Dear Mama Doulas

To all our friends and families,
We can not thank you enough for the support this past year. We look forward to supporting you in 2024! 🤍

We have several mamas offering breastmilk for anyone who lost power and lost their stash. Please message us if you are interested and we will get you connected 🧡

Clarksville and surrounding areas got hit with a terrible tragedy yesterday. Our hearts go out to all who suffered loss.

Our team has opened their homes to anyone in need of a hot shower, hot meal and reset. Please message our page if you are needing assistance.

We are forever grateful for our first responders, electricians, and volunteers. We got this 🧡

💜Constant nursing can feel like a sign of low milk supply or that baby isn’t transferring milk. However, remember that babies nurse for many reasons other than food. Breastfeeding is also a source of closeness and comfort.

🧡If your baby is cluster feeding, they may also be going through a growth spurt. Typical ages for infant growth spurts are around 2-3 weeks, 6 weeks, 3 months, and 6 months old. During these times, your baby will want to eat more often than usual. This tells your body to produce more milk for their increased need.

💛Regular poops & pees, appropriate weight gain, and relaxed behavior/falling asleep after feeds are good indicators that your baby is getting enough breast milk.

💚If you have questions about your baby’s weight gain or your milk supply, talk to an IBCLC.






graphic:

We are booking clients into Aug 2024 already, and we just can't be more thankful!

This year has brought major life changes to most of our team, but our love for this "job" has not stopped 🤍

It can be SO hard not to compare, but milestones happen at all different ages.

*if you are concerned about certain milestones let your pediatrician know. That's just not what this post means 🤍*

Earlier doesn’t always mean better.⁣⁣
⁣⁣
Her kid walked at one year, yours walked at eighteen months, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 it doesn’t matter.⁣⁣
Her kid potty-trained at two years old, yours didn't potty-train until four years old, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 it doesn’t matter.⁣⁣
Her kid recognized all his letters and numbers before pre-school, yours had no interest until almost four, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 it doesn’t matter.⁣⁣
Her kid was sleeping through the night by three months, yours wasn’t sleeping through the night until two years old, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 it doesn’t matter.⁣⁣
⁣⁣
Because reaching developmental milestones early means 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 in the long run.⁣⁣
⁣⁣
Because a college professor won’t wonder how old her students were when they could count to one hundred or spell their names.⁣⁣
And no one will know or care if the Harvard graduate or the CEO had a pacifier or didn't potty-train until five years old.⁣⁣
⁣⁣
What matters most is the whole child,⁣⁣
who 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 are,⁣⁣
and how kind 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 are⁣⁣
⁣⁣
So let the pressure go,⁣⁣
and let your kids be kids.⁣⁣
⁣⁣
Don’t rush them through their childhoods,⁣⁣
and make them miss out⁣⁣
because they’re too busy meeting milestone after milestone.⁣⁣
⁣⁣
Besides, earlier doesn’t always mean better.
𝘐𝘵 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘴 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘳.

✍️:

MATHS TIME

Research shows
the average breastfed baby takes approx
750ml milk in 24 hours between 1-6 mths

Research shows
the average breastfed baby feeds 11 times in 24 hours

750 ÷ 11 = 68.18ml per feed

Then remember many babies have both breasts per feed, so perhaps 40-50ml from the first
20-30 from the second

It's time to normalise small volume feeds more frequently. This is how hunan babies are supposed to feed.

Some babies may feed less frequently naturally, but may take more milk in one feed if mum has a larger storage capacity. Some may feed more frequently. Many love to cluster feed.

And it's also time to normalise pumping volumes! 60ml/2oz is totally normal. And if you've breastfed first, it is likely to be less!

What a healing birth 🤍

Also, my first time working with Haven Birth and Wellness and it was an honor!

📷 Kalyn

What's something you want everyone to know during their pregnancy? Perhaps something you didn't know that you know NOW.

Anyone else struggling? 😅 My kids didn't get the hint of an extra hour of sleep, so we saw 5am (not) bright and early today 😴😴

Daylight savings time be like…..

What a busy day for Kalyn! Another baby boy welcomed to the world today 💙

The year is quickly winding down, but our books for next year are filling up! Email us at [email protected] for your free personal consultation.

This Mama had 2 C-Sections previously and when she hired Dear Mama Doulas she really wanted a vaginal birth. Kalyn helped her find the practice that would not only listen to her previous birth trauma but would also give her the chance to have her dream birth.

Connectus Midwifery was that dream team, along side of Mama was her Doula Kalyn, an amazing nurse and of course her husband. Together they all worked so hard and this amazing Mama got her redeeming birth! Stay tuned to find out the gender!!!

Connectus Health Midwifery

It's a good day to have a baby! 🤗 Let's play a game and see who can get closest to weight & gender 💙🩷 comment below your guesses!

We LOVE working with this amazing group of women 🩷

Awaiting her little girl's arrival this fall, & she is glowing 🩷

This beautiful mama is the founder of Safe Haven Trauma Services, and we are always so honored when other motherhood advocates choose to work with us.
📷 Kalyn

BREAKING NEWS

A conversation was overheard at the Taylor's most recent attendance of boyfriend, Kelce's, game. Taylor went on the tell her friend, "have you heard about those doulas in Tennessee who are changing lives?"

We appreciate your support as always Taylor!

Babies are born with an incredibly strong sense of smell. They even know the unique smell of their mother's breast milk! This is why they typically turn their heads towards moms chest when hungry, or show hunger signs more when mom is close by. The human body is just a fascinating thing 🤍

Get someone that looks at you the way Kendall looks at her mamas
😂

What was your favorite "pain management" during your birth/labor? The tub? Shower? Position? Let us know!

📸Meghan Thornburg

Watching our doula babies grow is the biggest blessing 🤍 Loving in your familes through all the stages of life is one of our favorite parts of this "job!"

📷 Kalyn

Such a good postpartum visit with this rockstar mama! We processed her birth and I got all the baby snuggles 😍 Look at that chunk!

Our 3rd baby boy of the week was born yesterday 🧡

Mama worked so hard and plans changed but baby boy was perfect and is so very loved!

Welcome baby boy D to the DMD family

2 births in 12 hours is a new record 💪🏻

These were both so beautiful and I feel so honored I was chosen to support these families. Two sweet baby boys to add to the DMD family 🩵

Another sweet baby boy was welcomed today!

What a blessing it was to witness this mama accomplish all her fears and meet her baby for the first time 🧡

Welcome to the world baby A ✨

A sweet baby boy made his appearance tonight 🧡

Mama got the birth of her dreams- an unmedicated, natural birth at the birth center. Fear of an induction was weighing on her but she starting contracting naturally tonight and only had a 4 hour labor 😍

Welcome baby boy R ✨

Postpartum visit today with this beautiful mama and sweet baby! It's always such a joy to visit our clients and witness them adjusting to motherhood ✨