An Interview with Kourtney of Owens Family Wellness and Wonderfully Made Birth
So I had a chance to interview Kourtney Walker-Owens about why she does what she does. And how she and her husband help moms and families. So here's her amazing story. I highly encourage you read the whole thing. It's an amazing story!
Kourtney, what’s your why story? Why do you do what you do?
Well, our why story is less of a short story, and more of a constantly evolving journey. It started when we had our first baby. We were scared, unprepared, and because we were young, everyone around us felt the need to "help"... with advice. However, because we had heard nothing but horror stories, we went in feeling even more terrified.
I remember, during my first birth, I was lying on the bed in stirrups. I was surrounded by a room full of people, with a crowd out in the hall waiting to hear that baby cry, and yet I had never felt so alone. Unfortunately, I didn't know that birth didn't have to be scary or lonely. I didn't know breastfeeding & motherhood didn't have to be scary or lonely. I had birth trauma, painful breastfeeding, a baby that literally never slept & projectile vomited every time he ate, a fiancé that worked long hours, and I was trying to do all of this while going to school & planning a wedding. I was doing everything I was told was "best", but it was mostly just exhausting and lonely.
Fast forward a few years. We had a 3.5 year old, 2.5 year old, 1 year old... and I was weeks away from giving birth to our fourth. My husband told me he thought I should try with no epidural and I laughed in his face. We knew our past birth experiences could have been better. We knew that we had experienced a snowball of interventions. However, I was still scared & lonely, after 3.5 years of motherhood. Then he said 8 words that shifted my mindset instantly: "I believe in you. You can do this." So I did. Our fourth was my first unmedicated birth.
It was then I began to research natural childbirth, dangers of induction, pros/cons of medical interventions, breastfeeding difficulties, tongue ties, babywearing, attachment parenting, etc. I simultaneously found my "tribe" of mommies, if you will. The empowerment I had discovered, combined with my increasing desire to take back motherhood & the support of these women experiencing life alongside of me completely fueled my journey.
This journey has since led our family through an Autism diagnosis, taking control of our health through natural solutions, becoming a chemical free household, extreme postpartum anxiety & PTSD, 2 homebirths, a birth center birth, and the "birth" of our 2 businesses. My why used to just be something like "I do this for my kids". It's just so much deeper! Our why is for families! We want to support & empower other families. We love to watch parents find their voice, then take control of their life & health in the process! We are honored to get to partner with them in the process, so they never have to feel like we did- surrounded by a room full of people, but completely alone.
How does that affect your business everyday?
Every family we help find a natural solution through oils or supplements… every mother who I support through childbirth… every baby who I get to watch learn to latch… every woman who decides to turn her “essential oil obsession” into a business…
Those are our success stories!
Those moments are what drive us to keep doing what we are doing!
What advice can you offer to families- new and established ones?
Go with your gut! You are the parents. You get to decide what fits for your family, what you want to try, how you want to parent, etc. No one else was given that baby. YOU are the perfect parent for that specific child, whether it feels that way or not.
Tell us a tiny bit about why you support and love breastfeeding.
Breastfeeding was a rough start for me, but even despite that, I did it. In fact, it’s the first “hard thing” I did as a parent (after childbirth, of course) and in those first moments latching, that’s when I fell completely in love with being a mom. My own mother still talks about the moment I became a mother with tears, usually. She watched as I latched my baby, looked into his eyes, and instantly transformed before her! Breastfeeding has been many things for me. I’ve walked through pain, trauma, tongue ties, lip ties, reflux, over supply, low supply, supplementing with donor milk, sns, exclusive pumping, tandem nursing, infections… no situation with my 7 has been the same. It’s that bond and accomplishment that I really feel like kept me going in those scary, lonely days of motherhood. It is a special bond and incredible experience for both mom and baby. It is my honor to get to assist with those first breastfeeding moments with my clients.
A product you sell/service your provide that helps families?
Well… everything!
-Birthing classes
-Breastfeeding classes
-Childbirth Doula services
-Postpartum Doula services
-Essential Oils for Pregnancy, Birth and Beyond class
-Essential Oils for Babies & Kids class
-Essential Oils for Mommy’s Medicine Cabinet class
-Wellness Consultations
Check out our website(s) for more information on all of these resources.
www.owensfamilywellness.org
www.wonderfullymadebirth.org
Kourtney, what’s your why story? Why do you do what you do?
Well, our why story is less of a short story, and more of a constantly evolving journey. It started when we had our first baby. We were scared, unprepared, and because we were young, everyone around us felt the need to "help"... with advice. However, because we had heard nothing but horror stories, we went in feeling even more terrified.
I remember, during my first birth, I was lying on the bed in stirrups. I was surrounded by a room full of people, with a crowd out in the hall waiting to hear that baby cry, and yet I had never felt so alone. Unfortunately, I didn't know that birth didn't have to be scary or lonely. I didn't know breastfeeding & motherhood didn't have to be scary or lonely. I had birth trauma, painful breastfeeding, a baby that literally never slept & projectile vomited every time he ate, a fiancé that worked long hours, and I was trying to do all of this while going to school & planning a wedding. I was doing everything I was told was "best", but it was mostly just exhausting and lonely.
Fast forward a few years. We had a 3.5 year old, 2.5 year old, 1 year old... and I was weeks away from giving birth to our fourth. My husband told me he thought I should try with no epidural and I laughed in his face. We knew our past birth experiences could have been better. We knew that we had experienced a snowball of interventions. However, I was still scared & lonely, after 3.5 years of motherhood. Then he said 8 words that shifted my mindset instantly: "I believe in you. You can do this." So I did. Our fourth was my first unmedicated birth.
It was then I began to research natural childbirth, dangers of induction, pros/cons of medical interventions, breastfeeding difficulties, tongue ties, babywearing, attachment parenting, etc. I simultaneously found my "tribe" of mommies, if you will. The empowerment I had discovered, combined with my increasing desire to take back motherhood & the support of these women experiencing life alongside of me completely fueled my journey.
This journey has since led our family through an Autism diagnosis, taking control of our health through natural solutions, becoming a chemical free household, extreme postpartum anxiety & PTSD, 2 homebirths, a birth center birth, and the "birth" of our 2 businesses. My why used to just be something like "I do this for my kids". It's just so much deeper! Our why is for families! We want to support & empower other families. We love to watch parents find their voice, then take control of their life & health in the process! We are honored to get to partner with them in the process, so they never have to feel like we did- surrounded by a room full of people, but completely alone.
How does that affect your business everyday?
Every family we help find a natural solution through oils or supplements… every mother who I support through childbirth… every baby who I get to watch learn to latch… every woman who decides to turn her “essential oil obsession” into a business…
Those are our success stories!
Those moments are what drive us to keep doing what we are doing!
What advice can you offer to families- new and established ones?
Go with your gut! You are the parents. You get to decide what fits for your family, what you want to try, how you want to parent, etc. No one else was given that baby. YOU are the perfect parent for that specific child, whether it feels that way or not.
Tell us a tiny bit about why you support and love breastfeeding.
Breastfeeding was a rough start for me, but even despite that, I did it. In fact, it’s the first “hard thing” I did as a parent (after childbirth, of course) and in those first moments latching, that’s when I fell completely in love with being a mom. My own mother still talks about the moment I became a mother with tears, usually. She watched as I latched my baby, looked into his eyes, and instantly transformed before her! Breastfeeding has been many things for me. I’ve walked through pain, trauma, tongue ties, lip ties, reflux, over supply, low supply, supplementing with donor milk, sns, exclusive pumping, tandem nursing, infections… no situation with my 7 has been the same. It’s that bond and accomplishment that I really feel like kept me going in those scary, lonely days of motherhood. It is a special bond and incredible experience for both mom and baby. It is my honor to get to assist with those first breastfeeding moments with my clients.
A product you sell/service your provide that helps families?
Well… everything!
-Birthing classes
-Breastfeeding classes
-Childbirth Doula services
-Postpartum Doula services
-Essential Oils for Pregnancy, Birth and Beyond class
-Essential Oils for Babies & Kids class
-Essential Oils for Mommy’s Medicine Cabinet class
-Wellness Consultations
Check out our website(s) for more information on all of these resources.
www.owensfamilywellness.org
www.wonderfullymadebirth.org
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