Return to Wisdom

About Return to Wisdom

Return to Wisdom is a continuation of the conversation sparked on The Road to Wisdom Podcast. Hosted by Keshia, this new chapter explores the interconnected landscapes of health, relationships, motherhood, cultural norms, and the deep call to return to more traditional, grounded ways of living. With a commitment to challenging societal narratives, Keshia engages with thought leaders, experts, and everyday voices carrying lived wisdom. A gentle call to listen with an open mind, a soft heart, and a willingness to remember.

Publisher

Keshia Tognazzini

Category

education

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

28 Jul 2025

Latest episode

26 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

35 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   26 Oct 2026

   Why Women Are Walking Away From the Hospital with Nikko Kennedy

   Doula, researcher and quantum biology educator Nikko Kennedy returns to Return to Wisdom for a wide-ranging conversation with Keshia Tognazzini about freebirth: why women choose it, what the data can and can’t tell us, and why the conversation needs far more nuance than it’s getting. Nikko has been a doula since 2011 and has had five babies across nearly every setting: a midwife-booked home birth that became unassisted, a hospital birth at 43 weeks after declining induction, unassisted births, and a postpartum hospital transfer when her newborn had breathing difficulties. She shares the lessons from each, including the uncomfortable ones. In this episode: Why a certified doula who freebirths herself can’t professionally support a client’s freebirth, and the legal grey zone of the “traditional birth companion” How Oregon regulates traditional midwives: waivers, no prescription drugs, and what “scope of practice” really means The observer effect in birth: how a care provider’s notes, supervisors and regulators shape what happens in the room How insurance and payment quietly shape birth decisions, such as declining the glucose test Why freebirth outcomes are so hard to measure: under-reporting, births logged as “precipitous,” and studies comparing apples with oranges Keshia’s take on the Guardian’s Free Birth Society investigation, and what poor-outcome stories add to the picture Fear works in both directions: women who choose hospital out of fear, and women who flee it out of fear Why “your baby could die” no longer persuades many women, and what the academic literature says about bringing them back Transfers: child-protection referrals in the UK, inconsistent hospital responses, and why it’s “easier to escalate care than to de-escalate it” Two breech births with opposite outcomes, and why statistics don’t apply to individuals Health as the foundation for birthing outside the system: light, circadian rhythm, nutrition, immunity, and seeking help early Practice-based research: generating real-world evidence at the point of care Rebuilding “the village,” and the fact that villages can be meddlesome too Mentioned in this episode Nikko’s earlier episode with Keshia and Chloe on quantum biology, circadian rhythm and pregnancy: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2wUVWQbnKOp3Y5IwfOJ6fJ Allowed to Birth: A journey of a global midwife - https://www.byroncentre.com.au/theatre-events/allowed-to-birth Nikko’s upcoming conversation on postpartum cycle return with a TCM doctor: brighterdaysdarkernights.com Connect with Nikko: @brighterdays.darkernights This episode is supported by INBLUEM SkincarePure, plant-based skincare made in Byron Bay. No toxins, no fillers, no fuss. INBLUEM is offering Return to Wisdom listeners a discount.👉 Use code RETURNTOWISDOMPODCAST at inbluem.com/returntowisdompodcast Kim AnamiHolistic sex and relationship coaching for reconnecting with your body and your partner. Register for courses here (using this link also supports the podcast):https://kimanami.ontraport.com/t?orid=511555&opid=2 SuperfeastThis episode is brought to you by Superfeast. Enjoy 10% off your order with the code RETURNTOWISDOMhttps://www.superfeast.com.au/

2. 

   19 Oct 2026

   Obstetric Violence, Breech Skills and Trusting Birth with Jacinta Lagos

   In episode 12 of The Birth Series, Keshia Tognazzini sits down with birth photographer, doula and filmmaker Jacinta Lagos to talk about her debut feature documentary, Allowed to Birth: The Journey of a Global Midwife. Jacinta shares what pushed her to pick up a camera: years of witnessing obstetric violence, unnecessary interventions and small, everyday disrespect in hospital birth rooms, set against the deeply respected home births she was also documenting. She talks about why she built the film around global midwife Kristine Lauria, a Doctors Without Borders midwife and breech and twins educator, and why the loss of traditional midwifery skills and trust in birth matters. Keshia and Jacinta also get into free birth: why Jacinta prefers the term unassisted birth, how the film portrays Kristine's own unassisted birth, and her concerns about the Free Birth Society's business model and its demonising of midwives. They finish with how unassisted births are reported in the Australian media, and an invitation to the upcoming Byron Bay screening on Tuesday 17 November. Jacinta Lagos is an Argentinian-born birth photographer, doula and filmmaker based in Wisconsin, USA, and a mother of three. She grew up believing caesarean birth was simply how babies were born, until birth photography showed her both the beauty of physiological birth and the reality of obstetric violence. She began Allowed to Birth in 2024, shooting it largely with a single camera. Allowed to Birth: The Journey of a Global Midwife follows the life and work of midwife and educator Kristine Lauria, and features voices including Dr Melanie Jackson, Dr Stu Fischbein and Kemi Johnson. Watch Allowed to Birth in Byron Bay Allowed to Birth screens at Byron Theatre on Tuesday 17 November 2026, 6:30–8:30pm, followed by a live Q&A panel. Venue: Byron Theatre, Byron Community Centre, 69 Jonson St, Byron Bay NSW 2481 Panel includes: Sarah Smits, Australian midwife, educator and mentor (Bridging Worlds Midwifery) Tickets: ⁠Book on Eventbrite⁠ Event page: ⁠Byron Theatre – Allowed to Birth⁠ Box office: (02) 6685 6807 · boxoffice@byroncentre.com.au Connect with Jacinta and the film Website: ⁠allowedtobirth.com⁠ · ⁠jacintalagos.com⁠ Instagram: @allowedtobirth · @jacintalagosbirthservices Email: allowedtobirth@gmail.com — Jacinta reads every message herself and would love your feedback after you watch This Episode Is Supported By INBLUEM Skincare Pure, plant-based skincare made in Byron Bay — no toxins, no fillers, no fuss. In Bloom is offering Return to Wisdom listeners a discount. 👉 Use code RETURNTOWISDOMPODCAST at ⁠inbluem.com⁠/returntowisdompodcast Kim Anami Holistic sex and relationship coaching for reconnecting with your body and your partner. ⁠https://kimanami.ontraport.com/t?orid=511555&opid=2⁠ to register for courses— using it also supports the podcast. This Episode is brought to you by Superfeast Enjoy 10% off your order with the code RETURNTOWISDOM https://www.superfeast.com.au/

3. 

   12 Oct 2026

   Free Birth Society, Media Literacy & Radical Responsibility, with Tahnee Taylor

   After The Guardian’s investigation into the Free Birth Society, much of the freebirth world went quiet. Keshia didn’t. In this episode she sits down with Tahnee Taylor, mother of three, herbalist, birth educator, co-founder of SuperFeast, and a woman who has had two freebirths, to talk about what the investigation revealed and what it means for women considering birth outside the system. Tahnee doesn’t hold back. She bought the Complete Guide to Freebirth, watched one module, and turned it off. She explains why, and why she tells the women in her own birth course not to freebirth unless they know in their bones it’s right for them. Together they cover censorship inside online birth communities, the danger of one-sided storytelling, the rise of paid “birthkeepers” with little or no experience, the Stacey Warnecke case, postpartum haemorrhage, twins, scans, and the personal reckoning that comes with taking full responsibility for your own birth. They also explore how hard medical encounters can become the very experiences that teach women to trust themselves. This is a nuanced, honest, sometimes fiery conversation between two women who support freebirth and are not afraid to criticise how it is being sold. Find Tahnee Website: https://tahneetaylor.com Instagram: @tahneetaylor (confirm handle) Body of Wisdom Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1749200646 SuperFeast: https://superfeast.com.au References and resources mentioned The Birth Keepers, The Guardian Investigates (Sirin Kale & Lucy Osborne): https://podnews.net/podcast/i11naj Free Birth Society: Emilee Saldaya & Yolande Norris-Clark (Complete Guide to Freebirth, Radical Birthkeeper School, The Lighthouse membership) Portal, Yolande Norris-Clark (book and course) Stacey Warnecke coronial inquest, Victoria: https://www.1news.co.nz/2026/06/17/hospital-referred-doula-to-police-after-fatal-victoria-freebirth/ Research on why women freebirth (Women’s Agenda / The Conversation): https://womensagenda.com.au/latest/what-drives-women-to-have-a-freebirth-without-a-midwife-or-doctor-heres-what-the-research-says/ Tahnee’s birth stories on Body of Wisdom, including Birth Magic: Hugo’s Pain-Free, Pleasurable Freebirth Ina May Gaskin Jeannine Parvati Baker Gloria Lemay Reddit discussion threads on the Free Birth Society This Episode Is Supported By INBLUEM Skincare Pure, plant-based skincare made in Byron Bay — no toxins, no fillers, no fuss. In Bloom is offering Return to Wisdom listeners a discount. 👉 Use code RETURNTOWISDOMPODCAST at inbluem.com/returntowisdompodcast Kim Anami Holistic sex and relationship coaching for reconnecting with your body and your partner. https://kimanami.ontraport.com/t?orid=511555&opid=2 to register for courses— using it also supports the podcast. This Episode is brought to you by Superfeast Enjoy 10% off your order with the code RETURNTOWISDOM https://www.superfeast.com.au/

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Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

3 ratings

Contact Return to Wisdom

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

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