We recently connected with Lizet Ansaldo and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Lizet, thanks for joining us today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

I started my business in response to my two different birth experiences. Honestly, I hadn’t heard of doulas before and always disregarded it as a luxury that I could not afford as it was something no insurance would cover.

For my first birth, I was scared into an induction by my provider, which led to a cascade of interventions. After my first birth, I remember thinking,” This can’t be how women regularly experience birth.” I was a healthy 26-year-old woman with no normal pregnancy that ended up with a 24-hour induction. I decided that for my next birth, I would do my research to find a stand-alone birth center.

For my second birth, I found a stand-alone birth center and a midwife who, for the first moment, made me feel heard. Thankfully, she was also on call the night that I went into labor and was able to assist me in my birth. My second birth was a 6-hour labor with complete mobility and no medication, and I gave birth to my baby with much less stress.

During the pushing stage, I remember asking the midwife, “Will you tell me when I will need to push?” She replied, “No, you will tell me when you’re ready to push.” This has left a huge impression on me as I was finally able to listen & trust my body.

As the midwife finished stitching me, the receptionist came in to check on the midwife. The lady was a trained doula and could stay and hold my hand while I was getting stitched. She comforted me with her family stories and encouraged me. Her presence gave me great comfort. After my birth, the midwife suggested that I become a birth doula, too.

I have shared an interest in being a birth assistant for her. She encouraged me to become a doula and see if I liked being around birth. This was about four and a half years ago. Esperanza Birth LLC was officially established in 2022. My heart and passion are to bring redemption and healing to women’s birth journeys and bring hope into the birth space, one woman at a time.

Lizet, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Lizet Ansaldo. I am a first-generation Latina business owner. I come from an immigrant family that was always told that if we worked hard, we could be able to do anything. I have always had a passion for advocacy and education, whether it be in the field of social work or birth work.

I became a birth doula after two very different experiences with my births. I have a passion for education and informing women that they have options and should make informed decisions about their providers & birth. I became a certified birth doula in March of 2023 but have been practicing since 2022 when my business, Esperanza Birth LLC, was started in Kansas City.

In the past two years, I have served 34 women, 90% at hospital births, with women who wanted a natural birth with no epidural. 10% of the births were c-sections, and I helped them have a family-centered c-section. Most of my clients have been Latina women from all over Latin America. Through grant programs like Nurture KC, they were offered free doula services at no cost to them.

The rest of my clients are women who know they want a natural birth and want a supportive doula that would provide them with information so they can make informed decisions. So far, most of my private clients have had natural births with no epidurals.

I provide birth education and believe that an educated pregnant woman is the best advocate for herself, especially since, in the hospital setting, the doctors do not listen to me as a doula and want the patient to make the decision. Clients who are not educated tend to have the hardest time following their preference for a natural birth and often leave dissatisfied with their birth story. Additionally, I provide support not just to the birthing mom but to her partner. Doulas help partners take care of themselves, encourage them, and help them make informed decisions with the mother.

My faith and Mexican culture set me apart from other doulas in the Kansas City area. My faith in Jesus led me to become a doula, and I believe that doula work is a calling to serve women and their families.

Additionally, being a bilingual doula has allowed me to serve the migrant and Latino communities that want to have someone who speaks and understands their culture. Also, when people are distressed, they usually go to their native language to communicate. Even for second-generation Latinos fluent in English, having someone who understands Spanish is comforting.

I want the readers to know the massive benefits of having a doula as part of their birth team because, as Americans, we don’t really know what doulas are or do. And that’s tragic because having a doula has so many benefits.

Research by various places, like the Center for Health Economics and Policy at Washington University and Evidence Based Birth, demonstrate that birth doulas are massively advantageous.

Decreased caesarian rates, higher birth satisfaction, decreased number of interventions, shorter labor, and decreased birth complications are just some of the positive effects of having a professional birth doula.

Esperanza Birth offers birth services; my job is to support the mom in her decisions and ensure she (and the father) are informed about their rights.

Education is a huge aspect of my job because I believe informed parents make better decisions, and that starts with birth.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Starting and growing my business has been challenging. I am blessed that I have my husband, who was able to help me get started. One big struggle has been reaching out to the Latino/Hispanic community in Kansas City.

Unlike California, where I grew up, I don’t have a history with community members and knowledge of community events here in KC. Most doulas get more clients by word-of-mouth referrals, so the first year or two is rough as one gets started and established in the community. Additionally, I am a first-generation Latina business owner, so I’m learning the business side as I go.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

Esperanza Birth’s heart has always been to be an agent of change in the current system of Maternal care in the U.S. Esperanza Birth’s voice and efforts in working with programs like Nurture KC to help bring bilingual doula services to the Latino community have given Esperanza Birth access to the Latino community in KC, and that dedication has earned me the reputation I have.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://esperanzabirth.com/
• Instagram: esperanzabirth
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/search/top?q=esperanza%20birth%20doula%20services
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lizet-a-97377b108/
• Other: Google Profile: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Esperanza+Birth+Doula+Services/@38.900965,-94.560407,9z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0x16490485c47b5a18?sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj936uxt-CBAxVYnGoFHcQ-DScQ_BJ6BAhYEAA&ved=2ahUKEwj936uxt-CBAxVYnGoFHcQ-DScQ_BJ6BAhcEAg

Image Credits
Photo credit to Esperanza Birth LLC