CIHUAPAHTLI MIDWIFERY BIRTH ASSISTANTS

MARCELA ALATORRE, Birth Assistant, Doula de Parto y Posparto. Mexicana de raices Indigenas Mixteca Poblana de familia de tradición de parteros. Mi bisabuela y mi padre tuvieron el honor de recibir la vida de los bebes en sus manos, de el aprendi la tenacidad y la pasión de la vida, los partos en casa. Emigre a los EEUU donde he estado toda mi vida. Aquí en NY mi visión es que mas madres tengan la oportunidad de elegir tener partos libres y armoniosos, continuar con mi trabajo holistico para poder trabajar en conjunto a la medicina tradicional, plantas herbolaria proveer soporte físico y emocional.

SYMONE SHUKUR, Birth Assistant, Certified Birth Doula, and a Placenta Encapsulation Specialist. I have had the honor of completing my certification with the Tradition Doula and Midwifery Arts Organization under the leadership and guidance of Dr. T’Karima Ticitl, LM, CM and Mary Betsellie. I plan to attend Midwifery School in the Spring of 2021. I currently reside in Long Island, New York with my beautiful daughter and supportive fiancé. I have always known I would be a part of something so great and full filling as childbirth. I believe every woman has a right to make informed decisions and choices when it comes to their body and unborn child and no one has the authority to take that power away. Over the years I have shared and participate in many wonderful birth journeys of close friends and relatives, however, it wasn’t until I experience life-threatening complications and racial injustice with my pregnancy that led me to be a part of the WOC maternal health change.  I am grateful and so blessed that the Creator has allowed me to educate, advocate, and support so many women in my community.

CLAUDIA MARTINEZ, Birth Assistant, Birth Doula, also known as “Wera,” born in Mexico, raised in NYC. Claudia first discovered the meaning of being a doula during a spiritual gathering in 2015. Shortly after realizing, she had intimately experienced ten births from both of her sisters. After her ceremony with nature, she began her journey, discovering her life’s mission - to guide women to bring life into the world. Being a young single mother forced her to become an independent woman. Her powerful connection to plants and her unique experience makes her a natural to provide emotional, physical, and spiritual support. She is also a birth doula (TDMA) and nurturer, empowering those close to her.

ERIKA SALAS, Birth Assistant, Birth Doula. Childbirth is a sacred ceremony. Thank you for considering me as a candidate for such an important moment in your family's life. My path towards becoming a doula started with motherhood. I am a mother of three wonderful beings, two boys and a girl. As a woman, a mother, a teacher and a moon-dancer, I have embraced the power of service throughout my life. This path of service led me to assisting families in the ceremony of birth. What once was a dream, an idea, has flourished into a career and way of life. My ultimate goal is to become an Ayurvedic midwife, using the knowledge gained from my Ayurvedic studies and my work as a doula to instruct my midwifery practice and help reduce disparities in care.

For fourteen years, I owned and ran Little Cricket Academy, a successful, holistic preschool and daycare. Everyday I was able to support and enrich the lives of young children and their families. Now is the time to pursue my passion, birth work. As a certified (Traditional Doula Midwifery Arts) TDMA doula, and a midwife’s assistant, I am part of a network of doulas and midwives who support each other with abundant resources for childbirth services including placenta encapsulation, breastfeeding consultancy, yoga instruction, and more.

I am also a Certified Ayurvedic Holistic Practitioner. My training as both an Ayurvedic Practitioner and a TDMA doula have woven together to inform my practice. As a doula, I facilitate a healthy, nourishing experience by providing physical, mental and emotional support before, during and after birth in whichever setting and environment suits your needs, be it at home, a hospital or in a birthing center. Every birthing mother deserves a doula – an ally who can comfortably and safely maneuver through the birthing space. I believe how we are born shapes our emotions, and a new life deserves to be welcomed with trust, respect, and unwavering strength and kindness. Everyone deserves to be treated with respect and offered an environment to make informed decisions. As a doula, I recognize that people of all identities and all family dynamics give birth. I'm here not only to hold space but to advocate for you during such a special time.

Beyond my personal experience, I recently worked as a doula at a friend’s home water birth. The magic of the experience and the way in which I supported the mother throughout her birth were confirmation not only that this is my calling but that I have the skills and training to be successful.