We recently connected with Seneca Summit and have shared our conversation below.

Seneca, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What sort of legacy are you hoping to build. What do you think people will say about you after you are gone, what do you hope to be remembered for?

I want to change the way that my children and grandchildren think about postpartum and raising kids. I want them to have a village of support and know that they deserve help and rest. And I will be there for them in any way that I can. I hope to be remembered as someone who gave my time, help, and love freely. I will always do my best to meet people where they’re at, and accept people for who they are.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I became a postpartum doula because I saw the need for it in the society we live in. We want to be good parents, but we feel the need to do it all ourselves and end up getting burnt out. We don’t have nearly as much support as other countries do, and we don’t take the time to heal, adjust, and bond with our babies after giving birth. There is not a lot of help and time off given to parents by most workplaces. And I can’t help but wonder what long-lasting effects these things will have on our country and on the mental health of parents. I want to make a difference to the people I serve and give them the opportunity to have a better postpartum experience than the narrative usually is. Unlike many postpartum doulas, I offer support up to two years postpartum because, as many parents know, postpartum lasts way longer than just the first 6 weeks after having a baby. There are phases that are just harder than others, and I want to be there to support all of them.
I am proud of myself because of the way I love and care for people in a non-judgmental way. I am intuitive, and notice needs to be filled. Parents are amazing because of all they do for their kids, and I remind them of that in the way I treat them.
There is a lot that I can help new parents with. I am there to serve them, not to take over care of the baby (though I do that as well if that’s what they need). I fill the gap between their need to care for their baby and their need to care for themselves. I can’t state this strongly enough – Parents👏🏻 Need👏🏻 Care👏🏻 Too👏🏻. They are doing so much work on so little sleep, and they will be in such a better place to take care of little ones if more care is given to helping them. I can take over household chores, make food, grocery shop, help make a postpartum plan, let the parents get sleep or a shower, play with older siblings, teach newborn care, answer questions, aid in breastfeeding, and hold space for all the feelings that come in postpartum. I hold the mothers just as much as the babies.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Let me begin by saying that starting a business was never on my radar. I never thought I’d be here. Most everything I’ve done to get to this point has been way outside of my comfort zone. But I feel so strongly that this is what I need to be doing, and that women deserve better postpartum care. We all need a village- fathers too. It is only because of that passion and the support from family and friends that I was able to start a business while dealing with postpartum depression, taking care of a 1 year old, and other personal issues I was going through. It has given me something more to fight for. Because I know how hard postpartum can be, and I want to change the narrative of being left to figure it out on your own.

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?

Becoming a doula is not the most expensive business venture, as far as those go. Which is good because we are a young couple, have been married for 3 years, have a 2 year old, and my husband is in college and working full-time while I am mostly a stay-at-home mom. We don’t have a lot of extra money to spare. But, he has supported me in starting a business and paying for certification and start-up business costs. We cut costs where we can, save as much money as possible, and stay out of debt. Somehow, it has worked out, and I feel very blessed for that. One day, I will be able to invest more into my business. I would like to become a certified lactation consultant and add some other certifications. Baby steps!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://mamalovesmama.wixsite.com/bbccpd
• Instagram: @mamalovesmama.utah
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100083183565750&mibextid=ZbWKwL

Image Credits
Dani Vest Photography