Today we’d like to introduce you to Jasmine Williams.
Hi Jasmine, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Hey! I am Jasmine Williams– an educator and owner of Reclaim Your Birth. I am married to my amazing husband, Kenneth Williams, and we have a two-year-old toddler that keeps us on our toes. Those two are my reason for every single thing that I do. I was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, but moved to Memphis in 2014 to attend graduate school through the Memphis Teacher Residency Program. Although I am not from here, Memphis has stolen my heart forever.
When I was a kid, I always knew I wanted to be a teacher–it’s the only profession I ever wanted to pursue. Then, I got pregnant with my son two years ago during the pandemic and I had a mindset shift. I wanted more flexibility and to be able to control my time. Teaching had been wearing me down mentally and physically.
We chose to hire a doula (Mia Peake of Peake Wellness) for the birth of our son. She was incredible!! She was there to educate us throughout our pregnancy and she supported us through my very fast labor and delivery. Because of my prior knowledge and the support of Mia, my husband, and my mother, I was able to have the dream unmedicated birth that I desired. After that experience, I KNEW that I was being called to support birthing people during their pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum period. Although teaching has been my career for 8 years, I was ready to use my skills as an educator in a different way.
My husband, being a realtor and entrepreneur himself, inspired me to take the leap to start doula training and create my own business–let me just say I have NEVER seen myself as anything other than a teacher working for someone else! After the world stopped in 2020-2121, I was more motivated than ever to bet on myself and take a leap of faith into something different. As a doula, I still get to teach and encourage, but just in a different way.
Yes, the education system in this country is in a crisis, but so are the lives of birthing people every single day. If you are unfamiliar with the maternal mortality and morbidity rate in this country, I encourage you to go read up on it. The United States has one of the highest maternal mortality rates out of all developed countries–African Americans and other birthing people of color die at a rate of 2.5-3 times that of white birthing people. As I said, this is a crisis that can no longer be ignored.
So, Reclaim Your Birth was ‘born’ from a desire to educate, empower, and advocate for birthing people across the world and a desire to bet on myself. Although the thought of stepping out of the classroom and running my own business was absolutely terrifying, I knew that I had to step into the uncomfortable and unfamiliar in order to help others do the same.
I am more confident than ever that this is the path the Lord is leading me on.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Honestly, the most difficult part about starting my doula business has been pushing through my own fear and doubt.
It’s honestly pretty crazy how debilitating fear can be– it causes us to not even get a chance to fail because we don’t even try. I should have done my doula training two years ago when I knew I wanted to become a doula, but I allowed fear to keep me teaching in the classroom.
Now that I have completed training and have started my business, I’m still afraid. I still have a bunch of ‘what ifs’. The only difference is that now I’ve actually gotten past the first step–starting!
We’ve been impressed with Reclaim Your Birth, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Reclaim Your Birth provides birth and postpartum (the period after birth up to a year) doula services to Memphis area parents and parents across the world. The mission of Reclaim Your Birth is to encourage birthing people to take back their right to be heard, empowered, and supported before, during, and after the birth of their child.
I believe that birth begins with a mindset shift. Yes, there are a lot of ways to prepare your body for birth, which I will also teach you, but the most important change has to happen in your mind if you want to have the birth you desire. Unfortunately, the media and the medical system have caused a lot of people to fear birth and doubt their body’s ability to bring forth life.
Support and advocacy can help birthing people combat this fear that is so deeply ingrained in our culture–especially for people of color that have every right to mistrust the medical system. My business is different because I only provide birth doula services virtually. Through virtual Birth Empowerment and Preparation sessions, I make sure that my parents feel more than prepared for labor and birth. During these sessions, we begin by discussing your fears and concerns when it comes to birth.
I listen to the desires you have for your birth and educate you on different options if you don’t have a plan in mind. As a doula, my job is not to ‘convince’ you of anything, but rather to provide you with evidence-based information that allows you to make your own informed decisions.
These virtual sessions are perfect for birthing people that may already have a partner or other support person that can be in the birthing room with them, families that may not live in Memphis but want my support, or people that want knowledge about labor and birth, but don’t necessarily want a stranger with them in the room.
I also offer in-person postpartum doula services for birthing people that live in Memphis. The 4th trimester (up to 12 weeks after the birth of your baby) can be the most difficult. A lot of times, people make a plan for birth but don’t consider a plan for the postpartum period. That is where I come in! We make a postpartum plan together and I come to your home to ensure that you stick to your plan.
This can include watching the baby while you take a nap, supporting you with babywearing, providing assistance with light household chores such as sweeping and dishes, or other basic newborn care needs. Postpartum depression and anxiety are REAL, and sometimes just having a support person to help you navigate this new life can prevent perinatal mood disorders.
For more information about my services and fees or to schedule a free 30-minute “Meet the Doula” session, you can go to my website reclaimyourbirthdoula.com.
What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
My most important quality is my ability to build relationships and gain trust from people.
As an educator for 8 years, building relationships has been really important when it comes to teaching teenagers. The more people are willing to trust you, the more they are willing to listen to what you have to say.
I have found that people really value what I have to say because I have spent time developing that trust with them.
Contact Info:
- Email: reclaimyourbirthdoula@gmail.com
- Website: reclaimyourbirthdoula.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reclaimyourbirth_doula/
