Going For It!

Today, I'm enrolling to receive my doula certification. I'm finally going for it! I say finally because I've known that I want to work with moms and babies for a while now. More like years. I rolled around the idea of becoming a midwife but I'm not 100% certain that this is the best fit for our family right now. However, I can no longer fight the urge to support women in a more official role.

I've been handing out information and advice for quite some time. It's no secret that I'm a wealth of information when it comes to pregnancy, childbirth, and babies. I love talking about all of those things. I love comforting anxious new moms, hearing about their prenatal appointments, and explaining common pregnancy ailments. I love when moms ask me questions and giving them resources to research on their own. I love birth stories. I love settling down a fussy newborn and seeing that baby snuggled up to their momma. I love encouraging moms to breastfeed and sharing tried-and-true parenting tips. I love coaching moms to trust their instincts. I love it all!

About 6-8 months ago I thought I was finally ready to proceed with training. I researched several different programs and settled on the one I felt was best. I planned to complete certifications for labor doula, post-partum doula, and breastfeeding counselor. I was still working out how to pay for it but went ahead and started on the assigned book list. Through reading, I had to face my own issues with the pregnancy, labor, and the delivery of my own 1st born. It was emotional and, ultimately, I decided I wasn't ready. Ironically enough, not long after this, my husband lost his job so everything got pushed to the wayside.

Fast forward until recently where 3 of my closest friends are pregnant at the same time. These past couple of months have been so joyous as we have talked through their pregnancies, their fears, their desires. Two have asked me to be at their birth and I am so deeply honored. To be trusted in such an intimate way is an amazing feeling. My third friend just delivered her sweet baby last week. I absolutely could not wait to go and visit them. That encounter confirmed that I have to do SOMEthing. I just can't resist it any longer. I started contemplating how I would pay for my certification. I decided that I would just start with my labor doula training and go from there. At least it was a start. Then, for Christmas, my in-laws gave us a rather generous gift with the instructions to "use it wisely." It's like all the stars aligned. Pursuing my passion is probably the wisest thing I know to do.

I am beyond thrilled to begin training. This has been a long-time goal of mine and I'm actually going for it. Whoo Hoo!