About Brave Journey

Brave Journey is judgement-free, inclusive, & intentional childbirth education with information, tools, & support to bravely navigate birth your own unique way. Here, you'll cultivate clarity, and confidence as you prepare to birth.

Brave Journey Birth Preparation courses provide you with evidence based childbirth knowledge, birth wisdom, and ensure you know your options as you navigate birthing in our modern medical context. 

About Cara

Hi! I'm Cara (she/her). I've been helping people prepare for and navigate deeply transformative and unfamiliar experiences for nearly two decades. I had a successful career leading social change programs in the nonprofit and public policy sector until the birth of my first child. In the past nearly ten years since then I have had the opportunity to work with hundreds of pregnant people as a Birth Doula, Childbirth Educator, and Prenatal Yoga Teacher. 

The births of my two kids as well as the births of those I'm honored to attend as a doula continually solidify my commitment to ensuring birthing people are prepared to navigate the transformation and surprises of birth. When preparing you for labor, birth, and postpartum I ensure you know your options, build your birth knowledge, have an opportunity practice labor coping strategies, and are reminded of your courage and resilience as you navigate birth in our modern medical context. 

I believe there is no one ‘right’ way to give birth. I believe birth is a normal physiologic process and best left undisturbed, and at the same time that sometimes medical interventions are the wisest choice. Informed decision making strategies are a large component of Brave Journey courses and I'm fiercely committed to body autonomy & judgement-free birth education where expectant parents build the knowledge and tools to seek information and practice clarifying what feels right for you. 

My approach is trauma-aware, LGBTQIA+ inclusive, and nonjudgmental.

Read more about my journey.

Certifications, Degrees, & Professional Associations

I'm a Certified Professional Birth Doula with toLabor, a Birthing From Within Trained Childbirth Educator, and a professional member of Evidence Based Birth. I have completed professional workshops with Spinning Babies, Nurturely Milk Magic, and the San Diego Breastfeeding Center. I'm currently a member of the Doula team at the Wombkeepers Obstetrics & Midwifery Practice in Scottsdale, AZ. 

I hold a BA in Anthropology (Arizona State University) and an Executive Leadership Master’s in Public Administration (University of Washington). I also hold a graduate certificate in Migration and Refugee Studies (The American University in Cairo).

I completed Yoga Teacher Training in 2011 (200hr Akasha Yoga), and Prenatal Yoga Teacher Training (Soul of Yoga) in 2014.

I currently serve on the Advisory Board of St. Andrew's Refugee Services in Cairo, Egypt, and I am a board member and co-founder of Refugees Thrive International.  

Grounding in Place: Indigenous Land Acknowledgement

Brave Journey is located in modern-day Phoenix, Arizona, which is on the ancestral lands of the Akimel O’odham tribe and before that the Hohokam people. This place where I live and work has been and continues to be the home of indigenous peoples since time immemorial. I honor the elders of both past and present, as well as future generations, of the Hohokam peoples and the Akimel O’odham nation. I express gratitude for their stewardship of the land we currently occupy.

Prehistorically, the Hohokam people inhabited a large part of central and southern Arizona. Their descendants, the Akimel O’odham tribe (River People) are also known as the Upper Pima, and today are part of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community.

Indigenous ancestors of these groups developed the most advanced canal system in North America to provide irrigation water to villages and agricultural lands here in the harsh Sonoran Desert environment. Hundreds of miles of canals were engineered and dug by hand. These systems allowed them to engage in canal farming and produce an ample supply of food. Some of these historic canal courses are still utilized in the Phoenix Valley and my home receives flood irrigation water from these historic canal courses, today. I acknowledge this important infrastructure that early colonizers, modern day populations, and myself and my family have benefitted from.