My name is Michelle Smith and I live in Portland, Oregon, with my husband and four children. I am an author, speaker, Pregnancy and Infant Loss Advocate, full-spectrum doula, and an aspiring CLC. I also currently serve as a Doula and Lactation Program Coordinator at Black Parent Initiative, a local culturally specific non-profit.
I found my passion in serving mothers and equipping them with tools and resources to advocate for their lives and the life of their unborn by providing them with education, support, love, and encouragement, as well as providing a safe healing space for mothers who have experienced pregnancy and/or infant Loss. I continually share my own story of hope after loss any chance that I get. Eleven years ago I unexpectedly lost my firstborn at 19 weeks pregnant. I let other mothers know along the way that you do not have to suffer alone or in silence.
Throughout serving and supporting mothers, I learned about so many of my friends and family members that had miscarriages and stillbirths. But no one was talking about it; no one was talking about possible prevention or anything regarding it. So becoming a doula was the door for me to be able to help educate, encourage and support these moms and families to make sure they had access to tools and information to have a healthy and safe pregnancy, labor and delivery, and recovery.
Years after becoming a doula, I learned about Count the Kicks and introduced it to my team and the clients we serve. I’m excited to become an Ambassador to not only spread the awareness of Count the Kicks and the purpose behind it, but also because I know more moms will be reached. More babies will be potentially saved right here in Oregon by sharing this tool that is easy to use as another way to advocate for their lives and baby lives.
I think about how many of my friends and families could have used this resource to help advocate for their babies’ lives. I am looking forward to doing my part as a Count the Kicks Ambassador here in Oregon to make sure every mom that is expecting has access to this resource and is educated on how it can be used to advocate for their child’s life.
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