ABCS STORY
Short answer: I’m manifesting one.
Actual answer:I knew that would be a question when I thought of a name for my doula business. I also knew that this would be a perfect way for me to explain my drive and passion to complete my goals and aspirations in the birth world.
To me, Angels’ Birthing Center Services is the start of a one-stop shop that is considered a center for all birth-related services. When I go to the career center, I expect many things pertaining to career building and assistance to be there. When ABCS started, I knew I would still be working my 9 to 5, and I wanted to pursue my dreams and be relevant in the birth world. I didn’t know where to start, but I didn’t want my name to be something that was only pertaining to what I could offer at that moment. So I left it open by creating 'Angels’ Birthing Center Services'.
I love doing birth work. I love being able to help families transition to parenthood. This is something I’ve been interested in since I was a child. I sometimes watched “A Baby Story" on TLC with my mother instead of cartoons, because I thought it was pretty cool to see how someone could be walking around with a baby inside their belly. Then, hours later, seeing them transition into labor, and a baby being born minutes later. It was so fascinating to me that around seventh grade, I did the “What Do You Want To Be When You Grow Up?" research paper on being an OBGYN. Most kids wanted to be lawyers, teachers, or astronauts. But I knew even then that I wanted to be a birth worker. No one could tell me that I wouldn’t deliver a baby! Every year since then, probably until my junior year of high school, I knew that job was for me. I figured to get my foot in the door, I could become a labor and delivery nurse. I started working in entry-level positions in the medical field, but nothing kept me grounded. I would get enjoyment out of the job, but it would never be enough. It just didn’t fill the void of being in the birth world.
In 2019 I decided that I wanted to try and get into something that I thought would be a side job or just another certificate to put on the wall, not knowing that one day would change my life forever. I became a Certified Postpartum Doula in 2020 and started ABCS. I never imagined it would be where it is today. I didn’t work for an agency. I did independent contracting and backup contracts to get some experience. I had a great teacher who was able to pretty much guide me to starting my doula business. While my husband, my fiancé at the time, was extremely supportive, he had already founded another business prior to what we were starting.
I didn’t put a lot of focus on ABCS at first. I created the name and the logo, but it was just there. At the moment, it wasn’t something I could balance like I would have liked. I posted educational birth and postpartum information on social media daily, so I didn’t feel like I was neglecting my passion.
A couple of months after that, I found out that I was pregnant with twins. We had just gotten married and were still learning to balance as newlyweds. I was so overwhelmed. Everything that I had learned about postpartum, the resources I could use, and all the help had slipped out of my mind. I don’t know how. It honestly was so fresh. I was working on changing the world, and now that I’m living through it myself, I couldn’t be the doula I needed for myself. I was aware of many doors around me that could help, but I never opened them.
I had a pretty tough pregnancy. Physically I was fine, with healthy babies. The perfect textbook twin pregnancy. But emotionally, this was probably my hardest pregnancy of the two. I felt like something was missing. I felt like I didn’t have much time for myself. I felt like I had neglected everything because I was exhausted. Unlike my first pregnancy, I was able to be super active and move around. I wanted to be able to do more. I’m on maternity leave. I couldn’t just sit at home and be a mom; I aspired to be more. I want to help others that are going through what I’m going through right now.
Doing ABCS during postpartum was the most personal relationship that I could’ve had. A lot of the things that I put my time into were things that I knew I needed at that very moment. I may not be able to do everything hands-on, but I can talk about it. I can give resources and answer all the questions I had for myself that I already did my research on. Making sure there was accessible information for other families made me feel like I was heading in the right direction. The more information I gave or posted about, the more people gravitated towards me. I was happy to be able to use my education, training, and resources. It held me accountable.
It then dawned on me - If this is my passion, I need to invest in it. I then expanded my services. I first became a Certified Postpartum Placenta Specialist. Soon after, I became a Certified Childbirth Educator and a Certified Labor Doula. Now I have to hold up my end of the deal and continue to educate myself so I can give evidence-based and accurate advice and education. It is a beautiful feeling. I feel motivated and invested in my passion. It led me to the actual career I wanted to pursue - a Certified Nurse Midwife. I put on my big girl pants, and I am back to school to fulfill my dreams and change the world simultaneously. Even though I have a while before I get there, I know ABCS is a huge part of me getting there. ABCS is more than a business. It’s a career choice that I love and know would benefit many others. As we expand and offer more services, this is our why. We're here to support and educate families and help them on this amazing journey called parenthood.
Here it is, ABCS!
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