A sweeping year-long investigation has revealed that a global network of social-media influencers promoting “freebirth” — childbirth without doctors, midwives, hospitals or medical supervision — has been linked to the deaths of babies across multiple countries. At the centre of this movement is the Free Birth Society (FBS), founded by American influencer Emilee Saldaya and Canadian influencer Yolande Norris-Clark, who turned unassisted childbirth into a multimillion-dollar business while encouraging pregnant women to avoid medical care.
A Growing Online Movement With Devastating Real-World Consequences
The Free Birth Society began with a podcast in 2017, where women shared euphoric stories of pain-free, orgasmic home births. Over time, the movement developed a loyal global following — and some women abandoned medical maternity care entirely.
According to evidence uncovered by the investigation, many women who lost children reported being heavily influenced by FBS messaging that framed hospitals and midwives as dangerous and childbirth without assistance as the safest, most empowering option.
The Tragic Case of Journey Moon
One of the most heartbreaking examples involves Lorren Holliday, who laboured for hours at home while participating in online FBS groups. She was advised to avoid seeking medical care and coached on how to speak to doctors without admitting how long she had been in labour.
When she finally reached the hospital, she was told her baby — Journey Moon — had died.
Holliday says she pursued freebirth to “give her daughter the best birth possible,” but was later driven to lie to journalists to protect Saldaya and the FBS community from criticism.
Influencers Monetised Birth Philosophy Into a Business Empire
Despite promoting a lifestyle that rejects institutions and medical systems, FBS became a highly profitable corporate enterprise. Key financial findings include:
Revenue Source Estimated Income
Paid membership groups $300 per member
Radical Birth Keeper training $6,000 per student
MatriBirth Midwifery Institute $12,000 per student
Business workshops and coaching up to $350 per hour
Between 2020 and 2025, FBS generated more than $4 million, and at peak periods made $160,000 per month.
Saldaya used profits to purchase multiple properties and expensive vehicles, install a luxury swimming pool and finance the construction of what she called her “queendom” in North Carolina.
Exploiting Legal Loopholes With Unqualified “Birth Keepers”
Unable to legally advertise midwifery services without qualifications, FBS deliberately invented a new role: Radical Birth Keeper (RBK).
Students were trained online — often via disorganised Zoom sessions — and encouraged to work as birth attendants despite having:
no medical training
no neonatal resuscitation skills
no licensing
no emergency protocols
Clients often believed they were hiring real midwives, yet RBKs were instructed to:
accept cash gifts instead of written payments
sign no legal paperwork
avoid clients likely to “blame them”
use fake names if hospitals or police became involved
Intensifying Ideology: From Home Birth to Rejecting Medicine Entirely
As the community grew, FBS messaging became increasingly extreme. Women were encouraged to avoid:
ultrasounds
prenatal screening
fetal monitoring
vaccines
discussions of emergency plans
The founders mocked medical professionals and discouraged their followers from trusting science. Within private groups, unassisted childbirth became a form of ideological purity — and birth with doctors was portrayed as failure.
Some beliefs promoted within the group included:
gravity is not real
germs do not cause disease (German New Medicine)
failure or death in birth can result from “emotional conflict” rather than medical problems
Women who expressed doubts were told they were not “sovereign enough” and that fear itself could kill their baby.
More Families Speak Out After Losing Babies
In France, Camille Voitot lost her son Marlow in May 2024 during a freebirth after months of consuming FBS podcasts. Reeling from grief, she paid for a video call with Norris-Clark, who told her:
> “Death is not necessarily the wrong outcome.”
Voitot later said she was mentally vulnerable and unable to recognize how deeply she had been influenced by the group.
Cracks Forming Inside the Movement
Former employees and followers describe a rising culture of authoritarian control within FBS — with dissent punished, members shamed and ideological loyalty demanded. Many of the movement’s once-devoted insiders have now broken away and publicly condemned the organisation.
One former FBS employee said:
> “I watched women being radicalised in real time, and babies died.”
No Accountability — and No Government Action Yet
Despite the deaths and mounting public criticism, no significant legal action has been taken against the Free Birth Society or its founders. Because the organisation rarely signs contracts and avoids direct medical instruction over messaging apps and online communities, liability remains difficult to establish.
Both founders deny responsibility for any deaths.
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Conclusion
The investigation paints a disturbing picture of an unregulated global industry built on spiritual messaging, distrust of medicine and financial exploitation. Behind the glossy Instagram posts and glowing podcast episodes, families around the world are grieving babies who might have survived with basic medical care.
With the freebirth movement still growing online, medical experts warn that without stronger regulation and public awareness, even more mothers and infants remain at risk.
