FemCity Des Moines October Coffee Connection

Katie became a doula "by accident" in 2010, after leaving a teaching career in Ankeny Public Schools. Her sister-in-law — pregnant with twins, on bed rest, and hoping for an unmedicated birth — asked her to be a birth coach. Given those goals, Katie thought she should take a doula training before agreeing. Her original plan was to support her sister-in-law, and maybe a few friends and family members. She could never have imagined the career that was ahead of her.

That small request has since become The Iowa Baby Ladies, a doula agency with over 25 doulas offering birth support, daytime postpartum support, overnight postpartum support, and classes across Iowa. Katie's roles today include doula agency owner, doula trainer, founder and owner of Nurtured Doula Trainings, and Senior Program Advisor for a National Perinatal Certification Board. She has volunteered with organizations including Count the Kicks, the Young Women's Resource Center, and Ruth Harbor. When she isn't working, she's cheering on her two teenage sons at sports events or blotting tears through their band and choir concerts. She's married to her high school sweetheart, Wes, a chiropractor in Waukee.

One of the biggest struggles Katie names as a business owner is getting the message out to the local community that this kind of support exists — and that it's for everyone. People often think doulas are just for birth, or just for unmedicated birth, or just for home births. That couldn't be further from the truth. The Iowa Baby Ladies support all types of births, and their team is 99% hospital birth based.

Katie is looking forward to using this FemCity event to clear up some myths about doulas and share how amazing — and how scientifically based — doula support really is.

📅 Friday, October 2 | ⏰ 7:30am-9am | 📍 Stoney Creek Hotel

🌐 www.theiowababylady.com

Registration required. Business and non-business members welcome.