In this episode of The Mama Psychedelia Podcast, I interview Jess Shine.
Jess is mother, wife, life lover, farmer, birthkeeper, village wise woman, adventurer, and dreamer.
Life has led her to her latest big leap: her 50 acre family homestead in Northern Idaho where she is dedicated to making their place on this earth better for the next generation. She says “I’ll die satisfied knowing that I made the world a better place, even if it’s just for my 3 littles.”
They’ve got a a whole farm, milk cows, chickens, sheep, alpaca, mini donkeys, llamas, peacock, guinea hens, turkeys, cats, and, of course, dogs.
Jess found a 10 year career in the hospital as a labor and delivery nurse abruptly dissolved a few years back. She was a nurse, a good one, and then overnight wasn’t — fired for following the law of informed consent and not checking a mother’s cervix when the mom told her she couldn’t.
Seeing the hospital thru the view of policymakers changed the way she saw her work, and losing the career she built up over a decade rocked her to her core.
She went from a really hard, exhausting, inflammation and stress causing job to village wise woman. She learned how to help others heal by healing herself, and sharing her findings through herbalism and homeopathy. Add in mindfulness practices, plenty of fresh air and sunshine, remove the toxins as best as one can, and top it all off with love.
Jess Shine shows up as a companion for the births to which she’s called as a witness and a guide.
She teaches natural healing and home health classes, and hosts free calls on zoom to help mothers find peace with their births and unwind their stories. Jess recently launched a program to help birth attendants and families understand the ins and outs of the hospital.
She is also the director of programs at the Matrona, the school founded by Jess and I’s elder teacher Whapio, and a true blessing to this world.
In this episode together we explore the concept of mothering the mother: caring for mothers in our own community through pregnancy, birth, postpartum, and beyond — & equally important — nourishing the great Mother Earth.
Enjoy.
Resources: Where to find Jess:
IG: @badassbirthkeeper
@shinewildfamilyfarm
Website: https://shinewild.farm/badass-birthkeeper
Your Host Mackenzie:
IG: @mamapsychedelia
@hunnywombdoula
Intro Music "Waters of the Earth" by Satori covered by me, Mackenzie. (For more of her music, check out her Spotify)
Support the Mama Psychedelia Mission: PAYPAL: Birthkeeperkenz@gmail.com
Website: www.hunnywomb.com -Under Construction-