Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Birth Doula!!


I am so excited to begin this next journey into the birthing field! I just became a member of DONA International, which is a world wide Doula association. I wanted to take a step forward into the business of childbirth prior to getting admitted into the Masters Program for Nurse Midwifery at UW.

Yes, you heard that right...we plan on moving to Washington! I am very excited to finish out Nursing school here in Anchorage, but am even more excited to venture somewhere new with my family. We stopped in Seattle for a few days when we returned from Hawaii and it sure got both of us pumped up. We are 100% certain of our decision and intend to move in 3 years or less. (We particularly liked Arlington, about an hour north of Seattle.) I can't wait to be closer to my family and back into the lower 48. I love Alaska, but we're ready to move on.

I completely fell in love with the University of Washington's Nurse Midwifery program and I am taking this Doula step as an assurance of acceptance. By completing the DONA requirements, I will be able to start my own business as a Certified Birth Doula! I joined the Alaska Birth Network some time back and it has only strengthened my desire to help women bring their babies into this world!

So what's a Doula you ask? It comes from the ancient Greek word meaning "mother's servant." They provide physical, emotional, and informational support to women throughout their labor. Studies have found that having a Doula at your birth can result in a shorter labor with fewer complications, help to reduce negative feelings towards labor, as well as reduce the need for medical interventions. Having a Doula also significantly reduces the need for pain meds or a c-section...and you all know how I love to promote natural childbirth! Simply put, a Doula is there to help support mom, dad, and baby during the beautiful process of birth!

I will be traveling to Sacramento next month to complete a mandatory workshop for this process. I was planning on waiting for the Anchorage workshop, but unfortunately it is being held in September. I can't even imagine leaving my 2-3 week baby for a few days. Heck, Lucas was over 18 months before I left him for an entire day! Anyways, I have a list of requirements to fulfill and I am so anxious to get started! Once my workshop and packet are complete I will need to participate in 3 births before I can be certified. I am so beyond excited!! I've never been so passionate about anything in my life and I know this is the exact path I should be taking on my way to Midwifery!

And I can't wait to take some beautiful maternity pics of myself this summer to use on my website and business cards! Life is sure coming together wonderfully :)

2 comments:

Chelsea Miller said...

I am so stoked for you Crystal! I am so happy that it is all unfolding for you the way you wanted it to. I always knew that anything you decieded to do was going to be competely amazing.

Washington is alot closer, but we are still coming up to Alaska for some moose meat and good company ;)

Chelsea Miller said...
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