The Wise Doula Podcast: Doula Wisdom For Everyday Life.

In today's episode of The Wise Doula Podcast, we are discussing a very special home birth. It is quite the story and perhaps the most interesting thing is that my husband supported me during this home birth. He ended up playing the role of a doula   and midwife more than myself.  During this homebirth we were faced with a lot of new and unexpected factors and a very particular mama. All the prepar...

In this episode I invite you to step  behind the scenes and get an intimate look at the podcast and at my life as an entrepreneur. Aside from the polished and bubbly look you get to enjoy in my episodes, what else is brewing in my particular fire?  What ingredients do I mix to prepare my signature "Wise Doula Podcast" sauce?  Although it might seem glamorous, there is a lot of life and emotions ha...

In this week's episode, join me for a fun time and a good bit of storytelling, as I share with you my adventures attending a content creation festival for the first time. It was a physical journey but also a journey in my mind. I am not kidding, I almost told myself that I didn't belong there but in the end I told myself a big, resounding yes. I think all of us have that moment of doubt when we ar...

My guest today is Jill Kottmeier,   registered nurse and thanatologist. Jill is the director of Well-being and Bereavement Services at Endeavor Health Northwest Community Hospital in Illinois. For more than 2 decades, Jill has been supporting families at her hospital and accompanying them through the difficult process of having to say goodbye to their baby too soon. Her mission is two-fold, to sup...

In this new episode, we talk about supporting our friends, family, and clients at a time when the unexpected happens. A time when the   perfect idea of pregnancy disappears and we are faced with perinatal loss and saying goodbye to our baby.   This is a difficult subject and we often don't know how to react when somebody close to us or a client experiences it.   Often we shy away from helping beca...

In this episode, we talk about baby showers and how they are source of joy for the general population, but they can be really challenging for bereaved families or families that are still in the middle of their fertility journey. We discuss what makes baby showers so tough and how grief can show up at the most unexpected times. How do we validate our feelings and communicate our needs? How can you...

In this weeks episode, I want to do a bit of storytelling and share with you my recent visit to a local lactation fair, celebrated as part of World Breastfeeding Week. Come hear the stories of the parents that stopped by my table, their lactation journeys,  their hopes and dreams for the new baby. A simple invitation to play a lactation game with me led to deep stories, questions and rich learning...

In this episode, we talk about comparison and how it affects us. Comparison has been part of our lives since childhood, and it was often used to make us work harder. But now, as adults, comparison is a normal part of our thoughts and actions. We sometimes ask for help and end up feeling compared to others. This can be especially tought when it happens during pregnancy, after having a baby, or when...

In this episode, we talk about how important it is to lean on the people around us during our parenting journey, and build our tribe of helpers, our support team that will help us get Olympic gold.   So many times we feel vulnerable and raw when it comes to asking for help, almost as if accepting we need support made us weaker. Actually, there is strength to be found in asking for help. In connect...

In this episode I invite you to learn more about labels. They are all around us and physical labels have a purpose. They help us identify and find things. However, what happens with invisible labels, such as the ones we get growing up? We might think we shook them off overtime, but they stay with us and influence the way we see the world, and the way we approach pregnancy and postpartum. These lab...

  In this week's episode, I share the story of how a meeting with a pregnant client brought up the subject of empowered birth and obstetric violence.   I will share how love has the power to fight fear and how trauma can be personal and unique to different people.   Obstetric violence happens more often than you imagine, and we will talk about it in detail,  but this episode is not about fear. Ins...

In this episode I invite you on a very special journey, both physical and metaphorical. I want to share with you my experiences on a recent trip to Spain, my home country. After a significant time without visiting, what was my experience as I reconnected with friends and family? How did my doula experience color this trip? I talk about the meaning of becoming a "hybrid" and adulting in two differe...

In today's episode, we discuss how to prepare siblings in the early years (0-8 year olds) for the arrival of the new baby. This is generally a time of joy and excitement for parents but it might leave our little ones feeling like an uninvited roomate is moving in and planning to take "over the house".  How can we prepare them to understand what is happening, while also involving them in the proces...

In this episode I sit down with ASMR Jeremiah to discuss the topic of communication. Jeremiah was my guest in season 1, and we discussed his work as an ASMR artist and content creator. This time, we discuss another topic that he is passionate about, which is communication. He explains to us what started his love for this topic and encouraged him to enroll in a Communication training program.  We i...

In this episode I invite you to learn more about the Postpartum period and how to best care for our body and mind during that period. I will share why I am passionate about Postpartum care and how my own postpartum experience, paired with taking care of my first doula client, helped me realize the importance of protecting the postpartum at all costs.  What does Postpartum care look like in the con...

In this episode, I sit down with Katie La Morte, a mom, wife and human resources professional. Katie shares the story of how she experienced postpartum depression after the birth of her second child and how after advocating for other mothers in her company, she encountered challenges during her own maternity leave. This a story of how Katie realized she needed help during the postpartum period and...

In this episode we discuss a topic that is often shared behind closed doors, a topic that lurks in the shadows but affects many families searching for a baby. Our topic today is infertility. Whether it has touched your life or the life of someone close to you, this is a topic we all need to learn about.   I invite you to learn more about how infertility has an impact on physical and emotional heal...

  Welcome to Season 2 of the Podcast. This episode is very special, because it connects with episode 16,  A Letter to my Younger Self. I will be sharing my story and how after years devoting my entire life to the classroom, I found myself experiencing burnout and mental health struggles during my last teaching year.  I went looking for help and what I found was radically different from what I hope...

In this episode I invite you to travel back in time with me. What would I say if I could go back 20 years and talk to that young teacher? Would I tell her she had all the time to be a mother? Or perhaps tell her to prioritize her family instead of the work she devoted so much to?  Of course, none of us have a time machine but suspend disbelief for a few minutes and travel with me. My messsage migh...

In this episode we discuss how to best support the postpartum families in our lives. The postpartum period brings with it many changes and adjustments, both physical and emotional, personal and social. Many times, in our excitement to meet the new baby and visit the family, we forget that they have very unique needs. Often we ask about the baby but neglect to ask how mom, dad and the siblings are...

In this episode I invite you to learn more about relationships and how to navigate communication with our parents when we are becoming parents ourselves. Pregnancy is a period that brings with it many changes, both physical and psychological. The couple also experiences a change in their roles towards society and with each other. Our parents and in-laws might have the greatest intentions in mind w...

In this episode we discuss the archaeology of people. Wait, isn't archaeology about physical remains and ancient cultures? Indeed it is. However, I believe that as people  we have archaeological remains of our own and they play an important part during life transitions, such as becoming parents. There are so many things under the surface of each person we interact with, and we need to unveil them...

In this episode I want to tell you a story. The story of the gifts and wisdom that have enriched me in this doula journey. What are the most important tools I use on a day to day basis? Can I still be your doula and support you, even if we are far away? Do I need lots of items to nurture and care for you? Let's talk about what is the essence of doula support and how you can apply that in your dail...

In this episode I invite you to learn more about how to discuss pregnancy and birth with children. Are you into fantasy or reality when discussing birth with children? Do you think we should stick to "the stork brings the babies" story? Myths and fantasy aside, children are keen observers and always aware of changes, and most of all, they are curious about the world.  I will share some insights fr...

In this episode of the podcast, we talk about gratitude without a rainbow. You might be wondering, how do gratitude and rainbows connect? Well, we are not talking about the rainbow that comes after an actual storm, but the rainbow baby that follows the metaphorical storm of perinatal loss. Is it possible to find gratitude and joy again after perinatal loss, even when we didn't achieve that dreamed...