After attending my first meeting with the Green River Doula Network, I was feeling refreshed and re-energized in my passion for birth. I sat down at the computer to write this blog post. First the internet wouldn't open. Then I had to try three times to get to the login screen and once I finally got there, I entered the wrong password twice. I considered nixing the blog post and shutting down for the night, but I just needed to try one more thing.
It's funny how my logging on experience has paralleled what I've been thinking about being a birth professional. Sometimes you try things that don't work. Sometimes is frustrating. Often, it isn't easy. Sometimes you think it's not worth the trouble, but you push through just one more time and see that it's a worthy cause.
After providing labor support that resulted in a cesarean birth, I found myself questioning whether I would be able to make the difference that I wanted to make. Should I approach things from a different angle? How do I effectively promote safe and healthy birth? What could I do better? Is anyone listening? I felt so small working against such a huge and often dysfunctional system. How could I possibly make a difference?
Everyone has to start somewhere. This is where I am and it's a long road ahead, but it's a road worth traveling. After many conversations with the best friend anyone could as for, I realized that it won't be easy and wonderful all of the time, but it is worth the effort. Every living room conversation with a friend, every post shared on Facebook that just one person looks at, every question I'm able to answer, every person who asks "what the heck is a doula?" and then after the explanation says "I wish I had one of those!" Every one of these experiences is one step further down the road.
