The amazing Emily Cole and Sarah Jane (20 months).
Emily loved being pregnant and went into her pregnancy feeling very confident about her choices, determined to have a positive experience. She has a friend who is a doula and asked her early on to offer just one piece of advice she could carry with her and she told her to remember that her body knew exactly what to do; she was made to do this. That stuck with Emily and helped her hugely along her way.
Emily's birth was also wonderful. Everything went smoothly and within about 9 hours, Sarah Jane was born without any medication or intervention. As Emily was settling into new motherhood, her husband was struggling with drug and alcohol addiction and found it to be quite a stressful time. When Sarah Jane was 9 weeks old, he left for rehab out of state where he spent the next four months. It was a difficult time as she tried to learn how to settle into this new phase of life, without her partner but had the loving support of friends and family. When her husband returned, there was some adjustment but Emily says they now have a strong family dynamic and her husband has just celebrated 600 days clean and sober.
Women supporting one another and sharing in community is so important to our wellbeing and that is why Emily wanted to share her personal journey.