Hey! Thanks for taking the time to visit my blog.

I’m Sophie, a student, nanny, surfer, writer, thinker, gardener, beekeeper, explorer, and much more! I’m a sophomore at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, WA, but I am currently studying from Kapaa, HI. I am taking a doula training course through the Sacred Birthing School with an incredible woman named Barbara Essman. This 18 week course provides an opportunity for students to explore their own births to discover how our entire lives are modeled after our first moments of life. I am currently working to get my doula business underway and I am looking forward to attending births within the next few weeks! I am incredibly excited to be traveling to Hawai’i Island in mid-May to begin a Midwifery Apprenticeship with certified professional midwife and Greener, Darby Partner. This will be my first opportunity to assist with birth within the scope of medicine and health care.

Island life has not been without its challenges; in February I was crossing a street in a crosswalk and was hit by a car. My pelvis was fractured in four places and my life was dramatically altered while I healed. I spent over a month in a wheelchair and a few more weeks on crutches before learning to walk again without a limp. The time I spent mostly immobile helped me go inward and process much of the trauma I carry.

My doctors and physical therapists were amazed at how quickly I healed, and I am excited to say that I have been able to get back to hiking, surfing, dancing, and most normal activity just two and a half months post-accident with minimal pain. I learned about my relationship to giving and receiving help through this process, and you can read more about this and on my Winter Quarter Blog, Healing Through Birth

I first became interested in birthwork a few years ago when I came down with the flu; I was in bed for days and when I finally had energy to watch a movie I chose one on birth. I was fascinated by the strong, wise people who so calmly brought life into the world! The way midwives and birthing people held each other warmed my heart. So I decided I would become a midwife. I have never felt such a strong calling to any occupation or lifestyle. Since then I have created quite the library and have begun researching the fascinating world of birth. This project is a continuation of my in-program ILC from spring quarter 2016 entitled The Terroir of Birth.

I am passionate about food science and see myself continuing to explore the crucial connections between food and health throughout my career. As I discovered during my Terroir of Birth project, birthwork is incredibly diverse and complex; every field within the scope of birth is wildly intersectional. It’s impossible to look at, say, nutritional impacts on fetal development, without taking into account socioeconomic factors, cultural backgrounds, microbiological environments, and so much more. That being said, I am trying hard to stay focused on food and terroir of Kauai and the more practical aspects of birthwork this quarter, and may uncover aspects of this topic that take me down another path in years to come!

Last June I took a Birth Doula Skills course at Bastyr University with Penny Simkin and Sharon Muza; the first of many trainings and encounters with various forms of doula work. I hope to acquire a wide array of doula skills over the next few months to become a birth doula, postpartum doula, and abortion doula. I am passionate about providing folks with support during moments in their lives that can be challenging to navigate alone.

A large portion of my learning will be through my doula class and the resources my teacher is able to provide in the form of books, potential contacts, and documentary videos. My peers in the doula class also hold much wisdom and knowledge and I am looking forward to sharing in their stories. I will begin attending births in late-May, and at that point my learning will come from hands-on experience and the birthing-people directly. In addition to these resources, I have found many books and articles online to augment the knowledge I am taking in from my community.

Check out my instagram @terroirbaby for weekly pictures, stories, and updates related to my ILC, and follow @skinandsplendor, an beautifully inclusive response to exclusive ‘feminist’ behavior. Don’t forget to check back here soon for more posts!

If you have questions, comments, or are in need of a doula, you can contact me at tucsop03@evergreen.edu

Love and Light,

Sophie