Disappointment

I've turned down the birth with the Afghani woman, much to my dismay. Every time I thought about it, I had a panic attack. I think someone with more experience is needed in her situation, so it went back to my referral coordinator for her to resolve.

I feel terrible.

I probably could have done the birth, right? I could have. But I would have been nervous and/or terrified the whole time, if my current state is to be taken as any indication.

My coordinator said it was fine, that these situations happen, and it would be resolved. I still feel like a world class ass for taking the birth in the first place.

Nervousness

I suddenly have two clients.

One is a woman who does not speak English. She is Afghani, and I will be working with a translator. The other is a teenager. These are my first clients. I am a bit nervous, but also thrilled. Okay, more than a bit nervous. Couldn't I have found a nice "simple" mid-thirties mom on her third baby? :)

More later, once I've digested all of this a bit.

New directions

The girls in the pre-natal class I'm shadowing are still fabulous, and one of them may be interested in having me be her doula. I'll say more about this if it pans out. :)

I'm taking postpartum doula training in May as a way to branch out more into the birthing community. There's such a huge demand for postpartum doulas in Vancouver right now, and the course fit perfectly into my schedule. I am choosing to take both of those facts as a sign. :)

Uterus Pattern

For Kristina: uterus pattern.

Open House

Tonight I attended an open house for the Youth Pregnancy and Parenting Program that's offered through Vancouver Coastal Health. There was the standard bounty of food and room full of folks wearing nametags, the cake and the powerpoint presentation playing on the wall, and a room temperature that rose at least 5 degrees with each new arrival.

And then there were the girls and their babies.

Listening to them give a presentation about their experiences at YPPP was mind-blowing. Programs like this really do WORK. These women, their partners, their children, and the rest of their families... well, let's just say that I'm impressed. And so looking forward to being a part of the team.

Could I have picked a better career? I think not.

Random snippets

I'm tired, and I can't find the energy to write about any of this in detail, so you're just getting the bullet points. Sorry. :)

• Does anyone have a good pattern for a knitted breast or placenta, for educational purposes? I found a great pattern for a knitted uterus, but I'm coming up short on the others.
  
• Can anyone recommend any good teen pregnancy resources that aren't focused on preventing the pregnancy in the first place?
  
• Speaking of pregnant teens: I'm totally blown away by the girls in the prenatal group I'm observing. And their partners, too. They're so brave, these kids, way braver than I ever remember being.
  
• To certify, or not to certify, and who with? There are as many opinions on this as there are doulas, but I'd love to hear from my small-but-wonderful readership on this issue. Right now, I'm leaning towards certifying with DONA, but I may change my mind about that. To be honest, I'm also looking at CAPPA because they offer an advanced doula certification for working with teen moms.

Exciting developments

Starting tomorrow evening, I will be observing prenatal classes for teen moms on Wednesday evenings. I managed to cold call my way into a phone interview with the doula coordinator for a local teen pregnancy outreach, and she suggested that I attend her classes as a first step towards working with pregnant teens as a volunteer doula.

I'm terrified and excited and amazed at my luck. The woman I've been speaking to said that there's a few girls in her class who are looking for a doula right now, and while she can't directly recommend me, I'm totally welcome to let the girls know who I am and what I do. This feels too good to be true.

Volunteer opportunity!

I'm so excited! I got a call this morning while I was out, that I am going to return on Thursday, about volunteering for a great pregnancy program in Vancouver. I have high hopes that I'll have a new volunteer position shortly, as they seemed really excited by my request for information when I emailed them. I'm not saying where, yet, because I don't want to jinx myself, but I'll update everyone ASAP. :)