Known. Doula Services

Known. Doula Services Certified birth, bereavement, & postpartum doula working with families in Cedar Rapids/Iowa City area

04/16/2026

Super weird labor prep hack: deep breathing + full-body relaxation in the midst of everyday discomforts.

Whether I've stubbed my toe on the ottoman, had a cramp in my calf or forearm, or just nursing my big kids, I take massive breaths & work to release every muscle in my body. I did this with my last two pregnancies & genuinely believe it helped my mindset in labor & the productivity of my contractions since I wasn't bracing as much as I likely would have without this near-daily practice!

A fun acronym to help re-frame pain in labor is PAIN (funny, isn't it?):
Purposeful: the discomfort you feel during labor has a purpose! It's not there for no reason & it will help you move into positions to help baby move down & out.
Action: It's only there because your body is WORKING--you're not dying, you're just doing a heck of a lot of hard work.
Intermittent: You get breaks! This is the most helpful one for me. Breathe deeply & relax until it's gone, & then you'll get to chill for a minute at the very least. Cherish the breaks & rest when you can!
Normal: Birth is the most normal, natural thing. Just like pooping, our bodies know how to do it! Sometimes we just need to get out of our own way!

What weird coping strategies have you tried in pregnancy or labor? I'd love to hear! Drop them below!

04/13/2026

We're 15 weeks!

Everything has been pretty boring except for some n*pple sensitivity which has cropped up. I've decided to use this as an exercise for reframing my mindset around discomfort in preparation for labor. It's something I did with my last two pregnancies & has worked really well.

Basically, every time I experience pain or discomfort during pregnancy, I take massive breaths & work to relax my entire body. This is the same thing I do while in labor--working on releasing everything to allow contractions to do their job!

I have another post about this for Thursday, so be on the look out!

04/07/2026

14 week update!

This week was such a blessing--recovering from being sick & feeling so much more like myself. The theme of this pregnancy seems to be "trust me". There's more to that story, but I'll save that for another time.

God has been so generous to give us 4 babies thus far, & I'm beyond grateful He chose me to be their mom, for as long or short as He has planned.

Kind of a boring update, but I have truly worn these mumsie overalls SO MUCH the past few days & I am LOVING it.

Did you feel like everything turned a corner during second trimester? Let me know in the comments!

04/02/2026

The pelvic floor has gotten much more attention in the past few years, but really only *after* birth.

Today I got to talk with my friend Kaitlyn at , & she said the thing she wishes more women knew during pregnancy is pelvic floor breathing.

In our normal day-to-day lives, we are unknowingly clenching our glutes & pelvic floor quite frequently. In pregnancy, this can become an issue, especially as birth approaches closer. Our pelvic floor has to open & stretch during birth for baby. A soft, supple pelvic floor can decrease pain, the risk of tearing, & also the duration of labor! Amazing!

To practice pelvic floor breathing, inhale & let your entire abdomen open & release. This includes your belly, your sides, your back, & your bottom. You should be able to feel a slight lowering of your pelvic floor as you inhale. On the exhale, allow everything to return to neutral: belly, back, sides, & bottom. There should be a very slight lift in your pelvic floor with this exhale.

If you can't feel the slight motion of your pelvic floor, it might be worth talking to your local pelvic floor PT--I have a bunch that I love in the Dubuque & Cedar Rapids areas! Remember: we want a SOFT, SUPPLE pelvic floor to make birth as easy as possible, so kegels are rarely suggested during pregnancy!

03/30/2026

13 weeks! We're out of the first trimester, but MAN this week has been a DOOZY!

The day I turned 13 weeks, I woke up to diarrhea (sorry if that's TMI... welcome to my page! 😜) & a searing headache with tons of neck tension. The headache & tension in my neck went away within a couple days (thanks for your help, mom!!), but the poops continue to linger.

Getting frustrated that the only protein my body seems able to handle right now is chicken, in small quantities, & bone broth. Everything else goes straight through, so lots of oatmeal, congee w/ my bone broth, suuuuuper light chicken & veggie soup, bananas, & apples.

Simply out of curiosity & because of my history of GDM, my midwife advised I spot check my blood sugar. So far, everything is decent, but with the poops & dietary changes I've had to make, we have to stay ahead of it a little more.

Next week is my first prenatal appt with my midwife! Yay! Stay tuned for that, & let me know what questions you have--obviously nothing's off limits here 😂

03/26/2026

What is Dad's role in the birth space, anyway?

Unfortunately, the father's role in birth has been painfully minimized to little more than their role in conception. I believe that is a completely ridiculous notion. Dads are the protectors of & providers for their family, & this translates in a beautiful, powerful way when he knows that!

The father is the person who cares most about the safety of his wife & child(ren). Not the nurses, not the doctors, not anyone else. Dad.

Taking this role seriously will benefit your marriage & parenting. At mom's most vulnerable time, her protector stepped up. The effects of this compounds within a relationship as dad continutes to step into his strengths as provider & protector.

Dads, be interested in birth for the well-being of your marriage AND baby! Learn everything you can, & be actually invested. You won't regret it!

There was a great podcast by released yesterday about a father who leaned into his fatherhood. Give it a listen, & maybe buy the guest's book to learn more about birth from a dad's perspective.

What do you think? How have you seen your husband grow in fatherhood through birth/postpartum? Have you ever thought of this before? What else would you add?

03/23/2026

12 weeks! We're finishing up the first trimester, & I'm continuing to feel emotionally exhausted...

Praying everything starts to turn a corner soon, but also trying to be okay if this pregnancy is just trickier than the last two. The Lord has His plan for all my pregnancies, & I'm just working on trusting Him.

One tiny frustration that's happening is that my belly button is already BARELY hanging on... And remember--I'm 12 wks pregnant 😅 It popped around 22 weeks with Arlo & 16 weeks with Aliza. Anyone wanna take bets on when I get an official pregnancy belly button this time? Haha!

03/19/2026

Let's talk about fetal movement!

For a first time mom, most women don't feel any flutters or kicks until 16 weeks or later. These are often described as feeling like butterfly wings or little bubbles popping. The first movements cannot be felt from the outside (sorry dads!), but they are MAGICAL for many moms.

The exception is for women who have an anterior placenta. That means basically the placenta is on the front of the uterus, rather than the side or the back. When that's the case, there are no problems associated other than having to wait much longer to feel baby's movements. Many women who have anterior placentas feel baby's movements on the side of their belly, & they don't feel near as gentle as those first movements. Often times, baby's movement can't be felt until after 20 weeks or so with an anterior placenta, which can be disconcerting for many moms.

An ultrasound is typically how we learn about the placenta's placement, but there are often some cues that can suggest placental location (difficulty finding baby's heartbeat in early dopplers, lack of fetal movement sensation, etc). Again, an anterior placenta is not associated with any increased risk to mom or baby! But it can be frustrating for moms who just want to feel their baby move.

Have you had any experience with an anterior placenta? Tell me about it in the comments!

03/16/2026

11 weeks!

The sun is shining, & that's my favorite thing about this week in pregnancy. 🙃

This week, I'm getting increasingly frustrated with my symptoms. I still don't want to eat, most of the time. I'm still so so tired. I'm getting SO much acne, which I *vaguely* remember from Arlo's pregnancy (but not until the end).

I am hopeful that the end of the more intense symptoms is near, but I'm certainly struggling though my days. Praising the Lord for every day we get with this peanut, and at the same time lamenting the fact that this pregnancy hasn't been as "easy" as the last two.

Holding both of these in tension & learning how to trust the Lord's best for me is a lesson I simply need to continue learning.

What questions do you have for week 11? I'd love to connect with you--even if it's comiserating... but only a little. Because truly it is such a blessing to carry this sweet little life.

03/09/2026

10 weeks!

1/4 of the way, give or take a couple weeks, to meeting this sweet little one! I have been telling people lately that I'm feeling pretty good, but it turns out from my sweet husband that's a lie. 🤦‍♀️

According to him, I'm still very tired/fatigued, I still get really cold as the evening goes on, & I still don't *really* wanna eat much. And, I guess he's right! [This has been a theme of ours throughout our last two births where he knows I'm in labor WAY earlier than I do... We'll see what happens this time!]

These symptoms seem to have become my new normal, especially as I chase around my two toddlers & try to keep the house (& a business!!) running smoothly. Just don't ask to see my laundry... that's not been a priority....

I'm hopeful that in a couple weeks I'll be feeling much more like my true self as I enter into the second trimester, but we'll see!

03/05/2026

Another pregnancy after loss post! If you're not in a space to hear this right now, please feel free to keep scrolling.

Today I was playing with my son at a local museum & he asked me to chase him. I had forgotten to tie my boots, & mid-stride my laces caught. I crashed to the ground on my side & immediately reassured myself that baby's fine, still very protected at this point in pregnancy.

We finished our time at the museum, got home, had lunch, & as I'm nursing my daughter to sleep, I felt something in my underwear. My mind immediately spiraled that the fall had really hurt my baby & I was actively hemorrhaging. I overthought some twinges I was feeling in my belly, I even played out scenarios where I call someone to watch the house while the kids nap so I could go to the ER.

Once I put our daughter down & went to the bathroom, I could breathe a sigh of relief. It was normal, healthy pregnancy discharge. Praising the Lord, I wiped & could go along with my day.

Moral of the story is, even if your brain KNOWS that everything's okay, your heart may not. And that's okay. And you're not alone.

03/02/2026

9 weeks!

This week has finally started to move along quickly--could be due to the fact that my husband & I went to a marriage conference this week, I guess, but I'm taking it as a win.

This week I struggled with significantly more nausea & constipation due to traveling & not being as on top of my movement or nourishment. We had a great time connecting as mom & dad without our kids, but we're SO grateful to be back home with them now.

For some reason, 9 weeks feels like basically 10 weeks, which is basically the end of the first trimester--girl math at it's finest 😂 But in all reality, I'm feeling like this baby is becoming more & more real as the days go by now. Praise God!

When did things start feeling real for you? Let me know!

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Cedar Rapids, IA
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