Howell’s Doula Services

10/10/2025

10/05/2025

Do formula companies sabotage breastfeeding?

These bottles of formula come in a packet of 6 marketed as a ‘First Baby Milk Formula Starter Pack From Birth’.

Although it comes with a disclaimer on the box that ‘Newborn babies may take only small amounts of infant formula to start with’ what sort of message does the size of this bottle send to parents worried that their newborn is having enough of their breastmilk?

Research tells us that on average in the first 24 hours a newborn’s feed will average about 7ml...meaning this bottle is 10 TIMES larger!

For many new babies 4-5 swallows of colostrum per feed is all they need in the first 24 hours.

The formula company also advises that once opened any unused formula be disposed of within one hour meaning a lot is going to be wasted in this kit making it an expensive and non environmentally friendly option.

10/05/2025

The importance of “I can’t do this” moments in birth.

I think the most transformative moment in a labor/birth is the moment a woman feels she can not do it. She feels like it is just too much-physically and emotionally.
This is the moment that provides an opportunity for women to transform and heal, and how birth workers respond is so important.
🩷A woman needs the space that allows her to feel the “I can’t do this”, BUT then do it anyway.
When a woman looks her birth team in the eyes and says “I can’t do this” she is often met with a “fix”, an epidural, drugs, or cesarean section. What this is doing for a woman is taking away her chance to overcome. It is putting the “good job” on the medical staff-not on the one who deserves it, the mother.
Women in their “I can’t do this” moment (which trust me-is a normal part of birth that the media tends to not highlight) deserve to be met with encouragement and space holding. Wisdom, suggestions, and support-yes, but taking over and fixing for her-no.
I say this from a place of witnessing births and from a place of going through it myself.
I feel I know a good amount about preparing for a natural birth but I too still had the “I can not do this” moments that you can not always prepare for. I look back and am so grateful that my midwife and husband held space for me to overcome that feeling. It gave me an opportunity to completely surrender to God and ultimately transform who I am as a woman, a mother, a wife, and a doula.
Having moments that are loud and tear filled are okay. It doesn’t mean you didn’t do well during labor mama-it meant you were willing to be transformed for the benefit of your baby. It made you the mother that you are.

(Thanks for reading my 1am thoughts that I have to write out to be able to sleep!)🫶🏼

09/19/2025

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09/11/2025

Your baby’s tummy is small, but your body knows exactly how to meet their needs.

From those first tiny sips to bigger feeds in the weeks ahead—your milk is designed to be enough every step of the way.

Save this for encouragement & share it with a new mama who needs this reminder.

08/21/2025

Grown woman talk: the original cortisol cure!

When women connect in safe, supportive spaces, something remarkable happens: our oxytocin rises, our cortisol falls.

Psychologist Shelley Taylor calls it tend and befriend—a stress response as real and i mportant as “fight or flight.”

I’m so passionate about this that I devoted a chapter to it in both The Adrenal Thyroid Revolution and Hormone Intelligence.

Why? Because cortisol on overdrive - as it is for so many of us- impacts everything from our menstrual cycles and fertility to our thyroid, metabolism, and even how we sleep and age.

When cortisol stays high, it can disrupt ovulation, worsen PMS, fuel weight gain around the middle, spike blood sugar, and contribute to anxiety, depression, and burnout. Think inflammaging and an extra dose of symptoms, too!

Lowering it is powerful medicine that doesn’t come from or the Pill. It’s an inside job.

✨ A few ways to bring cortisol down:
• Make regular time for connection with friends. Don’t worry about sharing your honest challenges - both giver and receiver actually benefit (within limits of that friend who is always venting!)
• Spend time in nature.
• Practice slow, deep breathing or meditation especially if you wake up at night!
• Prioritize restorative sleep.

💬 Who is your anytime, anything person who makes you feel safer and lighter? Tag her in the comments so she knows!

📚 Learn more about cortisol in The Adrenal Thyroid Revolution and Hormone Intelligence—both have an entire chapter on this truly life-changing science.

08/17/2025

It’s about the making of you ❤️

Quote Credit: Barbara Katz Rothman ❣️

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08/09/2025

Good to know 👇

08/06/2025

If they say these things RUN 🚩