Well, it’s been a full year since news of a pandemic hit the airwaves and life took a swift turn. Undoubtedly, it has been a catalyst for many changes in your life. The same holds true for me but perhaps more in a “If you give a pig a pancake” sort of way. Ah, yes, I love the Laura Numeroff books! They’re a great read for kids in their repetitive, rhythmic, predictive style. Oops, there’s the language teacher coming out, but these books really do reflect the last year of my life. So, what happens when you give a doula a pandemic?
The very first thing is, with great frustration and disbelief, she cancels the long awaited and planned family vacation to Hawaii! We were packed and ready to leave the next day when travel from Canada was cancelled. Instead, we had some extra time on our hands to process the events of the world while we processed the stages of grief and sat on hold with various companies to cancel reservations and get some money back from our holiday.
Then came the months long process of sorting the influx of emails from all the professional organizations a doula is associated with (and EVERY business you thoughtlessly gave your email address to). The limited knowledge of what this virus is, how it could affect an expectant or breastfeeding mom, the unborn baby, and the newborn. Hospitals were closing their doors to doula support; some were isolating mothers from their partners and their babies. Reports were coming in internationally. How do we navigate this? Some early research started coming out mid to late 2020. In-person birth support is currently still a crap shoot, depending on the numbers and other factors.
How can doulas and birth educators support prenatal, birthing and postpartum families in this environment? That’s our job, after all. But what we do is highly connective, in-person work. That’s not an option with the restrictions. Or is it? Our work is often unrecognized by the larger medical community so the restrictions were, and for the most part continue to be, in the grey zone. And the emails continue to flow for webinar re-training, re-framing,and support for our work - from the latest research, organizational positions and expectations for members, technology training, online teaching methods, and discounted new training. There has been much research on cameras, microphones, virtual platforms, testing, and several purchases thereof to be able to offer a suitable quality virtual educational and birth support experience!
Local families still need support. I received requests for three postpartum support packages. I wasn’t trained as a postpartum doula but there was a connection with each of them, so I pulled my personal experiences, doula, childbirth and breastfeeding education pieces together to support these families. Then one of those many emails hit the target with online postpartum training. Postpartum training was NEVER on my radar. Neither was a pandemic. I took the opportunity to learn and grow and it underscored the phrase “you never know how much you don’t know”. This was the impetus for the now weekly Mother’s Circle virtual postpartum support group I facilitate. These ladies and their babes are a weekly highlight for me now, even when there are tears.
And then there’s babywearing! Thank you postpartum training for opening my eyes to the amazing developmental benefits to baby, not to mention parent/baby bonding. I did not adopt this practice with our own children, but had I known then what I know now there’s no question I would have done things differently. This training opportunity did not come through my email. It was one I purposely sought out because it’s such a natural fit to what I’m already doing in supporting families. This was a steep learning curve for me and one that literally stretched this aging body with carry positions my shoulders struggled to or can’t execute.
Then there’s the reality that I’m trying to run a business. Marketing is a huge struggle normally but more so in a pandemic lockdown and many people have given up on social media. Babywearing gives opportunity for more visuals to share on IG, but the past months have brought changes to the social media platforms as well. Yikes, more learning. Wait. My website is now totally out of date! Thankfully, I have a kid who has some pretty solid computer and communication experience who worked many hours to give my site an overhaul. Although there were several comments that “you do too many things, I don’t know how to summarize it.” Right! True. BUT the focal point is always helping families thrive with education and personal support.
So, when you give a doula a pandemic, she learns - a lot! She pushes her comfort zones, trains in new areas, expands her business, and continues to support families. Regardless of what this world brings us, families will always need support and I will continue to do just that. I’ve also learned to be more conscious of my own self-care. It’s been a long year. Getting out for walks and sitting by a fire have been crucial for me. I hope the “give a pig a pancake” pandemic journey is nearly over. Don’t forget to take care of yourself!
