My first role as a Doula is to be an advocate and in service to you. To ensure you have a space where you feel safe, protected and informed in order to labor and give birth confidently. I do not rob you of your choice to choose the birth you want by forcing my opinions on you, but rather I remind you of your power within—that you are more than capable of being a strong and independent birth warrior who hears their inner voice which in turn gives you the power to make informed decisions and create the birth experience of your dreams.
I do not take the place of your partner; instead I push them to take lead in being your rock in whatever form that may be. Unmedicated or medicated, cesarean; vaginal or VBAC, epidural or no epidural, home birth or hospital birth, induction or no induction; I am a Doula that will constantly surrender to my own previous experiences, and step foot onto the journey with you in creating your own powerful labor and birth experience.
You LEAD, I will follow with unwavering support.
My deep passion are teen mothers because I was one, but pregnant folks in general light a fire in my heart. I believe you are supernatural to be able to create human life inside of your womb. We go through ten months of bodily changes; discomfort, pain, pimples, stretch marks, emotions, swollen feet (the list can go on and on) but somehow; through the chaos/joy of pregnancy, a beautiful life is born and I absolutely love being a part of that process. In our society, at a young age, most folks are taught to think pain and torture when the word birth is brought up. Yes, it takes a huge deal of physical strength to labor and birth, but 90% of the birth battle is solely mental.
There was a time when I lived in constant fear and anxiety at the thought of giving birth again. In 2010, four days after my eighteenth birthday, I experienced a very quick, lonely and traumatic (medicated) labor that lead to a wide-awake painful emergency Cesarean. My son was declared dead inside of my stomach, was then admitted into the NICU to be revived back to life and by the grace of God, he is alive and well to this very day. Fast forward to 2015, I spent a great deal of my pregnancy crying because I was terrified of that same outcome from my past experience. In order for me to get over my fear, I had to do three things; talk about those fears, educate myself and build my labor team that was on board with all of my desires. My second pregnancy, I was considered ‘HIGH RISK’ not only because of my previous emergency cesarean, but also I developed gestational diabetes (not insulin dependent). My third pregnancy, I was considered healthy--low weight gain, no GB and low risk. My fourth birth, I was able to have my son in the comfort of my home on my bed. My fifth birth, was the icing on the cake. A calm and peaceful water birth, where I was in complete control of my environment, and body. Although there were obstacles to overcome each pregnancy & labor, with the knowledge I packed my brain with, physical support of my husband, emotional coaching of my sister/doula and love from my mother; I was able to overcome my fear and succeeded in having 4 unmedicated VBACS (vaginal birth after cesarean) with my 2 daughters and 2 youngest sons. All five births, I brought my children into the world like all women can and I, by no means do not lessen the power behind them all. However, I did not get to choose my outcome for my first birth because my lack of knowledge/understanding and as a result I have always felt as if I was robbed of a better experience.
It is because of my experiences that lead me to become a Birth Doula. Knowledge is truly power! A strong support birth team and knowledge are the two recipes for success during labor. Without one or the other, it is easy to get caught up in fear of the unknown. As your doula I will make sure you have both.
I received my birth and postpartum doula training certificate with DONA International President; Ana Paula Markel at BINI Birth in Sherman Oaks, CA in 2015. An additional heart centered full spectrum doula training certification taught by water birth expert of over 25 years Lisa Marie Oxenham, LM, CPM in 2018. While I believe in DONA’S training methods, I chose to be a free lance full spectrum Doula instead of becoming certified under DONA’S code of ethics requirements. This allows me to do my practice in a more free birth approach-as opposed to being confined in a box. Since 2015, I have serviced over 300 clients with a wide spectrum of in hospital, birthing center and at home settings. I have experience with natural labor, VBACS, epidural, narcotics, induction etc.
