Rooted Instincts Doula Co.

12/29/2025

As we head into a new year in a couple of days I just wanted to express the gratitude I have for the families I had the honor to serve at their births in 2025. Each family I had the privilege of supporting was truly so special.

As we head into 2026 I will be continuing my to soak in and find our rhythm as a family of 5. However, please don’t hesitate to reach out if you are wanting birth doula support!

In the meantime I have added a new offering to my website: a birth pool kit rental. This includes the Earthside birth pool, pool liner, air pump, drain pump, hose for draining, sink adaptor for hose and 50’ RV water hose. Please click the link in my bio for pricing. Rentals will be open for the community, all Community Doula Collective clients and my clients. Collective doula clients/my clients will receive a discounted rental rate.

Happy New Year✨

*stock photo used for slide 2. I do not own the rights to photo

12/08/2025

ACIP today voted to recommend individual-based decision-making for hepatitis B vaccine.

07/26/2025

Important information that all families should have available to them and consider when choosing their birth location

❗️Up-to-date Hospital Cesarean Rates:

Cesarean sections are the most common surgical procedure performed in the U.S. with over 30% of women giving birth by major surgery. However, most are unwarranted.

The World Health Organization states that c-section rates higher than around 10% are NOT associated with reductions in maternal and newborn mortality.

While c-sections can be lifesaving when medically necessary, they increase the risk of:

- Complication and infection
- Physical and emotional trauma
- Short and long term maternal and neonatal morbidity

Quality of care differs depending on the hospital chosen. According to Consumer Reports, your odds of having a c-section can be almost 10x higher if you choose the wrong hospital.

"If properly armed with data, growing families can vote with their dollars and send a signal to the medical community by choosing—if possible—a hospital with a lower c-section rate." Doris Peter, Ph.D.

Find several Northeast Indiana hospitals and their current cesarean section rates below.

IMPORTANT NOTE- Cesarean section rates on the Leapfrog Group survey only include "first-time mothers giving birth to a single baby, at full-term, in the head-down position who deliver their babies through a C-section".

*Rates shown in this post are lower than actual current cesarean rates because they do not include:

- cesareans for multiparous women
- cesareans for pregnancies of multiples
- cesareans for breech presentation
- repeat cesareans

*This means that the listed hospitals cesarean rates are much higher than recorded.

Remember that c-sections, while life saving when medically necessary, are mostly unwarranted and increase health risks for both mother and infant.

Our local hospitals can do better and you deserve to be fully informed when choosing a birth location!

06/05/2025

Check out our new monthly event☀️

Introducing: The Mother’s Circle
A monthly event for new mothers hosted by The Collective.

We understand that early motherhood can feel both sacred and challenging. We honor that humans are relational by nature, and that many of us long for the village of support we were meant to have.

That’s why we’re opening The Mother's Circle: an intentional space for new mothers to come together and be supported. Whether you’re growing your baby, navigating newborn rhythms, or searching for your voice as a parent, this circle is for you.

What to Expect:
🌻Monthly topics and guest experts to nourish your mind and confidence

🌻Circle time for learning, reflection, and meaningful discussion

🌻Casual space to connect with other moms in the same season of life

🌻Doulas present to offer wisdom and care

Who it's for:
🤰Pregnant mothers - You're already a mother the moment you begin growing your baby! We know that your pregnancy and birthing experiences profoundly affect your postpartum experience, and we're here to support you through it all! Whether you're pregnant for the first time or fifth time, we welcome you.

🤱Mothers with nursing infants in arms - This circle is designed to be a nurturing space centered on the mother’s experience. While we respect the mother-baby dyad and welcome nursing infants in arms, we kindly ask that toddlers and mobile little ones enjoy time with a trusted caregiver during this monthly event.

Event dates and times to come! Follow us here on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date! https://www.instagram.com/communitydoulacollective/

The Mother's Circle will be held at The Well: Your Family’s Chiropractor Northeast Indiana’s nervous system-focused perinatal and pediatric chiropractic office. The space is neutral and inviting with comfortable seating and a cozy home feel.

05/31/2025

05/13/2025

The best place a baby can be is connected to its source of oxygen and its mom

05/12/2025

Pregnant or planning to be? Stop by our event to connect with Community Doula Collective Birth Doulas + Milk Guide IBCLC, Danielle!

05/04/2025

Credit to .billchun for this post🔥

Because you birthed your baby, your provider did not deliver you or your baby. They simply had the privilege to attend your birth.

04/11/2025

The Role of a Doula: Advocacy (Part 2)

Educated doulas understand that advocacy can make a midwife or physicians job more complex.

When a doula encourages informed consent, it often means the provider has to slow down, explain options in more detail, and make sure the client fully understands before moving forward. In a fast-paced system, this might feel like an extra hurdle—but it’s a necessary step.

Midwives and physicians might feel frustrated when a doula’s presence leads to more conversations about routine practices, deeper discussions on risks and benefits, or documentation that a client is declining intervention(s) that conflicts with hospital policy. But rather than seeing this as an obstacle, it’s an opportunity to examine why patient-centered care isn’t already the norm.

Advocacy isn’t about making a provider’s job harder—it’s about making sure growing families have the time, space, and support to make choices they fully understand and genuinely consent to, even if/when those choices differ from hospital norms.

While many doulas in our community are restricted from using their voice to advocate for you, Community Doula Collective believes that our clients' self-determination is vital to creating safe and satisfying births. We believe that the role of a birth doula includes advocacy by supporting our clients in their right to make decisions about their body, birth, and baby.

LEARN MORE- communitydoulacollective.com

04/09/2025

Cesarean Awareness Month

Did you know that research confirms the benefits of skin to skin contact *during a cesarean.

Women who are supported to have skin to skin contact with their baby during their cesarean had:

🤎A more positive experience with improved bonding

🤎Reported less anxiety and depression

🤎A reduction in the time to the first feed

🤎Increased rate of breastfeeding on hospital discharge

Of course we don’t need a study to prove what we already know about infants remaining in contact with their mothers: Immediate contact with your baby is part of birth physiology and should be supported by your birth team whether you are in your home on your bed or in a hospital operating room.

Share this study with your provider and birth place: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35090856/

As the consumer of maternity care services, YOU get to change birth culture for yourself and your children by communicating the kind of care that you want and deserve.



LEARN MORE:
*Within 5 minutes of birth

https://toni-harman.medium.com/new-research-benefits-of-skin-to-skin-contact-during-a-c-section-a98d695b3c84