" I am grateful to extend my nurturing arms around my community and pray that someone pays it forward.”
– Taylor Campbell, AAIMM Doula
What does being a doula mean to you?
Being a doula has been a necessary experience for me. I am a mother of a beautiful child. My birthing/postpartum experience and the stories from the stories from the women around me led me in my walk today. Being a doula is as serious as life or death and being able to help people advocate for themselves in soaces that feels unsafe. I love the fact that I am giving these mommies tools, language and support in their most vulnerable time to protect themselves.
One reason a family should consider having a doula?
A family choosing to have a doula is taking the opportunity to have a healthy transition into parenthood.
Please share a story of one of your most memorable experiences as a doula.
My client and I was in the hospital for 3 days straight during covid trying to deliver a baby that wasn't ready to come out. The baby pooped in the sac which caused the mommy to itch everywhere so the doctors had to act quick. Instead of giving her a C-Section, they induced her, placed a balloon to help her dilate and had to use the suction technique to get the baby out. I explain each process to my client to make sure she fully understand what they were saying. I held her hand through it all! It was a time!
What’s the most powerful or meaningful part of being a doula for you?
The most powerful part of being a doula is having the skills, language, patience, tenderness and grit to make sure the mommies of the world is protected. The honor is seeing a mom push through the ring of fire when she thought she couldnt. Making a choose to have a C-section in an emergency to better the outcome for the both of them. Seeing life in front of your face is beyond a powerful experience to witness.
What’s one game-changing way a doula can support a family during birth and beyond?
If a doula is actually listening and not throughing their own ideas onto the client, that is a game changer. I also think doulas should hold other skills that can benefit the families like breathing techniques, cooking, cleaning, clear communication or holistic skills to add to their experience.
What’s one unforgettable moment from your journey as a doula that still sticks with you the today?
Learning how high the Mortality rate for African American and Latina women in the delivery room. Also, being a doula throughout covid when no one could come in and we had to support through a zoom. Or when they were allowing one person and the mom choose the doula instead of the dad to support her. It has been a journey!
About Taylor:
Taylor is a Compton/South bay native with roots in the sticks of Alabama. Taylor comes from an ancestral line of birthworkers. Taylor grew up in Harbor Hills Housing Projects. Taylor purposely created her company Spiritually Akin to walk in the field of mental health, advocacy, birth work, and mentorship to heal the "hood". As a mother, Taylor is grateful to extend her nurturing arms around her community and pray that someone pays it forward.
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