Birth is a natural process, but it doesn’t always go according to plan. For black women, who are more likely to experience birth complications than any other group, having a doula can make all the difference. Meet Asia Price, co-founder of the Omaha Black Doula Association and Labor Support Doula, on today’s episode. 

Asia and her organization are trained professionals who provide support and information to mothers during pregnancy, birth, and postpartum. They can help with everything from managing stress to navigating the hospital system. Their mission is to support mothers in having positive birth experiences.

Although the accessibility to birth support is not always accessible or available to black women. The Omaha Black Doula Association is working to change that. This amazing organization is on a mission to reduce maternal morbidity and infant mortality.

What you’ll learn:
1:35 The biggest hurdle black women suffer from with regard to birth and pregnancy
4:09 How to access the resources if they don’t have health insurance
5:57 Teenage mothers
16:09 The importance of having doulas
26:59 Are doctors accepting of doulas?

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Professional bio
The Carolina Sotomayor Podcast is brought to you by Carolina Sotomayor and the Fertility Foundation.

Carolina Sotomayor is an Expert Womb Healer who helps women conceive by removing physiological blockages with Reiki. She is the host of the Carolina Sotomayor Podcast, a show that covers everything from fertility to postpartum to motherhood, and the creator of Fertility Foundation Collective, an online membership that helps women heal at their own pace to boost their fertility.

Carolina has served over 500 women from around the world to heal. She is passionate about helping women create their families. As a result, there are over 60 reiki babies in the world.

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Full episode transcript:

Hi, I’m Carolina, your podcast host and womb healer. Today we have Asia Price with us from the Omaha Black Doula Association. She’s also a labor support doula, and today we’re talking about the biggest obstacles for black women in pregnancy Asia.

Thank you so much for being here today with me. Thank you. I’m excited to be, So I am so excited to talk to you about this much needed topic. Let’s just dive straight into it. As a Libo support doula, you probably see all the things and are probably the best source of knowing what black women and women of color are facing in pregnancy and birth.

Let’s start with the biggest one. What would you say that would. . Well, the biggest hurdle that we suffer from is lack of education. I don’t think that sometimes when we are going into those clinics and to those doctor office visits, we are very knowledgeable about the expectations, what we will see during our pregnancy complications that can arrive.

And I know for the most part, yes, everything is pretty standard, but there is still. Of knowledge of what to expect during pregnancy and culturally, sometimes it’s, that’s your baby, that’s your issue. And so we just go in with whatever we are told by our doctors and never question anything during that time.

So that is the biggest hurdle, is just making sure that we are knowledgeable and educated on what the expectations are for a healthy p. Is there anything that’s keeping women from going to the doctor? There’s various things that could keep a family from going to see their doctor. It could be simply they are afraid.

Many of us suffer from, you know, kind of a post-traumatic syndrome because we have had other doctors in the past. They have not listened to our concerns. They’ve kind of bypassed what we’re saying. They’re not taking. Consideration what we’re feeling and kind of seeing us as a number versus actually seeing us individually.

So a lot of times we don’t go to that first trimester appointment because we don’t think that there’s anything that needs to be done or anything needs to be seen. , but it is very much a needed time for you to go in and make sure that everything is going properly healthy. There isn’t any concerns that they need to address right away.

Cuz a lot happens in that first trimester and a lot of women don’t understand that. I know their transportation could also be issued for our families getting to their appointments. You know, having the ability to either get on the bus money for Ubers or Lyfts or taxis, any of those types of things. Even bus fair.

And also the fact that many of us don’t have. Insurance and sometimes not having that health insurance keeps us from going to the doctor because we don’t want to get a bill letter saying that we had to come up with four or $5,000 to pay for being seen. Mm-hmm. . So those are the, some of the hurdles that I know that a lot of the families I have worked with sometimes deal with.

And so that is something that could be helpful is again, providing access to those things for those families. So you are the co-founder of the Omaha Black Doulas Association and I live here in. What can listeners and myself do to support women of color and black women here in Douglas County and in Omaha to help fix this gap?

Like what are the resources and I’m not privy. So if someone doesn’t have health insurance, how do they go about getting access to these resources or access to the doctor if they don’t? So fortunately there are some organizations that do help promote and actually get some of those families in their health insurance.

So such as Charles Drew Health Center, one World is another community partner, and also sometimes just even those doctors’ offices, A C H I, for example, Methodist. They do have the ability to get you in contact with the appropriate organizations that will help get you signed. For health insurance, so many people don’t think they qualify for health insurance, you know, because of income wise, but a lot of times they actually do fall under that umbrella that actually allows ’em to have access to those healthcare plans.

So it’s just really, again, being sometimes your own advocate and finding out those resources. But there are so many that are available to families that they are not aware of. So again, Accessible to providing that type of information. So if you, for example, know that there is a healthcare insurance that is income based, or there are programs that have a sliding fee, making sure those are accessible and put out there in the communities that are underserved.

So many parts of North and East Omaha and South Omaha need to have. Places or organizations to come in and and ask for ways that they can impact the community, they will be well received. It is just, again, being in a space and having the right partnerships that will help build that gap between those organizations and the health insurance.

You mentioned when we were chatting before, sometimes there’s teenage mothers who don’t know their options in pregnancy. So if we have a teenage mother, how can they receive resources? Because I know in some cases that that might be a really. Hard situation for families or make get complicated for the teenage mother?

How can they get resources? Is there something in schools or ever even know that they could ever have a doula if they don’t even know to go to the doctor the first trimester? Yes. So that’s the kind of the work that we have been kind of tasked for. I, myself, uh, like I said, and even the co other co-founder, both for team moms.

And so our biggest hurdle right now is to find ways to get into the schools and also be able to partner with. The, uh, public school system to just be added addition to the resources that they do provide for the students. So we have made partnerships with, or organizations that help focus on nutrition.

We have organizations that do help supply educational pieces, whether it’s helping them get their g e d, finding childcare, being able to access like you, like we’ve already talked about healthcare insurance cuz sometimes it is. The family itself is not really wanting to help support that team, right? And so they have to find their own resources.

And so those type of partnerships with trying to get into the schools as well as some of the clinics that are in the areas that we do serve is awesome because then they can also recommend that. To the patients when they do come in. Right now it’s kind of word of mouth honestly. So we could have a client that is in the teens and they are fresh in high school or they are about to sit out into the world, and so they will have a great experience with having the support of a doula and they will recommend that to their friends and families.

I did have a mom that did actually. Reach out and say, Hey, she needs you. I’m not capable of doing all that she needs and I know that this is something that we, she will benefit from. So when you go back to those families and they say, I could not have done this without you, or You were a great resource, or you provided a lot of access to things we were not aware of, that just gives us a boost of confidence that we’re doing exactly what we need to do in the community.

Such validation. That’s probably breaking a lot of generational trauma as well. Absolutely. Changing, like depending on what stories that family may have had or the experience of the mom because. In America, just like the major theme is what I encountered when I was pregnant is that you hear every terrible story.

That’s the first thing that people share is absolutely, let me tell you about my horrific C-section. Mm-hmm. , let me tell you how my baby almost died. Let me tell you about all these things, but very rare to actually say, you know what? I have a positive birth story. Yes. Can we share it with you? So that’s exactly what you’re doing.

You’re changing the narrative in so many family. Lines and that that has to. Super powerful. It’s, it is such a awesome opportunity. Every time I know that the doulas that I speak to, every time we get a chance to be a part of a birth, it is like our babies. It’s like we help get you here. You’re here, you’re healthy.

Your mother, your father, everybody involved is happy and. , everything came out the way that it should. So yeah. You know, we gonna have one or two that didn’t go the way that it planned. Right. But that’s, that’s just life in general. But like you said, it, it is really breaking those generational, uh, pieces because your mom had a baby 17, sometimes even 30 plus years ago.

She can’t tell you what your experience is. She can’t educate you on what your options are. I know for myself, I’ve had a few moms, they were the first time moms and they say, absolutely not. My mom cannot. And you’re thinking like, oh, mom should be there. No, but they’re, I know they like, that was the case with mine too.

Just thankfully she lived in Pittsburgh. I, it was far enough away. My mom requires a lot of care and attention and with, when I was giving birth, it was just my husband, my doula. I had a photographer, and if I was in this vulnerable state, be taking care of other people. Right. This is my like, I mean, something’s coming outta my vagina, so like

And so no, I’m not gonna take care of you mom if you’re cold. Like you’re only like, exactly. And so sometimes we are the median and a bridge between families and, you know, so sometimes I have to fool grandma like, Hey mom, let’s get you, let’s go downstairs, get you some coffee. Or even dad sometimes like, I got you.

So it’s really a team effort, but it is really giving everybody a chance to really embrace it in a positive way. You know, if there is something going on and you need some time to re, you know, rehash it or reevaluate what you thought was happening. And we always try to give the as many options or examples of what can happen, but we try to stick with the plan that they have thought of and what we’ve talked about.

And if anything does arise or changes in that process, we are there to help. Still, you know, help them know what’s available. I’ve had a dad say, Hey Asia, this wasn’t what we talked about. What is the options? What does this look like? And we will talk about it. And they’ll be like, okay, cool. Now I know what I’m needing to do and how she can, you know, foresee this pregnancy and this birth.

Come to have my baby get here. And usually dads are the pushback, like, what do you need to doula for? What am I here for? But once that baby comes, it’s a whole different situation. They’d be like, oh my God, I couldn’t have, she wouldn’t have let me touch her. She wouldn’t let me do this . And it’s like, okay, yeah, that’s what I was here for.

I wasn’t to step, I’m not stepping on your toes. I’m encouraging you guys both to have space in this moment to focus on the the live. You know, the birth of your baby, the earth side of it, for you to be able to see it and it be a positive, you know, situation. We never want and never foresee it going in a bad narrative, but Right.

We never know. But when the majority, if not if, I can say at least 95%, if not more of the time. It is a positive outcome and it is beneficial for the families because when they have, like you said, positive birth, the energy in the space is, is neutral and everybody’s understanding and. We get good conversation and flow.

It is going to be that. After that family is like, okay, I feel good. I don’t feel rushed. I don’t feel pressured into doing things that I didn’t feel good about, but I was able to think about it or I was able to have an option, maybe I didn’t have to. You know, have a cesarean because I did switch positions and my doula and my doctor were able to come up with a good idea of what could help me get the baby down further or you know, turn the baby around.

And so those are the things we look forward to because we don’t want a negative narrative of doulas because we are not here to push back against doctors. We are not here to make the families go against whatever the medical, cuz we’re not medical. At all. We are the emotional, physical, mental pieces of it.

So we’re trying to make sure that everything is good there. The, the doctors, the nurses, we are just a part of the support team. So sometimes we are having to. Reiterate some things because in those spaces, sometimes those nurses or doctors are saying to me, gibberish to my client. I’m like, they do not understand what you’re saying.

You done said it three different ways. They do not understand what you’re saying. So sometimes it’s going back and say, you know what? This is really what they’re trying to ask you to do. Do you feel comfortable doing that? If not, here’s another option. Then you could tell them, this is what you wanna do versus what they were trying to get you to do.

So sometimes it is culturally just making sure they understand what you’re trying to say to ’em so that we can’t have a positive environment. I’ve had sometimes where nurses are like, oh my God, thank you. Cause I didn’t, she wasn’t understanding what I was saying. Or, you know, her dad, the father was very angry at me and I’m like, well, you know, this is how he proceeds you saying this and.

How we can move forward so that we can again, be in those birthing spaces and they all feel, you know, respected and heard, and acknowledging that space. So your mediation as well. Absolutely. , , Absolut, absolutely. The biggest misconception when I talk to someone who’s never heard the word doula, they mistake it for a medical provider.

And the biggest way is, I say it’s advocacy and information advocate. Is yes, as you’re advocating for the patient to have a pause so that you can form them of all of the choices and the pros and cons of every choice that is going along in the step of the process. And every birth unfolds so differently.

Every person has different ailments if there’s any present, so it might be high risk, depends on their hospital. The birth setting may be. You know, and in some states here in Nebraska, we can’t have a certified nurse midwife attend, uh, home births. But in other states you can deliver at home or, and maybe there’s a birth center.

So like there’s just so much at play that. Every birth is so different, but the doula is really just the missing piece a lot because there’s so much lack of information, as you said. But overall, what I’m seeing, as in I am, I’m recording these podcast episodes this second season, there is. A huge gigantic gap of period education cycle charting, just education and your administration just about your anatomy.

Yeah. There’s just so much that there is lacking, and then especially when you’re pregnant, you know, all of those things that are like, okay, then how is this all gonna work? Right? How is it gonna feel afterwards? Like, what’s gonna happen when I’m actually like, you know, pushing. So I always advocate. For anyone that I work with or anyone I talk to.

Have you considered a doula? Yes. Have you considered a doula? Do you know you can meet and greet with them? ? Yes. Like what is, I was like, I promise that I said you should just look at it. It, it’s something you should consider. Anyone that I have worked with with fertility, that there is typically so much money and time spent.

To get pregnant. The actual experience of being pregnant and the actual experience of giving birth hasn’t really been looked into. And I think that’s pretty normal too, to Right. You know, they don’t wanna let their hearts go there if they haven’t gotten that far yet. Yes. So I always advocate, especially if people who have gone through fertility treatments and depending on their situation, I have one client who.

Oh gosh. She had one embryo, so this, she got pregnant with her ivf, but that was her only embryo, so this is her only chance of being pregnant, so I highly recommended it. And she’s looking at. Birth to less. Yes. So in her state. And it’s really important because you just never know how many babies you’re gonna have.

You know what, in my husband, we recently had a friend that was getting divorced. He goes, well, nobody goes into marriage thinking that it, you’re gonna get divorced. No. But you just never go into, you know, your fertility thing, it’s gonna be hard or. You know that you’re gonna be limited in any capacity, so birth can be beautiful.

I did reiki for childbirth certification class. It’s not a doula certification, but how to deliver reiki to help in childbirth prep and during labor. And it was amazing. One of the ladies was explaining how some women can get in such a deep place within themselves that it’s minimized pain. Hypnosis and different modalities and things like that.

And I even saw an ad for orgasmic birth and I was like, I don’t believe that one. , . I’ve heard that a few times, but I mean, I can’t say that I experienced that . I mean, I believe in a lot of things and mostly power of crystals in Jesus, but. I don’t know if I can really be like, Hmm, yeah, that, that’s like, I, like you said, it is a mindset, so if your mind is, you know, able to take you to that place, you.

But I . I’m just like, I don’t really believe that. That, yeah, from that and Oh, that’s so funny. So . So how can people support the Omaha Black Doulas Association? The biggest thing is that there is the issue of families having the ability to pay for it. I always say this, that everybody has. , and this is something that people need to put value on.

So your experience during your pregnancy, to me, is a part of your self-care. So your self-care is, you know, if it is getting your nails done, if it’s getting your hair done, if it is having a massage that is a part of something that you’re willing to pay because it gives you comfort, it gives you, you know, like a, a good feeling.

You kind of really feel. Energy levels is up and everything like that. So to me, labor support, doula, postpartum, doula are those pieces of your self-care. It is be able to bounce off questions and concerns that you can’t. I can’t text my doctor at two AM’s. True what? I can text my doula’s. Maybe I did have a question after my appointment, but I’m not really for sure if the nurse will be actually able to answer it.

I wanna answer now. Sometimes that is the benefit of having a. Or doulas that you have somebody that’s in your corner that is aware of your issues, concerns, and can help kind of talk you down sometimes off ledge. It could be simply, again, being at those prenatal visits to hear what the doctors are telling you so that we can make a plan.

Or I can be that ear or that voice to say, you know what? She did have a question last time and I’m just trying to get some clarification so we both can understand. So being able to be in that space for those moms is very, I. So we do have the needs of funding when it comes to being able to help those families pay for it, because our doulas are doing a lot.

It is a lot of emotional support and it’s a lot of mental and physical support. So I feel like there’s value there. So these families should be able to compensate those doulas for that support during absolutely. Their pregnancies. So if that is something big, and we also. The need for supporting the families in different spaces as well.

So as you kind of talked, is childbirth. I am certified as a childbirth educator. So I think that’s important for families to have that peace when it comes to childbirth because it gets, sets expectations or at least the minimum of what is to happen. During that, whether it’s the active stage, whether it’s this early stage, and even though it’s postpartum stage of what your birth experience is going to look like, that’s also important.

And also supporting those families when it comes to that postpartum. They need diapers, they need access to get to those doctor’s appointments. So any type of support financially is the biggest thing. But we also have community baby showers. We host Meet the doula. And when people can come and help support that in any way, being resources, partnerships with the community that do offer services that will be beneficial for new families, pregnant moms especially, or even young children, will be beneficial for us to have those partnerships so we can provide those resources to our clients For sure.

Oh, that’s amazing. So your, uh, labor support doula, does your organization have postpartum doulas available as well? Absolutely. I don’t say I do postpartum, but I just feel like I connect more on the labor side if I have clients that are obviously in need and wanna continue on with that. I also support them in postpartum, so I do postpartum, do the support as well, but I prefer just labor.

But it is something that is also still needed. A lot of families don’t understand the capacity of what happens in those six weeks to a year, sometimes even beyond a year for postpartum . I feel like we didn’t come up for air until all, I was 18 months old. I had two and it really p, p a. Yeah. Yeah. So it is important for families to plan that out.

Whether you have a postpartum doula that comes in and helps support you with breastfeeding, it could be help tidying it up, helping you understand what you know, ways to comfort baby changing baby bathing baby. So those are different things that a postpartum doula can help support. Oh yeah, I didn’t, how bathe my baby.

I didn’t. The postpartum doula had to show me, like, I literally, I grew up as an only child cuz my siblings were so much older than me, like 12 years. . So I didn’t know how to bathe Ollie. Literally, we, I didn’t bathe him for three weeks after he was born. . Yeah. I thought that was me being crunchy. I didn’t, oh, I’m so not crunchy now.

But like , I realized that also that postpartum support is actually. Is a privilege for many. So supporting your organization postpartum support was actually critical in my recovery at a C-section. And it ruptured. It had all these things and I was on antibiotics and had all these complications after. But the postpartum support wasn’t just for VM baby, but it was also very much for my husband.

He needed guidance and a lot of people kind of just fled in our postpartum. They didn’t know what to ha cuz we were in acu. We had all this trauma. People didn’t know what to to do with us, so they just fled. It was like we were all lone. Absolutely. And postpartum doulas are absolutely that. They are individuals that come in and actually help support you through that.

And so a lot of times, like you said, we don’t talk about it. Cuz once you have the baby, it’s oh yay. And they come visit. They might not come visit, they may send you dinner, they may send you something. But that postpartum is just, like I said, just as important as. I come to your house, I make you feel comfortable.

Get in the shower, take a nap. I’m there to support you for, for your time to recover. I have one client, and she was like, at first she was like, oh yeah, and now she’s like, absolutely need you in my postpartum. It’s detrimental because she said during her first pregnancy, she had to, she was like, no one came by.

She’s like, I was literally home by myself with the baby all day, every day, and no one would come by. So she suffered from postpartum because it’s like I’m in this vicious cycle. 24 hours. I’m here with the baby. No one’s really checking in. Yes, my husband, yes, my, you know, family pops in here and there, but that doula support is just as important because it is giving you the time and energy and you’ve built a relationship in most cases, months before.

So you are well aware of what their expectations are or what they’re needing to get. Recovery. Like you said, cesarean is one thing. Even NICU could be something, but just having that stability of someone constantly being able to come in and, and reassure you and still continue to advocate for you is absolutely important.

Because there are things that happen after, you know, once you get home and you know, there could be blood pressure issues, there could be things that you are not noticing. You’re like, oh, I just had a baby. Everything’s fine. It’s like, We need you to go in and be checked, but sometimes that again, could be that reassurance and that knowledge that the postpartum doula has that can help you through those next few weeks.

Many, like I said, sometimes postpartum doulas go beyond those six weeks and they go eight to 10 weeks, but whatever you feel you need to help get you to even a mental st space that will, you know, make you feel good. That’s, that is absolutely what a postpartum doula is needed. A hundred percent I know. Or a fact.

That I wouldn’t reached out of that dark place without her. Yeah, I was in a very dark place after Bank of Trauma. Yeah, for a hundred percent. A hundred percent. And she made you feel way better about the situation. There was a lot of restoration of my soul that I didn’t realize. I had not shared a lot of my abuse with anyone at that point, and I didn’t realize this was a huge part of my healing journey was I didn’t realize how much of trauma could show up in your birth.

Yes. Let alone in your postpartum. Absolutely. And that’s. And those unhealed traumas. Boy did they rupture and she did extraordinary things. She even drove me to like therapy appointments. There was a lot of irrational fears and she helped me work through those, but also just like I couldn’t sleep. And so there was like a lot of also helping me go to.

I had trouble breastfeeding. It took me three months to exclusively breastfeed my son. We did triple feeding. We were gonna milk works like three or four times a week. And that’s like here in Omaha’s, a great, uh, breastfeeding organization. And it takes me back. I’m like, even, I’m like getting a little choked up for a second.

I know what it was like to do meat and greets with different midwives here in town in Omaha. I had decided I wanted a midwife, so I don’t know what it’s like to. Talk about with an ob, g Y N, with having a doula. Is there an acceptance of that or not? Because I imagine, you know, with everything that you’re saying, once a mother finds you, they’re gonna wanna keep you.

I mean, I would wanna keep you . So , I mean, you’re so lovely in every way. So like, so now they find you and they have to go to the doctor. Are doulas accepted at OBGYNs or what’s like the vibe here in Omaha? Are doctors accepting of doulas? How does that really work out? It depends, honestly, thankfully, and I will say this, thankfully, I have not run into a physician that has been completely against.

I can’t speak for other doulas, but for me and the, uh, other members of the Omaha Black Doula Association, I have yet to hear anybody say anything about a, a doctor negatively. Like, oh, he or she did not want us there. He or she did not approve of what I said or how, what options I provided for my client.

So we haven’t run into that. I can’t say they are not doctors out here in the Omaha area that don’t like doulas, but I will say, We are being received more, I feel like in the last couple years because of what the outcomes have become. And again, people are researching and looking into it. I have jokingly told people that I wanted to be like, you get pregnant.

Your first things when you get pregnant are who is you’re gonna be, your ob gyn or your midwife, and who’s your doula, and also a pediatrician. But those are like the three key pieces that I feel like is necessary when you’re going into a pregnancy. So most of the doctors happen. Yeah, so most of the doctors have been very aus excited about it.

Every time they say they have a doula, and then I go into a prenatal with them, they’re like, oh, you’re the infamous doula. Or, I heard such good things about you, or She told me you told her this, and that was such a good thing that you told her. So it’s never a negative connotation, but I always like to go into those prenatals because I want the doctor to always catch my vibe and for me to feel like you.

How they feel about my patient. You know, you can really say, yeah, I think I, I like her or I like him, or, no, I don’t like that person. It does not fit well with me. I’ve had had one client recently that did move from one physician to another, and that was just because the doctor was not listening and was not advocating and not staying on top of certain things with that particular, uh, client.

And she moved to a different facility and. She feels amazing. She feels like everything is running smoothly, actually helped her find the other physician that she was at. So those are the type of things that we want, uh, for doctors to know, is that we’re not here again to cause any mischief, but we are here to make sure that our client feels advocated for supported, and that they feel like this is a safe space.

And that is not what always has been when it came to black women in the, uh, medical. Spaces that we don’t feel like we’re really being listened to and advocated for. And so sometimes having that doula is really what keeps families even going back is like, Hey, how was that last appointment? And then you’re checking in and making sure that they’re staying on top of things.

And it is, again, being a village for those families is that maybe I can’t, the doctor couldn’t convince you and maybe me talking to you and getting you through some of those different hurdles helps you see, okay, this is a benefit for me. This is going to help me and the baby. . So they do reach out and then we continue on that journey.

Thankfully, we actually had some doctors recommend doulas for their patients when they do come in, so that’s also beneficial. They are aware of us as an organization, but they also are aware of us just beneficially to their patients. So maybe they didn’t have, I’ve had a client. That went in for an appointment.

I was there and the doctor’s like, oh, I think it would be awesome for another one of my clients or another one of my patients. How do I give that information to them so they can get the help? Because they do see us as a part of the, uh, health team. They do see us as being advocates and helping the, uh, clients be more aware of their options.

Sometimes doctors can’t tell a client an. That they’ve repeatedly told ’em and they just can’t get them to understand why this is the way that it is. And sometimes as doulas, we help them understand why this is important or just give them again, those options and what variations there may be for you during your pregnancy.

So you mentioned something that I wanna touch upon is that you’re also an educator in those classes. I did both private classes and I took the hospital class and I got a lot more out of the private class than the the hospital class for prepping me for birth and just overall with. Also what would come after?

I felt like the hospital class was just prepping me to be a really good patient. , and the private class actually had like a folly bulb and like had different, like that’s the first time I ever seen like a nipple cover or like all the things, or the first time I ever saw a breast pump. Yes. Or a flanges. I know that that class for me, Was life changing because that’s where we had taken a multi-week class.

Then there was like breastfeeding class and then like a, a little bit of education for postpartum too. So does your organization provide that type of education too? Yeah, so the thought process for our child birthing class is for it to be, you can get it all one and done, or you can, like you say, you can have it where it is a weekly thing.

Sometimes it is easier to go through it, um, on a weekly basis because you can. Not jampacked, but you can ask those questions individually in regards to each piece that you may bypass or you may not think about. But it gives you a opportunity to really see what the stages of labor look like. And even like you said, the postpartum piece is so not taken away from hospitals, but I think.

Again, it is a cultural thing as well as personal. So when you’re able to really dive into something, you don’t feel like you’re interrupting or you’re stopping somebody from doing something, but they are solely focused on making sure that you understand the importance of what childbirth looks like and the stages of labor.

You just feel more at ease. And so it makes you feel more open to asking questions. Me personally, I’m just one of those people that I’m always gonna ask questions. I don’t care what area we are in. I don’t care if we’re in the middle of a traffic gym. I have a question and I need you to be able to answer it for me.

Apologize. Yeah. Understand what I’m doing moving forward. I, I have, I have to apologize sometimes to people because I say, I know that this is probably not something you really want to. But in order for me to better serve myself and you not have to repeat this later, I need you to really just tell me what I need so that I can get everything down and that we can move forward.

And I think that that is important for families to have that education and knowledge so that when that time comes, they don’t have to. Pause and say, what’s happening? What is, why are we doing this? And they’re knowledgeable. Okay, this was something that we discussed. I know this is needed, so let’s move forward.

If you don’t provide those bits and pieces of education prior to, it could be a whole hailstorm. When you go into that birth space, there’s gonna be a lot of pushback. There’s a lot of argument, there’s a lot of, I don’t want that. I don’t know what you’re talking about. I don’t need that. It’s becoming more of an issue versus more of a positive setting.

And so having those birth classes, new parenting skill classes, those are things that we want to prepare families for so that they can be more prepared if you can say that more prepared to better suit their future. Cuz I always tell people that it doesn’t stop. After birth. I always check in with families afterwards.

I’m a year almost going into year two with babies. Having, having their first birthday. So I’m checking in. I tell them, told the families, oh God, I want to be at graduation. I wanna see this. My doula baby flourish. Oh my gosh. I love her so much. And how I can be supportive during that time. I mean, I’ve jokingly told somebody the other day, I said, I wanna be everything that I can be.

I want, I wanna be extended part of your family. I’ve had clients reach out and say, Where’s the best place to get fried chicken? What’s the best place to get a really nice dinner? What’s the best place to take swimming classes, whatever it may be, a year, two years from now? Let sign me up. What do you need from me?

Because I don’t want it to stop. Because it is about being a village for these families. Because you start at that beginning. When they become first time. It’s a, it’s a continuous thing. It is Absolut. It’s lonely to be a parent sometimes. I am originally from Miami and all of my communities there, my dad’s past.

My mom lives in Pennsylvania, but like all of my friends and all my mother friends are far away. So to have a village, that’s always my dream. Yes, is to have that community and my soul is, community is everything. And it, it’s about if you can have someone that’s going to come and rush to help you, you then you know what?

It’s truly to feel loved. Yes. And there’s no better feeling. To me that’s a, like an engulfing kind of love that, that’s what’s really beautiful. It is a continuous thing, and I, like I said, I, I love it because like you, like I’ve said, it is really starting at the beginning of these Yeah. This family process, whether it is their first baby or it’s the second, it is starting at.

The beginning and riding that whole rollercoaster as much as they allow you to be a part of that baby’s life and forever imprint on the impact that you have for them. So well, I wanna thank you so much for taking the time to be here and share all of your wisdom. And how can people get in touch with you on social media?

I am a meaningful doula, so you can find me that way on Facebook or on Instagram. And also a part of the Omaha Black Doula Association is also where you have be able to find me. Perfect. Thank you so much and I can’t wait to see how this episode impacts so many. I am too. Thank you so much. I appreciate it.

Thank you. I hope you have a beautiful day. You. Bye bye-bye.