My Story
My journey to becoming a doula started even before I gave birth to my first child. I had a very isolating experience with pregnancy loss a few years prior and I remember coming out of that situation wishing I had just one person that was able to give me sound, solid advice, and actually listen to what I wanted. After the hospital birth of my son, though unmedicated, I was left questioning a lot of the procedures and interventions offered to me while I was at my most vulnerable both prenatally and while in labor. At the same time, I was in complete and utter awe of the miracle that was my body. I thought I was so prepared for what was to come, and that birth just completely turned me upside down! I had a new found respect for my ancestors and all women everywhere.
From then, I started to dive deeper into educating myself into the physiological process of birth. As a full time yoga teacher for over 10 years, internationally trained in the yoga practice and Thai massage, I was naturally drawn into learning about ways to move the body to support pregnancy, labor, and birth. I started my journey into doula work when a student asked me to attend her birth, and I noticed I would spontaneously start crying every single time I would watch a birth video. I dove into a training course through DONA, and have not looked back. With all of this education and knowledge, I then stepped resolutely into my power and went on to free-birth my second son in September of 2020, with just my partner and 2 year old in attendance, in our sweet 1 bedroom apartment in Wynnefield, Philadelphia. It was simultaneously the most magical, powerful and normal event of my entire life. You can read both of my birth stories in my upcoming blog posts!
Education
I continually educate myself with books, webinars and workshops. On the horizon for me this year is Breech Training with Breech without Borders and extra VBAC training with the VBAC Link.
