DOIC Member Spotlight - Meet Grace Swartzendruber

Doulas of Iowa City members bring a wide variety of trainings, skills, and experiences to their work with families in Iowa City, Cedar Rapids, and surrounding communities. We're excited to highlight our member doulas through this series.

Today, meet Grace Swartzendruber of All Bodies All Births Doula Services.

What clients say about Grace:
​"During virtual prenatal visits due to COVID, Grace helped us with our birth plan and shared many resources. She walked us through what to expect when arriving at the hospital to birth our baby which helped us feel more confident and prepared. It was clear Grace had attended many births and was very informed about staff and procedures at the hospital we would be going to. Most of the staff at the hospital knew who Grace was and were elated to know Grace would be attending the birth. I understood it was important to have a “village” of support during my pregnancy and birth and Grace was at the center of it. She connected me to a chiropractor, acupuncturist, lactation consultant and prenatal massage therapist and also went above and beyond by communicating with my midwife. 

Grace kept in close contact in the days leading up to birth and arrived at the hospital at just the right time. She provided many comfort measures (my favorite was rolling a lacrosse ball on my rear and lower back while on all fours!) and offered many suggestions for birth positions. When the birth was grueling Grace offered encouragement and affirmations. She supported us while we made difficult decisions about how to get our boy out. When our son was finally on my chest Grace was there to help with his first latch. 

When the birthing gets rough Grace knows how to bring love into the room and bring you back to yourself. She is the master of unconditional positive regard, has no judgement providing only support, and is the Validation Queen. Two and a half weeks out from birth Grace continues to check in, normalize how I feel, and directs me to resources. I feel like I hired a doula and ended up with a friend!"

Services Provided:
Pregnancy & Birth Support, Postpartum Support, Specialized Support - VBAC preparation, cesarean birth prep, cesarean birth recovery, induction preparation. She offer both in person and virtual support.

Three things about Grace outside of her doula work:
In addition to her work as a full spectrum doula, Grace advocates for birthing people across the state as a representative and advocate for the Iowa Maternal Quality Care Collaborative through the Iowa Department of Public Health. Additionally, Grace helps to facilitate Pregnant & Postpartum in the Corridor, a online and in-person support group and resource for local parents. Grace is also a founding member of Doulas of Iowa City, a local professional networking and continuing education organization for doulas. In her free time she enjoys cooking, gardening, traveling and also good old-fashioned Netflix binge.

How long have you been supporting families?
Since November 2016

When did you first know you wanted to work with families in the time around birth?
After the traumatic birth of my first child in August 2015.
​
Three words that describe your approach to working with families?
Compassionate. Non judgemental. Empowering.

Anything new you are excited to share about your business?
​I plan to launch a limited collection of postpartum care boxes that will include local, handmade products to support post birth recovery and the transition to parenthood.

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Looking to connect with Grace and our other members? You can learn find all our member businesses on our homepage or join us for our next Meet the Doula Event.