Birth Stories in Color

After having a surgical birth with her first son, Nicole knew her second birth; she wanted her journey to look different. That started with finding a black midwife, a black doula, and birthing with a care team that would treat her under a holistic mindset, her needs and wants always being the lead. Yet, unexpected events of the world would cause Nicole to make some shifts. Soon after her state's shutdown due to COVID-19, the midwife practice she had been seeing indicated that they couldn't keep their doors open and their families would need to find a new practice.

Nicole began a new search and did find a provider group that she thought would work, but again a shift would need to be made. Their care was focused on using race as a risk factor, and outlining care plans that didn't fit or match what Nicole wanted, so she started her search again.

A tip from her prenatal masseuse encouraged her to seek out doula support. There was an instant connection between her and Fatima, and in hearing Nicole's struggles to find a care team she trusted, she backed Nicole in reaching out to the GW midwifery group late in her pregnancy was worth trying. Nicole stayed her course, and things began moving into alignment. At 32 weeks, she began her care with GW, and the day before her son's arrival she was introduced to Anayah Sangodele-Ayoka, CNM, a black midwife from the practice. The care from her felt so familiar, a connection not only for her health concerns but also to just who she was.

When her son's birth came around, she felt her birth team fully encouraging and cheering her on. Everything she had done to prep had come full circle to have a VBAC. She shares from her story for others moving through their journey, "set your intentions, believe it's going to happen, and don't be afraid to change."

Resources:

Oasis Birth Doula | doula support

Anayah Sangodele-Ayoka, CNM | George Washington Hospital Midwife

Tash joined us on the podcast to share the birth of her first daughter Paris. Getting to her birth did take some time for Tash and her husband, as they navigated fertility issues and a miscarriage before her pregnancy with Paris. She describes it as being hard from the beginning and with an unexpected twist as at 16 weeks, results from their genetic testing had a high probability that their child would have a genetic disorder.

At 26 weeks, Tash began having Braxton hicks and, at 36 weeks, started having prodromal labor. As time continued to past, Tash consulted with their doula, and she and her husband focused on helping their baby girl earthside. She suggested positional changes, long walks, lunges, movement, and all the twerking. Labor began progressing, arriving at the hospital, Tash stayed in alignment with her birth vision. With a good twerk playlist, hip squeezes, counter pressure from her husband, and the support of her birth team, Paris was born.

Motherhood for Tash has required her to work through postpartum depression, discover a new Tash, and adjust to the highs and lows of supporting children diagnosed with Autism and also a potential diagnosis for herself. Tash is adamant that she is always true about her motherhood journey. Especially as a mother of two neurodiverse black girls, she wants to ensure that other mothers, especially those with a similar story, have an honest representation of what their journey may look like. You can continue to connect with Tash on Facebook, Instagram, or SupernovaMomma.com.

Talitha Phillips, CEO of Claris Health, joined us to share their origin story, mission, and ongoing work. Claris Health is a nonprofit organization in Los Angeles, California, that focuses on providing no/low-cost medical services for families focusing on perinatal care.

Talitha shared her experience balancing being a birth and postpartum doula and leading Claris Health as the CEO. She was first introduced to Claris Health as a patient after a pregnancy loss. The care and attention given to her led her to want to work for the organization and support women’s health. Their comprehensive services list includes prenatal care, mental health services, volunteer doulas, pregnancy loss support, adoption support, and a newly added mobile health clinic. They focus on information gathering and helping clients determine what they need when they arrive for their first appointment going beyond a pregnancy test. The conversation centers on the unique needs of each individual when they walk into the space. 

Claris has made some shifts during the COVID-19 pandemic by using the mobile clinic as a means to distribute food and care kits. If you are interested in volunteering, please connect at https://www.clarishealth.org/get-involved/.

Kristen felt moved to share her birth story with BSIC as she felt it uniquely provided a space for women of color to be open and raw. Kristen became aware of her first pregnancy while traveling in Northern Africa. She managed to acquire prenatal care there, despite language barriers. Eventually, she transitioned back to the states still within the pregnancy and decided to hire a midwife for a home birth due to her late gestational age. Kristen’s view of pregnancy as being an expansive experience helped her take on the challenges of pregnancy. She maintained her regular routine and interests, which helped her later invite her new baby into their family. When her Labor Day arrived, she found herself being called to task about her own beliefs in meditation and the power of the mind.  

Her daughter’s birth led her to start Blissful Birth Yoga, focusing her practice on prenatal support. She uses her personal experience and skills to support women and birthing people for the physical, mental, and emotional portions of labor. Kristen and her partner found themselves expecting another child and are preparing by letting the pregnancy flow, knowing that anything could change along the way.  We look forward to part two of Kristen’s journey through motherhood after her son arrives.

If you are looking to connect deeper or book a virtual meditation session with Kristen you can connect with her via Facebook, Instagram, or email her directly at [email protected]. 

In thinking about what she wanted for her birth, she wanted it to be full of choices and led by her voice. For Heather, that meant a strong birth team of doulas and midwives, having a homebirth, and following her body and baby's lead. At about 43 weeks, after a walk under the full moon, Heather's water broke, and things began moving pretty fast. After laboring for about four to five hours, Heather was pushing, yet she would be stopped suddenly by her midwife, expressing to her that they would need to head to the hospital, making it clear that this was an emergency. Her son's head was stuck behind her pelvis and would need support from forceps for his arrival.

Heather's postpartum journey has had its hills and valleys. Dealing with postpartum depression and anxiety for about three and a half to four years, a diagnosis that she didn't get until her son was two and a half - " I knew I was in it, but I didn't know what it was, I just thought this was my new normal." While also working through her mental health, she was navigating her nursing journey. Due to the forceps, her son needed cranial sacral therapy to get his jaw back in alignment, impacting his beginning of nursing. But they were able to find their rhythm until he was about five and a half. A dance they worked through continuously figuring out what worked for them. All of this is a testament to her spectrum of life, an aspect that Heather takes into her work.

Heather considers herself a full spectrum photographer - documenting all facets and stages of life, from the time you enter the world, through the life you lead, and upon your transition into death. Understanding the vulnerability and trust needed for capturing these experiences with authenticity, Heather's work is "extremely inclusive, empathetic and intimate" aspects that she also takes to support families as a full spectrum doula again honoring life and death.

Photography has always been a part of her life, really moving forward out of necessity to communicate with her mother - who was diagnosed profoundly deaf. Being a deaf Chinese immigrant, gaining access to and learning ways to communicate came slowly for her mother, and they both had reached a point where communicating was not happening. Finding that her sketch drawings weren't working, Heather began taking polaroids, snapshots of what she was doing, wanted, or needed. With these creating literal storyboards to bring things to life for her mom. Which became a real breakthrough for them and also for Heather - photography is how she connects and communicates. She is hoping that with her new project within Life's a Spectrum, she can unveil new parts for people about themselves. An ability to look at the layers of their life, the emotions they have carried, where they set their boundaries and limits, but most importantly, what's their center and where they always come back to.

Resources

Heather Gallagher | full spectrum photography

Life’s a Spectrum | Heather Gallagher full spectrum doula services

After a perfect first pregnancy, Gelise discovered she was experiencing preeclampsia symptoms that led to an emergency surgical birth. She was never given the diagnosis, but complications during the induction process led her down the road to a surgical birth. The second pregnancy started with Gelise accepting that anything could happen during pregnancy. She had learned from the first experience that birth was unpredictable. She prepared herself by watching her nutrition this time to ward off symptoms of preeclampsia. She attempted a VBAC that led to another surgical birth. Gelise was able to reflect on her experiences with the VBAC calculator and ever-changing doctors at the practice she chose. When discussing her chances of a successful VBAC, she wasn’t clear about all of the questions and wished someone took the time to read her chart with her. Gelise’s postpartum period with both of her pregnancies included a beautiful journey with breastfeeding and bonding.  She shares her extended nursing periods and the lasting impacts with us. Listen in for a story about overcoming expectations and moving forward with what you can control.

Sharing about her pregnancy Chelsie described it as pretty easy and a time that she really enjoyed. She hoped that the same would be said for her birth. Speaking about birth with one of her close friends, Chelsie was keen that she didn't want a cut and dry birth plan. She was open to all options but was holding firm to no induction, taking her time with medical intervention for pain, and trying to avoid a c-section.

A couple of days after her estimated due date, Chelsie went into spontaneous labor - arriving at the hospital dilated to two centimeters. As she and baby moved at their own pace, Pitocin was provided to help continue to move things along. However, due to her membranes' length of time being ruptured and not dilating further, Chelsie and her husband decided the safest option was to bring their son, Wade, earthside via a c-section. Chelsie attributes that decision as her first big parenting decision, and as they navigated the first month of their son's life, she and her husband would soon need to make another big decision.

Chelsie had been noticing Wade was always eating. Beyond the regular cluster feeding, this observation and an irregular breathing pattern that her mother in law had picked up on were a nudge for her to bring their pediatrician aware. While he had been doing well during all his regular checkups, their pediatrician did find a slight heart murmur and referred them to a specialist to see at a later date during a follow-up appointment. Yet again, following the encouragement of her mother in law, they decided to fast track his care. They went into Children's Hospital for in-depth testing; assessments during their visit provided them with a diagnosis that their son had a heart defect - aortic coarctation. If receiving care was prolonged, he would go into organ failure. Without an extended amount of time to consider the news, Chelsie and her husband found themselves preparing Wade for heart surgery.

Wade is currently thriving; beyond the scar from his surgery, you wouldn't even know the extent of his journey - the extent of their journey as a family. Sharing her birth, her postpartum healing, and the role of her village support Chelsie reminds all us, parents, that while our children are meeting their milestones, we are as well. Growing and changing alongside them, and even in that growth's roughest patches, things always get better.

Jessica shared her empowering VBAC birth experience after having a surgical twin birth. She and her husband decided to enlist the support of a doula for the third pregnancy. They reached out to a local organization, ROOTT, to hire a Black Perinatal Support Doula - who would be knowledgeable about the unique needs of Black women and families in birthing spaces and help her navigate her desire to have a VBAC. She eventually switched her doctor after having two challenging deliveries with her. After some needed introspection and reviewing how the twin pregnancy went, they knew it was the best decision. They felt much more comfortable, and the pregnancy was smoother once they had the right birth team in place. Their doula helped them go back and better understand how things shifted and how they could make this birth different. She also supported her in understanding her nutritional needs better to reduce preterm birth, decrease the chances of hemorrhaging, and later naturally induce her labor once she was term.

The third delivery was different in that Jessica was informed of all of her options and could choose what felt right for her at the time. Her doula met her at home as her labor progressed and helped her with positional changes to help the baby come down. After laboring through her typical day as long as she could, she finally arrived at the hospital and was 7cm (active labor). The doctor arrived when her baby was crowning and requested that she turn around to deliver her baby. She refused and continued to push her baby out in an upright position on her bed; he adjusted to her desire. Jessica had accomplished her VBAC without an epidural with the support of her birth team! After all of her birthing experiences, Jessica deemed herself a "Birthing Expert," and we whole-heartedly agree.

Jessica was fully supported by her husband, family, OB/GYN, and her doula. She recommends women choose and hire a doula to help them make informed decisions about their bodies and delivery options. Jessica encourages women to build a team of people who look like you and understand your body and lived experiences. Trust yourself.

Sponsors:

Restoring Our Own Through Transformation (ROOTT) | reproductive justice organization

ROOTT is a collective of concerned Black families, community members, advocates & interdisciplinary professionals dedicated to decreasing Black maternal & infant mortality in Ohio. ROOTT’s mission is to comprehensively restore our collective well-being through collaboration, resource allocation, research & re-empowerment, in order to meet the needs of Black parents & families. If you and your family are planning, pregnant, or in your postpartum period, please reach out to ROOTT a www.roottrj.org. Financial assistance is available. You can also connect with ROOTT at 614-398-1766 or email [email protected]

Nikki Helms has supported families as either a doula or midwife for over 15 years. Her work began with a simple gesture of wanting to fulfill a friend's request to attend their birth. Soon after, all of her friends were requesting her to be their doula. It wasn't until moving to San Diego; she realized her work had moved beyond just providing suggestions to families and supporting them more like a care provider. In wanting to make a difference and support families the way, she felt they deserved care; she began her journey to become a midwife.

Answering the call of family-centered care has led her down the path of wanting to own and open a free-standing birth center in Clairemont, California. Centralized care within the community and directly for the community. While it will be a space of inclusive reproductive health focus, she also envisions it as a community hub. A space offering education, resources, mental health support, donation-based services, mental health support, and collect support for anything you might need in a particular season of your life — a space full of abundance and accessibility.

If you would like to connect with Nikki for any of your reproductive health, birth, or postpartum needs, head to her website. To learn more about the birth center and to support, head to the GoFundMe here.

With over seventeen years of public health experience, Bianca was aware of the health disparities and injustice within reproductive health. Having that knowledge, she knew that it was essential to be informed, develop a plan for her birth, and have a strong birth team to support her. After years of trying to conceive, when she and her fiance discovered they were pregnant, it was a welcomed surprise.

With a relatively easy pregnancy, six weeks before her EDD, she didn't automatically think the cramping she was feeling, and an abnormal gush of water was her being in labor. Throughout the next couple of days, she went about her routine but did schedule an appointment with her OB to ensure all was well. Her doctor instructed her that her day would be taking a turn during her visit, and it was best she head to the hospital. At the hospital, Bianca and her husband were shocked to find that not only did her water break at some point, and she was 5cm dilated.

Taking in the information, they settled in and began moving forward that even though this wasn't what they planned, they would not let this limit their ability to have the best experience. Throughout the day, they found the staff supportive and receptive to her fiance being a strong advocate for Bianca. It wasn't until the shift change, and when they decided to move forward with an Epidural, that care began to shift. Bianca and her fiance started feeling rushed by the nurses, and a lack of attention to details. During the placement of her epidural, the tech created a chaotic situation. That not only caused stress and fear for Bianca and her fiance but was overly dismissive of the harm they caused and the effects that had for the rest of Bianca's birth.

Her story is a reminder of the sacredness of birth. That those who have the honor to be a part of that space treat it with respect it deserves. No matter how many births as birth workers, support systems, and care providers we have attended or supported, each one is new for each family. It is a privilege to hold space for them because your birth is an experience you carry for a lifetime!

With her history of work and reflecting on her overall journey, Bianca wanted to create a space that would make it easier for other birthing people to find the community they needed. A central place where they can find trusted and evidence-based resources for their individual needs. Thus Blooming Mamas Wellness was born. You can connect with Bianca at her website here, or on social media @theofficialbiancamarie.