Finally! Becoming a Brio Childbirth Educator!

**This is a repost from my Midwife 101 Blog. ENJOY!**

Wayyyyyy back in December I felt the very first urge to really get by behind in gear to become a childbirth instructor. I emailed my Bradley teacher and she suggested this new and coming-of-age form of childbirth classes called Brio Birth. She was very proud of be a Bradley instructor but as far as I could see, not one workshop was coming to the Denver area any time soon AND if there was something even more modern than Bradley, bring it on! When I say modern, I mean a few things. Not modern in the way of technology or interventions, but modern in the ways of teaching childbirth to all the young, soon-to-be parents who don't want to have their baby in a barn, but might in their home, if that makes ay sense.

Anyway, I quickly started reading about Brio and came into contact with the Denver regional director. For weeks we emailed back and forth over when and where a Denver workshop for NEW educators might be. There were workshops for continuing ed teachers, but nothing for a newb like me. I waited. And waited and waited....nothing for months. My contact person was also so sweet and encouraging and I thought for sure she'd think I'd given up. Hardly. My passion to become an instructor and eventually a midwife has only grown stronger with each passing month. Workshop or not, I continued to read the suggested reading materials, many of which can be found on the tab above.

After April came and went, the month in which we were all hoping for date to be set and nearly 5 months after my initial interest in Brio began I stopped checking the site so often. I stopped emailing every other day and gave it up to God. I was sad, but hopeful that regardless, a date would be set.

Come the middle of July, B and I are driving home from a super fun wedding and I am messing around on my phone. It dawned on me that I had not checked the Brio site in some time. NEW EVERYTHING! I was shocked...I spent the next half hour navigating the new areas and info on my Droid and exclaiming to B (and keeping Logan fully awake past his bed time) about all the new info. We had until July 16th to reserve our spot at for a special SUPER discounted price, still without a Denver date added, or it doubled after August 1st. I could not risk it. B knew this was what my heart was aching to do so we took a leap of faith and drained our only credit card on the deposit. Yes, folks, this just DAYS after a huge move, one in which a credit card would have been very useful at times. Then, we waited some more. Over a month goes by as I am checking the site at least once a week to see if there have been any Denver dates added.

Last Friday while I was finishing a few things up at work I realized it had been over a week since I'd last checked, clicked on the link to dates fully expecting to see the same damn dates listed as before, none of which included Denver, and go one with it. But no....there was. The Denver workshop 3 day in person training right before my very eyes!! I was jumping out of my seat! Without a second thought I instantly requested those days off at work, knowing that our schedule gets made and set very far in advance and today those days were approved!

Come November I will officially become a Brio Childbirth Educator!!

Finding My Passion...At the Hospital

Working in a hospital has been wonderful. I'd like to point out that 5 years ago I never thought such a thing would even enter my mind. I hated hospitals. Anyone I'd ever known who'd been in the hospital was sick and/or died. I was just coming to the age where friends were starting to have babies. When I received news of a friend going into labor I could not wait to visit her. But wait. She was in the hospital. I instantly felt sick to my stomach. I called up a friend and begged him to go with me. We waited for the call that the little one had arrived and dashed over for a visit. Now that I have had a baby, I realize how crazy that is now! I'd never want that many people coming to see me after just having had a baby. Thankfully, my friend was way too excited, or so it seemed, to show of her new bundle and did not think twice about kicking any of us out.

The fear of being in a hospital quickly started to phase and I even went back the next day when things were less chaotic and I was able to hold her new daughter.

Since then, I have had a ride in the ambulance after fainting in the food hall in college, I've had a baby and spent several nights walking back and forth from the NICU to my mama room. I guess you could say I've become used to it. So when I started looking for a new job back in December, the hospital was the only place I was looking. Of all the places to work in town, this is by far the BEST place to work. Here or the school district or a brewery.

When I found out I had an interview I was shocked. This was not the first time I had applied for jobs with the hospital. I'd probably applied 50 times before over the last few years for random positions and all of a sudden within a month of sending my application in I had an interview. And then a 2nd interview. And then an offer. I was in the system! excitement flowed through me. B was so happy. It was just the kind of change our little family needed.

Now that I have been here 2 months as of yesterday I can honestly say I love it here. I never want to leave. In fact, rather than going back to school to be a teacher, something which I have always felt I have even had to convince myself was the right thing when really, I knew teaching was not what I wanted to do, I will be going back to become a Certified Nurse Midwife. Yeah. Can you believe it?! When I go back is still up in the air. B wants to get his teaching certification first and then I will start with some pre-recs for nursing school, get my RN and then begin my midwifery fellowships. Yes, this is going to take YEARS for me to accomplish but I could not be more excited. I know that if I don't do this now that 10 years from now I will be wishing I had. Whereas once I finish school 10 years from now I will be delivering babies.

After lots of prayer and finally getting a great feel for the hospital lifestyle, meeting and talking to labor and delivery nurses, whom I see multiple times a day to admit laboring mamas, I am certain that this is exactly when God intended for me to find my passion. Sure, it would have been nice to have known when I was in college. I think I was supposed to have a child and really know what it was like to go through pregnancy, labor and delivery, and even experience what the NICU is like for me to truly feel led to join the women's health field. I'm almost 27. I don't think it's too late. Really, it's never too late.