Doulas in Connecticut and Beyond!

Classes

Pre Pregnancy Preparation Classes

MOCHA MILKSHAKE CAFÉ LACTATION CLASS

Pre Pregnancy Preparation Classes

This Pre-Pregnancy Preparation class is designed for individuals and their partners who plan to conceive; helping them to identify and answer questions related to the physical, emotional, and spiritual aspects of their soon-to-be new lives. During this class, you will gain useful information to help prepare physically and emotionally for pregnancy as well as gain information that can be implemented prior to conception to help increase the likelihood of a fruitful pregnancy. The class also focuses on the 1st trimester of pregnancy.

Childbirth Education Classes

MOCHA MILKSHAKE CAFÉ LACTATION CLASS

Pre Pregnancy Preparation Classes

These classes are designed to make an expecting person and partner / support feel more confident about their upcoming birth experience. The classes will help soon-to-be parents understand that birth is an ancient process and that they can birth normally and naturally by working with their body's signals.

SciHonor will provide you with tools to be able to navigate your birth in any environment including home, hospital or birth center and whether you desire to have a medicated or non-medicated birth. She will assist the partner in learning comfort techniques to provide more effective support.

These classes will also help parents be able to make informed decisions about their care and their baby's care by providing information pertaining to childbirth and the postpartum period; including breastfeeding AND baby basics. SciHonor will help you to build the knowledge you need to have a self-empowering birth experience.

MOCHA MILKSHAKE CAFÉ LACTATION CLASS

This lactation class helps to prepare parents for their breastfeeding journey. Black parents in particular don’t always receive the support needed for successful breastfeeding due to lack of access to lactation professionals, limited options for culturally aligned support, generational trauma, misinformation / myths, and more. We also experience the highest infant morbidity and mortality rates, which can be prevented by having positive influences and relevant breastfeeding support and encouragement. Because of this, we offer the Mocha Milkshake Café Lactation Class and the Mocha Milkshake Café Weekly, Peer Support Group.

Please contact us for the current Lactation Class schedule.

1. Who are the Earth’s Natural Touch: Birth Care and Beyond Interdisciplinary Doulas and Perinatal Health Advocates?

We are a team of Doulas and Perinatal Health Advocates whose ultimate goal is to hold space for all families no matter where they are in their childbearing year, phase or process, while reducing racial disparities in perinatal outcomes. We are protectors of the space that we hold for families.

2. What does the training look like to become an Earth’s Natural Touch Certified Interdisciplinary Doula (sm)?

Our Interdisciplinary Doulas complete 14 months of rigorous training covering a variety of topics that prepare them to support families through pregnancy, labor, birth, postpartum, lactation, or even grief and loss. Some of us have added specialty’s in preconception preparation, lactation, grief and loss, research, and advocacy.

3. Why are Earth’s Natural Touch: Birth Care and Beyond Doulas and Perinatal Advocates Important?

We could go on and on but in short, the use of Doulas as part of a person’s care team has proven medical, mental, physical and emotional benefits. We are a fun group of doulas and perinatal health advocates who love to incorporate the wisdom and cultural healing practices of our ancestors into our care, while providing culturally relevant and evidenced based services. We come to the people as the people because we are the people.

4. What certification will I obtain when I have completed the program?

You will be an Earth's Natural Touch: Birth Care & Beyond Interdisciplinary Doula. We focus on Preconception and Fertility, Antepartum Care, Labor and Birth Doula Support, Postpartum Doula Support, Lactation Support, Grief and Loss Support & More. We even have teams that you may be selected to join including Research / Writing Team, Advocacy / Policy Work, Mocha Milkshake Cafe, Fertility Journey Partners, Grief & Loss, and more. Upon completion as an eCID (Earth's Natural Touch: Birth Care & Beyond Certified Interdisciplinary Doula), you are able to support families in a variety of birth settings and through various reproductive situations and outcomes.

5. What do the Earth’s Natural Touch: Birth Care & Beyond Doulas and Perinatal Health Advocates focus on?

Preconception and Fertility, Antepartum Care, Labor and Birth Doula Support, Postpartum Doula Support, Lactation Support, Grief and Loss Support, Virtual Pregnancy Partners, Research and Writing Team, Advocacy and Policy Work.

6. Who should take this training?

The program is most appropriate for Doulas-to-Be, Newly Trained/Certified Doulas or even some Doulas who are looking to gain additional knowledge and skill to be able to provide better support to the families that they work with, as well as those who want to be part of a sisterhood of Doulas. Many Doulas have expressed the lack of skill, diversity, cultural competence or humility or a reflection of themselves, and their communities in trainings that they have previously taken. Rest assured, we are Blackity Black, and our curriculum covers cultural practices for many cultures, as well as a historical look into the experiences of Native Americans and people of the Caribbean. You will graduate with a wealth of knowledge and the ability to handle and navigate tough situations and circumstances. If you need assistance along the way, you have an entire sisterhood to support you.

7. Why is this Doula Skills: Beyond the Basics Program so long compared to the average 2-5 day Doula trainings?

Because we know that after just 3-4 days of training, it can be challenging to navigate all of the complexities that often come with supporting families in undervalued and underrepresented communities ,who are living with the weight of historical and generational traumas, while navigating institutional racism and all of the social determinants of their health which can all influence their reproductive choices, options, and outcomes. This program encompasses a wide range of knowledge from Conception through to Birth to Postpartum and many things in between such as nutrition, loss, toxic relationships, trauma, breastfeeding and much, much more through several training units. Overall, this training will prepare you to support families in many environments and through a wide range of circumstances encompassing the Full Spectrum expectation and beyond to becoming an Interdisciplinary Doula (sm).

8. Do you offer shorter doula trainings?

Yes. We do offer shorter trainings for individuals who are Training through Agencies and Organizations. These trainings are designed to enhance your ability to fulfill the current role/responsibilities that you hold within said institution. Right now, we are only offering the Interdisciplinary Doula training to the public.

9. Well… Since the training is so long, do I have to wait until I graduate to support families?

Nope. You will be well prepared to support clients way before you graduate. Remember, this program is called the Doula Skills: Beyond the Basics. You will be learning beyond the basics of a typical doula training program.

10. Is this training offered virtually due to the pandemic? Yes! This is now being offered virtually since there are so many health concerns with the current pandemic. As responsible care givers, our goal is always to keep ourselves and the families we support safe.

11. Where is Earth’s Natural Touch: Birth Care and Beyond based and what kinds of advocacy or policy work is Earth’s Natural Touch involved in?

This is a REALLY important question to ask because it helps you to understand the goals of the organization you choose to train with. Earth’s Natural Touch has representatives on the Connecticut State Doula Task Force and the Doulas 4 Connecticut Coalition working with legislators, community members, and organizations to ensure that equitable, culturally congruent doula care is accessible to families who would benefit from it the most. We are also working in partnership with other organizations to impact birth outcomes in underserved and underrepresented communities, such as Bridgeport Prospers United Way, March of Dimes, New Haven Healthy Start, and Yale New Haven Hospital. Currently, we span through CT, NY, NJ, Philly, L.A./Cali, Georgia, North Carolina, Indiana, and parts of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Florida and are continuing to expand. Due to the pandemic, we have made our program available virtually so that it can be accessed anywhere.

12. Why is there an application process?

There is an application process because this is a serious commitment. Our sisterhood is strong, and our trainings can be very intimate. We want to be sure that you are comfortable with us, that you align with our values, and vice versa. This is more than just your typical Doula Training. This is a Sisterhood of Doulas.

13. Why is our Sisterhood so important to us in this work?

Being part of the Dada Zuri Sisterhood is an amazing experience. This program has been compared to a Rite of Passage into a woman's own growth and development no matter how young or old she is. We have students from age 16 to 60+. The sisterhood is a safe space to learn and explore ourselves and each other as we build bonds, heal our own traumas, support each other through life’s transitions, and of course work on assignments, presentations, community service, homework, and more.

14. How do I apply for the Doula Skills: Beyond the Basics Program?

The first step is to send an introductory essay (1 page is sufficient) as soon as possible. Tell us who you are, what job you do, about any hobbies, school, family, birth experience, whatever you want us to know about you, and what inspired you to become an Interdisciplinary Doula. Include your name, email, city/state, phone # and headshot on the document.

By December 31st, email your essay of interest to Enrollment@EarthsNaturalTouch.com with subject "Introductory Essay". From there, your essay will be reviewed by our admissions team and we will let you know if we would like to learn more about you. If so, you will be invited to our Private Virtual Information Session where you will learn more about our program and meet some of the Graduates and Current Students. After you hear more about us, you can request to apply. We expect to begin each cohort during the spring. Essays should be on file by December 31st of the previous year. Ex: If you submit your essay by December 31, 2020, you will be considered for our 2021 cohort starting in the Spring.

15. Are payment plans available?

Yes. We know that paying for trainings can be awfully expensive and can serve as a barrier to doula training access, so we created an affordable payment plan to make the financial responsibility a little easier on our sisters. Please Request Further Details when you submit your introductory essay.

16. When was Earth’s Natural Touch: Birth Care and Beyond Founded and by whom?

SciHonor Devotion began her studies in the field of Reproductive Health when she became pregnant with her son in 1999 and something clicked. Now, she is a Birth Doula, Postpartum Doula, Childbirth Educator, Maternal Child Health Specialist, Certified Lactation Counselor, Perinatal Mental Health Support Group Facilitator, Homebirth Midwife Assistant, Midwifery Student and Owner of Earth’s Natural Touch: Birth Care & Beyond, LLC (est. 2001). From there, in 2016 the Dada Zuri Sisterhood (#DadaZuri) was created. She created the Doula Skills: Beyond the Basics Program in response to the need for more racially diverse, competent Doulas in the New York City Tri-State and New England areas who would be able to support families from a culturally responsive lens. SciHonor also works to make a difference in the medical world by facilitating workshops on the Black Maternal experience for medical professionals and medical students at colleges and universities such as UConn and Yale.

In Birth Joy & Love,

SciHonor Devotion of Earth's Natural Touch: Birth Care & Beyond

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Earth's Natural Touch:
Birth Care & Beyond