01/07/2026
Just coming out of the holiday seasons and finally getting the chance to reflect on 2025…through the haze of yet another headcold.
2025 had some sparkle, I’ll give it that. ✨
As a doula, it was the year of the VBAC! I had the honor of supporting 7 VBAC mamas through their birth journeys. 6 were successful VBACs, 4 were unmedicated and all 7 were incredibly driven to meet their babies on their own terms.
On the business side of things, I expanded clients to double the birth doula clients I had last year, designed 3 new classes and joined the .ot team as a Lactation Counselor. I booked 30 birth clients, 27 of which had vaginal births and 3 of which had unscheduled c-sections. I had 44 consult calls for 2025 and 2026 births. I taught 43 classes focused on pregnancy, childbirth, lactation and infant development. And I hosted one fabulous doula meetup in Fredericksburg in which 16 birth workers (doulas, midwives, nurses, LCs, etc) all came together to connect and develop their elevation pitch (thanks to . I really did hustle this year!
Aside from loving birth work, there was a reason for my hustle. On January 28th, I lost my full time career in HIV at USAID unexpectedly due to DOGE cuts with no severance and immediate termination of benefits. I had just returned to work after having my son on January 4th so losing my career of 10 years threw us for a loop. So I hustled, and my hustle was made possible by my sweet hubby , our amazing friend/babysitter and of course my sweet son, Gus!
Personally, 2025 was full of breastfeeding, cosleeping, praying we were doing the right things as parents and as a couple, finding new mama friends and giving myself a lot of grace, especially for my pelvic floor still healing and my sacrum still being angry from birth. I am still growing, loving and soaking in the motherhood shift daily as well as trying to prioritize dating my hubby and caring for my body. I am SO bad at drinking water and being consistent with exercise.
2025 was a lot: a lot of joy, a lot of grief, a lot of learning. I am thankful, I am tired and I am hopeful for the things to come in 2026.💖Thanks for being along for the ride.catex
