Be Prepared. Be Empowered. Be Supported.
We trust women...and the physiology of labor and birth...
Every woman will birth her babies differently. That is what makes birth such a profound mystery, and also intensely beautiful. But the magic around birth is how you are made to feel, how you are cared for during the process. We believe that the essence of having a positive birth experience comes from feeling safe, supported and heard. Our job is to give every one of our clients the unique kind of care they need and want. These are the elements that create a brighter birth.
The A Brighter Birth Collective is a group of independent business owners who have chosen to come together and work in a collective – to back one another up, to provide more complete resources for our clients, bring quality care through professional development, active mentoring, and a commitment to tight knit community. We have joined together as professionals because we recognize, as Phylicia Rashad has put it: “Any time women come together with a collective intention, it’s a powerful thing.”
Meet the Doula Collective
Melanie Headley
Owner/Operator of A Brighter Birth. Birth Doula, Childbirth Educator and Lactation Counselor for ABB. Mama to 4 little people, lover of food, art, music, fashion, yoga and ALL things birth. I stumbled across A Brighter Birth when I was pregnant with my first kiddo 15 years ago. It was the only out of hospital CBE class of it's kind, taught by the fabulous Chris Dewilde. My partner and I utilized every.single.tool we learned during our 46 hour birth experience, helping us feel empowered and confident in making decisions and working together. I was honored to take the class over in 2008 and began teaching out of my own living room (hiding all of my family's crap upstairs and sending my 4 babies out of the house every week!:)
Since then, my dream of ABB becoming a sanctuary of birth services ranging from Fertility to Postpartum for RVA families has come to fruition! We are now a One-Stop-Shop combining Childbirth Education, Birth Doula Services, Placenta Encapsulation, Prenatal Massage, Reiki Healing, Acupuncture, Breastfeeding Support and Education and Postpartum Doula Services.
I have supported close to two thousand families in or around RVA in the last 10 years. This work is a privilege and I am deeply grateful to every family I've worked with.
Hunter Moore
Birth Doula/Childbirth Educator/Lactation Counselor for A Brighter Birth. Hunter Moore is a toLabor trained professional birth doula who calls Richmond home after almost 15 years here. Hunter is also a VCU alumni with a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies and years of experience in fashion and merchandising. It wasn't until after the birth of her own daughter that she realized how support and empowerment from community could successfully impact the journey to motherhood. A quick career shift has allowed Hunter to settle beautifully into her true calling of supporting local mothers and families through educated and empowered birth. As a working mom herself Hunter finds such joy in applying her own life experiences to her life work now through birth work.
When she has time Hunter is playing outside with her 2 year old daughter, husband, two dogs, and two chickens; DIY'ing something; or enjoying a stiff cup of coffee. ABB is thrilled to have snatched Hunter up! Having had her in CBE class TWICE, once for her own birth and another for her BFF/Doula Client, we knew from the get go what a treasure she is! We can’t wait to share her compassion and wisdom with our own little Birth community here in RVA!
Jheny Cubero
Birth Doula/Placenta Encapsulator for A Brighter Birth. Originally from Los Angeles, Richmond is now home. Jheny’s interest in Birth Work developed through her own pregnancy and birth 3 years ago. Her son, Bronco, was born with the support of her Partner, Brad, her Doula and Midwife. Experiencing birth from that perspective awakened a need to learn more. She found her way to The Farm, Ina May Gaskin's longstanding birthing center/commune, to attend a training in Labor Support...and that’s all it took. Jheny decided to enter nursing school to eventually become a Midwife, which is where she is currently. ABB is lucky to have her on the team while pursuing this incredibly important journey to Midwifery. Jheny is directing her focus on Doula Support and Placenta Encapsulation now...but will be adding Lactation Support and Childbirth Education to her skill set this year. Jheny’s humble demeanor, quick wit and heart of gold shines through in all that she does.
Phone: 267-322-9073
Sarah Cole
Postpartum Doula/Breastfeeding Specialist/Educator for ABB. Mothering isn't something we were ever meant to do alone. From pregnancy to postpartum, Sarah is passionate about bringing back personal woman to woman supportive care. Sarah is a mother of 4 boys ranging in ages from toddler to tween and has spent nearly 7 years of her life breastfeeding. With these boys as her first teachers, wise women as her mentors, and breastfeeding and postpartum doula training, Sarah provides non-judgemental, compassionate support to new families. In addition to being a CAPPA trained postpartum doula, Sarah is a Certified Breastfeeding Specialist and is currently pursuing her 200h yoga teacher training (Beloved Yoga), and labor doula (ToLabor) certificates.
Kate Thompson
Birth and Family Documentary photographer for A Brighter Birth who believes that life is about relationships. Listening to and getting to know her clients is essential to the creative process, and allows her to make honest photographs that broaden our emotional repertoire, encourage nostalgia, and show the importance of slowing down and being present. She's inspired by the art that exists in genuine moments of connection between people and feels passionately about empowering families with photography that tells their story.
Megan Baker
Massage Therapist for A Brighter Birth. Megan Baker holds a B.A. in Dance from Radford University and has been teaching ballet and modern techniques for ten years. She is a graduate of the Potomac Massage Training Institute in Washington, D.C. and has been practicing bodywork since 2013. She is delighted to bridge the arts of dance and bodywork, using her experience with movement and teaching to practically address functional issues in the body. By combining Swedish and Deep Tissue massage techniques with kinesiology and functional assessment, Megan contributes a client-centered experience that provides the individual with heightened body awareness, improved flexibility, greater range of motion, and mind-body balance. Integrating elements of stretching, reflexology and myofascial release offers the client a well-rounded bodywork experience. Megan is also certified in Prenatal Massage and highly recommends soft tissue work for the expectant mother! She is licensed to practice in the Commonwealth of Virginia and is a member of the Associated Bodywork and Massage Professionals.
https://www.massagebook.com/Richmond~Massage~HealingCurrents?src=external
Kelly Sherman
Acupuncturist/Holistic Nutritionist/Astro-Empowerer for A Brighter Birth. Kelly's road to becoming a natural medicine practitioner started in a similar fashion to that of many others- with various, seemingly unrelated issues effecting the body, mind, and spirit that the standard treatment of care was not effectively addressing...let alone healing!! Now, as an acupuncturist, her mission is to first and foremost empower her patients with the understanding and tools needed to regain their health- from the foundation, up! Through a combination of acupuncture and other traditional therapeutic modalities as well as nutritional and supplemental therapy in conjunction with seasonal lifestyle counseling, Kelly provides full-spectrum, holistic health care with a focus on digestive, reproductive, and mental health. Currently pursuing the Professional Training Certification in the Arvigo Techniques of Maya Abdominal Massage, she will soon be adding these therapies to her practice to even further focus her efforts on supporting women's health- pre-natal to postpartum and beyond! True to her mission of fostering personal empowerment, you can also find her utilizing her favorite tool for cultivating self-awareness, Astrology, in both the class setting and personal one-on-one readings.
www.waxandwanewellness.com
Humble Haven Yoga Studio
Yoga Partner with A Brighter Birth. This beautiful studio, located in the heart of the city, off of the historic Shockoe Slip, offers Prenatal, Restorative, Vinyasa, Hot Power....and many more styles of yoga for the pregnant and non pregnant person.
Prenatal Class Description:
For the expecting mother and those desiring to be mothers, this practice is a wonderful way to nurture your body - both to prepare to conceive or prepare for labor. These unique classes are specifically sequenced to offer a safe and effective practice designed to both strengthen and relax the body through a combination of breath and body movement and meditation. Within this class, you will find a safe, supportive community for mothers to share in this experience together.
Prenatal classes are unheated and 75 minutes. All women at any stage of pregnancy and those looking to conceive are welcome.
Instructors have specific prenatal training with an additional 85 hours of prenatal certification.