My name is La-Shonda Spencer. I started yoga teacher training after my yoga teacher encouraged me to enroll in training because I have a gift of showing people that no matter their size, they can do yoga. I wanted to show people as long as they could breathe, they could do yoga.
During my training, I was made aware of prenatal yoga and doula support. Through this calling, I combined my passion for yoga and birth work to support families in need, especially in the Black community. My focus is educating families on the concept of full autonomy, providing a safe space to discuss disparities in Black maternal health, and providing evidence-based literature on birth experiences outside the hospital setting. Through yoga and birth work, I strive to empower women through techniques that enhance body awareness so they can make the best decision on their pregnancy.
Dr. Tiffany Gouch (former Alabama Ambassador, now a Tennessee Ambassador) was my introduction to the amazing work championed by Count the Kicks.
As Count the Kicks Ambassador, I will continue to educate and bring awareness on the importance of baby’s movement to all families throughout the state of Alabama. Being in Alabama, there are so many labor and delivery hospitals closing, which results in limited access to care and in seeking out-of-hospital care through midwifery care.
This shift to more community-based support also stems from the racial disparities that Black women face in the hospital setting — having their concerns downplayed or blatantly ignored. I will continue to change the narrative for families in this state and educate our families on the importance of Count the Kicks and how counting can save their babies. I will continue to combine my tools as the ambassador, my skills from yoga, and my experience from birth work to help families connect with their babies and for mothers to know their bodies.
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