My Darling Doula proudly presents our 3rd annual Black Breastfeeding Week Celebration! "This year we're focused on bringing innovation and creativity to the black breastfeeding experience. Our end game: liberation! Freedom from systemic racism, historical trauma and cultural barriers as we envision and design a new shared future for black mothers and babies. This is Black Breastfeeding 2.0 and the world is yours!"

 Thank you to Mayor Vi Lyles, for signing the proclamation request, making August 25th-31st officially Black Breastfeeding Week, here in the QC!

Come be a part of the community conversation and celebration, as we honor the breastfeeding journey, increase visibility & foster a supportive nursing community for Black parents.

This is a free event! There will be light refreshments, giveaways, resources, and community building!

If you're interested in sponsoring, donating or volunteering, please complete this form.

It’s an honor to announce that for the second year, Mayor Vi Lyles, has signed a Proclamation request, making April 11th-17th, Black Maternal Health Week in Charlotte, NC!

Maternal health refers to the health of an individual during pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), African American women are three to four times more likely to die from childbirth than non-Hispanic white women, and socioeconomic status, education, and other factors do not protect against this disparity.

Black Maternal Health Week was created by Black Mamas Matter Alliance, to increase attention around the state of Black maternal health in the U.S., the root causes of poor maternal health outcomes, and community-driven policy, program, and care solutions.

My Darling Doula is committed to creating safe spaces and platforms that amplify the voices and experiences of local birthing families, specifically Black families. We invite all new and seasoned pare...

Are you ready to launch your career as a Birth Doula?

The WISE (Women In Support and Empowerment) POC Doula training, is a 3 day intensive workshop, that combines lectures, hands-on skill development, role-playing, group discussions & activities, guest speakers and much more.

During this comprehensive training, you’ll gain the education and skills needed to support expectant parents, in preparation for pregnancy, labor, birth and parenthood.

This training aims to promote an understanding of the cultural impact of Doula care, as part of a birth and reproductive justice advocacy lens. It also explores the history of labor support people from an African-centered perspective.

Not only will you learn how to become a birth professional, who offers superior support to the pregnant people within your community; you’ll walk away able to make necessary connections to social justice issues, that are often ignored by mainstream Doula training programs and the childbirth community.

Space is li...

Are you ready to launch your career as a Birth Doula?

The WISE (Women In Support and Empowerment) POC Doula training, is a 3 day intensive workshop, that combines lectures, hands-on skill development, role-playing, group discussions & activities, guest speakers and much more.

During this comprehensive training, you’ll gain the education and skills needed to support expectant parents, in preparation for pregnancy, labor, birth and parenthood.

This training aims to promote an understanding of the cultural impact of Doula care, as part of a birth and reproductive justice advocacy lens. It also explores the history of labor support people from an African-centered perspective.

Not only will you learn how to become a birth professional, who offers superior support to the pregnant people within your community; you’ll walk away able to make necessary connections to social justice issues, that are often ignored by mainstream Doula training programs and the childbirth community.

Space is lim...

It’s an honor to announce that Mayor Vi Lyles Charlotte's first African-American female Mayor, has signed our Proclamation request, making April 11th-17th, Black Maternal Health Week in Charlotte, NC!

Maternal health refers to the health of an individual during pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), black women in the U.S. die or suffer serious illness during and after childbirth, in dramatically disproportionate numbers—three to four times higher—than do their white counterparts. These racial disparities have been shown to persist regardless of income and education level.

In its inaugural year, Black Maternal Health Week was created by Black Mamas Matter Alliance, to increase attention to the state of Black maternal health in the US, the root causes of poor maternal health outcomes, and community-driven policy, program, and care solutions.

Locally, we are committed to creating safe spaces and platforms that amplify the v...

Bringin' in Da Spirit is a soulful and inspiring documentary, that records the rich history of Black midwives in the United States.

Through the use of first person narrative and rare archival images, this documentary provides a moving glimpse of the women who have skillfully brought scores of children across the threshold of existence. Narrated by Phylicia Rashad, this evocative and passionate film celebrates the women who have committed themselves to holistic answers, amidst powerful misconceptions about the practice of midwifery and virulent opposition from practitioners of Western medicine.

We are requesting a minimum $5.00 donation. All proceeds will benefit WISE Community Doulas and A Woman’s Way, two local organizations dedicated to providing healthy, respectful and evidence-based care during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period, for POC specifically pregnant black people.

Following the screening will be a panel discussion featuring local Midwives, Doula's and Birt...

"It is not that Black women have not been and are not strong; it is simply that this is only a part of our story, a dimension, just as the suffering is another dimension - one that has been most unnoticed and unattended to."

~Bell Hooks
 

Giving birth and becoming a mother evokes strong memories and a range of emotions. It is a powerful and profound event and, no matter the outcome, it can be infused with negative feelings. In our culture, “healthy mother, healthy baby” may be considered the only thing of value, yet what happened to you matters.

Our Body, Our Birth is a workshop designed to support black women who may feel angry, frustrated, resentful, disappointed, violated, or wounded by their birth or pregnancy experience. We will provide a place of safety, understanding, empowerment, and compassion as you sift through the feelings, that have prevented you from fully healing.

Sharing individually and collectively the pains, & the triumphs during pregnancy and birth, will help you r...

For the second consecutive year, My Darling Doula has partnered with local nursing families, to promote a fuller, more nuanced narrative of the black breastfeeding experience. From a legacy perspective, it's important to document and tell our own stories for ourselves and as a gift to future generations. Telling our stories helps us evolve and grow beyond them; and the exposure to imagery has a profound impact on the way we view the world.  We make our decisions based on so many factors, but we are not always aware of the great power that lies in what we see and how often we see it.

Breastfeeding is a topic that is rarely discussed openly in both mainstream and marginalized communities. Lost in the silence are diverse groups of people and their families who confront multiple historical, physiological and cultural challenges that make breastfeeding both difficult and painful.

If black nursing parents all bravely committed to feeding our babies whenever and wherever, and sharing our breast...

There is a significant racial disparity in Breastfeeding rates in the United States and babies are dying because of it. From historical and health care perspectives, the inequality of Breastfeeding support for women of color is tragic.

Black Breastfeeding Week is not about excluding white women or women of other races, it is about intentionally including black women. We are actively creating a space for ourselves by declaring our own stake in the breastfeeding conversation.

All nursing parents need help and support to become successful in meeting their breastfeeding goals, and too many of us have been left out of the picture. Supporting Black Breastfeeding Week means we support a cultural shift in the African American community to view breastfeeding as the cultural norm.

Meet Queen Mother Krissy and hear about breastfeeding journey...

Name:Kristen (Krissy) Coggins

Gender expression (preferred pronouns)?She, Her

Occupation:Respiratory Care Practitioner

Child's name?Naomi Marie Robinson

Age of c...

For black people in particular, breastfeeding offers important benefits for ailments that overwhelmingly diminish our health or cut short our lives. For example, exclusive breastfeeding is one of the only proven actions a mother can take to protect herself against the most aggressive forms of breast cancer, which affect black women at disproportionately high rates.

My Darling Doula has partnered with local black breastfeeding parents from the Queen City, to celebrate and promote what is a crucial life-saving, life-affirming, and loving practice that is a part of our human legacy.

Meet Queen Mother April...

Name: April Drakeford Smith

Gender expression (preferred pronouns)? Female

Occupation: Teacher

Child's name? Jace Smith

Age of child? 19 months

How long have you been breastfeeding? 19 months