The Midwives Association of BC went above and beyond with their FNHA Winter Wellness Grant delivering three winter birth storytelling events in Penticton, Victoria and Vancouver this past season.
"We’ve never had a gathering like this before to talk about this and I don’t know why because it’s so important. We should do this more." – Mother
The Winter Birth Storytelling Events focused on all FNHA wellness streams by promoting traditional protocols for healthy pregnancy and parenting. Beyond the usual pregnancy topics of nutrition, activity and gestational diabetes, these wellness events looked at traditional teachings and protocols about wellness habits in pregnancy, birth and parenting to add culture and context to why these activities are important and what they mean for healthy beginnings and healthy lives. Elders and Aboriginal midwives shared stories and knowledge, and participants were also welcomed to share.
"This kind of event is valuable and beneficial for the community because it gave us a space to share our stories in an open and safe way, and in a way that highlighted the importance of pregnancy and birthing. Lots of ideas started to come out about what we can do to support our women better through the process, and what feedback we can start to give the health system to make birthing a community event that welcomes our babies in a good way. It was agreed that there had not previously been a space made to have these conversations, and that there was a need to share stories and often heal from our experiences. A lot of positive words of encouragement were shared, and sharing the teachings keeps the culture embedded in our lives in in the ways we do things from day to day, such as how we behave when we are pregnant or how we raise our children. Everyone was very grateful for the opportunity to gather and share." – Evelyn Harney
This is an important winter wellness event as our stories and knowledge in many of our communities are traditionally shared during winter in this way. Bringing back or reemphasizing the importance of protocols such as using kindness and gentleness towards pregnant women, traditional medicines and traditional baby welcoming are ways we can all foster long-term wellness for everyone in our communities.
"The first birth I attended in the community was really special to me because I knew everyone there. And it felt really good to write on the paperwork that she was born in Westbank, in the community on reserve, and not in town." - Midwife