Ep. 57 The Quiet Return: Navigating Depletion and the Journey Back to Self Artwork

Let's Act: Sustainably Developing Africa and Beyond

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Let's Act: Sustainably Developing Africa and Beyond

Ep. 57 The Quiet Return: Navigating Depletion and the Journey Back to Self

May 13, 2026 • Tokunbo 'Toks' Ifaturoti • Episode 57

0:00 | 26:48

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There comes a point when you realise you have been moving through life on empty, showing up everywhere except for yourself. This episode of The Quiet Return invites you to pause long enough to recognise that truth and begin the journey back to who you are becoming.

I am joined by Toni Curtis, a North Carolina, USA-based founder of BirthWise Doula Services and an award-winning doula, educator, and maternal health advocate with more than 30 years of experience. Her work is rooted in the principle of “Safe Birth for Everyone” and grounded in a whole-person, trauma-informed, culturally responsive approach. She also leads in maternal health equity through DONA International, Think Babies, the National Birth Coalition, and the NC Doula Action Team.

In our conversation, Toni offers a powerful truth. Birth is a glimpse of life.
It asks you to surrender.
It reveals your gifts.
It shows you what balance feels like.

And the same hormones that guide labour, the ones that open, soften, and move you forward, are the very hormones that help you feel good, connected, and whole in your everyday life.

We explore:
• How depletion shows up when life pulls you in every direction
• Why rebirth is a courageous and conscious decision
• The joy of understanding who you are becoming
• How breathwork, body awareness, and community support shape the return
• The courage to start again at any stage of life
• How the physiology of birth mirrors the physiology of wellbeing

This episode is a grounding reminder that you can begin again and that your quiet return is its own kind of birth.

Connect with Toni Curtis and BirthWise Doula Services:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BirthWiseDoulas
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/birthwisedoulas_/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@birthwisedoulas
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/BirthWiseDoulas/

🎧💚 👉 Like, and share to spread the movement!
Let’s act sustainably, boldly, and together.

@TokunboIfaturoti | @LetsAct | @ToniCurtis

#TheQuietReturn #LeadershipWellbeing #RestorativeHealing #MaternalHealthVoices #ReturnToSelf #EQLeadership #CQLeadership #WomenWhoLead #BirthworkWisdom #HealingInCommunity