Meet Romina of Anak Doula Full Spectrum Birth Services (@anakdoula)

Romina Joy Parungao (she/they/siya) is a diasporic Ilokana-Pangasinese-American/Pinay whose ancestral lineage is rooted in Central Luzon and Illocos Sur; specifically in the Pangasinan and Magsingal regions of the Philippines. Romina currently resides on the lands of the Coast Miwok and Southern Pomo Indian peoples in Northern, CA, also known as Sonoma County.

Anak Doula Services was birthed towards the end of 2020, shortly after my tatang (Ilocano for father) transitioned out of this earthly realm. His spirit along with all the well ninunos (ancestors) are supporting and guiding me throughout this sacred work. Anak (uh-nuck) which translates in Ilocano  to "child" or "little one" is what my father would call me ever since I was an infant.

Since beginning this lifelong commitment around three years ago, my birthwork is much more than “work”, it is an ever-evolving lifelong art form that bridges the past-present-and-future while returning to the belief of kapwa or "shared self"-that you and I are deeply interconnected in which I am not well unless you are well. Rooted in decolonization, my birth practice is influenced by the ancestral, artistic, spiritual, ceremonial, intergenerational, and socio-political parts of myself. Through a decolonial lense, I am constantly re-learning, re-membering, and re-indiginizing forgotten parts of my mind, body, and spirit as I reclaim my Ilokana-American identity while unpacking and understanding my child-of-immigrants experience. 

From a young age, I learned that I was a caretaker at heart, naturally helping others whenever I could. Growing up surrounded by a large Pilipino family, I have been around babies and children my whole life, always wanting to help my aunties and uncles take care of my nieces, nephews, and cousins. From witnessing my family dynamics, I have come to understand the importance of the village mentality where everyone helps each other - from home-cooked meals to assisting each other when in need -they have shown me the true embodiment of how to be in right relations with community.

My birthwork is greatly inspired by my time of being an Early Childhood Waldorf assistant and more than a decades worth of nannying experience. Towards the end of 2023, I completed an Ayurvedic clinical foundations course with DeAnna Batdorf of Dhyanna Essentials, being greatly inspired to weave in elemental medicine, bodywork, and Ayurvedic principles into my birth practice. In 2024, I deepened relations with western herbalism at the California School of Herbal Studies, which inspired to create organic small batch herbal medicinals available in my shop.