Sherri, The Zen Doula

02/14/2026

Happy Valentine’s Day from Sherri, the Zen Doula. 💞

Trusting all of my clients past present and future remember this…
You deserve to love yourself! 🧖🏽‍♀️ 🧘🏽‍♀️🛀🏿🍃🌸☀️😴🛌

02/13/2026

🧠 ❤️‍🩹

A faster treatment for postpartum depression is entering clinical trials at the University of Texas at Austin. Read More: https://www.kxan.com/news/science/this-new-postpartum-depression-treatment-could-work-in-2-6-days-without-medication/?utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook_KXAN_News

02/13/2026

Very important work…. 🤍🕊️

A children’s TV writer became a death doula and wrote a book about what grief needs from us.

Writer and filmmaker Darnell Lamont Walker has released his debut book, “Never Can Say Goodbye: The Life of a Death Doula and the Art of a Peaceful End,” with the goal of reducing stigma around death and grief in the Black community.

As a death doula, Walker provides emotional and physical support to clients and families in their final stages. He traces the work back to 1994 in Charlottesville, when he helped care for a cousin with HIV/AIDS after relatives disowned him.

Walker sat by his cousin’s side, sharing memories and jokes. He realized being compassionate and present can help people find closure at the end of their lives.

Read the full story at the link in the comments.

🖋️: Christopher A. Daniel / AJC
📸: Kristen Finn / Courtesy of Darnell Lamont Walker | Jason Kayser / HarperOne

02/08/2026

❤️

A 2025 study published in AJOG adds powerful, up-to-date data showing associations between doula care and improved maternal and newborn outcomes.

Key Maternal Outcomes:

More vaginal births after cesarean (VBAC): For every 100 patients who received doula care, there were 15 to 34 additional VBACs compared with those without doula care.

Higher postpartum follow-up attendance: 5 to 6 more per 100 received postpartum office visits.

Key Neonatal / Infant Outcomes

Increased exclusive breastfeeding rates: Babies whose families had doula support were more likely to breastfeed exclusively.

Fewer preterm births (and early preterm births): Doula-supported births showed a reduction in preterm birth rates.

In short, the study links doula care with improvements in birth outcomes — across birth mode (more VBACs), infant health (less prematurity), and early infant care (breastfeeding, postpartum follow-up).

Read more: https://internationaldoulainstitute.com/2025/11/evidence-for-doulas-new-ajog-study-finds-doulas-improve-outcomes/

02/04/2026

What a QUEEN!!! 👑 💫💞

To kick off Black History Month, we at LER honor Dr. Kimarie Bugg — the first African American IBCLC in the United States.

✨Dr. Bugg is Co-Founder and long-time senior leader of Reaching Our Sisters Everywhere (ROSE), a national nonprofit advancing breastfeeding equity.

✨She also serves as Community Engagement Director for Communities and Hospitals Advancing Maternity Practices (CHAMPS), a program supporting hospitals nationwide to achieve Baby-Friendly designation — an evidence-based framework shown to strengthen facility-based breastfeeding support and reduce racial inequities in care.

Thank you, Dr. Bugg, for your unwavering dedication to ensuring all babies have access to the very best start in life — and for paving the way for current and future Black lactation consultants to fulfill their goal of supporting breastfeeding families!

Do you know a Black lactation consultant making a difference for families and their community? Tag them in the comments to show your thanks! ⬇️

02/03/2026

The origin of the black midwife….

“Granny Midwives,” were African-American women in the rural South who, from slavery through the mid-20th century, served as primary birth attendants, family counselors, breastfeeding consultants, postpartum doulas, nutritionists,  advocates and community caregivers. Many were descendants of enslaved West African women trained in midwifery, and provided services to both Black and White families in areas lacking access to physicians. Their skills and knowledge were invaluable and laid the foundation for modern day midwifery. In the early 20th century, the medical establishment would introduce regulations and licensing. The grannies who could not comply with state law, went from being well respected to persecuted and were forced out of practice.Their decline in the 1950s coincided with increased racial disparities in maternal health outcomes. 

Written by Derek Moseley

01/24/2026

Happy FRIYAAYYYYY from the Mama Sana Vibrant Woman Doula Team! 🎉 🫶🏽❤️
🙏🏽 Hoping none of our participants go into labor during this STORM this weekend! 🥶❄️⛈️ 🌀☃️⚡️ Stay safe everyone!

01/20/2026

💔 This has to change…

New public health data reveals a devastating reality unfolding in Texas. Harris County, home to Houston has recorded the highest maternal mortality rate for Black women in the entire United States, making it the deadliest place in the country to give birth while Black.

Between 2016 and 2020, Black mothers in Harris County died at a rate of 83.4 deaths per 100,000 live births, according to county public health data a figure that surpasses every other major U.S. county and far exceeds national averages. By comparison, the nationwide pregnancy-related death rate for Black women during that period was already alarmingly high, yet still significantly lower than what was documented in Harris County.

Health experts and investigators say these deaths are largely preventable and stem from a combination of delayed care, inadequate responses to medical emergencies, and systemic failures within the healthcare system. Conditions like preeclampsia, severe hypertension, and hemorrhaging when not addressed quickly can turn deadly, and Black women are statistically more likely to have their symptoms dismissed or minimized.

One of the women whose story has drawn attention to this crisis is , whose son was stillborn after she repeatedly sought help during a high-risk pregnancy complicated by preeclampsia. Her experience reflects what advocates describe as a broader pattern of Black women not being believed or treated with urgency when reporting pain or warning signs.

Public health officials acknowledge that race itself is not the cause but rather the social, medical, and institutional inequities Black women face before, during, and after pregnancy. Factors such as limited access to quality prenatal care, chronic stress, implicit bias in medical settings, and gaps in postpartum monitoring all contribute to the deadly outcomes reflected in the data.

01/13/2026

Perfect combination for postpartum recovery! 💦🍯🍋🫚

01/12/2026

The first year of motherhood brings significant disruption to sleep. Research shows that new mothers lose around 40% of their deep, restorative sleep during this time. Levels of sleep deprivation like this are labeled “war-level stress” in soldiers yet in mothers, they are often treated as expected or routine.

Neuroscience helps explain why the postpartum brain feels permanently switched on. Intense hormonal changes, constant alertness to a baby’s needs, and heightened sensitivity to sounds and movement keep the nervous system in a state of vigilance. The brain prioritizes the infant’s safety, making it harder to enter deep, restorative sleep.

This ongoing sleep loss affects memory, emotional balance, and concentration. To cope, the brain activates stress-response pathways, leaving many mothers feeling mentally restless and physically on edge. This isn’t a flaw or failure it’s an adaptive survival response designed to protect a newborn.

Understanding this process can ease guilt and frustration. Small supports such as brief naps, sharing nighttime care, and resting whenever possible help the brain gradually recover. Recognizing that these changes are biological, temporary, and normal allows mothers to better manage postpartum challenges while supporting their nervous system and overall well-being.