who we are
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It's hard to fully grasp what it means to be a military family moving from one duty station to the next. Unless you've lived it, it's difficult to understand the toll of constant transition on something as vulnerable as pregnancy and new parenthood.
Base entities work hard to support our expectant families, but many families still fall through the gaps, and continuity of care remains a real need. Military life means frequent moves, and change is constant: care providers rotate out, breastfeeding support falls through the cracks, and postpartum concerns can go unnoticed. These are crucial pieces of care that the military system should provide, but often can't, simply because the system itself is always shifting.
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Our mission is to support healthy, safe, and satisfying pregnancies, births, and postpartum experiences through advocacy and policy that prioritizes equity in access to birth options, doulas, lactation education and support, mental health care and culturally competent care for military families across the globe.
The Military Birth Resource Network and Postpartum Coalition builds a supportive network for military families, creating opportunities for service members, veterans, and their families to connect around pregnancy, labor and birth, postpartum care, lactation, and parenting support, while advocating and educating military leaders and legislators on these issues.
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In 2012 while stationed in Okinawa, Japan, Amanda Dodson, a doula and military spouse observed first hand the challenges and gaps in support many expecting military families experienced overseas. With the support of fellow military spouses, supportive community members and other birth professionals, the Japan Birth Resource Network was formed to provide a place for military families stationed on Okinawa and Iwakuni to benefit from doula support.
In 2016 the Military Birth Resource Network was established as a 501(c)3. The idea was to build on what JBRN had created and make an impact at every duty station across the globe. This came to fruition when Amanda met Linda Herrick. Through Linda’s experience as a doula trainer and personally observing the needs of military families during the pregnancy period, it became evident that these families had to have additional support during this incredibly important time in their lives. An international organization was developed to provide support and resources for military families during pregnancy, labor, birth, postpartum, and the infant feeding period.