Hi Mama's! My name is Tina Bein, and I am a DONA Certified Postpartum Doula. A lot of people may have heard of what a Birth Doula is, but many don't know what a Postpartum Doula is. And my basic simple answer is-I come to a mom after the baby is born to help her recover, establish breastfeeding, or simply balance motherhood. But the down and dirty part of my job is to watch over mom and even dads for Postpartum Mood Disorders. It can range from anxiety, OCD and the biggest one...depression.
I started my journey about 12yrs ago, long before I discovered that a Postpartum Doula was a job with my sister. She was a single mom of twins. Everyone thought she just had the baby blues and shrugged her moods off, but It was more obvious to me that it was more than the normal blues. I knew something else was happening because there were signs that she was struggling, even though she was a great mother. The subject of depression in mothers wasn't openly talked about in her circle of people, so she didn't have support. I urged her to talk to someone because I knew something was wrong. Part of the reason she struggled was because after two weeks, she was on her own. There wasn't support in place for her.
Ten years ago after having my own baby I felt the weight of this lack of support too. After a week people stopped calling, bringing food, and helping us out. I never struggled with the depression side, but I did have OCD. Everything needed to be cleaned and perfect. When I noticed there is literally almost no support for new moms, I started to reach out to them. I offered help, brought meals, offered to hold baby while people sat to eat a meal as a couple or family with older siblings. I'd do anything the mom needed to feel that 10-20 minutes of normalcy. When my friend had her baby almost three years ago, my husband told me that I should make this a job. It was something I enjoyed, I felt useful and was helping people. That moment I started to research Postpartum Doula's and everything fell into place. I was so excited. Things took off from that one single moment.
With things taking off like they did the balance of family scheduling and homeschooling became a bit of a challenge, but we figured it out, step by step. First we found reliable child care and someone who could teach them or over see their independent work. I feel like I was able to overcome so many unusual obsticles because of my supportive husband and the amazing Birth Professionals I surrounded myself with. Life gets crazy, and sometimes we take our clients emotions home with us. What I like to do is blast music for my drive home and use "Stress Relief" or "Grounding" essential oils. This helps me come home calm and ready to see my family. Being a Postpartum Doula is the most amazing field I have been in. And I love it, it just radiates out of me when I meet moms! If you'd like more info, see my website here, like my facebook page, or email me at tinathedoula@gmail.com.
If you'd like to be featured on "She Works Hard for the Mommy" please send me an email!
