After graduating high school and moving to Colorado from Texas, I was consumed by ideas of what my future might look like and what I wanted to be. I wanted to set my life up for success; A house, stable job, and kids. While motherhood still seemed years away and I meant to only daydream about career choices, I began to think and fear what may happen to me in such a vulnerable moment as pregnancy and birth without proper support.

What would healthy support even look like? Where would I find it? Who could I trust besides myself? What would I need to know?

Throughout my life I have experienced multiple cases of sexual trauma, beginning in my childhood. Those experiences have played such a large part in my journey as a Doula and an individual, opening up a world I am so grateful to understand - despite the pain and confusion. Because of these repeated experiences and frequently feeling misunderstood or invalidated throughout my life, I began to only be able to shut down when faced with extreme stress or danger. I felt physically unable to advocate for myself or be present during distressing moments.  As this feeling began to affect other areas in my life where I felt invalidated or unsafe - the doctors office, work, school, any conversations regarding my boundaries or well being - My likelihood of experiencing more abuse only increased, along with my fear, paranoia, and anxiety. My dreams of becoming a mother began to feel terrifying. I imagined becoming lost and disregarded by the medical system or even by my own family. Unexpectedly, my fears of being further traumatized, uniformed, or becoming resentful towards the people I love, or my baby, are what eventually lead to the career I was searching for.  Knowing others shared the same fears or experiences I had I knew there was a need for gentle, informed, and supportive action that I could help fill.

 I began the process to become a Doula in Sep 2023., certifying with DONA Int. and Allo Doula Academy. Everyday I aim to increase my knowledge and skillset as a Doula even more. My goal as a Doula is to enable birthing people to feel confident, informed, and secure enough to uphold their boundaries, to unite and improve future families, and to ensure birthing people are supported in every way they need to be in order to achieve a successful pregnancy, birth, or postpartum period defined by their terms.