Hello, my name is Valentina, I live in Cardiff with my husband and my three children. I have always been passionate about birth and in 2012 I have started my doula journey. In 2016 I become a doula mentor.
I value very much mentoring processes and I believe it is especially important for doulas as in our job, beyond any practical help, we offer who we are to our client and our wellbeing is paramount if we want to bring something positive into our clients’ lives. The mentoring gives us an opportunity to unload our worries and to celebrate our success driving a rewarding career.
At the beginning of my career I have been mentored and it has helped me immensely. Starting a career on my own, without experience, I would have felt lost but the support of my mentor gave me confidence and practical advice and enabled me to successfully support my first client. Afterwards my mentor was key in supporting me when things didn’t go as planned and when my work as a doula became difficult.
I am still in contact with my mentor and I have regular sessions with her which help me to give the best support I can to each client.
As a mentor I am not going to tell you what to do but I am there help you find the best direction for yourself.
I will encourage you to understand your strengths and weaknesses, to set your goals and I will be there to support you so that you can achieve them. I am available anytime for my mentees as I do understand that sometimes we need to be heard at that particular moment.
I will be there to help you to set up your business, your marketing material, the interviews, the antenatal meetings and whatever you don’t feel confident. I will be there after an exciting birth to share the joy with you or to listen to you if the birth didn’t go as planned.
I am here for you, to hear your worries, to let you talk trough your struggles and to witness your success.
I won’t tell you how to be a doula or what to do, I will challenge you to reflect to get the best of you to light and I will celebrate every success.
