philosophy

How can I convey how passionate I feel about childbirth?  About patient rights and informed consent? 

My husband and I spent many years negotiating the high-tech world of infertility.  After multiple losses and heartaches, we finally achieved two high-risk pregnancies and deliveries.  What would our world be without Ethan and Emma!?  I learned so much through that process.  Enough that it inspired me to leave my corporate career and become a labor doula.  Women are unbelievably strong and they will do anything to have a healthy child.  I believe with my whole heart that every woman deserves the best possible birth experience.  They deserve respect, not condescension.  They deserve empowerment, not restriction.  It is my goal to work with your care provider to ensure that you have the birth you desire.

 

Basically, I believe my job is to empower you to find the strength within yourself.  A friend gave me this poem and the source is not noted. 

Source:  Unknown!  (If you know who wrote this please let me know!)

Empowerment is personal growth attainable not from a small, simple experience
But through a challenge of body and spirit
A rite of passage
A doula embodies comfort and strength,
Joy and power, calmness and courage
To think outside of what is accepted or known
She is an encourager of learning
Researcher
Nurturer
Knowing the body and knowing the self

Merging the best attributes of the sophistication of modern technology
With the ways of the Wise Women
Creating an encouraging birth environment a lasting memory

She blends the reactions of the body,
The thoughts and fears of the mind
And the dynamics of the spirit
These are the life-skills I needed to understand

Birth is a challenge of the body, the muscles, the ligaments and the tissues
And the doula assists
Birth is a challenge of the mind, the emotions and the strength
And the doula encourages
Birth is a challenge of the spirit, the drive, the love and the commitment
And the doula heartens
Birth can transform a woman, change her view on the world
And the doula gives confidence
Birth is a rite of passage, a time of introspection, growth and love
And the doula provides guidance

Dynamic in power yet gentle in scope, birth can bring out the very best in all
Birth is forever a joy, an experience of wellness, a day to remember, a memory to cherish.