Sometimes what you’re doing is enough. Sometimes – and probably likely – what you’re doing is too much! We are asked to do too much. We are expected to be perfect — or least we THINK we’re expected to be perfect. Prefect skin, perfect hair, perfect body, perfect food, perfect house, perfect kids. It all needs to be perfect, but also you can’t think too much about it because you also can’t show that you’re trying to be perfect – perfection with ease – that’s the way to be. Also selfless. Don’t take care of yourself because that’s SELFISH, we’re READ MORE
Category: motherhood
Empowering Resiliency After Birth!
Happy spring everyone! I’m so excited to be offering this AWESOME and very needed course for pregnant folks. Being a doula and childbirth educator for the last 10 years, I hear: “I didn’t know how to ask for help” and “I wish I would have rested more” and “my partner was trying, but didn’t know what I needed” ALL. THE. TIME. Whether this is your first baby or 4th, this course will help you prepare for a well adjusted return to “normal” life after a baby. Please share with any pregnant people you know! This information is SO important! If you would like more READ MORE
Working Together
I have been so blessed to work with many amazing practitioners. I have also seen laboring mothers treated as though they were 2nd class citizens – stupid, and unable to think clearly or logically. When I’ve seen the entire birth team working together, the outcomes are beautiful. They might not always be ideal, and they might leave the mother with feelings of sadness or disappointment, but they don’t leave anyone feeling as though they were taken advantage of. They don’t leave questions behind. When the whole team works together – mother, father, doula, nurse, midwife and/or OB – the world READ MORE
Mother Interview: A Beautifully Healing Birth
Name (Age): Charity (34) City: Dexter Birth Location: St. Joseph Mercy – Menon, Miller & Midwives SRS: When did you decide to hire a doula? Was it always in your plan, or was there a moment when you decided? Charity: With my first I wanted and planned for an unmedicated birth but ended up having a c-section due to him being breech. So when I became pregnant with my second, just 5 short months after my first was born, I knew immediately I wanted an unmedicated vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC)! I knew hiring a doula would greatly increase my chances of READ MORE
Mother Interview: Really Drawn Out Change of Plans
We’re going to start doing small interviews with our past clients, not necessarily about birth, but about some of the little things surrounding birth. What was hard, what was the best advice you received, etc… We hope that in sharing these candid little parts of pregnancy and new motherhood, we can normalize this experience for everyone. We so often only see the most beautiful parts, or the hardest struggles, of this major life change. There is so much more! All titles for the interviews are chosen by the mothers themselves. This is MY interview! Nothing profound, just a casual chat. READ MORE
Creating Your Ideal Birth Plan
This is a starting point, use the method of writing your birth plan that suits you and your family. Dreaming is encouraged! Step out of reality a little bit and use your imagination. “The first step in writing a birth plan is to dream. Let go of all the ‘shoulds’ and pressing realities that circumscribe your choices. Let yourself visualize the perfect, ideal birth for you. Trust that later you can add in reality. Right now, let loose your feelings and your imagination. It’s OK to invoke magic in your dream birth. Think through all the stages of labor: early, READ MORE
Embracing Doulahood While Waiting for Motherhood
Often times when people learn I am a doula they assume that I have children of my own. There comes a point in interviews with potential clients where the question of my personal labor/pregnancy/baby experience comes up. Until recently I have felt sheepish about admitting that I am not a mother yet (as if it is something to be admitted to). Maybe it’s because I am afraid of not meeting people’s expectations. At the same time, I am not embarrassed that I’m still waiting to become a mother, nor do I think that it diminishes my skills as a doula. I don’t feel that becoming READ MORE
More babies?!
There have been big changes going on lately in the Gladwin family. We have officially moved into our new house! (post about that coming soon!) This house has been a dream or ours for many years. Over the last 3 years we have put innumerable hours into dreaming up, designing, hiring, firing, redesigning and building this amazing house that we will live in for the rest of our lives. During this time, we also got pregnant and had a baby! Zachary is an awesome, almost-2-year-old. He’s full of wonder, too smart for his own good (and mine for that matter) READ MORE
Lactation Nut Butter Balls
When I was newly postpartum, a lovely friend brought me these amazing lactation friendly peanut butter balls that were so nice to have around and just grab when I needed a snack. I scoured the web looking for the recipe that matched. I found this one at TheBabyGoat.com and it is amazing! I have changed it A LOT though over the past year a a half, and have added even more nutritional yumminess! I have also doubled the recipe (sorta). edited version: In stand mixer mix: 2 cups dry rolled oats + 2 cups finely ground dry rolled oats 1 cup READ MORE
Getting back in the game!
It’s been a long time since I’ve done any sort of updating here, and a lot has changed in my life. I was living my dream of doula-ing full-time taking 3-4 clients per month, and loving life. When I thought things couldn’t get much better, my husband and I found out we were going to be welcoming a new little soul into the world in August 2013. Winter, Spring, and Summer were full of birth energy, both from my clients ( I attended 21 births during the first 2 trimesters!) and my own. All the families I got to work READ MORE