Austin, Texas - Meet Darlene - Birth Doula, Reiki, Empowerment Coach

Meet Darlene

Motherhood has had a profound effect on my life. My two beautiful children have been my greatest teachers, and my husband has been a constant source of strength and love. My passions in life include my family and my desire to help women.

I am an Empowerment Coach, certified Reiki Master, and a birth doula trained by ALACE and Birth Arts International. My interests lie in many fields, many of which came about since I became a mother. Always searching for what felt right to me, whether it had to do with parenting philosophies or ways of eating, I've been an avid researcher with a tendency not to follow typical cultural trends. My life has become a fusion of many philosophies which have many common themes, and I continually weave these philosophies into my work with women.

My mission as an Empowerment Coach is two-fold. My first love is to help women feel powerful during pregnancy, birth and motherhood through my work as a birth doula and Reiki practitioner. I am passionate about supporting women with reclaiming their lives to feel more balanced and peaceful in their various roles and relationships. I enjoy helping women connect with their inner selves.

My second passion is helping women to turn their calling into a birth business that fulfills their minds, bodies, emotions and Spirits. With a Bachelor of Business degree in Travel Industry Management, 19 years of service to others in corporate-based and small business environments and 6 years as co-owner and President of a technical asset liquidation company and office furniture business, my professional experiences provided me with a broad knowledge-base in many areas of business. However, while I was amazed and grateful for the businesses I helped birth and grow, I longed for work that was more meaningful. In 2007 I left my day-to-day duties at my companies to support women in birthing their children and their businesses.

My love of energy work is what guided me to become a Reiki Practitioner. Reiki complements my work as a birth doula and has proven to be another effective tool in my parenting toolbox. The effectiveness of Reiki also validates my belief that energy can be utilized in many ways to heal the body, mind and spirit. Besides Reiki, my interest in working with energy for healing has guided me to use homeopathy and other holistic healing modalities for myself and my family.

With my doula work, my hope is to instill wonder in an expecting mom about her body's ability to create another life, to encourage her to practice self-care during pregnancy, to trust that her body and mind are strong enough to birth her baby with minimal to no medical intervention, and to help her find courage and the voice to create the environment that will best support her in having the birth she truly desires.

Shortly after becoming a birth doula, I trained to be a facilitator of life coaching groups for mothers. A few months later, I enrolled at the International Coach Academy (ICA) so I could learn to support others as a professional coach. The tools I have learned from ICA and the personal growth that I have experienced in recent months have prepared me to be an Empowerment Coach.

In 2007, I started the Central Texas Birth Network, a grassroots organization of various professionals in Central Texas who serve expecting families. My vision is to provide expectant mothers and families with a centralized resource to find providers who support mother-friendly birth, and to educate and empower our community to demand more for their birth experiences. As an agent of change, I wish to improve birth in our area hospitals and help women have more satisfaction with their births.

I was born and raised on the island of Maui in Hawai'i. My husband brought me to Austin, Texas after we graduated from college, and after 13 years I'm finally able to call the Lone Star State home.

My husband and I have two school-age children, and I believe that the on-the-job training I've received through motherhood has been and continues to be my most challenging and rewarding life experience. In my quest of continuing self-development, I have developed a passion for helping women and entrepreneurs hear their inner wisdom and create lives that support and fulfill their deepest values.

Training

Reiki I, II, Advanced & Master Training, Tess Sullivan (Mar. - May 2006)

Doula Training Workshop, Association of Labor Assistants & Childbirth Educators (Feb. 2007)

Childbirth Preparation Class, Family Connections (Feb. and Mar. 2007)

Personal Renewal Group Facilitator Training, Renee Trudeau and Associates (Mar. 2007)

Breastfeeding Management Mini Programs I & II, Texas Dept of Health (Mar. & Apr. 2007)

Audit of Hypnobabies Childbirth Preparation Series, Marianne Calvanese (May & Jun. 2007)

Introduction to Pregnancy Massage, Luna Wood (Jun. 2007)

Hypno-Doula Training, Hypnobabies (Aug. 2007)

Birth Arts International Birth Doula Training, Birth Arts International (Aug. 2007)

Happiest Baby on the Block Certification Program, The Happiest Baby (Aug. 2007)

Parents of Newborns Project Volunteer Training, Family Connections (Oct. 2007)

Life Coach Training, International Coach Academy (Currently in progress)

Introduction to Neuro Linguistic Programming, Texas Institute of NLP (Feb. 2008)

Advanced Doula Training - Physical Comfort Measures, Jessica Atkins (Apr. 2008)

Certifications

Reiki I, II, Advanced & Master Certification, Tess Sullivan (Mar. - May 2006)

Certified Happiest Baby on the Block Instructor, The Happiest Baby (Aug. 2007)

Memberships and Affiliations

Association of Labor Assistants and Childbirth Educators

La Leche League

Founding Member of the Central Texas Birth Network

Volunteer Work

Parent Educator with Parents of Newborns Project, Family Connections

With Heart and Hands

Empowering Women During Pregnancy and Birth