A Letter to You

It’s official. Your Baby Your Birth has closed its “doors”. It has been a beautiful seven years supporting families through pregnancy, labor, and birth. I’ve seen my clients go through powerful transitions and transformations, and I am honored to have been of service.

This month, I supported my last client as a full-time doula, marking the end of an incredibly fulfilling chapter in my life. This final birth was truly one to remember, encapsulating everything I’ve learned and experienced over the past seven years.

Birthwork found me at a pivotal time. Having just completed my first Vipassana training in India, I felt a calling to support birthing bodies. The path was clear: holistic and reproductive health and wellness through advocacy, teaching, and coaching. I never looked back.

Building a business from scratch is not easy, especially one that is systemically undervalued. I’ve always been an entrepreneur, but birthwork taught me profound lessons about life, death, and my own body. Many women, myself included, had gaps in our knowledge about our bodies—gaps that our educational system failed to fill. Birthwork became a journey of empowerment, not just for the families I supported but also for myself.

The community I found in birthwork was invaluable. Especially as a Black woman, I was honored to serve other Black women—sisters, mothers, daughters, and aunts—during such a powerful time in their lives. We built a tribe, an international sisterhood dedicated to supporting, nurturing, and protecting one another. Together, we fought against a system that often dehumanizes women, particularly BIPOC women.

The medical system, with its patriarchal and racist undertones, revealed its flaws time and again. As doulas, we saw a recurring pattern in hospitals: labor stalling, interventions like Pitocin, leading to epidurals, and often resulting in C-sections. Our role was to advocate for birthing bodies; at times, it felt as if our role was to go in there with armor of steel to protect. However, even offering simple yet powerful suggestions like “Can you give her a moment to decide?” or “How about a walk around the room?” made a world of difference.

Building Your Baby Your Birth (YBYB) from scratch was challenging but immensely rewarding. I learned to create a service-based business, supported by a tribe of like-minded individuals. Together, we supported over 100 families worldwide, in person and virtually.

Now, it’s time to close this chapter. I am deeply grateful for every family I’ve supported; every doula that sought guidance and mentorship from me; my partnership with Carriage House Birth; my mentor, ClearBirthNYC; Ancient Song Doula Services, Manhattan Birth, DONA, and my time with Expectful teaching and guiding mindfulness internationally, to name a few. The lessons I’ve learned will stay with me as I continue my journey as an entrepreneur and artist. To all the babies I’ve welcomed into this world, may you grow to love life to the fullest. Oge loves you.  (The oldest one is now 7 years old, so I'm assuming they can read this part :-))

What’s Next?

I will always advocate for maternal health, reproductive justice, and holistic wellness. There’s still so much work to be done in how society views pregnancy, labor, and birth. I intend to shift perspectives, encouraging open minds and hearts.

Birthwork provided so many lessons on life that I could probably write a book. Hmm, that may be down the creative pipeline—Doula Diaries or Life and Times of a NYC Doula?  Would you read it?

My focus will shift more towards mindfulness, teaching, retreats, and my creativity as an artist. I envision a world where every person, regardless of their demographic or financial status, feels fully supported, safe, empowered, and heard throughout their pregnancy, labor, and birth. I envision a world of awareness and presence, even in the face of fear.

If you are a family I’ve supported, I would love to stay connected with you and hear about how things are going. Feel free to send pictures and updates to my personal email. If you are a fellow birthworker, medical provider, or business that I’ve either worked with or are in the wellness/maternal health space, I’d love to stay connected with you as well. Feel free to reach me here.

Follow me on social media, and thank you for your continued support as I pivot.

If you’re looking for birth support now or in the future, I’d be happy to share my recommendations. I also plan to add a resources page for birthwork on my website.

Thank you again for your support. If you have any questions or need recommendations, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

With Gratitude,
Oge