​The power of sharing your story has been proven to me time and time again and has also been shown to be something that clients, fellow Doulas and Bunky families enjoy knowing. In saying so, I’ll be starting a little segment of my story into the birth and Doula world. How I entered it’s grasp and what my journey looked like from start to now.

Meeting Shania for the first time, I knew there was a special spark in her. Bounding onto the patio, in the heat of summer with as much energy as an Energizer Bunny. She was passionate, spry, and full of conviction. I knew that this budding Doula had a unique quality, and many of the same wild traits of myself in my earlier Doula days.

​Now that she has been cemented as a part of the Bunky team - as the loud, hilarious and opinionated one, no less! We are so grateful Shania serves our families with all her passion, now backed by evidence-based care, and her mix of deep knowing of Doula skills paired with the teachings of community mentors and a phenomenal training. 

Read more about her journey, story and what makes her unique - down below.

​So here we are, in the depths of the birth world, and like all who have their unique journey to getting here, mine was a long, uncomfortable path that I am still trying to account for. But we are here, and nowhere else has felt quite this right.  
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I studied journalism in college, with a focus in Women's issues. I’ve always been focused on women’s issues, really. Going back to my days of playdates with disappointed 6-year old friends and very impressed mother’s who raved about my helping hand in the kitchen but unwillingness to play Polly Pockets. I ended up excelling in school and was encouraged by a professor to continue on with my Master's in Women's studies. To “master” women at any age, let alone 22, how precarious. So I ended up deferring. 
 
Over the next couple years, I was very unsettled with my decision to step back from school. The universe was working overtime to push me in the right direction, but my stubbornness did not allow for it. I took my life and others for granted. Both mentally and physically I was unwell and unsatisfied. I really believe that the people with a strong, unharnessed energy are the ones who inflict unnecessary troubles in their lives or the lives of others accidentally.

I began working with different BIPOC groups, as well as crisis centres, just trying to satisfy some small part of me that longed to be of service to vulnerable people. I started writing a small zine; with the goal of creating a space for unknown femme creators to create freely without judgment. It was a great success, yet I still felt unsatisfied in my pursuits. 

After relocating to Montreal, the last person I loved died in Toronto. And this changed the way I moved through life. I heard the word 'Doula' somewhere one day not long after their passing. I still don't know where I heard it, it’s as if a voice just whispered it to me. I actually had to Google it to find out what it meant. I’m still trying to backtrack to where I was or what I was reading, because I know the moment I heard it, I knew I would become it. 
 
So I reached out to my online community, and was quickly connected with a few doulas in the PNW, and they pointed me towards Doula Trainings International (DTI). I am still so thankful everyday for those strangers (now friends) who carved out time and space to guide me through the first steps of this journey. For introducing me to a community of fierce people who are always looking after each other. 
 
Becoming a doula has truly allowed me to direct all this unharnessed energy I possessed. To heal amongst the healing. To help others heal, with consent. To lend all of myself and be met with the same vigor. 

Recently coming into the possesion of some gorgeous vintage birth books, I knew I had to share them with you all!

First up, we have Birth Without Violence by Frederick Leboyer. A groundbreaking title showcasing a new gentle way for babies to enter the world, and shifting perspectives on awareness of newborns.

When I first cracked open this book, the images are quite jarring with classic and slightly brutal birth images strewn about the pages. As you get deeper into the book, the tone shifts and the babies are shown in a new light. Massaged, held gently in water, caressed and held with love. A new era of newborn care was being heralded in, in 1975. A good reminder to us all, to love on our babies and give them a gentle entry into the world.
This book and many others are found in Emma's lending library, all my (Emma's) birth clients have access to these resources - just ask!