We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Perla Gomez. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Perla below.
Perla, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. If you had a defining moment that you feel really changed the trajectory of your career, we’d love to hear the story and details.
My life found personal purpose when I took a chance and signed up for a naturopathic course in January 2022. I had an array of different medical field experiences but somehow kept finding myself unfulfilled. With no substantial money to my name and working a third shift job, everything, and everyone advising against it, my intuition said I had to sign up. My first two classes were Anatomy/Physiology and then Biology and I was not looking forward to them. The very first day I was in absolute awe with our instructor/founder of the school. The way she taught anatomy/physiology made me want to dive deep with my attention into anything they were offering to teach. I went to my hotel room that first day starstruck and figured nothing could top that.
Until the next month when I had to go in for Biology. Yet, another incredible instructor. She has a way of teaching that made me fall in love with the topic! At the end of it, I couldn’t believe how intrigued I was by biology! A class in the past in which I did not thrive was now my newfound interest. It was pivotal to be there because that’s where I knew I was someone who liked to get to the root of things. Natural medicine is all about getting to the root and treating a person as a whole.
There was a moment in a later class where previous students and instructors got emotional about a recently deceased colleague who wanted to build a bridge between holistic and allopathic care. That was a defining point in my life because I felt and knew I’d be carrying that vision with me for the rest of my life.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
Fast forward, I couldn’t maintain my education due to various factors, to this day it is my goal to go back. Until then, I lucked out in opening a door into the mother/infant world. It felt right in my natural medicine journey to begin at the start of life. I got certified as a doula in October 2023 and everything has been aligning since. As of November 2023, I’ve been working as a postpartum aide and love what I do. Tranquil Tides is my full-spectrum doula business that recently launched this year.
I see my work and its future as a piece of what will hopefully be a systemic change to balance out mother/infant discrepancies in the U.S. My mission is to support the pregnancy journey with options from both holistic and allopathic sides, I want mothers to know they have control over their experience and feel empowered through it.
Other than training/knowledge, what do you think is most helpful for succeeding in your field?
A birth is a monumental moment with intense and vulnerable energy. What I provide for the experience is support. I have to show up with empathy and be someone to look to for strength. This means my cup has to be full to pour into and correctly serve my clients. Taking care of myself is what I believe is the best foundation I can lay out to grow as a doula. Making sure I get sun, enough water, sleep, eat right, and move my body daily sounds basic but is fundamental. To be sustainable and reduce burnout risk, I must love and care for myself with high standards, honesty, and awareness. .
If you could go back in time, do you think you would have chosen a different profession or specialty?
Every time. With my grand love being naturopathy and then being certified and building a business around the spectacle of new life, I’m truly creating a wonderful life for myself.
Image Credits
Photos 1-4: Day One Doula Collective Photo 5: personal photo