Beautiful Beginnings
62 Mildenhall Place L1M 0E5 Whitby, ON, Canada

Doing what you love is key to success. Motivation, goals and follow through come a lot easier when you enjoy what you’re doing. This doesn’t apply to only work, but to all the things we do. I love what I Doula!! How about you? #ilovemyjob #doulalife #torontodoula #durhamdoula #bestjob #babies #birthdoula #postpartumdoula

Birth can be beautiful & empowering if we can let go of the fear. More positivity around birth will help give new parents the confidence to take on their journeys. #positivity #empoweringbirth #childbirthwithoutfear #beautifulbeginnings #beautifulbirths

Join me in wishing this young lady a very happy birthday! How is it that you’re 24?! Wishing you an amazing year. Dream big and keep reaching for the stars. Love you more no comebacks #happybirthday #thisistwentyfour #funbirthday #oldest #bestsister #dreambig

Thankful for my beautiful family, wonderful friends and amazing career! My heart is full of love and gratitude this Thanksgiving From my family to yours, HAPPY THANKSGIVING!! #thanksgiving2021 #grateful #ilovemyfamily #ilovemydaughters #ilovemyjob #healthandhappiness #family

There are many reasons to hire a doula, improved outcomes in birth is a the top of the list for most of the families I speak to. The birth of your child will be a memory you have for the rest of your life!! Having a doula will help make sure it’s a positive one. Statistics show that with a doula in attendance there is: ... * 34% less dissatisfaction with the birth experience * 31% less use of pitocin (artificial hormones to stimulate labour) * 28% less risk of surgical birth * 14% less babies admitted to NICU * 12% more likely to have a vaginal birth * 9% less use of pain medication * improved breastfeeding success * shorter labour (40mins less) #doulasimproveoutcomes #betterbirth #hireadoula #birthdoula #birthincanada #torontodoula #doulassupportallbirths #doulasforeveryfamily #doulasupport #positiveoutcomes #expecting #birthcoach #durhamdoula #durhamregion #toronto #doulalife #ilovemyjob

During my prenatal today we talked about exactly this. My client couldn’t understand why doctors insist on having people birth on their backs. This started a conversation into the history of birth and how this came to be common practice in modern birth. There’s no denying that upright pushing positions and using gravity are easier and associated with better outcomes for birthing people and their babies, but as one obstetrician recently explained to me, doctors just aren’t trained for emergencies in these positions. Educating yourself and learning to advocate for your rights in the birth room is something your doula can help you with. #usegravityinbirth #birthtoday #birthdoulasupport #torontodoulasupport #expectingandempowered

Family day began as a holiday in Ontario in 2008 and is one of our favourite holidays. We’re planning on a game night for our family, what about you? #familyisagift #familydayontario2021 #doulafamilies #familyforever #familyisstrength #unity #bettertogether #sistersandbrothers #parentsandchildren #happyfamilyday2021 #fromourfamilytoyours

Wishing all our families a beautiful day full of love and appreciation! . . . #valentinesday2021 #dayoflove #love #friendship #lovingrelationships #familylove #candyandchocolate #loveoneanother #appreciation #respectandtrust #weloveourclients

Nature is wise and can teach us so much. . . . #naturedoesnthurry #mothernature #trustintheprocess #natureshowsustheway #followyourinstincts #ourbodiesknowbest #respecttheprocess #naturalbirth #birthsupport #doulasupporttoronto #durhamdoulas #labourandbirthdoula

http://ow.ly/r6Nu50Dz3El #swaddling #bestswaddles #whyswaddle #bettersleep #backtosleep #safesleep #doulatips #swaddleforthewin #learningtoswaddle #transitionswaddles #mororeflex #biologicalinfantsleep #SIDSprevention

Animal signs have always intrigued me. As a child I enjoyed reading the personality traits, characteristics and comparabilities of the signs. Even though there are obviously many variants and factors to consider when analyzing someone’s personality, I still enjoy the activity to this day and love finding out when people’s birthdays are. Looking forward to meeting all the Oxen babies in 2021! For fun here’s a small exert of what they had to say about Oxens on chinesenewyear.n...et and you can look up the full breakdown there if you’re curious. Oxen are the hard workers in the background, intelligent and reliable, but never demanding praise. . . . . #chinesenewyear2021 #yearoftheox #newbeginnings #loveandprosperity # #animalsigns #personalitytraits #lunarcalendar #oxens #oxenbabiescoming #harworkers #trustworthy #honest

Birth affirmations are a great way to prepare the mind and maintain a positive outlook during labour. Have them displayed around the house or bring them with you to the hospital. . . . .... #birthaffirmation #onecontractionatatime #breathe #icandoit #doulasupport #positivemind #powerofpositivity #focusonbreathing #labourcomforttechnique #doulasloveaffirmations #preparingforlabour #copingstrategyforlabour See more

Something to think about... Babies don’t self soothe and don’t teach themselves to fall asleep on their own, that’s what parents are there for. Our infants don’t know that their caregivers are in another room next door watching on a monitor, they think they are alone and vulnerable. Leaving a baby to cry alone, is simply teaching them that their caregivers won’t come to help when needed. Is that really the message we want our children to have?

Association of Ontario Doulas ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING ANNOUNCEMENT! This year, for the very first time in our Association history, the AGM events, except for the members update meeting portion, are open to ALL ONTARIO DOULAS to join in on! Also, instead of having one meeting date, as we have in the past, we have launched our first ever AGM Speaker Series with an incredible line up of birth experts that are going to share their knowledge, advice and support, all through the mon...th of October. Every Friday in October, starting October 2nd, until the 23rd, two speaker events will be happening. Current AOD members who renew their membership between September 18th and October 23rd will have access to all these events for free, as will any brand new members who join before October 1st! Not sure if you want to join but want to attend some or all of the speaker events? Not a problem! NON-AOD members, or members not planning on renewing their AOD membership before October 23rd, will get another link they can click to reserve their own spots to whichever of, or however many of, the scheduled events that they would like to attend! The schedule is going to be released tomorrow. Reservation links will be posted on MONDAY!! Spread the word, because everyone who is a practicing doula in Ontario is going to want to hear about what we have in store for them. It's a NEW DAY! You'll notice that requirements to become an AOD member have now changed! We no longer limit doulas to only being trained and/or certified through specific training organizations. In fact, if you are an Indigenous doula or a traditional birth attendant who has received their training from within their own community, specifically through the one on one mentorship of another, this is also considered to now be acceptable criteria for joining the AOD, provided that a letter from your mentor and a certain number of hours of mentorship have been completed!!!! We couldn't be more excited to unveil this huge change, in line with many other initiatives we are and will be launching to support ALL doulas in Ontario. We are currently open for membership now. Head over to www.ontariodoulas.org to join so you can get access to these incredible events that will be announced this weekend and next week."

This is such a powerful video, love what they’re promoting here. All wombstories and journeys are important and worth sharing. #wombstories

Our bodies are incredible!

Did you know this? Have you used a silicon bulb type pump*? Helpful you think? *These types of 'pumps' may cause oversupply issues. Always consult with a train...ed breastfeeding counsellor/professional (E.g. IBCLC, LLL Leader, ABA counsellor) about breastfeeding supply worries.* . . For support in your gentle parenting journey get your copy of the new Autumn Issue 38 of The Natural Parent Magazine https://linktr.ee/TheNaturalParentMagazine See more

Please DON’T put a mask on your baby. This is a suffocation risk.

We need to do better as a village and help out parents of young children. They have the most important job, that of raising our future, and we are failing them as a society. #mentalhealth #ittakesavillage #raisingchildren

So many different ways to use a gravity in a hospital bed for the second stage of labour. These types of position increase space for baby and minimize the risk of tearing or the use of forceps and vacuum assisted births.

Sarah and I were talking with someone the other night, describing what we do and they kept sayin oh, like doula work. We corrected it a few times Abortion wo...rk IS doula work. But their near sighted perspective has stuck with me. . Doulas aren’t just for welcoming bouncing babies into the world! . Doulas are for abortion. Doulas are for miscarriage. Doulas are for still birth. Doulas are for infertility. Doulas are for adoption. Doulas are for death. And so on and so on!! . By getting this message out there, more and more people will seek out a doula for their experience. The more people out there that are supported, the better!! #fullspectrumdoula #supportalloutcomes #abortiondoula #abortionworkisdoulawork

TRIGGER WARNING: Fetal Scalp Monitoring Parents are often surprised to find out that the monitor that was attached to their baby's head during labour wasn't ...just a "clip," as it was referred to, or a sticker, but instead a metal screw that went into the scalp. There may be times when parents want to make the choice to use a fetal scalp electrode to monitor their baby's heartrate, HOWEVER as is the case with anything, this intervention needs to be explained in detail to parents along with the risks and benefits. Here's a link from AIMS that talks through various fetal monitoring in labour https://www.aims.org.uk//monitoring-your-babys-heartbeat-i Once again, things like fetal scalp monitoring *can* impact the baby's head and their head movement when breastfeeding, not to mention that it often leads to further interventions in labour that can further impact the baby's abilities to breastfeed comfortably. UPDATE: Video explaining this post in more detail https://www.facebook.com/1177941539039577/posts/1589350661231994/ Image Description: background is block colours and an image of a fetal scalp electrode monitor with text overlay, "Stop calling it a clip, it's a screw! A Fetal Scalp Electrode Can be screwed into your baby's head to monitor your baby's heartrate during labour. It's meant to help determine whether your baby is under any stress while you labour. stress???..." #birth #breastfeeding #BirthInterventions #cesarean #forceps #ventouse #FSE #FetalMonitoring #heartbeat #FetalScalpElectrode #IBCLC #labour #Induction #AIMS #EvidenceBased #Risk #Benefit #HeartRate

That little hand! Welcome earthside wee one #Repost @belle_verdiglione you are so loved PS: join the waitlist - link in bio .... . #birthphotos #birthphotography #waterbirth #kidsatbirth #pregnantinperth #perthbirthphotographer #birthisbeautiful #birthphotographer #birthwithoutfear #midwife #doula #hypnobirthing #calmbirth #perthbirthphotography See more

WHO's Breastfeeding decision tree, a must-have for any new parent & their health care team! For full the document, click the link below: ... https://www.who.int///faqs-breastfeeding-and-covid-19.pdf

What a moment! Love this photograph, it just embodies so many emotions. #surrogacy #newparents #birth #preciousmoment

So much fun! Love this idea!

Some information shared by one of our amazing Midwifery collectives on current birth options. Make sure to check in with your local hospital or Midwifery group regarding current policies for your place of birth.

Birthing parents are facing so many challenges during the current pandemic.

Great information here

Any other twin moms out there?

Love following her posts. Posts that are real, make you giggle, engaging and interesting. Check out this upcoming social media workshop promoted by The Maternal Sidekick and The Doula Toolbox

Very encouraging study being done to see if doctors could one day test menstral blood to see if you have endometriosis. Any woman over 18 in North America (who... isn’t in menopause) can take part to help further the research and make diagnosis for this horrible disease easier to detect. And be detected much earlier. They are hoping to expand the study for girls as young as 8. Myself and my girls will be looking to see if we can join the study. Please share and consider joining the study. We need all the help we can get. Like Zraick, ROSE study participants explained their initial endo symptoms started when they were young. With this in mind, Metz and her team will soon recruit adolescents as young as 9 years old into the ROSE study to prioritize getting an early diagnosis. If we can bring [diagnosis] down to adolescence and make it so that we can find an answer and give them guidance without these cells growing and causing such havoc, I think it would be such a wonderful, positive thing, Margaret DeFranco, RN, senior research nurse at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research at Northwell Health, told The Mighty. Many women will say, ‘I want to be part of this study because I don’t want this to happen to my niece, my potential daughter, my granddaughter, I want there to be an answer.

Traditionally pushing is done with knees wide either sitting, squatting, kneeling, or on the back. This is a good way to open the pelvic inlet, or top pelvic ...opening. However, sometimes babies get hung up getting through the pelvic outlet, or the bottom pelvic opening. This is where closed knee pushing comes in! When a Momma puts her feet out in a wide set stance, points her toes at each other, and drops her knees inward this causes an internal rotation of the femurs. The rotating femurs opens the narrowest part of the pelvic outlet and allows baby to come down past the pubic bone to delivery. Closed knee pushing is most effective for babies that are pretty low (+1 station or more) but not making more progress. The image above shows closed knee pushing in a reclined position but it can be done in SO MANY other positions! I’ll be sharing some of my favorites in future posts. I’ve used this technique a few times with awesome results! Have you tried this as either a nurse or the laboring Momma?? #ClosedKneePushing #Pelvis #Pushing #Magic #NaturalBirth #VaginalBirth #CSection #LaborAndDeliveryAdventures #LaborAndDelivery #FirstTimeMom #OBNurse #LandDNurse #FutureMidwife #BabyCatcher #LaborAndDeliveryNursing #LaborAndDeliveryNurse #Nursing #RN #RNBSN #RegisteredNurse #Nurse #birth #delivery #GoalGetter #BumpLife #pregnant #pregnancy #labor #SpecialDelivery #ICanDoHardThings

Look at this cutie!