Reviews of the 2008 Conference

Would you like to know what people are saying about the Trust Birth Conference? It was amazing! The energy generated there was palpable, and everyone who attended has been spreading the word. Start planning now for the Trust Birth Conference 2010!

Several AAMI students & Carla in the hotel lobby

From some of the conference attendees:

Hi Carla & All - Thanks so much for your amazing efforts in putting together such a beautiful conference. This was a fabulous location and the price was great as i took advantage of early registration, early room booking, early flight booking. We filled our mini-fridge with tasty food. Since all rooms come with a coffee maker there doesn't seem to be a need for you to arrange that. The business center on main floor had free computer & internet access and printer. With those wonderfully intense sessions i was quite grateful to have a nice room or sunny roof-top on which to retreat.
Join Priority Club Hotels - it's free and i got a coupon for a choice of free bike rental, free in-room internet for a day or a bunch of bonus points. Someday i might even have enough points for a free night somewhere.
~Angie Evans, Canmore Alberta

From Hathor the Cow Goddess:
It was so much FUN! I got to see Ricki Lake, she spoke too briefly, alas! But then we got to see Michel Odent speak. Because of his thick accent all 150+ of us were silent as mouses (the quiet kind, not the noisy ones ;o) and leaned wayyyyyy forward, hanging on his every word, and he’s worth every moment. I shadowed him from session to session. I heard him speak on the Scientification of Love and also Can Humanity Survive the Safe Caesarean? and SO, the next group of comics will be about his ideas. Brilliant! Read more here

From the EnjoyBirth Blog:
It was amazing and wonderful and fun! I probably have 10 blog entries worth of things to talk about. So this will just be an overview... Read more here

Janelle, Dr. John & Carla

From Midwife: SageFemme:
Have you seen her latest strip?

Really, Michel Odent. *deep sigh* What he has to say is so vital to our children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. We will never see world change without paying sharp attention to what we do prenatally, at birth and immediately postpartum. Read more here

From Instinctual Birth:
It is unfortunate that the Trust Birth Conference is over. It was incredible! To those of you who could not come, look for recordings of the sessions to become available in a few weeks at http://aamishop.com .

This conference will go down in history as the conference that really helped bring homebirth into the mainstream. With the release of "The Business of Being Born," more women are able to see this option and question some of the routine practices that dehumanize them in the hospital. This conference built upon that, with the theme: Birth is Safe; Interference is Risky. Read more here

From Elemental Mom:
On Thursday March 6, I kissed my kids and my fabulous hubby, and headed out to catch my flight down south to attend the Trust Birth Conference.

Mixed emotions? You bet. I hate leaving the guys behind. And although I know they don’t really need me, it’s always weird to walk away. I try hard to keep two things in mind, when I have this sort of thing happen; first, I’m trying to make the world better for them. And second, it’s good for kids to see what passion about a cause looks like. Kids model what you do far more than what you say, and it’d be goofy to talk about making birth better without doing anything. Read more here

As I walked from my car for the second day of the Trust Birth Conference, I was even more excited then I had been for the first. The sky was a perfect California blue, the crisp, salty ocean air and seaside sounds filled my senses, and I knew I was going to spend the day surrounded by lovely women listening to world class speakers. What a pleasure! I can't wait for the next one.

Talitha Sherman

I learned things at the Trust Birth 2008 conference that not only rocked my world, they rocked my birth. And when I passed the information along, they rocked other women's births as well. Totally lifechanging, utterly profound. And that was just from a chance comment at *one* breakout session. There was so much more... Wild
horses couldn't stop me from attending the next one.

Laureen Hudson

In March 2008 I attended the Trust Birth Conference in California and my world view was permanently, irrevocably altered. As expected there was a lot of information about how to make birth a safer more empowering experience for women – midwifery is the logical choice. What I didn’t expect was the baby perspective.

Every session included information in the field of perinatal psychology and/or gentle birth from the baby’s perspective. Seeing the birth process from this viewpoint was even more startling than my previous views that focused mostly on mothers. The way babies are presently treated in the medical model – at least in my community – is appalling. I have an intense desire to offer families another option. The midwifery model of care allows babies to be welcomed in a gentle and respectful manner. It allows women and their partners to be empowered by their births, also in a gentle and respectful manner. It inspires me to imagine a world where individuals feel strong, confident and supported as they become parents, and where every little human is welcomed into a loving, calm environment. The ripple effect of this is huge!

Angie Evans

If you have written about your experience at the Trust Birth Conference and would like a link here, please email me at toni@ancientartmidwifery.com.