Today we have the inspiring Anja Akhile on The Mag. Anja is a birth doula and mother of three young kids. Read more about her, her family and her mission below!

Tell us your story! We’d love to hear a little bit about yourself and your business.
My story has many twists and turns but two things have remained the same, my desire to be a mom and a passion for helping women. When I became pregnant, I was the first in my social circle to begin starting
a family so I had to work hard to build a network of mom friends. As I began to meet more moms and hear more birth stories that seemed to be traumatic or end up with unwanted and unnecessary c-sections, I felt
more and more upset. In my opinion birth is a beautiful thing. It is powerful, it is natural and it should empower the birthing woman, not make her feel helpless, scared, or out of control. When I was pregnant with my second, I felt this overwhelming drive to do something. I felt called to address the high mortality rate of black mothers in childbirth, called to help women feel in control and empowered during their pregnancies. This call was leading me to become a birth worker. I took a doula training when my second daughter was only a few weeks old and I instantly knew, this was the field I was meant to be in. After my first birth, I left the hospital invigorated and excited. I immediately called my husband and told him that I was going to be a midwife. Shortly after that I enrolled in midwifery school and the rest is history! I have since added a few more goals to my "get it done" list which include becoming an herbalist and a sex educator.

How many kids do you have, what ages?
I have three kids. Summer- 3 years old, Violet- 20 months and Brooklyn- 2 months

What are your top three tips for parents in search of a doula/midwife?
1. Choose someone who you trust and can be vulnerable with. Energy is everything! If you don't feel a good vibe, trust it.
2. Find out what their belief system is around pregnancy and birth. There is nothing more uncomfortable than working with someone who is not on the same wave length.
3. Find out how many births they have attended

How do you network as a parent and a business person?
I feel like I am always networking just in my day to day life as a mom.I am intentional about events I go to, but I try to have balance. I don't want my work to consume me, nor do I want my title as mom to consume me. So while I often find myself blending my work with my everyday life, I also make space to nourish the other areas of my life.

Where do you go for inspiration on the web and in real life?
I am on instagram a lot! I feel like it is very easy to connect with people and brands who are doing some really cool stuff that either inspires or motivates me. In my everyday life, I find inspiration by
being in nature. I love to hike, it instantly brings me joy and relieves stress.

What is the first website you visit every morning?
I actually make an effort not to go on my phone in the morning. I wake up and look at texts to see if anything important came in from friends or clients. After that I handle diaper changes and morning snack time. While I drink my coffee I will go straight to instagram and browse.

What are you three favorite Instagram accounts to follow?
I LOVE nail art so for fun, I follow a lot of nail accounts like @nailjerks and @nailswag
I also enjoy going through the story feed of my friends page @birthindablock and lastly I really enjoy the accounts focused on motherhood @mothermag @fashionmamas

What is on your to do list for today?
The weekends I don't usually have a to do list, outside of go to Target because I am obsessed. Today is a little different since we are on quarantine. That being said my to do list is really just a list of intentions for the day
1. To control my response to my children's tantrums by not matching their emotions
2. Let them explore with few restrictions
3. Not be overly concerned with financial stress

Describe motherhood in one sentence.
Motherhood will challenge you, motivate you, inspire you and ultimately make you a better person than you were before.

Anything else you want to add?
Choosing to be a mom was on of the best decisions I have made in my life. Choosing not to get lost in my motherhood was an even better decision.

And finally, where can we find you?
o Website: www.tresleosdoula.com
o Instagram: @Anja_akhile