Qualified Doulas and Experience
The Professional Doula - What Actually Matters?
Social Media Should Not Set Your Standard
Your doula should be available around your due date and those first homecoming days, and charge a rate that feels right for your budget. Good news: plenty of wonderful doulas will fit both of those criteria. Once you’ve got a short list, talk with each one about their experience, training, and approach to care. Pay attention to your gut feeling as you talk — that instinct will help guide you to the doula who’s right for your family.
I’ve been doing this work for a long time, and I’m not the type of doula who films myself holding your baby to demonstrate swaddling or burping, or posting about your latch journey online. If you notice a doula doing this, it’s worth asking why she’s spending paid time behind a lens instead of fully present with your family.
A few things worth knowing as you search:
A well-trained doula my or may not have certification to prove it.
Certifying organizations don’t always require ongoing education from their members.
Working with families isn’t the same as working as a professional doula.
So ask questions — real ones — about the person you’re inviting into your home, near your baby, during one of the most tender times of your life.
Get to Know The Person Behind the Role
My doula journey began in 2019, training under Ann Grauer of DONA International. I certified as a Postpartum Doula in 2020 and renewed in 2024. I carry professional liability insurance and maintain current CPR training.
In 2021, I trained and certified as a Birth Doula through the Active Birth Institute under founder Crystal Marris Sada, whose mentorship deeply shaped my practice. I hold a lifetime certification through her program. Since she retired and sold to a Philadelphia-based doula collective, I sought additional training and certification in February 2025, and added a Birth Doula certification through DONA International’s alternate pathway.
In 2023, I became a Certified Lactation Counselor (CLC) through the Healthy Children Project. I offer this support to my doula clients at no extra charge, and families in Wyckoff, Franklin Lakes, and Oakland can also book a standalone in-home consultation.
I stay current through ongoing education, with a special focus on NICU family support (inspired by my own experience as a NICU parent), addressing birth disparities for women of color, and inclusive care for families built through surrogacy, adoption, and IVF.
My goal for every family: to feel respected and empowered through continuous care and acceptance.
Putting Values Into Action
This isn’t just a job to me — it’s my full-time career, my day job and my night job, my passion and my promise. Yes, I felt called to this work early on. But over time, watching the realities of birth, recovery, and maternal mental health play out in my own neighborhood lit a fire in me to be part of real change. I have adult children of my own now, and when I sit with my clients, I see my own kids’ future reflected back at me. This work is personal.
I believe every person who wants a doula deserves one who truly fits their needs — so I make it a priority to mentor newer doulas (and yes, “newer” and “younger” aren’t always the same thing), sharing my time and resources to smooth their path. If it’s easier for them, it’s easier for you, too. I’m also honored to serve as a Northeast Ambassador for DONA International, where I get to listen to our membership and help grow an organization working to expand doula access worldwide. If you’d like to learn more, here’s what we do.
Preventing stillbirth is close to my heart. Whether I’m at a prenatal visit, a birth worker meet-up, or a community event on maternal mental health, I talk about the importance of counting kicks in the third trimester. It’s one of the simplest, most evidence-based tools we have — and it’s free. You can learn more through Count the Kicks or their app.
The doula I was seven years ago carried a passion for supporting women in recovery. That passion has since grown into a promise — to keep learning, to keep expanding my resources, and to help lay the groundwork for a true recovery village for families who need it. We’re all different, but we all deserve acceptance, encouragement, and the knowledge to make the choices that are right for us. There’s no better time to start building that for you, your partner, and your family.