Jurgita Svede cudowna połozna z Litwy już 21 lat wspiera kobiety

The vocation to midwifery.

"You are invited, and you go; you are called and you arrive; the internal demand for being midwife - it's like a vocation to the priesthood where one serves with dedication, without hoping for benefit, when you are in unity with yourself and the environment; when you experience happiness, regardless of life events.
 Midwife must live in grace. She has to give herself the spiritual oaths concerning the approach to every aspect of her life. Assume a certain asceticism, which develops the values ​​and faith. It helps to keep in touch with the million-year-old biological processes of birth. Midwife must constantly strive to be compassionate, open, a psychic, forgiveness and spiritual vision are the most important working tools ".

 A living tradition is not static or fixed, it changes and responds to changing needs and changing times. Home birth movement was not merely a manifestation of a global revival. Spiritual Midwifery today was born as a reaction to technocracy, dehumanized society and the existing medical system. The SM became a diverse and practical part of woman (and man) development. Lithuanian births at home and in water received the first impetus from  Russia in 1987 under the name of Eco-midwifery. The “flag” was Igor's Charkovsky' s ideas to give birth in the water. Small birthing circles, films review, fitness, midwifery assistance of man during delivery. This period was short, about 3 years; later, the Lithuanian labor movement at home has trespassed the training boundaries. Crucial steps were determined by matriarchal Lithuanian culture.  The understanding of birth as one of the basic experience of the existence of a woman came very naturally. This pursuit of spirituality essentially has been determined by several ways, and mostly by one and the most exceptional woman, who has long defined her performance and achievement, although she already has greeted about 1000 babies at home. Her name is Jurgita. Her mastery, feminine authority, joyous participation in “birthday” and obedience attracted attention and demanded to merge with new, unusual world outlook. So, initially considering herself as a helpmate at birth, she later became an associate in birth, staying with a woman during labor and leading her over the birth bridge. She rocked the birth at home and in water movement. Due to her personal humanistic leanings this movement has become a moral movement, for example, it led to arrival of attentive parenting and child development frameworks in Lithuania (Waldorf education). Moreover, opened interests in Eco-friendly, less consumer –orientated style of life and more natural way of healing children (herbal medicine, homeopathy). Ideas of breast feeding have revived and have been spread all over Lithuania. A generation of women grew up who created support groups ‘Mothers for mothers’ and established breast feeding ‘schools’. Roots of human birth reach back to old traditions, which are based on mystical experience. Women shared their talents and wrote a few books about mystery of birth and birth rituals. 5 films were created about a woman’s transformation, woman’s ‘journey’ into herself, about new and old birth traditions. Women found fulfillment in sisterhood, womanhood and motherhood and this power spreads as a huge network of female wisdom. Jurgita was the first to gather people into Birth Circles, which grew out into childbirth educating classes, including aqua prenatal preparation and newborn baby swimming. Families got introduced to yoga, breathing exercises, the capability of listening to an unborn baby and recognizing its ‘speech’ through the sensations of their body. Throughout 22 years families, who attended childbirth educating classes and have chosen to give birth in hospitals, by showing an example, expressing their responsibility and knowledge slowly but certainly changed the attitude of doctors and obstetricians towards the sacredness of birth. A couple of baby friendly hospitals were established. Men, seeking to experience a conscious fatherhood, embodied a ‘new’ farther; they immerse themselves into the community of families, share their worries and experience, participate in the birth and upbringing of their babies, and learn to act as a family guardian and protector. Jurgita evoked the concord between women and nurtured the idea of sisterhood – to be with, to listen to, to attend, and share. Advocates of home birth strive to change many technocratic birth ‘rituals’ and create their own, new ones, which embed alternative beliefs about the deepest nature of birth and the woman’s body. This way the tradition of the Blessing way was born, when in a ‘transition’ ritual a woman  is ‘washed’, soothed, taken through the birth way and given a special birth robe, which was made and embroidered by her ‘sisters’.  To bury a placenta-the tree of life, to wash hands for a person who attended the birth – these ritual actions are made with the deepest respect towards a woman’s consciousness and surroundings. After becoming a Watsu Instructor Jurgita has evoked powerful water forces and Lithuania got enriched with unique therapies – watsu, tantsu and water dance. In water our bodies find the freedom the soul has lost. Her students spread subtle water techniques as the continuing exploration of that freedom.   Thoughts of mothers: ‘She arrives only when she is needed; she enters just the right way.’ ‘Her words are soothing, helping as if your own inner voice. She plied them excellently in critical moments.’ ‘I remember the silent respect: I was the first to find out the gender of a baby, and I passed the news to both people who were kneeling next to me, who washed my feet, as if I was crowned.’    Huge impulses of Trust and Love created a constantly changing, alive communal movement, where people live meaningfully and implement their missions. Jurgita has planted a garden and we gather under the tree of Family Center ‘GIMTIS’. The garden has grown and the fruits have ripened over the 22 years. A new generation, who we invited into this earth, was raised. For twenty years now giving birth at home is conducted without any coordination with hospitals. If there was any requirement for medical assistance (for instance – a retained placenta) the women went to the hospital by themselves and calmly asked for it. To the dissatisfaction of many medical professionals, these women also didn’t give details as to how, where and with whose assistance they had done so. She was unique. And families, who have consciously chosen to give birth this way could not let anything happen to her. And any attempts to “legalize” had come to an abrupt end at the doorstep of the Ministry of Healthcare.   The summer of 2011 brought a disaster. A baby passed away two days after being born at home. The medical expert report did not associate the cause of death with the giving birth at home. Grief-stricken parents told the doctors who had assisted with the delivery. Furthermore, a small piece of placenta was found in the uterus of the mother. According to the data supplied by the doctors, the midwife was sued, and a criminal investigation started. The charge is intentional grievous bodily injury. The atmosphere is one of a witch-hunt. One morning, during a meeting with mothers and children, the police come and took her away. The news spread lightning fast. We cried, prayed, looked for solutions. Then we formed an initiative group. We want to emphasize – we are not against giving birth in hospitals, we are FOR giving birth at home, for an ability to choose.     Jurgita Svediene - Master degree in biochemistry, Childbirth educator, Lay midwife-bridge-builder, Yoga teacher, Watsu instructor, the leader of Family Center “GIMTIS” (BIRTH)