“If the system were evidence‑based, every woman would have access to continuity of midwifery care.”
— Dr. Melanie Jackson 🌿
Episode 171, orgasmic birth® the podcast
The Great Birth Rebellion: Reclaiming Joy, Courage, and Choice in Birth
with Midwife Melanie Jackson
Welcome to Episode 171
Birth is a threshold moment — powerful, intimate, and often misunderstood. Too often, the mainstream story of birth is dominated by fear, pain, and control. But as midwife and researcher
Dr. Melanie Jackson reminds us, birth can also be rebellious, evidence-based, and full of joy.
In this recent Orgasmic Birth Podcast episode, Melanie and I explore what it means to birth outside the system — not in opposition to safety, but in devotion to autonomy, physiology, and the deep wisdom of the body.
Melanie’s two home births could not have been more different. Her first, a long and quiet journey that taught patience and surrender. Her second, fierce and fast — a birth filled with laughter, stretching, and the pure, surprising pleasure of feeling life move through her.
“I felt her coming down,” Melanie says. “It was the best feeling I’ve ever had — this overwhelming, guttural urge that wasn’t painful but insanely good.”
We dive into what matrescence — the process of becoming a mother — means in our modern world, and why true midwifery care offers the continuity and relationship every birthing person deserves. As Melanie beautifully puts it, “If every woman could choose her own midwife for pregnancy, birth, and postpartum, we would change birth forever.”
And yes — we talk about pleasure, joy, and oxytocin. When we birth in love and safety, our bodies flood with the same hormones that anchor intimacy and bonding. Birth and sexuality share this sacred chemistry. They are both natural, powerful, and meant to connect us more deeply to ourselves and each other.
Melanie’s work through The Great Birth Rebellion and her assemblies of rebellious midwives continues to empower women and professionals around the world — one joyful revolution at a time.
About Melanie Jackson:
Dr. Melanie Jackson is a private midwife, researcher, mentor, and host of The Great Birth Rebellion podcast. With a PhD in midwifery on “Birth Outside the System,” she is reshaping how midwives and mothers understand evidence, power, and physiology in birth. Through The Assembly and Convergence of Rebellious Midwives, she mentors practitioners and uplifts the profession with passion and purpose.
Connect with Melanie:
Website: melaniethemidwife.com
Instagram: @melaniethemidwife
TikTok: @melaniethemidwife
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgYNzASpo0UbzyzRkNb-s-w
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