Birth Team Dynamics

I've been doing healing work since 1991, long before doula was a word most people recognized. So when I talk about community, lineage, and honoring the work of others, I'm speaking from over three decades of showing up. This post is about what that time taught me: why gatekeeping diminishes the work, why the rising tide only works if it lifts everyone, and why the people I train lift me right back.

And why the “doulas vs. nurses” framing hurts families, and where the actual problem lives. May 2026 · Lorie Michaels, CD(DONA), LCCE, CLC, PMH-C The dream team is possible. It starts with showing up as one. Let me say this plainly: Doulas are not in competition with hospital staff. I have worked alongside L&D nurses for years. I have watched them love families through terrifying moments, advocate quietly in ways that never made it into the chart, and hold space for people