I’ve just spent the last couple of hours drinking coffee and learning all about the life and times of Aurea Kelvin. For those of you who have not yet had the pleasure, she is a practicing Doula. Supporting mothers on their journey through birth and into parenthood and Pregnancy Yoga teacher in Lancaster.
Aurea is warm and friendly and really calming presence. Just the kind of person you would want to support you through your pregnancy. Originally from New York, she has travelled the world, cherry picking her teachers to build on expertise in her field. Our conversation took us on quite an adventure.
The Adventures of Aurea Kelvin
Let’s begin it in the Amazon rainforest where she meets her English husband to be, Richard. After dates exploring the jungle and visiting the equator love blossoms. Nineteen years later they are here in Lancaster with three children. And Aurea’s thriving business has grown to support our lucky Mothers to be.
Advice for a Pregnant Mother
I asked Aurea for a nugget of advice for pregnant mothers and she gave me several. But most fitting for this story is her advice on creating a birth plan. She says this document can be really helpful to communicate your wishes to midwives, but it is important not to get too stuck on the finer details of your plan. Think of it more as a vision, and if when the time comes the birth isn’t quite as your envisioned it would be, be open to changing the plan. She isn’t advocating ‘going with the flow’, but rather being present in the moment and adjusting your vision and wishes accordingly.
And after listening to Aurea, I think she practices what she preaches. Aurea has a life vision that has grown from a general interest in health and wellbeing to a focussed desire to support pregnant mothers both physically, emotionally and practically. Though she hasn’t always been sure exactly how she will achieve her vision, she has taken advantage of the many amazing opportunities that have come her way over the years.
A Foundation in Healing
Before she met Richard, Aurea was lived in a mountain retreat in California studying a Holistic Health Practitioners Degree. Her classroom was a yurt and she learnt massage and body centre therapy and how to treat the body as a whole. Healing body and mind through intense immersive learning. She slept in a bunk house and enjoyed down time in the pool or simply soaking up the majesty of the surrounding nature.
And before this she was studying Chinese medicine in San Fransisco and was involved in case studies for the book Healing with Whole Foods.
Helping Mothers is her Calling
All this giving her wonderful grounding for when she fell pregnant and realised helping mothers through pregnancy was her calling. She began by practicing pregnancy yoga, borrowing a book and DVD from a teacher friend. During birth she was amazed to find how helpful her yoga breathing was in helping her through the contractions.
When her daughter Jasmin was five months old Aurea began pregnancy massage training with American teacher Carole Osborne-Sheets. And her vision to support pregnant mothers snowballed from there.
Aurea new she needed to study more. She found all the suitable courses in the UK were fully booked. But it just so happened the author of a really helpful book she had borrowed during pregnancy was visiting the country. Aurea went to listen to Pam England talk and this formed the foundation of Aurea’s own approach to pregnancy care.
Becoming a Doula
After arranging to attend four births, Aurea went on a Doula course with Micheal Odent famed for his water birthing techniques and Lillana Paramana. Aurea says good teachers are incredibly important and this is why she has always picked her teachers so carefully.
Being present at her first birth completely changed her direction. She was in love with doula-ing and being be part of such an amazing moment in a mother’s life. She saw that it was an honour to be able to support someone through giving birth. Aurea became a practicing Doula and has been involved an incredible 10 births to date.
The Learning Journey Continues
But she’s not stopping there. Now Aurea sees that there is a big gap in support for mothers after birth. She has begun training as a Post-Natal Doula!
There’s lots more to tell about her Doula-ing and Yoga, but I’ll save them for another blog. It has been a real pleasure to learn about and be able to share Aurea Kelvin’s amazing career journey. I wonder where her passion and drive take us next? If you would like to get in touch with her to talk about your own pregnancy and support needs, you can contact her through her Facebook page here. You’ll be in good hands!
