What inspired your journey to birth empowerment? For today’s guests, Jazmin and Ben, their journey began in 2017 in Seattle following an ectopic pregnancy and miscarriage. It prompted them to do research and plan for future pregnancies in a different way. According to Jazmin, “It was my first experience realizing I had to advocate for myself with medical professionals, especially considering I'm a black woman, as many brushed off my concerns and pain as "normal."” Fast forward to Atlanta in 2018 when they welcomed their first daughter, Elyana. It was a 45-hour vaginal birth in a hospital. Jazmin says, “That experience inspired me to dive much deeper and do additional prep for my second birth (chiropractic care, Spinning Babies, pelvic floor PT, a hypnobirthing class, and the DIAH podcast, to name a few).” Then in 2020, Jazmin and Ben had a home birth with their second daughter Sareya. “ I experienced the fetal ejection reflex, had a retained placenta, and absolutely no tearing. Both of my births were empowering in completely different ways,” Jazmin says.  Jazmin switched care providers with both births, something we go into further in the interview. Also, COVID-19 influenced some of the plans and decisions with their second birth. And we mentioned Atlanta, so Jazmin and Ben live close by! We’re very much looking forward to hanging out in person in future DIAH events and gatherings. This birth story includes mention of: ectopic pregnancy, miscarriage, changing providers, hospital birth, home birth, epidural Links: Our website: https://www.diahpodcast.com/ DIAH Shop: ttps://bit.ly/3qhwgAe Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/diahpodcast/ Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/diahpodcast Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1904721379788084/?ref=bookmarks Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices