It’s the end of 2020, and this doula is feeling relieved and accomplished.
It’s been a hard year, but a big one, and as I’m doing the year in review, I want to share it with our clients, supporters and anyone else on the interwebs who’s curious.
Here’s what DC Metro Maternity accomplished in 2020:
First of all, we’re still here, working as doulas.
As a small business owned by a Black woman and staffed by doulas who are women of color, this is a BIG DEAL. We are in an industry that thrives on NOT socially distancing. Yelp suggests that nearly 100,000 small businesses shut down as a result of COVID, and we know that the pandemic has impacted women and communities of color economically.
Not only are we still here, we served MORE doula clients this year than last.
DC Metro Maternity’s doulas worked with 43 individual families in DC, MD and Virginia as labor doulas, postpartum doulas and in our childbirth education classes. We are honored that so many of you trusted us to support your families during this wildly unpredictable year.
This was possible because of a very adaptable team of doulas, for whom I am incredibly grateful.
When I started the agency after a few years of doulaing, I had a vision of a team of doulas of color, serving our community and making a living doing it. We’re well on our way. Our team grew in numbers and in so many other ways this year (as 2020 has required of us all).
- We moved childbirth education classes online.
- We became virtual labor doulas.
- We shifted to more postpartum doula work and got to watch some of your babies grow up.
- We moved our team meetings to zoom and had more of them.
- We took continuing education trainings.
- We built relationships with providers and grew our referral network so you can trust our recommendations.
- We ran a zoom group for a few months in the pandemic.
- We got active on Instagram (it’s FUN!)
We have a whole new offer, an online course aimed at Black women birthing in the hospital!
When COVID began and everyone was yelling “PIVOT”, I admit that I wasn’t satisfied by virtual doulaing. Some of that was downright panic.
But much of it is because of why DC Metro Maternity’s clients hire us. Many of you are Black or families of color, identify as queer, high risk (or at risk of being treated as high risk), or somehow outside of the norms of the maternal healthcare system. You hire us not to have to navigate it alone and it’s hard to translate that support to a Facetime.
But here’s the thing- some of what makes you less afraid with a doula, is knowing someone is by your side to help navigate whatever comes at you. We can teach you how to navigate things.
I also not so secretly suspect that even more of what you get with a doula is someone who believes that everything you have done up to this point in your life has prepared you for your birth, and raising your baby.
So we now have a course that addresses what comes up over and over:
- Fears that Black women specifically have around the scary news for our pregnancies
- What to expect from the huge shifts that happen in your body, identity and relationships
- How to best choose and communicate with your doctor or midwife, move through hospital policies, and build your support system
- How to tap into the power and knowledge that you already have, and use it in birth and postpartum
This knowledge is now available to each of our doula clients, and anyone anywhere in Attain.
We’re covering everything we can to help more Black women have safer births, physically and emotionally. And we believe that when Black women are safer, the entire reproductive health system will be better for all birthing people, as it should be.
Other things I’m grateful for as a doula and a human at the end of 2020:
- We have lovely clients. You all have been incredibly kind and generous through a roller coaster of a year. Thank you for the baby pictures, the emails, checking on your doulas and just being yourselves.
- Health!
- Wool socks, hot coffee and cozy blankets.
- Learning to tweeze my eyebrows myself without over tweezing.
- Barre3 and Peleton- gotta get endorphins somewhere.
- Resilience.
As we look towards 2021, we’re rooting ourselves deeper in our mission. Our big vision is that not only are families less afraid of birth and postpartum, but that there are fewer reasons to be afraid.
Some things we have planned:
- Staying safe until this pandemic is under control (first and foremost)!
- Finding more ways to bring a feeling of community to our clients.
- Getting the word out about this course to everybody and they (yes, they) mama. Can you tell I’m jazzed about it?
- Sharing the value of postpartum support with more families.
We’re going to keep doing our part, and I’m so thankful that we still get to.
