Daughters of Ishtar
Sacred and Transformational Spaces for Women
holistic preparation for pregnancy, childbirth & motherhood
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For women who are pregnant or planning a pregnancy

Medical researchers now recognise the central enabling role of hormones in the childbirth process. Oxytocin, the "hormone of love", controls the great waves of opening, whilst adrenalins, triggered by the perception of a threat in the environment, can slow or even stop the process.
This is true whether the threat is a current physical reality, or the unconscious memory or expectation of trauma.
Emotional and spiritual preparation during pregnancy enable a woman to clear the way for a strong, clear birth process for herself and her baby. This in turn increases the likelihood that both mother and baby will be awake, alert and hormonally primed for family bonding in those precious first hours following the birth of this special new person.

Services provided include:

(A blessingway is a special ceremony to honour the life-change from autonomous adult into caring parent)

Unfolding the Rose
Holistic Preparation for Childbirth

Six week course for pregnant women

The course offers a blend of practical suggestions for self-care in pregnancy, labour and as a "newborn mother", with self-awareness exercises, and opportunities to learn from our pregnant sisters.
Topics covered include:-

  • Nurturing your changing self
  • Dispelling Fear
  • Finding your questions
  • Enlisting support
  • Letting go

Course cost $120 (payable in advance).

A different kind of "ante-natal" education: this course not only provides a holistic understanding of the processes of pregnancy and birth, but offers a space for women to reflect on and share the emotional and spiritual journey of the childbearing year.

Who will benefit? Any pregnant woman, at whatever stage of pregnancy, whether she is expecting her first baby or is already an experienced mother.

" Pregnant and birthing mothers are elemental forces, in the same sense that gravity, thunderstorms, earthquakes and hurricanes are elemental forces. In order to understand the laws of their energy flow, you have to love and respect them for their magnificence at the same time that you study them with the accuracy of a true scientist."
Ina May Gaskin, Spiritual Midwifery, 1977

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Daughters of Ishtar is based in the Fremantle area of Perth, Western Australia


Dedicated to the celebration of women's spirituality and the service of the Great Goddess