My Story
A little bit about me, the moments that shaped my philosophy on birth, and my journey to becoming a doula
A passion planted
I have early memories of my mom sharing the story of my birth. A no-nonsense woman, her birth story always seemed to bring out her emotional side. "It was the most incredible experience of my life” she would say with a smile. Unpredictable and humbling. Intense yet purposeful. Profoundly inward. Deeply spiritual. She taught me that birth had the ability to be something truly life defining.
Her experience also planted the seed for my love of midwifery, a model of care that I strongly believe should be made accessible for every woman to explore regardless of age, race, birth history, or socio-economic status.
The foundations
I developed an interest in women’s health in the years following college. As I began to educate myself, a number of themes become glaringly obvious to me. Here are some that stand out:
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Every woman is different! Different bodies, different minds, different hearts. Our choices, priorities, and experiences reflect this. There is no “one-size-fits-all” approach to women’s healthcare.
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Humans are a connected unit of mind, body, and spirit. True wellbeing honors each of these parts and respects how each one affects the others.
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The North American medical system is driven by what pays, which tends to be medication, intervention, and "quick fixes". There is significantly less emphasis on root cause identification and treatment or investment in preventative care. Care providers and women alike are impacted by this structure.
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Few things in this world are as implicitly powerful as a woman’s intuition. It is imperative that we nurture this part of ourselves, learn to listen to it, and have the confidence to trust it.
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Women were perfectly designed to give birth. As a Catholic woman, I fully attribute the phenomenon of our bodies to our Creator. As my dad likes to say, we have a really good Design Engineer!
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I learned later that each of these themes carry over to the topics of pregnancy and childbirth.
A *not so* gentle nudge
Years later, my husband and I were pregnant with our first child. I fell in love with women’s health all over again, this time in the way that our bodies grow and bear children. Each book I read began to shape my ethos on birth, which would ultimately become the the heart behind my work as a doula.
In my second trimester, I was learning about doulas and exploring the idea of hiring one for my own birth. I remember thinking what an amazing career this could be and a beautiful way to share God's love with women and their families. I had it all planned out - I'd slowly transition away from my tech job once returning from maternity leave with the goal of being a full-time doula within a year or two.
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A few months later at 35 weeks pregnant I was laid off from my job (God really said "nope, we're doing this NOW!"). It was truly a blessing in disguise. Not only was I gifted a unique period of rest and preparation leading up to my daughter's birth, but I was also free to dive full force into doula work once I was ready.
Never in my life have I felt the true meaning of "Emmanuel" more than in my journey to becoming a doula. In the words of St. Francis, my prayer is to be an instrument of peace in each of my client's birth room, holding space for them to joyfully welcome their baby into the world.
