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Birth HERstory Blog


​Celebrating the HERstory of Black women in BIRTH in the 21st Century

9/17/2019 Comments

Nurturing Mother-Daughter Connections & Managing the Expectations and Disappointments of Homebirth

"When we try to put all of our energy and time toward unraveling white issues, [we're] not gonna really deal with the Black issues. You need to heal yourself... learn your people, your culture. Learn what fits you. You are gonna be chasing something not designed for your DNA. It's not designed for your cultural experience."  ~ Tayo Mbande

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Tayo and her mother Toni, co-founders of Chicago Birthworks Collective
I was first interested in interviewing Tayo Mbande to talk about her recent home birth, but I could not ignore the work I have seen her doing through Chicago Birthworks Collective (CBC), an organization she co-founded with her mother, Toni. Most recently, CBC hosted the 1st Annual Black Breastfeeding Cookout, the very first gathering of its kind and it was well received among Black families. Before that, members participated in the 90th Annual Bud Biliken Parade, the largest Black parade in the nation. Black women breastfeeding was promoted, celebrated and showcased to the Black community in Chicago by some of its own daughters. Additionally, Tayo has taken opportunities to speak on various radio platforms as an advocate for Black women in childbirth.
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CBC Black Breastfeeding Cookout
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CBC at the Bud Billiken Parade
I have so much appreciation for Tayo's youth and also her ability to mobilize other young Black women toward birthwork. More impressive than her work is listening to her speak about her relationship with her mother and how it has been shaped through motherhood. Their relationship triumphs are encouragement for other Black women seeking to heal generational challenges to reclaim sacred birth traditions.
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CBC describes "The Black Girl's Labor Guide" as a: A labor guide designed FOR US, BY US
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Topics discussed:
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  • Entering birthwork with your mom
  • ​Having a “community mom” and 'pimpin’ out your mom???
  • Dealing with the realities of birthwork
  • Historical context between Black mothers and daughters
  • Black and white vaginas vs. womb histories
  • Talking to your daughters about “coming out of your vagina”
  • The responsibility to “tend to your connections” with your “mothers”
  • “Lotus Birth” analogy
  • Being aware of the “work” you are supposed to do
  • Healing so your daughters don’t have to
  • Understanding Black concerns
  • Family making the difference in the birth space
  • Birth experiences in the hospital
  • Deciding to birth at home
  • Allowing the community to care for you
  • Taking personal responsibility for your birth choices
  • Challenges during pregnancy and postpartum
  • Gathering your “Birth Village” and learning together
  • Having a “Family Birth” and assigning roles to your birth village 
  • Black men “tending” to birth
  • Experiencing spontaneous labor for the first time with your 3rd child
  • “Calling labor forth...”
  • Having irregular labor patterns during a home birth
  • Actualization and disappointments during homebirth
  • Tending to pain and being authentic in childbirth
  • Managing “Instagram expectations” of homebirth
  • “The Black Girl’s Labor Guide”
  • Prioritizing the needs of your children within your work
In this interview, Tayo discusses her unassisted homebirth experience and, for those who appreciate small rays of sunshine like me will also enjoying seeing her little ones toward the end of the interview. Tayo shares these words of graitude:

"My gratitude goes first to my mother, who was my first home and continues to nurture me through my own motherhood and through my journey as a birth worker. My gratitude then goes to all of my grandmothers through who's wombs I've passed! They continue to reveal to me the practices that have and will save our lives and our children's lives. I am thankful to the women of Chicago Birthworks Collective and the Black birthworker community in Chicago for continuously investing in me with their time, and wisdom of Black womanhood, and motherhood. Shafia Monroe for lighting the way of return to traditional Black woman centered care and being present to support in this work. "
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CBC at the 1st Annual Black Breastfeeding Cookout in Chicago in August 2019.
​Listen to the Podcast:
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​Learn more about the work Brandi is doing and connect with her to take advantage of the opportunities she is making available:

Website: www.ChicagoBirthworks.com
Office: 872-903-3813
Email: Tayo@chicagobirthworks.com
Instagram: @ChicagoBirthworksCo​

FB Page: Chicago Birthworks Collective
Comments

9/6/2019 Comments

Upleveling Your Vision and Creating Your Own Table in Birth Culture with the "International" Mom in the Know

​"Show up as YOU. Take that foundation [and] run with it, but show  up to every client as yourself because that's the thing that's going to propel you.  What is the YOU part that you are going to add to this? I can't teach you  how to be YOU. Tell me  what YOU is and I'll tell you how to capitalize on that."   ~ Brandi Jordan, MSW, IBCLC

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Brandi Jordan is the owner of The Cradle Company, the founder of the National Association For Birth Workers Of Color, and the developer of the Newborn Care Specialist Training. This time last month, Brandi was concluding a private Business Mastermind Retreat for a group of birth workers of color that she hosted in Morocco. Next, year she will host another group in the South of France. In October, she will host a Highly Paid Birthworker™️ VIP Day in Nice, France. And in 2020, she will be hosting the 1st Annual Traditional and Holistic Birth/Postpartum Professionals Conference in Los Angeles, California. 

While her accomplishments alone are enough reason to admire her, it is the journey of how a Black girl from Alief in Houston, Texas became a world renown birth worker that is the most rewarding aspect of speaking with her. My conversation with Brandi Jordan was more than a discussion about how she has navigated birth culture. It was an opportunity to hear how she has navigated life.  It is a glance inside the thought processes of a true Mastermind. 
Besides discussing how the power of intention has influenced her life’s success, we talked about all of the personal work that she has done to rewrite the limiting stories she once told herself so that she could manifest her vision for her life with diverse clients around the world.
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Brandi is not content to enjoy opportunities to expand her sphere of influence alone. Throughout the year, she hosts opportunities for birth workers to upskill and retool themselves in different international locations. In this way, she encourages others to consider broader possibilities for their global influence by making it part of her mission to "take everybody with [her] that wants to go."

When asked who she offered gratitude and appreciation for having helped inform her knowledge of birth and postpartum practices, Brandi responded: 

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“My ancestors. Period.”
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In August, Brandi hosted this group of women in a private retreat for women visionaries in Morocco.

​Topics discussed:
  • Getting started in birth work
  • Making the connection between your history and your work
  • Working any job, any time
  • Being young and pursuing your goals
  • Making your own table on your own terms
  • Low income & urban --> Black
  • Adopting other's stories
  • Focusing on the bigger vision 
  • Being a Change Maker
  • Giving to one's own detriment
  • Putting the collective of Black women together
  • Upleveling your vision
  • Having a seat at the table or creating your own
  • Being READY when opportunity comes
  • Changing course to pursue your dreams
  • Envisioning yourself in different spaces
  • "Your ancestors already certified you..."
  • The power of intentions
  • Dealing with the stories you tell yourself
  • Helping people turn their passion into something profitable
  • Postpartum Care Specialist
Listen to the Podcast:
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​Learn more about the work Brandi is doing and connect with her to take advantage of the opportunities she is making available:

Website: https://TheCradleCompany.com/
Office: 323-662-0100
Email: Brandi@thecradlecompany.com
Instagram: @themomintheknow
Facebook: Brandi Jordan

FB Page: National Association For Birth Workers Of Color
FB Page: The Cradle Company
LinkedIn:​ Brandi Jordan
Comments
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    What are YOU waiting for to start learning about how to care for women during the childbearing year? Whether you are considering a career in birthwork, want to learn to help your family and friends or desire to be a resource for your community, "10 THINGS" is your starting place! Learn from from a Black historical perspective... learn from "someone who looks like you"...  STOP WAITING... START LEARNING RIGHT NOW!
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    The voices of Black women have long been censored and/or edited. These conversations with Dr. Doula are an opportunity for Black women to share their truths and experiences in birth and birth culture in their own voices.​ 
    In other words, "She said what she said..."

    ​
    When we help Birth HERstories we are acknowledging the BLACK BIRTH RENAISSANCE that is happening around the world! When we share our stories, practices, or traditions from women of African descent in America, we help preserve Black Birth HERstory. It is our responsibility as descendants of African women who were trafficked to the U.S. to hold their stories and know their practices, so that we are able to continue their tradition of being self-reliant and self-sustaining as communities of Black women. 

    Dr. Doula 

    My work is informed by my background – experiences, expertise, exposure, education & environment – as a woman, mother, wife, sister, educator, researcher, scholar, advocate, birth ally and legacy builder. #IAmTheAnswer #WeSaveOurselves 
    (Please note that the information shared on this blog is for information purposes only. Pregnant women should consult their PCP before following any practices found within the Birth HERstory Series Blog.)

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