“Beautiful things may be on the other side of fear and discomfort.” This is Mirror trainer, birth doula and prenatal yoga teacher Rachel Nicks’ life philosophy. And it certainly served her well as she quickly had to rework her whole birth team and plans as she recently became a second time mother.
In this episode of Yoga | Birth | Babies I speak with Rachel Nicks about her work, pregnancies and birth. (Full disclosure, Rachel is a Prenatal Yoga Center teacher trainee alum! It was so fun to reconnect with her several years after her start into perinatal work.) Rachel shares how she unapologetically prioritizes family and self care in order for her to show up more balanced for her birth work and as a trainer for Mirror.
In this episode you will learn:
- About Rachel and how she got into yoga and birth work.
- How Rachel’s birth work impacted her pregnancies and birth.
- A quote from Rachel about how she approaches life “Beautiful things may be on the other side of fear and discomfort.”
- How Rachel approached her pregnancies.
- Finding balance in work and family.
- Changing her birth team because of COVID.
- Being a pregnant athlete and Mirror coach.
- Adjusting yoga and workouts while pregnant.
- When your body is your livelihood! Getting ready to return to Mirror postpartum.
- The pelvic floor and incontinence.
- One tip/piece of advice Rachel offers new and expectant parents.
- Where to find Rachel’s work.
Additional Resources:
- Rachel recently launched birthqueen.org Birth Queen is rising up to fight the Black maternal health crisis, on a mission to train and educate Black birth workers and support and empower Black parents.
- Central Park Midwifery
- Lindsey Bliss
About Rachel:
Rachel Nicks was born and raised in Oakland, CA. Her passion for movement began at 2 years old when she began gymnastics. She continued to grow as an athlete as she added basketball, soccer, and volleyball to her roster. After graduating from The Juilliard School with a BFA in drama she began a dedicated hatha yoga practice which led her to taking a 500 hour hatha yoga training. When she began teaching she unlocked Pandora’s box. She continued to train in a variety of disciplines so she could be equipped to meet the needs of all of her students. Once she began training she craved more tools for her mother population and attained pre/postnatal fitness and yoga certifications and also became a doula and lactation counselor.
Rachel is a mother of two sons and resides in Harlem. She is a founding trainer at MIRROR. Her certifications consist of yoga, barre, trx, kettlebell, mat pilates and reformer, pre/postnatal yoga, DONA doula, and lactation counselor. Effecting change in her community through her training, acting, and birth work fuels her fire.
Connect with Rachel:
- rachelnicks.com
- Instagram & Twitter: @rachelenicks or @birthqueenorg
- birthqueen.org
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To connect with Deb and the PYC Community:
Instagram & Facebook: @prenatalyogacenter
Youtube: Prenatal Yoga Center
