AMANI Birth Certified Labor & Birth Doula, Armine Kazaryan, highlights the deep impact Aisha Al Hajjar left on her: The most profound aspect for me has been the personality of Aisha Al Hajjar, because when I read her book and found out her story and her journey, I got inspired so much that I felt a special energy to educate myself further and return to work again in the field of maternity support in the UAE!
AMANI Birth Certified Labor & Birth Doula, Jennifer Fisher-Siddeek, shares some insightful responses to questions that are on every mother's mind: In your opinion, why is it important for a woman to prepare for her birth? If she does not prepare, she will likely end up with countless medical interventions that come with high risk to herself and her baby that may have lifelong implications. If she has not had proper nutrition and exercise, she will not be fit for the exertion of labor. If she has not learned about various labor positions and how movement helps baby to descend as well as to ease her discomfort [...]
AMANI Birth Certified Labor & Birth Doula, Faheema Mohammed, is all praises for the training course with Aisha Al Hajjar: I am truly grateful to have had the opportunity to take this course. I wanted to do it for over four years, but thankfully was able to finally do it because the course delivery was online. It has truly made an enormous impact on my life and how I will like to move forward in helping other women to understand the importance and joy of natural birth. AMANI birth is a blessing, Alhamdulilah.
AMANI Birth Certified Childbirth Educator & Doula, Hafsa Qureshey, explores the very relevant topic of birth consumerism: What does good birth consumerism mean? Good birth consumerism is 'shopping' for the right care provider; OBGYN or birth attendant, and selecting the right place to give birth, because both these things - who you have with you at birth and your surroundings - will have a huge influence on you as birth is a major life event. That is why educating yourself and wisely choosing your birth team and place is very very important. A mom or couple should ask all questions [...]
This week Aymen Anjum, a young AMANI Birth certified Childbirth Educator from Pakistan, reflects on her training experience: Alhamdullilah! The training has taught me a lot, and the whole AMANI journey has had a great impact on me. The time when I attended the workshop was the beginning of a roller coaster ride for me. As soon as I was done with the workshop, a few days later, I was in Pakistan. Away from half of my family, I didn't like the change in the beginning, but tremendous thanks to the teachings of AMANI Birth, that somehow it kept me [...]
This week we are overjoyed to share a remarkable testimonial from mother, Fazla Firaz, upon the birth of her baby and how AMANI Birth supported her through the different stages: "Alhamdulillah, I have been blessed with a beautiful healthy baby girl! I gave birth a few minutes after arriving to the hospital. SubhanAllah. we found out that I was already 10 cm dilated. I had been sustaining the contractions mostly at home, until the last few minutes where I was totally unaware that I was in real labor; thinking all the while that the surges were simply Braxton Hicks. But [...]
AMANI Birth certified Childbirth Educator from Indonesia, Hernita Ajeng, shares her reflections of the training experience with the organization: "I feel I’m so lucky to have the honor to join the training because this is my first Doula or CBE training ever. I’m glad that I chose it wisely, and found numerous interesting things about pregnancy and labor, especially in a natural way. AMANI Birth has taught me that every birth has a right to be fought for. Every child born is entitled to be born with the best possible preparation. Also, every parent is obliged to empower themselves well [...]
A fabulously honest and fascinating testimonial for AMANI Birth Book expressed exclusively by AMANI Birth trainee Zahra Siddiqui: "The AMANI Birth Book is truly a treasure; a must read for every Muslim woman, expecting or not. It is an awakening towards our instincts, our bodies, and most importantly, an invitation to trust our Creator. The book is a brutal reminder that the "norm" does not always have to be the truth. This read was more of an unlearning than a learning, because the social "rights" and blind belief in the medical system has taken us farther and farther away from the [...]
What is happening for the Baby: Baby is maximally dependent- Newborns are essentially in what is known as the “4th trimester." The belief is that a newborn is born before it is truly ready to function on its own in the outside world. Babies should go from growing on the inside of mother to growing on the outside of mother, to finish developing and to ease this transition to the outside world. Imagine the infant’s experience in utero: it was dark and warm, he could hear mother’s rhythmic heartbeat, her almost constant movement rocked him, and baby was continuously fed [...]
Knowledge of what a baby needs in its first few months of life, and proper management of expectations on the part of the mother and her support team, are essential in meeting the needs of the newborn while also alleviating the stress of the mother. Would you prefer to start motherhood by sabotaging yourself, being exhausted, slowing your own healing and not meeting the baby’s needs? Or, would you rather set yourself and your baby up for success and look back on this time with joy? Postpartum has never been an easy period for new mothers. But, in today’s society [...]