You'd be surprised how many noises you hear from women they'd never even think would come from them. I encourage that, because it's important to get into an instinctual, primal state to really surrender to what your body needs to do.

I don't think it's very realistic to not talk. When you're really at a birth, and you can see a woman is needing some help, words tend to be a way to help.

If a woman feels safe and comfortable and supported, it's amazing what she can do.

It's definitely one of the better programs in the nation because it focuses on empowerment. The women that come to them are challenged to make their own decisions, which will promote their own independence and help them to stand up for themselves.

Really it seeks to challenge the basic assumptions about violence against women.

I love 'Jane Eyre,' and I love the Bronte sisters. I actually didn't read any of them until I was in college, so I don't have quite the same connection with them that I think a lot of women do.