Doula Katy, pt 1 Hi y’all! My name is Katy Gladwin. This post is just a start, but I’m going to try to tell you who I am, and why I think the way I do. I grew up in Michigan from the age of 5 and have lived here my whole life (minus a year in Nashville, but that’s an entirely different post). I have 3 little sisters, all of whom are amazing, smart beautiful women who I love dearly. We are all close, and feel very lucky to have them in my life. I am married to a READ MORE
Tag: doula
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
Doula as Luxury Commodity?!
There is a fallacy going around right now in the Doula community. It is being said that Doulas are not needed, or deserved. That Doulas are WANTED, and therefore are a luxury service. I would beg to differ! Women have been supporting women through childbirth for all time. Sure, there wasn’t always a trained, non-medical, non-judgmental support person hired by families to provide, “physical, emotional and logistical support through the pregnancy, birth, and postpartum time”. There have been the wise-women, other mothers (who had also gone through natural, and well supported birth), sisters, sister-wives, midwives, the shaman, and so on and READ MORE
When the (doula) fruit is ripe…
It’s finally happening. My transition to being a doula has been a vacillating one, but it is time for me to make it a bigger part of my life. Starting in September I will be cutting hours at my nonprofit desk job in Detroit so I am able to spend more time doing this doula work that I love. The backstory – When I first completed my training in 2012, I knew that I wanted to support women and their partners through labor and birth, but was having trouble figuring out the particulars. I already had a full time job, was living in an 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
The Placenta Experience
This post was written by Courtney Blake, a local Placenta Encapsulator, mother, student, and friend. Thank you so much for contributing to the Sacred Roots Community! Greetings! I would like to tell you about my experience with Placenta Encapsulation. I have had a very pleasant post-partum period and believe that choosing to consume my placenta via Placenta Encapsulation is a very big reason why. It really does make sense when I think about it! The placenta grows as the baby grows and it holds all kinds of hormones and nutrients. Where do those nutrients go after my baby is born? READ MORE
First Blog Post
Hello! I am so excited to begin developing a relationship with my community and other birth professionals! Please feel free to start some communication! I am happy to answer any questions or address any concerns you might have. We are hoping to create a space where we can have an honest, fun, and friendly discussion on health and nutrition, birth practices, women’s health, family matters, and home and house keeping (including your fun crafty stuff!) Please post as you see fit!