In 2019 I had the honour to become an approved Spinning Babies ® trainer. There are 13 approved Spinning Babies ® trainers internationally. I am so excited to be facilitating Spinning Babies ® workshops nationally and internationally. I am also so privileged to be offering one-to-one bodywork sessions with my knowledge of the Spinning Babies paradigm and experience with Biodynamic Craniosacral therapy. I love seeing how effective simple, gentle bodywork can be for improving comfort in pregnancy and ease in birth. I also feel really honoured to be presenting at conferences both nationally and internationally.
The innovation: What was the biggest breakthrough for you with your business?
Watching women breakthrough and find their voice, their roar, their power and their courage to be vulnerable and receive, and watching women breakthrough to come into loving relationship with their bodies and their own power are the breakthroughs that keep me going.
Yin and Yang: How do you balance work and family?
I have an amazing supportive partner and children. They have been incredibly fluid and accommodating of my mahi (work). Over the last few years, in response to their requests I have changed how I work. Midwifery can be challenging for family life. For me, midwifery and my mahi is not ‘work’ but a life calling. It’s a constant juggling and awareness of balance to keep the needs of mahi and family in balance.
As a family we have rhythms and rituals (like pancakes on Sunday) that feel important to honour. I try to stay present and in connection with my partner and children so I can roll with the dance of our family and its changing rhythms.
The drive: What challenges have you overcome?
My drive and what keeps me going is a deep devotion to honouring women: the reclamation of their own power, pleasure and wisdom of their own bodies. Imagine if the collective and individual shame that so many women carry could dissipate, imagine the power, pleasure and exuberance we could share individually and collectively – a deep trust in the rhythms of nature and the intelligence of our physiology and a desire to acknowledge this intelligence.
I love seeing the effects on a mother, baby and family when they come through the birth experience with a sense of intact sovereignty and seeing how effective simple, gentle techniques can be.
The challenges are the juggle of mahi and family.
For better or worse: What are the pros and cons of running your own business?
The pros are the independence and freedom of how I structure my time and being able to live a life that feels deeply rich.
The cons are that being on call as a midwife can be tiring; however, it is also a wonderful lesson in rolling with and surrendering to the universal flow.
Hopes and dreams: What next?
I would like to offer more in-depth one-to-one bodywork sessions as a Spinning Babies ® Aware Practitioner. I would also like to move into sharing and supporting parent educators with the Spinning Babies ® Certified Parent Educator trainings.
Visit the Spinning Babies website to find out more about their workshops. Or learn more about Claire and the wonderful work she does here.
