Illustration by Richard Wilkinson.
Read Part I Here || Read Part II Here
When we arrived at the hospital they brought us into L&D room 7. J looked at me and said, “Seven, that’s a good number.” I agreed. I always take seven as a good sign and mentioned to J that this was the very room my last clients birthed in. That moment was the calm before the storm. Continue reading
A woman laboring on the ball. Illustrated by Megan Gnekow.
Read Part I Here || Read Part III Here
I received a call from J at 1:00 AM, just as I was returning home from a night out with friends. J had been in labor for three hours and was now needing my assistance. I came home and packed up a few things. Brushed my teeth and tried to make sense of my hair. Not a stitch of make-up and I couldn’t even remember if I had showered that day. Oh, well, too late now. I changed my clothes, grabbed my doula bag and headed out the door. Continue reading
Baby shown in Frank breech position. (Courtesy of Flickr)
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I first noticed them in our Tuesday night Birthing From Within class. They had a quiet presence, a look about them that made me want to know them. Later that evening she introduced herself to the class. 40 years old and a first time mother. She’s a writer and an artist, he’s Italian and a professor. They are equally attractive as they are intelligent and artistic. I secretly want to be their doula. Please ask me, I think to myself. Continue reading
We have a secret in our culture, and it’s not that birth is painful. It’s that women are strong. Laura Stavoe Harm
I have met a lot of mothers that say, “I would like to have a natural childbirth, but we’ll see how it goes once I’m in labor.” Whenever I hear that it’s hard for me to think that it’ll work out. You see, If you desire a natural childbirth, you need to commit to it prior to the onset of your labor. You need to do your research and know the facts, because when everyone tells you how crazy you are, or when you get scared, you must believe in why you’re choosing natural childbirth and that you are able to do this. Here’s what I recommend for those exploring natural childbirth and it’s not What to Expect When You’re Expecting (just go ahead and use that book as a paperweight). Continue reading
I am Joy, a happily married mother of two waterbirthed babies. I am a doula and a Lamaze Certified Childbirth Educator, who worked as a midwife's assistant at a freestanding birth center in TX. As of 2015, I'm a full-time nursing student who teaches childbirth classes at Park Ridge Health, The Baby Place, in Hendersonville, NC. I love serving laboring moms and I enjoy teaching birth education. I use this blog to write about it all - my life, my children, and my passion of all things childbirth.
The Joy of This 