You Can Do Better Than ‘Junkie’

The Words We Use When you’re passionate about birth, you want to learn about it. You dive into books and podcasts. You search for blogs and videos on YouTube. You scour social media for people to follow. What should you be called for doing that? A birth nerd? A childbirth junkie? That’s what I see.…

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So You Want to Be a Doula?

So You Want to Be a Doula? Twenty years ago, few people knew what the word ‘doula’ meant. Now, most people know what a doula is But there are so many kinds of doulas…birth, postpartum, death or end of life, full spectrum, even divorce or surgery doulas. What is the difference between all these types…

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Getting Started and Finding My Voice

This is my journey of finding my voice in a society that silences women, starting with my mother’s subtle but unsuccessful rebellion. How do you bring an idea to life if your passions are silenced? Dedicated to my mom.   My mom was born in 1929, when women weren’t known for having their voices heard.…

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Decision-Making Part 3: Skills for Doulas

Decision-Making in Real Life: Role Plays and Reality This is the last of a 3-part series on decision-making. In this post, I outline the process I used with my clients when working as a doula. The Decision-Making Role Play This process is done in a prenatal visit — a meeting done with clients at the…

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Decision-Making Part 2: Tools

Part 2 In a 3-Part Series In last week’s blog, I shared about decision-making and how it’s not what we think it is. We tend to think it’s very logical, analytical, and reasoned, when in fact it’s a very emotion-based process. Check out Decision-Making: Faking You Out Big Time! to learn about the parts of the…

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Decision-Making Part 1: Faking You Out Big Time!

A new series of blogs on how we make decisions I read a newsletter article this week by Anne-Laure Le Cunff of Ness Labs. It was called “Why Smart People Make Dumb Decisions.”  Her article reminded me that I wanted to blog about decision-making, so here we are. Decision-making is the process we use to…

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Neuroplasticity: Our Brains Are Like Clay

It turns out I have a lot to say about families… And it appears that you – my audience – like to hear what I have to say about them as well. I received so many comments after my last blog about your own families of origin, their impact (good and not-so-good) on who you…

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Families: The Training Ground for Small Humans

Note: The author is well aware of the range of dysfunction within families. This blog post intends to focus only on the phenomenon of families as “first teachers,” not on the content — supportive or destructive — that is being taught to children. The reader can extrapolate the profound impact of both helpful behaviors and…

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Inductions: Why Are They So Damn Hard?

Labor inductions are a topic that so many doulas struggle with. Why are they so challenging? And is there anything doulas can do to make them more manageable? First, let’s start with the basics: What Is an Induction? A labor induction is when labor is started artificially. Normally, labor starts on its own due to…

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How to Write Quick & Easy Copy That Works

Hey, fellow small biz owners! Ever found yourself staring at that blinking cursor, racking your brain for something fresh and witty to say about your latest offer? You had a killer idea, but then—bam!—the phone rings, your cat topples over your coffee mug… By the time you sop up the mess, your idea has gone…

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