In case you missed it: it’s World Doula Week!! YAY!!!
I get asked all the time what got me into this work, and honestly… my “why” looks a little different than most doulas.
Back in 2021, I was fully convinced I never wanted kids.
Childbirth? Terrifying. Unfair. And quite honestly… bullshit that biology decided this was the "women’s job."
And yet...at the same time...I was deeply passionate about women’s health and completely fascinated by how pregnancy and birth even work.
Then my sister-in-law (an L&D nurse and overall incredible human) got pregnant with my nephew and invited me to be at her birth.
Partly for support… partly so I could “see what it’s like.” (To this day, I am convinced she had a bet going on "if witnessing birth would change my mind on children.")
So I did the most obvious thing someone could do when given the privilege of a lifetime to witness the birth of their nephew.
I said YES!!!!!!!!!!!!
I listened to podcasts, read blogs, Googled everything like: “how do I support someone in labor???”
And when her induction came… it was go time.
I was excited, nervous, and if I’m being honest, still had no clue what I was doing.
But that birth? It changed everything.
It showed me just how alone people can feel in the birthing space.
How much your care team can make, or completely break, your experience.
How the decisions you make in labor aren’t just about knowledge… they’re about support.
And when it came time to push? My brain literally broke watching something that felt impossible… happen right in front of me.
I was obsessed. Fully. Completely. No going back. Screaming from the rooftops:
"WHY AREN'T WE TELLING WOMEN THE TRUTH OF HOW FREAKING MAGICAL THEY ARE INSTEAD OF TERRIFYING THEM?!?!?!?!?!?!?"
(The photos of me in that room? Unhinged levels of joy. SORRY SHEA.)
The next morning, she said something that changed my life:
“Have you ever thought about being a doula?”
I’d love to tell you I immediately signed up for training... but I didn’t.
I sat in it for a while. Talked about birth nonstop, even at my corporate fashion job. And quietly questioned if I would even be a good doula.
Then we moved to rural Alabama, and I had three different friends' experience:
- Unconsented (and unnecessary) episiotomies
- Postpartum concerns dismissed
- Medical advice replaced with religious opinions
And I got angry.
Like so pissed off that the vein in my neck stood out for days and only went away when I signed up for a Doula training.
Not just because I loved birth… But because I was done watching women be dismissed, uninformed, unsupported, and scared into submission.
I wanted them to know their options.
To advocate for themselves.
To choose providers who actually respect them (yes, they do exist).
And now?
4 years later…
100+ families supported
Births across multiple states and even continents
And I believe this more than ever:
Education changes everything.
It puts the power back where it's always belonged. With you.
We don’t have to accept the bare minimum. We can expect better. Demand better. Experience better.
So welcome to the revolution.
Because a better experience? It’s not unrealistic. It’s not rare.
It’s possible.
Birth can be powerful, emotional, wild, magical, nerve-wracking, and even fun.
Because you?
You’re a badass and birth is freaking legendary.
And just in case anyone still thinks doulas are “just emotional support”…
The data says otherwise:
- Continuous doula support is associated with a 39 –52% reduction in cesarean births (varies by state).
- A shorter labor (by about 25%)
- Reduced use of Pitocin and epidurals
- Higher satisfaction with the birth experience
- Lower rates of postpartum anxiety and depression symptoms
And to celebrate World Doula Week…
I’ll be dropping a new discount every day this week on my courses + resources over on Instagram!
If you’re not already there, come hang out with me!
Happy you're here,
Kyndrick
Sources (for my fellow data lovers):
- Cochrane. Continuous support for women during childbirth (Bohren et al., 2017)
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Committee Opinion: Approaches to Limit Intervention During Labor and Birth
- National Institutes of Health. Research on doula support and maternal outcomes
- Evidence Based Birth. Evidence on doulas
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