workshops
Postpartum planning might sound like an attempt to control and structure your days and weeks after birth.
But actually, it’s not.
Instead, it is the intentional act of pushing aside the pressures and expectations of everyday life, so you can create a sanctuary of time for you and your baby. A sacred space to find your own rhythm – one that is often very different from what our culture expects.
By inviting others to hold and support you during this time – through meal deliveries, acts of service and hands-on care – you (and your partner) can join your baby in the in-between world of birth and life, gently attuning to each other’s needs. In this way, many of the struggles that come from trying to create structure prematurely can be avoided.
“After giving birth, we all need REST, SUPPORT and CARE. Postpartum planning can make this possible.”
Kestrel Gates
(Build your Nest: A Postpartum Planning Workbook)
what to expect
In this six-week circle series, you will create a postpartum plan that works for you, using Kestrel Gates’ Build Your Nest: Postpartum Planning Workbook as a guide. In addition, this offering creates the chance to connect with other expectant parents, shift the narrative around asking for help, and build the confidence needed to create a space of rest and recovery once baby arrives.
You are welcome to join this offering alone, or you can bring along your partner or chosen support person. Whoever you choose, it is important that this person is supportive of a mother-centred approach to postpartum support, knowing that in supporting a mother, the whole family thrives.
Overview of sessions:
Session 1: Meet Up & Welcome
Meet other mamas and create a vision for your postpartum season.
Session 2: Receiving Rest
Map out your day to day responsibilities and how these can be put on hold for your chosen length of time.
Session 3: Receiving Support
Identify who is in your village of support and how you will call in their help (and what to do if you don’t have people around you).
Session 4: Receiving Care
Learn about postpartum nutrition and the other types of care you will need during this time.
Session 5: Preparing for Complications
Consider potential complications and how these can be factored into your plan.
Session 6: Ceremony & Close
Share your plan and give and receive blessings with the group.
The Details
Investment:
$195 per expectant mama
What’s Included?
1 x mailed out copy of Build Your Nest: A Postpartum Planning Workbook by Kestrel Gates (valued at $45)
6 x 2 hour online circle
Embodied support in overcoming cultural narratives around rest and receiving support
time:
Saturdays 9:30-11:30am
Location:
Online (held over Zoom)
Dates:
Autumn 2026:
May 16, 23, 30 + June , 13, 20, 27
Winter 2026:
August 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 + September 5
Spring Series 2026:
October 17, 24, 31 + November 7, 14
The Details
Investment:
$245 per couple
What’s Included?
1 x copy of Build Your Nest: A Postpartum Planning Workbook by Kestrel Gates (valued at $35)
6 x 2 hour circle
Embodied support in overcoming cultural narratives around rest and receiving support
Tea & light snack
time:
Saturdays 9:30-11:30am
Location:
Bendigo Library (unless specified online)
Dates:
Spring Series (2025): November 8, 15, 22, 29 + December 6, 13 (held online)
Summer Series (2026): February 7, 14, 21, 28 + March 7, 14
Autumn Series (2026): May 9, 16, 23, 30 + June 6, 13
Winter Series (2026): August 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 + September 5
faqs
Do I need to purchase the workbook to join the circle?
The Build Your Nest Workbook is included in the cost of the circle series so you do not need to purchase it separately. You can join the circle without using the workbook at all though you may feel you are missing some of the background information.
Can I buy the workbook separately and use it on my own?
Absolutely! The workbook is great as a standalone resource and has been designed to be used this way too. The circle is an added support but, most importantly, we want you to plan a postpartum that serves the needs of you and your family – however you choose to go about that planning is completely up to you! If you’d like to purchase the workbook, please email belinda@mamafolk.com.au.
I already have the workbook. Can I get a discount on the circle?
Sure. The cost for the circle alone is $210. Please choose this option on the booking form.
Why use a workbook?
We recommend using this workbook – either with or without the circle option – because it contains so much of the wisdom our culture has lost. Postpartum planning is about both preparing and educating – not only ourselves, but the people around us. This workbook can be used as a gentle guide for navigating something that is both ancient and new. It can help you feel apart of something greater than yourself.
Is it best to bring my partner as my support person?
This one is entirely up to you. While we support a mother-centred approach, postpartum planning is actually a way of supporting the whole family and it’s important to make space for your partner’s transition into parenthood too. Oftentimes, it can be better to ask a close girlfriend to be your support person, so that both you and your partner can feel permission to rest once baby comes along.
You might choose to attend the first circle with your partner, or alone, and then decide from there who you would like to call in as your support person. While another woman is a wonderful choice, it’s important that she is realistic about her capacity to really be there for you. If she is juggling motherhood herself, she might be better off making a contribution to your meal train than being the person who organises it, for example.
Having honest and open conversations – and being willing to accept people’s limitations – makes a big difference to the success of your plan. Trust how you feel and invite the person along who you feel will be most supportive to the flourishing of your entire family during this special time, while being mindful of placing all of the responsibility onto your partner.
How many people will be in the circle?
There is space for eight pregnant mamas in the circle, and each has the option to bring along one support person.
What’s Included?
“It’s time to start a new tradition – a movement – of postpartum care: one that honours the past and that will carry us, and our children, more kindly and happily into the future.”
Heng Ou
(The First Forty Days)
Are you ready to make your postpartum season a beautiful one in the story of your life?
If so, I would be honoured to help.