For far too many, pregnancy and birth is still something that happens to them rather than something they set out consciously and joyfully to do themselves.

Sheila Kitzinger (1929–2015) was a British social anthropologist and one of the most influential advocates of “active birth” and woman‑centred maternity care in the late 20th century. Across her writing and public work, she criticized the increasing medicalization and institutional control of pregnancy and childbirth in many Western health systems, arguing that women were often treated as passive patients rather than informed participants. This remark reflects her broader campaign—especially prominent from the 1970s onward—for childbirth education, informed consent, and respect for women’s choices, including the emotional and cultural dimensions of birth as well as the clinical ones.

Kitzinger contrasts passive experience (“something that happens to them”) with intentional agency (“set out consciously and joyfully”). The quote argues that pregnancy and birth should not be framed as events managed primarily by institutions, protocols, or professionals, but as life processes in which the pregnant person has knowledge, choice, and ownership. “Consciously” points to preparation and informed decision‑making; “joyfully” suggests that fear, coercion, and depersonalization can eclipse the meaning of birth. The line encapsulates her feminist and humanistic critique: better outcomes are not only medical but also psychological and social, and dignity and autonomy are central to maternity care.