DTI’s Interview with Birth Without Fear

Today we’re celebrating a very special woman who represents EMPOWERMENT for pregnant women, mamas, and families all over the world. With over 100K Facebook fans, Birth Without Fear has provided women the support they need to share their story, to heal, to learn, to feel informed and empowered, and most importantly, to build community. January is truly a visionary on a mission to provide a platform for ALL women. We are thrilled to be featuring an interview with January, founder of the beloved blog, Birth Without Fear. 

Can you tell us about how BWF began?

Birth Without Fear began almost 3 years ago because of an idea I had while laying my baby (at the time) down for a nap. I was reflecting on my births and what the biggest difference was between my traumatic versus wonderful experiences were. It all came down to fear…having a birth without fear.

So, I started a Facebook page, and a few months later the blog was born.

DTI loves talking to doulas about their vision for their business and work. What was your original vision for BWF and how has it changed?

My original purpose and vision was to reach as many women as possible to simply let them know they had choices in how they birth. Many women do not realize they even have a choice in how they birth their baby. Also, I wanted women to make ‘better’ birth choices and have natural births (without fear).

My vision is similar. We all learn on our journeys. I still want to reach as many women as possible, let them know they have birth choices and that they can birth without fear, however, I learned I needed to support women in their choices even if they were different from what mine would be. Isn’t that similar to having a heart of a doula? 

We love how active our DTI page has become on FB, and we also know that a lot of work goes into building our social media presence. What does the life of a professional blogger look like for you?

Well, every blogger will have a different daily regimen and only recently have I become a ‘professional blogger’. My day consists of raising five children, supporting my husband as a chiropractor and I can’t even being to describe the daily working of BWF. Networking, email correspondence, working with photographers, supporting mothers behind the scenes, the promotion and planning of the upcoming Birth Without Fear Conference, graphic work and planning (all things BWF) with Ruthie, social media planning with my incredible social media group, moderator group, blog authors, etc. It’s quite intense, exhausting and so rewarding.

We talk a lot to our doulas about balancing motherhood and their work. How have you been able to balance motherhood and work?

This is increasingly difficult, but I have been working hard to grow Birth Without Fear while also humbling myself to accept help and delegate. I am incredibly blessed with a diverse, funny, talented group of women. A team that has become a strong sisterhood. Because of them and their willingness to lift me up, support me and in turn the entire BWF Community, I am finding more balance. Hard, but doable.

Last I checked, BWF had 66,607 likes. That’s impressive! BWF feels like so much more than just a blog. It has provided people not only with incredible stories, images, and information, but community as well. What do you think people resonate with the most?

In the last few weeks our reach has grown considerably. Our page is at almost 100K, and we have been building a presence on Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest. We also post everything on Google+. They are not all the same either. We are posting different content on all our social medias, with just a little overlapping. Our reach has consistently been 7-14+ million people a week. It’s quite incredible and at times unbelievable.

The biggest thing people resonate with is how inclusive Birth Without Fear is. Not everything is for everyone, but we have something for each woman. There is no way to put into words how hard we work to support all women in their experiences, meeting them at where they are on their journey and helping in any way we can.

Every birth story is so powerful and unique. You have come into contact with SO many incredible birth stories. What is your connection to them and how have they informed your own life? Are there any that stand out to you the most?

You are so right! Every story is unique and every woman has a story to tell. I love and appreciate them all. Recently, one of our blog authors, Svea, wrote a blog post about the connection and meaning to a woman when she writes her birth story. I could start telling you favorites, but wouldn’t know where to stop!

What’s your advice for bloggers starting out in the birth world?

Well, I’m not sure what advice I have to offer, but it would be to be authentic, compassionate and forgiving. When dealing with people online miscommunication happens easily. Always have your heart in the right place and it will work out. As far as technicalities go, be clear, concise, small paragraphs, always use a picture with blog posts, please give credit to others where it is appropriate, and always say thank you.

Thank you for taking the time to share your insights and wisdom with our DTI tribe. We are so grateful for all that Birth Without Fear has given to women and families. Keep up the inspiring work!

XO, Aimee, Tara, and Gina.