In this episode, I am returning briefly behind the mic to share a personal update and to honor the season I am in.

Recorded on the Cancer full moon in the depths of winter, this episode speaks to why Soul Evolution has been quiet, what has been unfolding behind the scenes, and why this pause was not a choice, but a necessity.

I share openly about navigating family crisis, entering the court system, and the decisions I have had to make to clear my plate and focus on my son’s stability. I reflect on the profound births I witnessed this past year, including free births, first-time home births, VBACs, and complex clinical scenarios that have deeply shaped my discernment and next steps.

This episode also marks a moment of vocational honesty, as I speak to a growing call toward Certified Professional Midwife licensure, and what it would mean to step more fully into responsibility, accountability, and skilled care for women seeking physiological birth.

Finally, I reflect on winter as a lived experience, not just a metaphor. A season of contraction, grief, uncertainty, and trust. A reminder that women are cyclical beings, and that honoring the pause is part of the path.

Soul Evolution is currently on hiatus, but this is not an ending. It is a turning inward, a listening, and a preparation for what will be born when the time is right.

Thank you to this community for your continued support, your listening, your sharing, and your trust.

Website: ⁠⁠www.emilygracenixon.com⁠⁠

Instagram: @⁠⁠embodiedwomenswisdom⁠⁠

Leave me a review on ⁠⁠⁠iTunes⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠

Disclaimer:

The information and resources provided by me are not intended to constitute or replace medical or midwifery advice or a Mother’s intuition. Instead, all information provided is intended for education purposes only. My advice is not to be seen as medical diagnosis or to treat any medical illness or condition of Mother or baby/fetus.

Keywords: natural birth, home birth, freebirth, physiological birth, birth stories, postpartum healing, women’s circles, rites of passage, womb wisdom, feminine embodiment, sisterhood, conscious conception, birth trauma healing, matrescence, menopause, first-time mom birth story, VBAC, spirit baby.

In this remastered episode, I sit down with Jane Hardwicke Collings, post-menopausal grandmother, former homebirth midwife of 30 years, founder of the School of Shamanic Womancraft, author, teacher and lineage carrier of the women's mysteries. Together, we explore the wisdom of the cycles, the rites of passage that shape a woman’s life, and the deep cultural amnesia surrounding menstruation, birth, menopause and feminine knowing.

Jane shares her origin story of merging shamanism with midwifery, how the “wisdom of the cycles” provides a map for every phase of womanhood, and why reclaiming our rites of passage is essential for healing the wounded feminine and masculine of patriarchy. We also explore the blood mysteries, the spiritual practice of menstruation, birth imprinting, red thread lineage, and how our earliest experiences create the patterns that shape our lives.

We close with a powerful teaching on perimenopause and menopause, including her concept of sagescence — the decade-long initiation from mother to wise woman — and why so many women today are entering menopause with young children. Jane offers insight, compassion, and a grounded path forward for women preparing for this season.

Inside this episode:
The wisdom of the cycles
The blood mysteries and rites of passage
Menarche, first sex, conception, birth, postpartum, menopause
Birth imprint and the red thread maternal lineage
Shamanic midwifery and feminine healing
Teaching boys and girls about menstruation
The truth about perimenopause and sagescence
Perimenopause for women with young children
Preparing the body, nervous system and relationships

Reclaiming feminine power in a patriarchal culture

WAYS TO WALK THIS PATH WITH ME

The Wise Woman: A Path to Remembrance
A six chapter journey into lineage healing, feminine embodiment, rites of passage and returning to your deepest truth.

Beyond a Doula
Spiritual, instinctual, physiological birth support in Southern Maine and worldwide.

So You Want a Home Birth
A comprehensive self paced guide for women choosing natural undisturbed birth.

Community
Monthly Women’s Circle and Perinatal Village Circle in Southern Maine.

Website: ⁠⁠www.emilygracenixon.com⁠⁠

Instagram: @⁠⁠embodiedwomenswisdom⁠⁠

Leave me a review on ⁠⁠⁠iTunes⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠

Music: The Ancients (feat. Loga Ramin Torkian) by Azam Ali

Disclaimer:

The information and resources provided by me are not intended to constitute or replace medical or midwifery advice or a Mother’s intuition. Instead, all information provided is intended for education purposes only. My advice is not to be seen as medical diagnosis or to treat any medical illness or condition of Mother or baby/fetus.

Keywords: natural birth, home birth, freebirth, physiological birth, birth stories, postpartum healing, women’s circles, rites of passage, womb wisdom, feminine embodiment, sisterhood, conscious conception, birth trauma healing, matrescence, menopause, first-time mom birth story, VBAC, spirit baby.

In this remastered episode, I sit down with Jess Shine, former labor and delivery nurse, mother of four, freebirther, and Director of Programs at The Matrona. Jess shares the story of how her entire understanding of birth unraveled as she moved through four radically different births and witnessed the realities of the hospital system from the inside.

She speaks candidly about her traumatic first birth, the awakening that came through her second, and the professional fallout that occurred after she honored a laboring woman’s request not to be checked. That rupture became the doorway into freebirth, sovereignty, and reclaiming birth as a sacred, undisturbed rite.

Jess also describes the energetic difference between birthing at home and inside a hospital, what her hands felt as her son navigated the pelvis, and why she ultimately walked away from hospital birthwork altogether.

Inside this episode:
The unspoken trauma fathers carry
How hospital culture shapes “safety”
Why VBAC fear is manufactured
The myth of the mandatory policy
Medical coercion and consent
How Jess reclaimed birth through freebirth
The moment she knew she could never return to the system
Her work today within The Matrona

—————————————

WAYS TO WALK THIS PATH WITH ME

The Wise Woman: A Path to Remembrance
A six chapter journey into lineage healing, feminine embodiment, rites of passage, sensual reclamation, and returning to your deepest truth.
Details at emilygracenixon.com

Beyond a Doula
Spiritual, instinctual, physiological birth support in Southern Maine and worldwide.

So You Want a Home Birth
A comprehensive self paced guide for women choosing natural undisturbed birth.

Community
Monthly Women’s Circle and Perinatal Village Circle in Southern Maine.

Website: ⁠⁠www.emilygracenixon.com⁠⁠

Instagram: @⁠⁠embodiedwomenswisdom⁠⁠

Leave me a review on ⁠⁠⁠iTunes⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠

Music: The Ancients (feat. Loga Ramin Torkian) by Azam Ali

Disclaimer:

The information and resources provided by me are not intended to constitute or replace medical or midwifery advice or a Mother’s intuition. Instead, all information provided is intended for education purposes only. My advice is not to be seen as medical diagnosis or to treat any medical illness or condition of Mother or baby/fetus.

Keywords: natural birth, home birth, freebirth, physiological birth, birth stories, postpartum healing, women’s circles, rites of passage, womb wisdom, feminine embodiment, sisterhood, conscious conception, birth trauma healing, matrescence, menopause, first-time mom birth story, VBAC, spirit baby.