Empowering Women Abroad Through Midwifery — 055

About this Episode

Today’s guest, Echo Zielinski, is a private doula and mother to three children who couldn’t wait to get out of the womb. Echo helps run the non-profit MamaBaby center in Haiti - a birthing center created with the mission of empowering local support to save the lives of mothers and babies who have little-to-no access to prenatal care, education and ongoing support.

In 2006, when Echo started assisting birthing mothers, the word ‘doula’ was practically unknown to most people and becoming certified in the practice of midwifery was limited. She offered her time and help to anyone in need and often found herself assisting immigrant women, many of whom had no one else to support them through their births.

During our conversation, she shares the intimate details of her own three homebirths, what it’s like to work in a developing country and the difference between pain and suffering.  Echo’s love for women and the birth space is palpable and contagious - we loved this conversation!

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In This Episode:

● Why she became a doula
● The difference between levels of birth care in the U.S. and in Haiti
● How her organization focuses solely on training Haitian locals in midwifery
● How pain and suffering can be filtered by an individual’s culture
● The importance of surrounding yourself with loving people and support
● The reality that some women do have pain-free births
● How she broke her own water
● Having your children present for the birth of their sibling
● How to get a free one-month trial of guided meditations through Expectful

Show Notes:

Expectful — One Month Free Trial for MotherBirth Community Members

Echo Zielinski

MamaBaby Haiti Website