A childbirth educator is a trained professional that provides unbiased, and evidence-based information to help expectant parents prepare for the journey of birthing and beyond. Their primary goal is to give expectant parents the skills to prepare for pregnancy, labor, birth, and parenthood, teach about the physiology of birth, relaxation techniques, and explain postpartum care.

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Certified Breastfeeding Specialists (CBS) educate and support families through pregnancy, breastfeeding initiation, and the normal course of lactation. They can assist with education, resources, troubleshooting common issues and making plans to resolve, and continued success in comfortable and functional lactation.

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For families interested in lactation support

Certified Peer Specialists work from the perspective of their lived experience to help build environments conducive to recovery. They promote hope, personal responsibility, empowerment, education, and self-determination in the communities where they serve. Specialists are trained to assist others in skill-building, problem-solving, setting up, and maintaining self-help mutual support groups, and building self-directed recovery tools. Within the Maternal Mental Health Certified Peer Specialist program, moms and birth givers will have the opportunity to provide trusted and knowledgeable support to others that have experienced difficulties maintaining their mental health during pregnancy and the postpartum period, provide those with lived experience meaningful and needed paid work opportunities, and to build the capacity of obstetric providers in addressing maternal mental health disorders.

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Doulas are non-medically trained community care workers who offer support to people during the full spectrum of pregnancy – from preconception, to birth, to abortion, to miscarriage, to adoption, to postpartum. Full spectrum birth workers actively practice being open and aware of the diverse reproductive needs and experiences people have, in light of their identity, background, preferences, lived experiences, and so on.

· Birth Support: Doulas will focus on building rapport and offering a space for the client, and their partner(s), if relevant, to share their needs, fears, hopes, and questions about labor, birth, and the beginning of parenting.

· Postpartum Support: Doulas who offer postpartum support can help the birthing person navigate the big transition they are experiencing, whether they are parenting or not. This can include cooking or coordinating meals/nutrition, offering information about postpartum healing, sharing newborn care tips and tricks, and helping the birthing person get connected to mental health professionals.

· Loss Support: Doulas can be an important source of support for birthing people experiencing pregnancy loss. This includes miscarriage, stillbirth, and abortion.

· Values-Based Community Work: Doulas are encouraged to learn about and from the organizations in their local areas that are already doing community-based work.

Doulas come from a wide range of backgrounds and careers and interests, and they can contribute our skills and passions towards our vision for a future where all birthing people can “maintain personal bodily autonomy, have children, not have children, and parent the children [they] have in safe and sustainable communities.”

Interested in being a mentor?

Scholarships are open to applicants that meet the following guidelines:

• Applicant must be 18 years or older

• Must have a strong interest in working with childbearing families, improving birth outcomes, supporting maternal health, and birthing justice

• Must have High School Diploma or GED

• Must not have previously been certified as a Birth Doula or Postpartum Doula

• Reside anywhere in Georgia. We are especially interested in accepting participants from the perinatal regions of Augusta, Columbus, and Albany.

• Must agree to attend all HMHBGA training workshops. On average, we will have a training session each month

• Demonstrate a commitment to becoming a credentialed doula within a 12 month time period

• Demonstrate a high commitment to the program and desire to provide services

• Cohort members can not be staff members of HMHBGA or collaborating organizations

The program allows for scholars to practice on their own time, to become credentialed over a period of time that suits their current work or life schedules, and encourage individuals to develop entrepreneurial skillsets to gain new clients and partners to build their practice. Throughout the workshops, we will bring in professionals to discuss the following topics in order to assure each participant has the information they need to fully develop their practice and opportunities for economic self-sufficiency and birthing justice:

• Gender Affirming Pregnancy

• Infant Loss

• Crisis Response in Birthwork

• Trauma-Informed Care

• and more!

In addition to the trainings listed above, cohort members will be matched with an experienced professional to serve as a mentor throughout the duration of the project.

Want to Become a Mentor?
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HMHBGA would like to congratulate our 2023 graduates!

Certified Breastfeeding Specialist Graduates

Stacey Whitefield JaLee’sa Bartlett Courtney Williams

India Grant Shamonti Rizer Ziara Kyre York

Naima Bond

Childbirth Educator Graduates

Chanel Green Cynthia Bivins Dorcas Woody

Evonna Christmon Leslie Matthews Nichole Cutrone

Noreen Ajayi Payal Tello Sebrina Franklin

Shelice Johnson VaJillian Cobb

HMHBGA would like to congratulate our 2022 graduates!

Certified Doula Graduates

Alecia Francis Amanda Morales-Jackson Ashley Clark

Hodan Mohamoud Monica Jones Park Cannon

Rosalind Hill Esther Ajayi-Lowo Ajia Caldwell

Jessica Corbin

HMHBGA would like to congratulate our 2021 scholarship winners.

BPSP 2021 Cohort Members

Rosanna Penaflorida Zora Barclay

Dzigbordi Kamasa-Quashie Dericka Smith

JoAnn Tarfa Desirrae Jones

RoShonda Welch Kenya Turner

Shantesica Giliam Crystal Tarber

Zaria Johnson Georgina Espinoza

Kira Hynes Georgia Goldstein

Hira Chherti