ANSWERING THE CALL: Emma Enticott is Babes' Triage and Interstate Support Worker, making our new national phone service possible.  

She’s been a calm queen of the birthing suite for more than 13 years, but Melbourne midwife Emma Enticott is determined to help new mothers beyond labour, too.

A dedicated volunteer with Babes the past two years, Emma is now a force for transformation at the frontline, as we expand our service nationally this week!

So what better time to hear from Emma about her journey with mamas, and about how she's approaching being a support for pregnant women right across Australia.

“I was a nurse before I was a midwife, and I really found my niche in the labour ward, working with women and families at such a significant time in their lives,” Emma explains.

“I think I started out a bit naïve, that if the birth experience was positive, that would set up strong connection and parenting – but it’s not always so simple.”

“There’s so much more that can work against new mothers feeling confident and supported – and Babes has given me the chance to work in that space, too.”

No doubt that Babes mamas know how to wait - but pregnant mothers shouldn't have to keep waiting for holistic perinatal care. 

At some point in every pregnancy, every mother gets the questions: “How long have been pregnant?”, “How long to go now?”

And at least once, in every pregnancy, the technically untrue but definitely justifiable response comes out: “Forever!”

In other words, pregnant women are used to waiting.

We’ve all seen the Hallmark images - patiently stroking her big belly, the calm and comfy mum-to-be ready to wait forever to meet her bub.

But we all know that’s not the reality.

And while nine months of waiting for baby is inevitable, pregnant women can't afford to keep waiting for holistic, supportive and empowering perinatal care. 

"People definitely judge me – after I left school, people from school were calling me up, shouting at me as I walked down the street, bullying me. I just laugh at them – they don’t know me, and know how different my life is now." 

- Babes graduate and teen mama Lily (pictured)

Scan any mainstream media stories about young mothers, and the evidence piles up fast - there's a huge stigma attached to being a teenage mum.

While just a quarter of the mamas we work with at Babes are teenaged, it seems there's a public obsession with teen parents.

Too often, news coverage shouts criticism at these brave young people, rather than give them a voice.  

When Seven News visited our Frankston centre earlier this month, they heard the stories of two of our young mamas - including 19-year-old Raechal, who said the hardest part of her journey had been the criticism and judgement she'd faced.                      

Worse that that, last year our survey of TBP participants found nearly 50 per cent faced social isolation - a feeling that isn't helped by slurs in the media, or on the streets.   

Here at Babes, we're determined to change the conversation about the capability of young mamas - and ALL mamas - and you can help us.  

LIFT THEM UP: Mum-of-two TJ is determined her children will have the stability and safety she missed out on as a child. 

It's overwhelming, we know. 

A record 43,400 children in out-of-home care across Australia. For one in three cases, the parents were addicted to ice.  

In Victoria alone, police responded to more than 72,000 family violence incidents in 2015/16. In the same period, more than 107,000 child protection reports were filed with the state's Department of Human Services. 

Behind the stats - broken lives, traumatised children, young people with the worst possible start to their lives.

When the damage and disadvantage are so devastating, it can be hard to see a way to even attempt to drive change.

But Babes graduate TJ is an inspiring example of how support - when and where it's needed most - can transform lives every day. 

One of the best days of the Babes year is our Annual Photoshoot.  Every photo you see on our social media sites, our website and even on the walls of our buildings are real photos of real women who are a part of The Babes Project. We don't use models or stock photos, because we feel that with every photo shared, something of who we are and what we are about is communicated. And we are so passionate about staying authentic and real.

One of the most rewarding parts of our work in Pregnancy Support is when we are present for the moment a woman becomes a mother; the moment when she sees her baby take their first breath and a new relationship is begun. For every birth we are a part of at The Babes Project, we count ourselves blessed that we have the opportunity to observe these first moments of life and motherhood. 

Our Labour Support Team is a special bunch of women. They are women who volunteer their time to ensure no woman is unsupported during childbirth. They put themselves through training, put lives on hold when on call and do all it takes to be available for massive lengeths of time. Often under the influence of bad hospital coffee! Holly is one of our Labour Support team and she wrote these words about her most recent labour experience with one of the women of The Babes Project.

We were welcomed with the ring of a bell. Pip opened the door with her daughter Lulu on her hip - ringing her toy bell loudly. Lulu is eight months old and she is happy. 

She has been an unexpected joy for Pip who found out she was pregnant when she was 22.

The Babes Project works with women during the Perinatal period. 
Rewriting Motherhood is our project which tells the stories of women we have met.

There is so much in our everyday lives telling us what motherhood should look like, feel like and be like, shaping an expectation of motherhood that isn't always realistic or even achievable. When our experience doesn't reflect that expectation we can find ourselves feeling unworthy and incompetent.