Birth is meant to be sacred. A threshold moment where new life is welcomed through trust, love, and presence. But for too many birthing women today, that vision is disrupted by a harsh reality: abandonment—both emotional and physical—by the very providers meant to support them.
Traditional Birth Attendant Madison Desjarlais calls this “midwifery abandonment,” a painful but clarifying phenomenon she’s witnessed repeatedly across her nearly decade-long practice in British Columbia. Her response? A full-circle return to the roots of birth: ceremony, community, and sovereignty.
When Midwifery Mirrors the System
Though midwifery is often seen as the alternative to hospital-based obstetrics, Madison pulls back the curtain on a troubling trend: Registered midwives bound by institutional protocols, pressured by litigation fears, and ultimately constrained from serving birth as sacred.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Madison saw this firsthand. Clients planning peaceful home births were suddenly rerouted to hospitals in the throes of labor—with midwives refusing to attend at home. “It became clear there was a bait-and-switch,” she explains. “The promise of home birth was conditional. And when it mattered most, they simply didn’t show up.”
This systematic absenteeism opened Madison’s eyes—and galvanized her transition from doula to Traditional Birth Attendant. “It was my clients who gave me permission to stay. They said, ‘We trust you. Stay with us.’ And I did.”
Birth Isn’t Broken—The System Is
What Madison names as “obstetrical violence” isn’t always overt. It’s in the cascade of unnecessary interventions. The quiet coercion to birth in environments that don’t feel safe. The subtle but persistent message that women’s bodies need managing, monitoring, rescuing.
But she offers a radical truth: birth works. “It’s not a pathology. It’s not something to fix,” she says. “It’s a physiological process. And when we stop interfering, when we create the right environment, it flows.”
This means stepping back from clinical routines and stepping into presence. Madison doesn’t offer fetal monitoring, vaginal exams, or medications. What she offers is far more rare: deep trust, ceremonial reverence, and an unwavering belief that women already know how to birth.
The BRAIN Acronym: A Tool for Informed Sovereignty
One powerful way Madison helps families reclaim their agency—especially in medicalized settings—is through the BRAIN acronym:
- Benefits – What are the benefits of this intervention?
- Risks – What are the risks?
- Alternatives – What other options exist?
- Intuition – What is your gut telling you?
- Nothing/Next Steps – What if we wait? Or do nothing right now?
This simple yet profound framework slows down decision-making, especially in environments that push urgency. “Most of the time, birth gives us time,” Madison says. “We just need the space to breathe, to ask questions, to remember we have choices.”
A New Midwifery Rooted in Ceremony
Madison’s approach reclaims an ancient way of being with birth—one where attendants serve the family, not the state. She speaks of birth as ceremony, a portal moment best held by familiar hands, quiet surroundings, and intuitive wisdom.
Her work is now devoted to creating this space through:
- Home birth support rooted in tradition and trust
- Village gatherings that normalize freebirth and wild pregnancy
- The Dream Birth Workbook, a tool for intentional, self-guided preparation
- New online courses to bridge the gap between clinical and sovereign care
Most importantly, she meets families where they are—whether planning a wild freebirth or navigating the hospital system with eyes wide open.
From Fear to Freedom
Too often, birthing families are made to feel small, helpless, and afraid. But as Madison affirms, the tides are shifting. “The pendulum is swinging back,” she says. “We’re remembering. We’re reclaiming.”
And even when birth doesn't go as planned—even when trauma or cesarean birth has come before—there is always a way to reconnect to power. “You did the best you could with what you had,” she reminds families. “Even the desire for a sovereign birth sends a message to your baby: you were loved, you were wanted, you were powerful.”
Midwifery Is Being Reborn
As more women question the medical birth paradigm, the need for authentic, autonomous birth keepers is growing. “I don’t have a license,” Madison says, “but I have presence, trust, and reverence—and for most families, that’s all they need.”
Whether you’re preparing for a home birth, healing from a hospital experience, or wondering how to speak up in a system not built for you—know this: you are not alone. You are not broken. And you were born to birth.
Want to Learn More?
To hear Madison’s full interview and learn more about navigating midwifery abandonment, the BRAIN acronym, and birth as sacred ceremony, listen to the episode “Madison Desjarlais – Midwifery Abandonment” on the Born Wild Podcast.
