What Do You Want to Remember as Your Family Grows?
EXPECTING A LITTLE ONE?
Whether it’s your first, last, a surprise or an IVF dream come-true, you will give birth to this baby once. Having a birth doula is a compliment to your team, an extra resource for information and preparation.
BRINGING HOME BABY.
Welcoming a newborn home is exciting! You plan prenatally for sleep, feeding, recovery and rounds of introductions. Some families have lots of support, others do not. Wherever you find yourself, a postpartum doula may be exactly who you need.
WHEN DREAMS ARE LOST.
Sometimes dreams and hopes become complicated. If your baby will be born with serious medical complications, or still born, there are supports and resources avaiable to you, your family and partner. Giving thought to how you want to honor your baby’s birth does not mean it will happen.
Why Am I a Doula?
Like many other people and some of my own clients, I did not know about doulas when I had my first child almost 30 years ago. Fortunately, The Childbirth Center in Englewood open my eyes to a better way to give birth, and it included the warm, compassionate and woman-centered approach of midwifery care, partnered with doula support. The midwives were amazing, connecting me with an accompanying doula for my 2nd, 3rd and 4th births.
Experiencing birth with midwives is life-changing. Almost 20 years of that transformational experience, I worked on becoming a full-spectrum doula. Doulas were often associated with “crunchy people,” who gave birth at home. Today, people who want to give birth in a hospital understand what statistics tell us about induction, c-sections, and intervention. Taking a doula will enhance your birth team by supporting all of the other roles – partners, husbands, mothers, OB’s nurses, PA’s and friends – the VIP’s of you circle. Through education and consistent presence during labor, a birth doula’s goal is meant to be a compliment, never a replacement for love, professional medical advice, or maternal intuition.
Thanks in large part to the benefits we spoke about earlier, postpartum recovery with a doula has become accessible to more families. Most of my clients choose the support that they feel is most important, birth and postpartum services do not need to be combined!
The clients who choose me often seek access to as much information and support as possible, making decisions for themselves throughout the pregnancy, in labor, and in postpartum. Most of my clients give birth in a hospital, so I have experience at Englewood, Valley, Pascack Valley, HUMC, Overlook, and Morristown, and several in NYC, but others choose a freestanding birth center. I enjoy an independent relationship with my clients by not attaching myself to an OB practice or agency, and taking a limited number of clients each month.
When I serve birth clients, it is with total faith in your ability to decide what feels right, accepting and advocating for your wishes without reservation. As a doula, my goal is to support you however possible, protecting your space so that when you hold your baby, you feel empowered, respected and in control.