When Survivors Give Birth Facilitators

Selena Shelley

MA, CD, LCCE, CHBE
My passion for working with women during the perinatal period, along with my training as a psychotherapist, then led me to working with pregnant and postpartum trauma survivors.  In 2011, I formalized this work and accepted an invitation to become a Certified From Trauma to Triumph Trainer; I now train professionals throughout North America in working with pregnant, birthing, and postpartum trauma survivors.

Kicki Hansard

BSc
Kicki Hansard is a certified birth and postnatal doula with experience in all aspects of pregnancy, childbirth and early parenting.  During the last 12 years, she has been preparing couples for the arrival of their baby and supported many of them through the birth and postnatal period.  Kicki is also a doula course facilitator and has trained over 500 aspiring doulas.

Virginia Rivenbark

I am a DONA International Advanced Certified Birth Doula, Lamaze Certified Educator and Certified Lactation Counselor. I live and work in Northeast Pennsylvania. As a doula for 18 years I enjoy providing mentoring to new doulas in my community. I strive to empower the families I serve through education and support. Helping them to get the care they need that best serves them.

I am also a coleader of a local non profit chapter of Improving Birth. We are working to improve birth outcomes in our area by offering free classes and sliding scale doula services. Previously I served on the DONA International board of directors for several terms. My husband Tom and I have 8 adult children. 4 son in laws and 1 grandson in law, 7 grandchildren, and 2 great grandchildren.

I look forward to offering WSGB training to those who work with childbearing people on how to provide trauma informed care to all they serve.

Juliet Swedlund, LCCE, CD(DONA)

Birth is an exciting and happy time most, but it can also be a time filled with worry and fear. My desire is to help all families have a birth experience they look back on feeling safe, cared for, heard, and respected. By providing the When Survivors Give Birth training to prenatal and perinatal professionals we improve the trauma-informed care families receive. I support families throughout Northeast Kansas as a DONA Certified Birth Doula and Lamaze Certified Childbirth Educator. In 2017, I founded the Topeka Doula Project, a non-profit organization providing Doula support and Childbirth Education to low income families and adolescents, and incarcerated pregnant people.

Elizabeth Johnson

MA

Elizabeth M. Johnson, MA is a trauma educator who helps people understand the connection between intimate abuse and sexual & reproductive health and how to implement trauma sensitive practices. Elizabeth has spent her career in coaching, education and crisis intervention and now offers one-of-a-kind trainings designed specifically for helping professionals. She also facilitates a free, weekly peer support group for sexual survivors in Durham, North Carolina. Elizabeth has worked with abuse survivors for over 10 years and at three victim services agencies. She has a Masters of Arts degree in Women’s Studies from Southern Connecticut State University.

Georg’ann Cattelona

CD(DONA), BDT(DONA), LCCE
Georg’ann has been working as a doula and childbirth educator since 1994. She was one of the founders of Bloomington Area Birth Support and has guided its development as a vital resource for pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding, serving families in south central Indiana. Georg’ann is a DONA-approved Birth Doula Trainer, a DONA-certified Birth Doula, and a Lamaze-certified Childbirth Educator. She also advocates for doulas on the national level, serving on the Expert Panel for HealthConnect One’s Community-Based Doula Leadership Institute.

Zuzana Laubmann

MA., MA., CD (DiD)

Zuzana Laubmann is counsellor and certified Doula (Doulas in Deutschland) working with pregnant, birthing and trauma survivors with more than 8 years experience in systemic family constellations and related consulting.

She uses Somatic Experiencing techniques and Trauma-Sensitive Yoga to address symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder and other psychological and physical trauma-related health problems.

She is also a trauma educator and offers birth preparation workshops for parents with the Rebozo technique and workshops for women who have experienced traumatic births. She is also using traditional women care practices from all around the world to improve birth outcomes and trauma recovery.

As Zuzana is a certified trainer in “When Survivors Give Birth”, she looks forward to offering WSGB training in Europe to those who work with childbearing people on how to provide trauma-informed care to all they serve.

Patti Treubert

BS, ICCE, AdvCD / BDT(DONA) CLC

In addition to being a When Survivors Give Birth Facilitator, Patti is an ICEA Certified Childbirth Educator, DONA International Advanced Certified Birth Doula / Birth Doula Trainer, Certified Lactation Counselor, and a Nurse.

Since 1989, she has supported hundreds of pregnant people with evidenced based practice during labor / birth and breastfeeding as well as overall education and advocacy.

Patti has served on the Board of Directors for the local Healthy Start Coalition as well as on the Board of Directors for DONA International.

By providing When Survivors Give Birth training to professionals, it allows us to improve the trauma-informed care that people will receive thus empowering them during a difficult time.