An Unexpected Birth Advocate 0
My in-laws (and my entire family, for that matter) have been a huge support to me during my journey as a doula and birth and breastfeeding advocate.
In fact, they were with me during one of the key moments that ignited my birth advocacy. And on that night when I vowed, at 36 weeks pregnant, to leave my then-current OB/GYN in search of a more VBAC-friendly care provider, they raised their glasses to me and toasted “to me, our family, and to VBACs!”
Yes, they are fabulous people. I’m a lucky daughter-in-law.
And I guess it’s no surprise that, given their support and the ways in which my birth-related passions often weave their ways into my conversations with others, my in-laws have become mini-birth advocates in their own right.
Just a couple nights ago, my father-in-law was telling us about how the woman who cuts his hair is pregnant. During their haircut chit-chat, he mentioned something about my work as a doula.
Because his stylist had never heard of a doula before, my father-in-law proceeded to tell her a bit about doula support: what we do, what our purpose is, etc. And then he described, somewhat nonchalantly, the fact that she has “all sorts of options that she can choose for her birth!”
(What wonderfully empowering language, right?!)
And she was, in my father-in-law’s words, “completely mystified.” She was shocked that she could bring additional labor support for her child’s birth. She was amazed that she had a multitude of comfort measure options. She was astounded that she had options for her baby’s birth.
Now I don’t know if the hair-stylist at Upscale Male in Naperville, IL went straight home and Googled “doula support” later that evening. I don’t know if she looked up comfort measures for labor. I don’t know if she found out her care provider’s cesarean section rate or if she’s even interested in finding out that information. I don’t even know if she’s going to take a childbirth education class.
But she at least knows now that she has options.
That’s a pretty big deal. It’s a big deal because it’s something that she didn’t know before she spoke with my father-in-law. And it’s a big deal because so many women wish we did know this before we birthed our babies.
And on behalf of all birthing women, I’ve got to thank my father-in-law for that.
grandpa and and doula-supporter extraordinaire
