ABOUT GUESTS:
Kate Stroud
Kate Stroud is one of the co-founders of the Michigan Prison Doula Initiative and currently serves as MPDI’s Board Chair. Kate has been a birth and postpartum doula, childbirth educator, and DONA Birth Doula trainer for over twenty years, with extensive experience in the private and non-profit sectors.
Cara Genisio
Cara Genisio is one of the co-founders of the Michigan Prison Doula Initiative. She has been a childbirth educator since 2008 and a birth doula since 2009. She is the MPDI Program Director and Childbirth Educator inside the Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility, where she coordinates the birth doula support program and childbirth education for MPDI’s incarcerated clients.
RESOURCES:
Huron Valley Women's Correctional Facility
Michigan Prison Doula Initiative (MPDI)
TRANSCRIPTION:
David Fair: The Huron Valley Women's Correctional Facility is located right here in our community. It houses about 2000 convicted women. Some of the women sent there arrive while pregnant. Now, prison is a hard, cold place to have to live. Imagine having to give birth as an incarcerated woman. It has to be frightening. I'm David Fair, and welcome to Washtenaw United. It is our weekly exploration of equity and opportunity in our community. With these women in mind, our guests this morning decided to make the situation as good as it can possibly be under the circumstances and were among the co-founders of the Michigan Prison Doula Initiative. They're here today to provide a look at the work they do and the women they work with. Kate Stroud is board chair of the initiative. And welcome to WEMU, Kate!
Kate Stroud: Thank you. Thank you for having me.
David Fair: And Cara Genisio is the program director for the Michigan Prison Doula Initiative. Thank you for being here as well.
Cara Genisio: Thanks for having us!
David Fair: Well, Kate, I think that most of us understand the concept of a doula. But, just speaking for myself here, I couldn't give a proper definition. So, what exactly is a doula?
Kate Stroud: A doula is someone who offers emotional, informational support, is a listening ear, a guide. It is a a soft skill that is hard to find, especially in the medical settings or many settings, to be honest. So, we are there as kind of guides through the bridge from pregnancy through birth and after. So, a doula is there to support and be there with the birthing person while they go through the decision making processes. And if they come across medical interventions, if they have to make decisions, we help them with information. We don't make decisions for them, but we hold space and help them gather the information they need to advocate and make decisions for themselves.
David Fair: And as a matter of curiosity. Cara, how is that different from a midwife?
Cara Genisio: Yeah, that's a great question. So, a midwife is a medical care provider--part of the medical team that can do diagnosis and interventions and testing and all that type of thing that comes along with medical care. Doulas are not medical professionals. We work as a part of the supportive team alongside medical professionals, but we're not trained as medical professionals. That's not our role.
David Fair: It sounds more personal.
Cara Genisio: Yeah. It's a continuous, informational, emotional and physical support, like Kate described, but, yeah, in partnership and in teamwork with the medical team.
David Fair: Did either of you use a doula for childbirth?
Kate Stroud: I did for my first birth, and that's how I got into this. I actually have a degree in art and no background in medicine, health or anything like that.
David Fair: It is a creative endeavor.
Kate Stroud: It is a creative endeavor, for sure. I had a volunteer doula for my first birth, and it was life changing for me. I had a pretty long birth. And once it was done, I was like, "I don't know what that person just did, but it was exactly what my family needed to navigate that and be okay on the other side." She actually ended up being like the only person I trusted in that whole process. So, shortly after, about six months later, I became trained as a doula.
David Fair: The two of you are among four who created the Michigan Prison Doula Initiative. Cara, how did the two of you cross paths and decide to take your doula expertise to prison?
Cara Genisio: Yeah. Well, Kate was actually my doula trainer, and so that was how we made a connection to each other in the early 2000s or mid 2000s. And for me personally, I had the opportunity to provide childbirth education inside the correctional facility starting in 2011 at the initiative of the Michigan Department of Corrections and that opportunity to teach childbirth classes inside, which is one of my areas of expertise as a childbirth educator, because I was working as a doula as well, not to incarcerated people. It quickly sparked for me because of what I heard from the clients that doula care inside the women's prison was something that at the time did not exist. And in that 2010/2011 period of time, there were doula programs inside correctional facilities that existed across the United States. Not many, but we had started to hear about them. One in particular in Minnesota comes to mind for me as a crucial lighthouse beacon of what can be done. And so, knowing about the Minnesota program and having the opportunity to teach inside and listen to the needs of the people there was where the spark came from for me.
David Fair: Washtenaw United continues on 89 one WEMU. We're talking with two of the co-founders of the Michigan Prison Doula Initiative, Kate Stroud and Cara Genisio. I don't have a full understanding of the process, but outside of prison, I'm guessing that dealers have the opportunity to get to know the mother and work with her leading up to childbirth. Kate, is there that kind of opportunity to bond with the women inside of Huron Valley prior to going into labor?
Kate Stroud: Yes! We are very privileged to have the opportunity to meet with the clients and have them matched with their doula beforehand, so they can have prenatal visits and get to know them in the facility. Also, Cara, who is our program director, has office hours every week, so she is able to also have a check-in, be a point person, kind of a foundational grounding for our clients as well. And then, the doulas will attend to the birth with the client and be able to stay for a bit afterwards in the postpartum period. Then, they also do postpartum visits in Women's Huron Valley afterwards to help the birthing person with their transition back into Women's Huron Valley and kind of process their experience. So, we are really thankful that we get the amount of contact that we do with our clients.
David Fair: So, Cara, once labor starts and the pregnant woman is transported from prison to the hospital, you head over. And as you've pointed out, you're not just there for the physical act because childbirth is a deeply emotional experience. So, what is it that you have to do to provide a totality of care that serves all the experience has to offer?
Cara Genisio: Yeah. I think the way I would describe it is because of the relationship that doulas build with their clients prenatally and then knowing that the relationship is going to continue into the postpartum period, it's an established foundation of an individual who we know. And when I say "we," I'm speaking both as a person who's had a doula at her birth, as well as the doula to many families over the years. It's that known person in the room who you've spoken with about your wishes for the birth process, your hopes, if you've had a baby before, how you might envision this experience being different or the same from previous birth experiences. It is that kind of foundation of continuous connection and trust. But then, the other thing I'd add into that also that I find fascinating about doula support is the professional distance of a doula--that it's not a member of your family. And so, just the fact that doulas have attended many births, have seen and heard and felt the process of labor and how it can be different and how it can change over time, that professional experience of what's normal in labor can be such a crucial piece of kind of calm and stability in the birthing room that I think doulas provide in a really unique way. And that's a nice complement to that core of emotional support with the family member and then the medical expertise of the health care providers. There's these three beautiful pieces that work together in a birthing room when a doula is present.
David Fair: For the women involved, the truth of having a baby while being incarcerated is that the time with the baby is so limited, just a day or two before the women end up having to go back to prison. Kate, how possible is it to help these women remain emotionally connected to the children that they don't get to see for a period of time afterward?
Kate Stroud: We do our best to make sure that they get as much contact and time with their child before they have to go back to Women's Huron Valley. And many times, there are photos that are taken and photos that are shared and reminding them about their role and that it happened. And that it's a very interesting psychological thing.
David Fair: It can be heartbreaking, too. Right?
Kate Stroud: It is. It is. I don't think "can" is the word. I think it is. And we do our best to hold space and watching the arc, especially as weeks pass after they've returned to the prison and seeing kind of their journey and trying to help them navigate that. Unfortunately, there's not a lot we can do or say to change the circumstances, but what Cara spoke to is--
David Fair: Empathy can go a long way, though, can't it?
Kate Stroud: Empathy can go a long way, continuity of care, the fact that we speak with them before the fact that we are there, and then the fact that we are there afterwards. And they don't have to re-explain anything or they could sit with us and just cry, and they don't have to explain why they're crying or why they're angry or why they have emotions or why they're disconnecting or whatever response they choose to have. And everyone is an individual. So, folks, birthing people respond differently across the board. So, I don't think there's a staple answer. But what we do as doulas is what we're trained to do in holding space and kind of following the lead of our client and being present with empathy and a listening ear and knowing that we can't fix it, but that being present with them goes a long way and holding space for them and looking them in the eye and just being there makes a huge difference, which is a very misunderstood thing about the doula role of how impactful just that act alone is.
David Fair: Once again, we're talking with Michigan Prison Doula Initiative co-founders Cara Genisio and Kate Stroud on 89 one WEMU's Washtenaw United. And, Cara, we spent a good deal of time talking about the benefits of the program to the women you serve. I'm curious as to what do you take away from the experience of working for these women in such circumstances.
Cara Genisio: I have learned so much over the years about how extraordinary and brave humans are. And something that might seem small but doesn't feel small to me is the the bravery of trusting somebody and the bravery of trusting a doula in our role. And this would be true of all of my clients, whether they're incarcerated or not, of opening your birth space to somebody who you haven't known for long and trusting them to be there with you and be a witness to your experience. The bravery of that trust is something that I have learned a tremendous amount from. And particularly with our clients with MPDI's program, that step that we take forward towards another person when we trust them is a very brave step. And I've just learned a tremendous amount from witnessing people take that step, regardless of kind of what their previous life experiences were over and over again over time. It's been an amazing thing!
David Fair: And, Kate, I assume this is not the be-all end-all that you have a grander vision for the Michigan Prison Doula Initiative in the future. Beyond what you are doing today, what is the vision?
Kate Stroud: We do have thoughts of where we want to go and what we want to do when we formed the Michigan Prison Doula Initiative, which is kind of a funny goal for a nonprofit to have, but we wanted to make it so our nonprofit wouldn't be necessary anymore. And so, we will continue to work towards that end. But our primary goal is to make sure that anyone who enters Women's Huron Valley as a pregnant person feels supported and gets education. And we do the best we can for the clients that we have in front of us right now. And one of the things in which I want to thank you for having us on here is bringing awareness to this population and these folks and the work we do, because I have to say they're amazing people.Our clients are amazing people! They're really very strong. And, man, like Cara, I've learned so much from them and so much from this experience. So, yeah, bringing awareness to the issue and taking step-by-step from there and seeing what unfolds. But, yeah, we have ideas.
David Fair: Well, I'd like to thank you both for coming in today and sharing the story of the work you are doing and whom you are doing it for. I'm grateful!
Cara Genisio: Thank you so much for the chance to be here!
Kate Stroud: Yeah, thank you very much!
David Fair: That is Kate Stroud, who serves as board chair, and Cara Genisio, who is program director. They are two of the co-founders of the Michigan Prison Doula Initiative. For more information on the initiative, head over to our website at wemu.org for everything you need. Washtenaw United is produced in partnership with the United Way for Southeastern Michigan, and you hear it every Monday. I'm David Fair, and this is your community NPR station, 89 one WEMU FM, Ypsilanti.
UWSEM STATEMENT:
For a variety of reasons, being incarcerated can be a frightening physical and mental experience. An aspect of incarceration is birth, pregnancy, and parenthood. Many prisons and jails lack the policies and practices needed to adequately address the pregnancy and postpartum needs of incarcerated women. While pregnant individuals can face lack of medical attention, empathy, and personal support when incarcerated, children of incarcerated parents face negative mental health conditions, weakened ties to their parent(s), separation, and developmental disorders if born within prison.
There are an estimated 58,000 admissions of pregnant women into jails and prisons every year, and thousands give birth or have other outcomes while still incarcerated.
Up until the end of 2021, pregnant individuals who were incarcerated in Michigan were restrained during labor; and did not allow a “support person,” such as a family member or friend, to be at the hospital when the parent in prison gives birth.
To get answers about pregnancy in Michigan prisons, please visit the State of Michigan’s website.
WEMU has partnered with the United Way for Southeastern Michigan to explore the people, organizations, and institutions creating opportunity and equity in our area. And, as part of this ongoing series, you’ll also hear from the people benefiting and growing from the investments being made in the areas of our community where there are gaps in available services. It is a community voice. It is 'Washtenaw United.'
Non-commercial, fact based reporting is made possible by your financial support. Make your donation to WEMU today to keep your community NPR station thriving.
Like 89.1 WEMU on Facebook and follow us on Twitter
Contact WEMU News at 734.487.3363 or email us at studio@wemu.org
