Hi, my name is Meg Brierley founder of Birth Evolution. Mummy, wife, birth geek, ex-volcanic hazards researcher and lover of a good quiz.

Originally from Yorkshire, I now live in East Lancashire with my husband, Pete, our 3 children and 3 cats. My children are my biggest inspiration. I don’t ever want my children to feel lost if they choose to become parents themselves. I want them to know they have choices and options, especially where their bodies are concerned. One day they might support someone in birth, I don’t want them to ever have to fight to have their partner’s voice heard. They are already creating beliefs about what lies ahead, and I see people every day with beliefs about birth that have been with them since childhood. My passion is to create positive and normal expectations of birth as my children grow up. For the people I support, my passion lies in giving them exactly the same.

Pregnancy, birth and me

Before becoming pregnant I thought giving birth would happen TO me, with the help of doctors and midwives. My assumption was that it was something uncomfortable that you endured in order to get to the best bit; becoming a new parent. I thought people who wanted home births were mad, why would you ever give birth without a hospital?! 

After getting pregnant my thought process began to change as I uncovered a world of options I never knew existed. I realised I wanted the pregnancy and birth to be something more than what I’d first thought. I wanted to feel connected to my baby and my husband to be involved at every step. Ultimately, I wanted to feel confident and have faith in the birth process. As much as it went against what society seemed to want me to believe, I wanted to enjoy it!

I discovered Hypnobirthing and the whole philosophy fit with what I had been thinking about. Hypnobirthing gave me calm confidence I’d been looking for. As a result, I could enjoy my last months of pregnancy. For the most part anyway! She arrived at 40+13 so I went through A LOT of frustrated ball bouncing in those final weeks! However, the birth of my first daughter, Harriet, was the amazing experience I had hoped for. And, contrary to what I thought about home births, I had one myself! Not just for mad people after all…?

Why I do what I do

I became a Hypnobirthing teacher so that I could help other families experience what I had. Not a carbon copy of my birth, but that exhilarating feeling of “I did that! I can do anything!”. Seeing people discover for themselves just how much power they had was amazing. Through my sessions I could inform, educate, show people how much control they have and give them a toolkit for all eventualities. But, I became increasingly aware that there was more I could do. The modern world has left us distant from the tribe which once protected and nurtured us. We are not supposed to birth and parent a baby in isolation. It takes a village. 

After the birth of my second daughter, Philippa, I committed full time to supporting women, birthing people and families in preparing for positive birth and early parenthood. I completed training to become a birth and postnatal Doula and resigned from my job as a secondary school teacher to dedicate myself to birth work full time. I have had the honour of supporting so many people and families as they prepare for becoming new parents. I have witnessed them at their most vulnerable, strong and powerful as they birth their babies in ways that were right for them. In pools in living rooms, on beds in labour wards, on birth stools in birth centres and in theatre for Caesarean births, and everything else in between. Birth is amazing, however you choose to do it.

Moving forward

Since becoming a Doula, and taking on birth work full time, I have had my third child, my little boy Ezra. After all this, I can honestly say that I am still learning myself, with every pregnancy and every birth. From my own experiences as a birthing woman, and as a Doula, I recognise how important it is to feel supported, informed and cared for. And, even better if that is by someone you trust and can feel comfortable with. 

If you are looking for someone to support you, walk alongside you, listen to you, inform you, advocate for you and enable you to advocate for yourself, reassure you, respect you and remind you of your power then get in touch. Whether it’s with a Hypnobirthing course or full Doula support, I would love to meet you and discuss if I’m the right person to provide support that fits YOU.