At the CAPPA Destin conference in 2016 I was honored to speak about my work with pregnancy and addiction as a nurse in a speech entitled, “You are not alone-Perinatal Addiction and Neonatal Abstinence”. The first story I originally planned to share at the conference was a story about my client Kelly B, a story […]
A Heartwarming Update Too Good Not to Share Continue reading »
As critical consumers of information, it is necessary to evaluate the credibility and legitimacy of resources, especially on the Internet. In a world of free information, which is without guidelines, monitoring, and representation, truth and lies can be as difficult to determine as the supermarket tabloids in the checkout stands. Anyone can post anything in
Evaluating Credibility in Everyday Sources of Information Continue reading »
Happy New Year! It seems like this is a natural time to re-evaluate aspects of life and set new goals personally and professionally. There are many ways people accomplish this task. Some individuals like to announce resolutions or come up with a word for the year. Others tend to be more list oriented and use
Create a Treasure Map for 2018 Continue reading »
2017 was quite a year in my community. We survived the costliest natural disaster in US history, Hurricane Harvey. Many birth professionals in our community lost everything in either their homes or from their practices or both. My storm experience involved watching the waters rise up our driveway to a level never seen since the
Harvey and the Help Averse Continue reading »
There is great importance in partners understanding the “why’s” and “how’s” of supporting the mom during labor and birth. As a childbirth educator, how do you prepare (educate) the expectant mother’s life partner for labor and birth? I have been teaching birth preparation classes for almost two decades, and for many of these years, I
The Importance of Educating Dads/Partners Continue reading »
Do you have a professional village? School teachers have the teacher’s lounge and department meetings. Office staff have the boardroom and water cooler. Athletes have the locker room and team meetings. But as perinatal professionals, we often work in isolation from our peers. Rarely do we have the opportunity to meet on the job or
Finding Your Professional Village Continue reading »
Cultivating a successful career as a doula begins with cultivating yourself as person, first and foremost. You started this awakening process by signing up for your initial certification course, congratulations, the fire is now lit! Perhaps the call to become a doula came loudly, or maybe it was a whisper. Regardless, there was something that
Give, Learn, Get; Your Professional Roadmap Continue reading »
“If cabin pressure should change, panels above your seat will open revealing oxygen masks; reach up and pull a mask towards you. Place it over your nose and mouth, and secure with the elastic band, that can be adjusted to ensure a snug fit. Secure your own mask first before helping others.” For those of
Put Your Oxygen Mask on First Continue reading »
Right now, I am teaching breastfeeding classes, seeing private lactation clients, training women to become lactation educators, and actually breastfeeding a newborn…so needless to say my life is boobs and milk! For me, the subject has two completely different sides. When I am teaching and working with clients, I am the educator that shares scientifically-proven,
You’ve done it! You’ve completed doula training, found your first clients, and life on call is about to begin. Have you thought about what you need to be ready to boogie out the door at any moment? The excitement of getting the “come now” call from a birthing person is even better when you know
On Call and Ready to Roll! Continue reading »