Meet Jessica Apfel | Doula & Yoga Teacher

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jessica Apfel and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jessica, is there something you can share with us that those outside of the industry might not be aware of?
I think there’s a lot of people that are still uncertain about our role in the birth space and how we can support birthing bodies during the prenatal or postnatal period. Whenever I tell someone I am a doula, I get either one of these two exchanges: “that’s so amazing!” or “what’s a doula?”

As a doula, I offer emotional and physical support during the prenatal, birth, and postpartum experience. As I like to tell clients, think of us doulas as an anchor in the room. I am here to hold space, listen, and gently support where needed in order to keep that sacred “birth bubble” protected.

Because of this role, I do think people assume us doulas only support home birth or people who wish to have an unmedicated birth. This is soooooo not the case! I attend many births where people chose to use an epidural, and this is where I can offer my support in movement, comforting touch, making the hospital space feel like a blissed out spa, normalize the experience of birth, and also working as team to support their birth partner in making sure they are rested and fed.

What should our readers know about your business?
I am a doula and yoga teacher that goes under the name The Wealthy Apple. It started as a social media handle, then I decided to use it as my business name (it’s actually just a translation of my name!)

I offer birth doula and yoga services where mindfulness and trauma-informed practices greatly inform my work. My approach and philosophy to birth work is that “I have one foot in woo, and one foot in medicine”. It’s my grounded and witty approach to say that holistic practices and Western medicine can exist in the same space. I really believe in meeting people where they are, and helping them find the decisions that are right for THEM and their family. I want folks to trust their instincts and voice as well as find agency in their bodies. When I work with clients, I always tell them that “your baby is going to receive the best care possible, but what about you? Who is taking care of you?” And that’s where I come in. I want to support and care for the folks who are giving birth and becoming parents.

As for getting to where I am in my business, it’s been quite the labor of love! I actually started this journey toward birth work in March 2019, when I decided to attend a doula training retreat in Bali with Ibu Robin Lim and Debra Pascali-Bonaro. It took a while to get to the point of feeling “ready” to attend births, and thought I would start in March 2020, which we all know what happened then. However, I always believe that “things always work it’s way out”. I attended my first birth on December 25, 2020 – a speedy Christmas Day home birth. As a doula, I felt like some “birth magic” was on my side. Since then, I have been steadily building a doula practice during a pandemic! It has definitely been an uphill battle, but what keeps me going are the families I have been able to support.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I love taking people around to my favorite spots in Brooklyn! Some of my faves….

Stone Park Cafe – my favorite place in my neighborhood to sit at the bar and grab brunch. I love the staff and frequent the place when I can.

Grand Army Plaza Greenmarket – I love to come here on Saturday mornings to grab some produce for the week.

Prospect Park – I try to go to the park weekly as a way to just be surrounded by nature.

Emmy Squared – I know this Detroit-style pizza in NYC, but it’s like a taste of home and just hits the spot every time.

Terre – natural wine, Italian food and probably the best tiramisu I have ever had.

Clearly, food is my love language. 🙂

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?

There are so many folks that have guided me and supported me along this journey in becoming a doula and yoga teacher.

First of all, my family and friends! I am so lucky that they believed and encouraged me (even though I thought this might sound like a crazy direction to head down) when I decided to quit a marketing job and work towards becoming a birth worker.

Exhale to Inhale – this is the community that inspired me to become a doula. I was teaching trauma-informed yoga to domestic abuse survivors in a shelter. Holding space and offering support felt so needed, and that’s how the idea of becoming a doula came to mind.

Prenatal Yoga Center – this was my first stop in the birth world! It is such a joy to teach prenatal yoga in this community.

Manhattan Birth – the community that Tanya Wills built here for birth workers and aspiring midwives is powerful. I have completed two years of mentorship and an integrative lactation feeding specialist program with them. The folks in this community inspire me and teach me how to be not only a better doula, but a better person. Of course, I have to shoutout to Sarah Lovell, Jenny Langbehn, Guramrit Lebron, and Maggie Rosenfeld for their guidance. I can not express enough how grateful I am to be included in this community.

Kate Soloff and Janel Martir – two doulas and friends who I have partnered with in this work and who are always “doula-ing” me when I need some guidance and support (or a good laugh). When you do this work, you need your people!

Lastly, my doula and yoga clients! Being a part of someone’s pregnancy journey is such an honor. I watch people live’s change in the matter of minutes – from the first breath, the first cry – I try my best to capture these moments on film, and I still am always overcome by tears of joy that I get to witness not only a baby’s first moments of life, but my client’s first moments as parents. It’s beautiful. It’s empowering. And I am so lucky to be present in these moments.

Website: www.thewealthyapple.com

Instagram: @wealthyapple

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-apfel/