The Journey to Motherhood
An online birth preparation course that builds your understanding, confidence and capacity to navigate birth as it unfolds.
Birth will change you.
The question isn't whether you'll be changed.
It's whether you remain connected to yourself as you move through it.
Every woman leaves birth carrying two things.
Her baby...
and her story.
Long after birth is over, you'll continue walking through motherhood carrying the story of who you became.
That's why I created The Journey to Motherhood.
Not simply to teach you about labour.
But to offer a different way of preparing for birth.
One built on a simple belief:
The goal isn't to prepare you for every possible birth.
It's to build your capacity to navigate birth as it unfolds.
Because while birth can't always be predicted...
you can strengthen your understanding of yourself, your body, your choices and your ability to meet whatever unfolds.
That's where preparation begins.
Most birth preparation starts with birth
I believe it starts much earlier.
It starts with you.
Your values.
Your physiology.
Your relationships.
Your beliefs.
Your voice.
Your understanding.
Your sense of agency.
Birth asks more of you than simply bringing your baby into the world.
It asks you to make decisions.
To communicate.
To adapt.
To trust.
To navigate uncertainty.
Those aren't things you suddenly discover in labour.
They're capacities you can begin building throughout pregnancy.
Because the way you experience yourself through birth becomes part of the story you carry into motherhood.
And that story matters.
Twenty years. Hundreds of births.
Thousands of hours beside women in labour.
For more than two decades, I've had the privilege of walking alongside women through pregnancy, birth and early motherhood.
I've witnessed water births.
Complex births.
Home births.
Hospital births.
Births that unfolded exactly as planned.
Births that took an entirely different path.
After thousands of hours beside women in labour, one truth has become impossible to ignore.
I've never wished a woman simply knew more facts.
I've wished she felt more connected to herself.
More confident asking questions.
More able to make decisions aligned with her values.
More prepared to navigate birth as it unfolded - not as she imagined it would.
Because every birth is different.
But every woman carries its story with her.
That understanding has shaped every lesson inside this course.
I'm Abbey
I’m a midwife, an educator and a quiet witness to women becoming mothers.
For many years, I’ve sat beside women in their homes, clinics and birth spaces - listening to their hopes, their fears, their questions, and their deep longing to feel safe as they birth.
Again and again, I’ve seen this truth:
When a woman feels held, respected and informed... her body opens differently.
Birth is not something to be managed.
It’s something to be met.
And preparation isn’t about controlling outcomes...
it’s about creating safety in the body, clarity in the mind and trust in the process.
This course is an extension of how I work with women in real life - slow, thoughtful, grounded and deeply human.
What we explore together inside the course
Arriving & remembering
Meeting yourself where you are, with reflection and self-trust
The history of birth & why it matters
Understanding how fear entered modern birth - and how we reclaim power
The physiology of birth
What your body is designed to do, and how physiology supports it
Breath & the five senses
Practical tools to anchor your nervous system and soften into labour
Informed consent & advocacy
Navigating care with clarity, confidence and respect
Due dates, expectations & waiting
Reframing time, pressure and the rhythm of your baby’s arrival
Hopes, fears & emotional preparation
Naming what you carry so it doesn’t carry you into birth
Partner support & holding space
Helping your support person become a calm, grounded presence
Labour & birth
Understanding the stages, the sensations and how to meet each one
After birth & the golden hours
Honouring postpartum as part of the birth journey - not an afterthought
Each module blends practical knowledge with softness, reflection and embodiment.
Is this course for you?
The Journey to Motherhood is for you if:
✿ Women who want to understand birth without becoming overwhelmed by it.
✿ Women who value evidence while recognising that birth is also deeply personal.
✿ Women who want to ask questions with confidence.
Make decisions aligned with their values.
Understand their options.
Prepare their support people.
And move towards birth knowing they don't need to control every outcome...
they simply need the capacity to navigate whatever unfolds.
My hope for you
I don't hope you'll have a perfect birth.
Birth doesn't work like that.
My hope is something much deeper.
That you'll understand yourself more fully.
That you'll understand birth more clearly.
That you'll know how to ask questions.
How to make informed decisions.
How to adapt.
How to reconnect with yourself when birth feels overwhelming.
And how to carry those skills into motherhood.
Because birth is only the beginning.
The ability to find your way back to yourself...
may become one of the greatest gifts you give yourself as a mother.
My goal is for you to walk towards birth with feeling resourced, not alone.
Choose Your Path to
Empowered Birth
Your birth journey is unique. The support you receive should be too. Whether you’re looking for an all-in-one course, a nurturing community, or just the reassurance of ongoing expert support, we’ve created three thoughtfully designed plans to suit your needs.
Journey to Motherhood
foundations Course
(Self-Paced Course)
EARLY BIRD OFFER
50% OFF + 1 month private community access
Available 17 August - 18 September
$349 AUD
$174.50 AUD
What’s Included:
Full access to all 16 lessons
Downloadable PDFs, exercises, and resources
3-month course access (with the option to extend for $15 AUD/month)
Self-paced, no direct support
gUIDED COURSE
(Course + Community + Weekly Support)
What’s Included:
Everything from the Foundations Course
Weekly Q&A with Abbey
Private community access
Monthly live Q&A sessions
3-months of guided support
THE CIRCLE
(ongoing Support After Your Course)
What’s Included:
Ongoing private community access
Monthly live Q&A sessions
Occasional themed discussions or guest sessions
Continued reflection & group support
Every birth deserves respect.
This course honours:
Home birth
Hospital birth
Birth center birth
Physiological birth
Medicated birth
Planned caesarean birth
Unexpected change
Because this course isn't about leading you towards one kind of birth.
It's about building your capacity to navigate your birth.
Whatever path it takes.
An invitation
If something in these words has felt familiar...
Perhaps it's because you've been looking for preparation that feels different.
Preparation that doesn't ask you to hand your power to someone else.
Preparation that doesn't promise certainty.
Preparation that recognises birth as one of life's greatest transitions, and trusts that you can grow the capacity to meet it.
Every woman leaves birth carrying two things.
Her baby...
and her story.
My hope is that your story is one of understanding yourself.
Trusting yourself.
Finding your way back to yourself when you needed to.
And discovering that you were capable of more than you knew.
I'd be honoured to walk alongside you for that part of your journey.
Self-paced · Easy to follow · Begin when it feels right
©2026 Abbey the Midwife | Journey to Motherhood
Your Guide to a Calm, Empowered Birth
Abbey Rodda - Registered Midwife | Birth Educator | Birth Coach | Advocate for Women's Autonomy