Embarking on New Journeys

My life has been in a transition state as of late, and as an effect, I often find myself feeling sort of directionless and unsure of where I want to go next. I’m torn by a devotion to being a passionate advocate of too many causes, some of which contradict one another, and I’ve been looking for something into which I can focus my energies.

I think I’ve found that something in doula. A doula is trained in everything from massage techniques to ease the pain of surges (aka contractions) to breastfeeding to helping a birthing mother exercise her rights in a hospital setting. A good friend of mine and I have discussed for a good long while becoming DONA certified Birthing Doulas together. It’s something I’ve wanted to do since I first learned what a doula was and is something that is required for her on her bigger journey of becoming a midwife. Said most simply, a doula is an advocate for the pregnant woman and the birthing mother.

Today, we really committed to the idea. We bought the books we have to read, scheduled out when we were going to accomplish certain aspects of the training over the next year and a half or so, and made our commitment more concrete. It’s a long process that involves books and papers and workshops and trainings and character references and attending births and a million other hoops through which we’ll have to jump, but it’s one that I’m so excited about.

The idea of reclaiming birth is something about which I care deeply. I can’t tell you exactly why, though it probably stems of my intense desire to birth and mother children one day and the rejection of the fact I need help from doctors to do what my body is literally designed to do. I hate the idea of pregnancy and birth being seen as a medical condition or problem. It makes me sad to see birthing mamas hooked up to IVs and surrounded by a stressful and fear-filled hospital environment. Let me insert here that I am not opposed to hospital births or obstetricians or C-sections or pain medication-I’m simply opposed to women being raised to think that this is their only option when it comes to birth. I would be happy to work as the doula for a woman who carefully examined her options and decided that a hospital birth was still best for her. One of the biggest roles of a doula, in my eyes, is to help women realize all the options they have when it comes to their birth plans and help them navigate through any problems that arise.

As I move through this process over the next few years, I’ll be sure to share my journey and what I learn about birth, mothering, and myself.