Yin and Yang: How do you balance work and family?
Bringing my work to my home environment has, surprisingly, allowed me to find a better work-life balance. The life of a Private Practice Midwife with on-call responsibilities can be very challenging to balance in any chapter of life, particularly with a young family. However, starting Full Circle at home and focusing on the postnatal period has allowed me to create something I can organically build around my family’s daily rhythm, without overly compromising time with them or compromising my professional desires and drive.
However, it is still really important for me to set boundaries with my work hours – it is easy to let those lines blur when both family and work are so accessible at all times. Having dedicated work time and dedicated family time allows for a healthier balance for all.
The drive: What challenges have you overcome?
Within three months of launching Full Circle the world had changed dramatically; the COVID-19 pandemic was upon us and new restrictions and requirements were being rolled out rapidly. Whist this was an unforeseen business challenge, I actually felt so blessed to be working from my home-clinic, as it allowed me to continue to work as much as usual with the added opportunity of providing more teleconsultations (which I was already offering).
As I travel along this exciting new path and the business unfolds, I recognise that every new family I meet has a unique set of complexities. I am continually challenged with exciting learning and growth opportunities as I support each family unit. Being a team of one, I am also continually collaborating with other healthcare professionals to ensure I bring a broad spectrum of perspectives and remain open-minded with my care and guidance.
Hopes and dreams: What next?
As my own family grows, so too will the Full Circle business. In time, organically, I intend to grow the practice to include additional Private Practice Midwives, who are also certified Lactation Consultants. My dream is to create a holistic, postnatal, continuity-of-care program that focuses on prevention and a positive, nurtured journey rather than treatment and cures when things go ‘wrong’. Any day now I will be launching antenatal education classes, which will be just as much focused on the postnatal transition to parenthood as they will be about preparing for birth. I am really excited to offer this preparation and planning to new parents.
I am also in the process of completing my Neuroprotective Development Care (NDC) certification through The Possums Clinic. The purpose of undertaking this training is to bring another layer of expertise to the care provided at Full Circle. However, unlike other approaches to early life care, NDC uniquely acknowledges the interrelatedness of breastfeeding and infant feeding, sleep, baby’s sensory-motor and social needs, cry-fuss behaviours, and parental mood, offering innovative and evidence-based support and care to each domain. This approach very much aligns to my core values and philosophies of the business overall.
More than anything, in time, I hope the care and support I provide to families speaks for itself, and, through authentic word of mouth and positive postnatal stories shared, Full Circle continues to grow. I envision that Full Circle is a place where new families come and feel truly nurtured and recognise it is a safe space to ‘keep it real’ and be supported on their own unique journey.
You can contact Bekki by email to enquire about her Online Mother’s Group or private Midwife-Lactation Consultations, and join her supportive Full Circle communities on Facebook and Instagram.
Bekki runs face-to-face consults in her home-clinic or at your home, given all associated persons are feeling well. She also offers teleconferences, which are available to anyone anywhere.
