raising healthy kids.
Natural Birthing Stories
20. BirthNaturally
This blog believes childbirth shouldn’t be a battle and encourages women to enjoy their baby’s birth. Read inspirational stories about natural childbirth methods along with tips and personal experiences from the author.
21. Childbirth Connection
A national not-for-profit organization, this website promotes safe and effective evidence-based maternity care. Read others’ stories about natural birth, and make use of resources discussing topics such as labor pain, VBACS, and labor support.
22. Have a Natural Childbirth
Created by a coalition of doulas, midwives, and other natural childbirth advocates, this blog helps visitors discover the joys of natural childbirth. Read first-hand stories of natural births as well as posts about common misconceptions.
23. Café Mom
Enjoy these personal stories from mothers and pregnant women. Visit the forums on this site and ask the community any question you have. They even allow members to post pictures.
24. Pregnancy, Birth, and Babies
More than 250 women have shared their positive birth stories on this site, along with tips and birth videos. Read about birth and how it can be an enjoyable and comfortable experience.
25. Refuse To Be a Womb Pod
The personal story of a mother who experienced a cesarean section during her first birth and delivered her second two naturally. Read and learn from her first-hand insight and knowledge.
26. The Trial of Labor
This blogger shares her struggles with miscarriage openly and honestly, and presents her opinions on the issues surrounding childbirth. Blog posts cover VBACS, pregnancy loss, and cesarean awareness advocacy.
27. Women in Charge
This blog aims to empower and encourage women to take charge of their bodies, babies, and births. Experience the birth journeys of women through their stories and pictures.
Hypnosis
28. Hypnobabies Blog
This blog encourages mothers to enjoy their baby’s birth in comfort and joy. It is published by Hypnobabies, and you can read here about their techniques and stories.
29. Hypnosis for Birth
An online space where readers can learn the skills needed to approach pregnancy and birth with calmness and peace. Topics include hypnosis for birth, research on the subject, and stress.
30. Hypnosis Downloads
A collection of hypnosis podcasts that visitors may download. These help listeners deal with pregnancy, childbirth, pain relief, and other related issues.
31. Canberra Natural Birth HypnoBirthing
Published by a hypnosis center in Australia, this blog promotes safe and comfortable natural births. Learn about hypnosis and get answers to common questions.
32. HypnoBirthing Stories
A collection of first-hand accounts from parents who used hypnosis techniques during birth. The site offers a practitioner directory, along with a question and answer forum.
33. Enjoy Birth
Sheridan, a birth hypnosis instructor, educates expecting mothers and those who support them. Learn how to encourage and comfort mothers during un-medicated births.
Midwifery
34. Belly Tales
Entitled “The Diary of a Midwife,” this blog presents the chronicles of a student midwife before and after graduation. She provides news, information, and resources along with her personal thoughts and opinions.
35. Birthfriend
This blogger is a distance-learning student attending the Ancient Art Midwifery Institute. She enjoys educating parents, and blogs about homebirth, breastfeeding, and midwifery.
36. Birthworks
Midwife Stacey Haugland blogs about her experiences with prenatal care, homebirths, and water births. Posts also include commentary on postpartum care and breastfeeding support for childbearing families.
37. Bloody Show
A direct-entry midwifery student blogs about class, race, gender, and other societal issues as they relate to health and birth. Go here for great political commentary.
38. Gloria Lemay
A childbirth activist and contributing editor of Midwifery Today Magazine offers her opinion on emerging news. Her passions include homebirth, breastfeeding, and the holistic education of midwives and doulas.
39. Hands for Catching
Read about the life of a midwife-in-training as this blogger becomes licensed as a Certified Nurse Midwife. She encourages aspiring and current nurse-midwife students to contact and connect with her.
40. Homebirth: Midwife Mutiny
Lisa, an Australian midwife, provides one-on-one services in the homes of her clients. She shares stories of her midwifery practice as well as news, videos, and photographs.
41. Jan Tritten’s Blog
A “home for friends of birth,” this blog offers forums for community discussion to take place. Topics include midwifery, birth stories, and questions posted by users.
42. Meconium Happens
A midwife, who has birthed eight babies of her own, shares stories from her professional and personal life. As she has personally experienced hospital, at-home, vaginal, and c-section births, she is able to provide a lot of insight.
43. Midwife Q & A
A question and answer forum on the website of the movie "The Business of Being Born." Read answers to submitted questions and check out their birth resources section.
44. Midwife with a Knife
The chronicles of a “young old-fashioned obstetrician” located in the Midwest. Training to be a perinatologist, she shares her life and professional experiences.
45. Midwifery is Catching
Read the blog of one woman following her calling to be a midwife. This author holds strong opinions, and considers today’s society to be medicalised, Westernised, and traumatized.
46. Radical Midwife
A homebirth midwife based in Oregon who believes that sane midwifery has become a radical thought. She shares her views on various topics, but has a special interest in breech births and water births.
47. Sarah Stewart
A blog for the modern midwife, this author incorporates social media into the discussion of midwifery. Read how tools like Twitter and Facebook can be incorporated into the birthing process.
48. The Midwives of Bethany Womens Healthcare
On this blog, the nurse-midwives of Bethany Womens Healthcare share their thoughts, education, and adventures. In addition to giving personal commentary, they also post articles and videos.
49. Village Midwife
A midwife since 1973, this blog’s author has practiced independently, and has been attending births in homes since 1993. She blogs in order to share her professional knowledge with future generations.
50. Mom’s Tinfoil Hat
A "hippie idealist" mother of two who trained as a midwife, and delivered her own babies with midwives. She is currently in medical school studying to become an Ob/Gyn.
Doula
51. Birthing Beautiful Ideas
A feminist doula and future lactation educator offers her advice and experiences. Working on a Ph.D. in philosophy, this mother is a birth and breastfeeding advocate.
52. Dou-La-La
A birth advocate, postpartum doula, and birth doula in training takes you along her journey as she explores the world of natural birth. This is the blog to visit for fun popular culture commentary.
53. MotherWit
Lesley Everest, a mother of four living in Canada, blogs about doula care and doula training. Her life mission is to contribute to the healing of “our wounded birth culture.”
54.Vancouver Doula
Jacquie Munro supports couples throughout their pregnancies and lets readers in on the experience. Having provided care to more than 800 women, and having taught thousands of expectant parents, she has much advice to offer.
55. Bellies and Babies
Written by a doula who is apprenticing to become a midwife, the posts on this blog are from a Christian-feminist perspective. In addition to having good articles, this blog is a great source of giveaways and prizes.
56. Radical Doula
A reproductive justice activist, and a doula since 2004, Miriam works with the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, and is an editor at Feministing. A great recurring feature on the blog is the “Radical Doula Profile,” in which doulas throughout the country are interviewed and featured.
57. Doulicia
This site is written by a mother, labor doula, and non-practicing lawyer who blogs from Michigan. Along with doula commentary, readers are exposed to her love of knitting.
58. Patti Ramos
Patti is a birth doula, childbirth educator, and photographer, and she publishes this blog from Washington State. Abundant in photographs, her blog is the place to go for an up-close look at birth.
59. Pittsburgh Doula Vanessa
This mom, wife, and doula, is passionate about all things birth-related. Her posts are informative yet relatable; she even blogged about The Office’s Pam and Jim’s pregnancy!
Lamaze
60. Giving Birth with Confidence
Run by Lamaze, this blog answers reader-submitted questions about the technique. Members can also participate in discussion groups and share their experiences with one another.
61. LoveToKnow
The pregnancy section of this website has a whole page dedicated to Lamaze. Learn about the childbirth classes and what to expect, and check out other pregnancy categories such as health and medications.
62. Science & Sensibility
From Lamaze International, this is a research-based blog about healthy pregnancy and birth. Highly discussed topics are cesarean sections, maternity care systems, and understanding research.
63. Lamaze International
Lamaze’s official website, where they promote a natural and safe approach to pregnancy. You should visit this site if you are interested in how to become a certified instructor.
Podcasts and Videos
64. A Child Birth
An online collection of childbirth related videos. This site includes an umbilical cord video gallery, and unassisted childbirth videos, among others.
65. Ask Mom RN Show
This podcast broadcast, by Blog Talk Radio, is hosted by a pediatric nurse. Listen as Tamara offers advice and support to her callers, and perhaps even dial in yourself.
66. Bellycast
Tune in to this podcast for the latest news of interest to expectant mothers and new parents. This program is created by a certified lactation counselor, midwife, and doula; and is accompanied by a list of relevant articles.
67. Bellies to Birthcast
As part of Giving Birth Naturally’s website, this podcast takes on issues surrounding natural childbirth. Past episodes have discussed issues such as home birth after 35, and choosing home birth after a hospital birth.
68. CertifiedHealthNut
Troy Casey, the host of Discovery’s Planet Green, has over two thousand subscribers to his YouTube channel. Covering all things natural, this channel includes some amazing water birth videos.
69. Smartbirth
Although it has been a while since the last episode, this podcast does remain current. Discussions include topical issues such as postpartum depression and childbirth classes.
70. Rev. Zoe Weston
Rev. Weston is an anthropologist specializing in birth culture, and an international prenatal expert. In these episodes, she discusses the latest in natural pregnancy and birth, and features commentary by industry experts.
71. Timely Topics in Childbirth
Broadcasting from her Celebration of Birth and Life’s website, Celesta speaks on her experiences as a licensed midwife. She has lectured internationally at conferences and workshops.
72. Video of Birth
View up-close—potentially graphic—videos of natural water births, as well as videos of couples discussing why and how they decided to give birth submerged in water. Updates, with videos of the couples discussing the water birth after the event, are also posted.
73. Childbirth Video
A collection of various childbirth videos, including natural births and even cesarean sections. This website even includes 3-D animated videos.
Other Birth-Related Blogs
74. At Your Cervix
A blog by a registered nurse about her experiences working in the labor and delivery unit of a large teaching hospital. She also talks about her gastric bypass surgery and weight loss.
75. Bradley Method
The official website of the Bradley method, which is a natural childbirth technique. Get the answers to commonly asked questions about the system, and learn how to become an instructor.
76. Homebirth Debate
Learn the arguments behind those opposed to homebirths on this blog. Dr. Amy Tuteur, an obstetrician, claims to monitor misinformation about the subject.
77. ICAN Twin Cities
The Minneapolis/St. Paul chapter of the International Cesarean Awareness Network has a blog in order to educate women about cesarean sections. They support women who are hoping to avoid a cesarean, recovering from a cesarean, or planning a vaginal birth after a cesarean.
78. Motherlode Blog
The New York Times Magazine’s section on parenting and pregnancy, written by Lisa Belkin. Readers are advised on topics such as morning sickness, pregnancy and depression, and pregnancy’s affect on the body.
79. Natural Family Blog
Already an author of three books about home birth, Jenny Hatch continues the discussion on her family blog. Read about living and birthing naturally, the Hatch family, and politics.
80. Natural Parenting Forums
A website that goes well beyond natural birth, and into the world of natural parenting. Visitors to the site will find a community of parents answering each other’s questions in the forum; articles; and cool tools like a due-date calculator.