birthmatters doula service

I have lived in Fayette County for almost 10 years. I am originally from New England and moved to Arizona in 1992, where I met my husband. He is a Virginia-Boy! I am a very lucky mother of two boys ages 5 and 3.

I grew up with a solid foundation in organic living, natural health, and healing. My mother was a nurse who grew weary of medical politics and protocols- and watching people get sick on pharmaceuticals. Sad about the lack of preventative medicine and education, she left the medical field over 25 years ago and began nursing in a naturopathic and chiropractic office - she eventually became a practicioner herself.

As you can imagine, about the same time she made the switch- so did our house- Dimetap and baby Tylenol were replaced with homeopathy; my favorite macaroni and cheese was replaced with brown rice and freshly ground peanut butter.

After leaving home, I continued to educate myself on preventative medicine and natural healing as I began to form my own opinions and beliefs. I met my husband, who was rasied in the country and practiced many home remedies for common ailments.

When we learned I was pregnant in 2001, I began investigation on caring for my pregnant body and our soon to arrive infant. Unfortunately, an overprotective doctor that was part of my midwife's practice, discoverd a slightly open cervix when I was about 24 weeks pregnant and 'to be safe' hospitalized me then pumped me with magnesium, antibiotics, and steriods. I was released after about 10 days to bed rest and frequent cervical examinations. I never had any contractions and my cervix never dialated past 1 cm.

Jett was born full-term with a new midwife that I had switched to just two months before my due date. Even after having done the immunization research, my husband and I caved into the pressure at his first appointment. As irony would have it, we began to recognize several health issues. Though I am sure it may also have something to do with the 10 days I spent in the hospital, we have no proof. It was apparent immediately he had major food allergies as exposed through my milk. He was extremely colicky and obviously uncomfortable as the eczema and frequent rashes began to appear. He also had major reflux that caused him to spit up after every feeding and wake up screaming upon being placed on his back.

It was a trying time for us: Pete had just been laid off after 9/11 from Northwest Airlines; we were new parents; we felt very alone without family and with difficult infant; I had to keep a food diary for myself to figure out what bothered the baby; we fielded a ton of unsolicited advice; our pediatricians just shook off our concerns... but we've made it. I pull from this experience to help new parents during the postpartum phase. We were so lucky have a second child, the next time being even more careful about unnecessary interventions.

Although I hold my Bachelors of Business Administration in Marketing, I have always had a strong desire to help and take care of others. I decided to become involved in pregnancy and childbirth partly through my own experience.

It is my philosophy that pregnancy is not an illness and interventions are rarely needed. The human body knows what it is doing- and it will do it- if you fully trust it. Birth is the process my which a woman transitions into motherhood- it isn't supposed to be "easy" or "comfortable", but it doesn't have to be scary or painful either. I now make it my mission to ensure that women have the knowledge they need to make the most informed decisions that work best for them and their new babies. I do not push my own beliefs onto my clients nor offer unsolicited advice. I also understand that sometimes medical interventions ARE necessary and sometimes that can be emotional. I am very understanding and caring and will be able to help you work through that.

I think that it is amazingly brave that husbands now choose to be in the delivery room and want to help their wives while having the opportunity to see their new babies come into the world. This is a wonderful time in which we live. At one time, they just paced the waiting room while other women helped the mother. It is unreasonable, though, to expect a man to be an expert on a woman's body in just 9 short months while at the same time coping with his own emotional health as he becomes a father. Husbands often get scared when they see their partners in pain- they want to "fix" it. Some men don't realize they are afraid until they are in the room with you and you are demanding their support. Others are so anxious and excited about the birth they forget that their wife actually might need their assistance through the process. I often find no class can prepare them for what happens in the labor and delivery room. I will tailor my support to what you both need at the precious and tender time to make it the best experience for the entire family.

Because, after all, the experience matters.