Katie Howser is the absolute best! She supported me through my journey of providing 100% breastmilk…read morefor each of my four children for a full year. While I was fortunate to have an abundant supply, Katie was always incredibly supportive of whatever path I chose, including transitioning to formula if needed. Her care goes well beyond breastfeeding--she is there to support you with whatever you need. Whether it's teaching you how to swaddle, showing you how to safely bathe your baby, or simply holding your little one so you can take a well-deserved minute to breathe, she does it all. I would recommend Katie to anyone. She is a truly amazing lactation consultant!

Katie was absolutely AMAZING! I had a traumatic birth and my kid had tongue tie so she wouldn't…read morelatch and when she did it was super painful. My kid was assessed for a tongue tie a dozen times before we left the hospital and every single provider, including several different lactation consultants insisted that she did not have one. On day 1 with Katie she found it and helped us get it fixed. Katie saved us, there is no way that I would have made it as far as I did without her. Breastfeeding is "natural" but it's a horribly difficult and incredibly emotional journey. Katie was an angle. Her presence is so calming and reassuring that my baby always stoped crying in her arms, we called her the "baby whisperer". Katie is so knowledgeable and skilled I continue to recommend her to everyone I know.

I cannot recommend Marilou at Doulas by the Bay highly enough. She was our postpartum night doula…read morefor the first few weeks after our son was born, and she was incredible. As new parents, the sleep deprivation is real, but knowing she was there allowed us to finally get the much-needed rest we required to function. Beyond just being a set of expert hands, she became a trusted guide for us and taught us invaluable newborn care tips that we still use daily. We trusted her implicitly with our baby from night one which was critical for us as anxious new parents. Marilou's calm, professional, and warm presence made us feel so at ease during a very vulnerable time. We truly loved our time with her and are so grateful for the care she provided. If you are looking for a doula who is knowledgeable, nurturing, and completely trustworthy, Marilou is amazing!

We had an incredible experience with Sally for our son from when he was 1-3 months. She was…read moreconsistently punctual, professional, and incredibly kind. Beyond just helping with night feeds, she took the initiative with bottles and laundry, which was a huge help to our family. We felt completely at ease knowing our little one was in such caring hands. In addition, she helped with sleep training. Additionally, the office staff was a pleasure to work with. They were extremely professional and maintained a quick turnaround time on all our requests and paperwork. We highly recommend this team for anyone looking for top-tier newborn care!

This review is for the New Moms Group hosted by Maddy B. Maddy is a wonderful human. I'm so…read moregrateful that she provided this space for us new moms. Before joining, I had terrible PPD/PPA and rarely left the house. I realized quickly that the moms group was a really warm and safe space with structured conversations. Not only did we get to share our experiences, but Maddy allowed us to go deep on topics that we would otherwise never have the chance to do. Today I still struggle with PPD and PPA but I can certainly say I'm in a much better place today than I was 2 months ago thanks to these sessions. I'm so grateful for Maddy, for the new mom friends I've made, and for the experience. Thank you Maddy!

Great selection, weekend toy room/weekday prenatal yoga room, really kind staff, very clean and…read morewell organized store. We will be coming down here a lot. Welcome addition to the neighborhood. A-plus move with the Opening Weekend celebration and the balloon animal clown and face painting!!!!

We worked with Kaylyn G. during the first 6 weeks with our newborn, and had a really positive…read moreexperience. She was punctual, reliable, and made scheduling and billing paperwork very easy. She provided overnight support so we could get some much-needed rest, and was incredibly helpful knowing we could trust that our baby was in good hands. She would also leave notes for us in the morning so we knew how he did. She also helped with washing bottles, preparing formula, assisting with our newborn's bath, doing baby laundry, and even emptying the dishwasher. She also gave thoughtful product recommendations, offered a helpful pumping consultation, provided sleep training tips, and walked us through using the Huckleberry app. As first-time parents, it was helpful to see firsthand how she changed, fed, and burped our baby, which helped build our confidence. We also appreciated being able to text her with questions between visits--it made those early weeks feel a lot more manageable.

Getting a night doula was one of the best decisions ever. We didn't have one with my first but I'm…read moreso glad we were able to have one with our second child. Jodie M. was our night doula and her presence gave me more confidence, more sleep, and less anxiety during the first weeks postpartum. She is so loving and caring and I feel like we instantly clicked and got into a great nighttime routine with my baby. No evening scaries going to bed and wondering what the night was going to be like! She was there to bring my baby to me to nurse and then she handled the rest! Diaper changes, rocking back to sleep, washing pump parts and bottles, etc. it gave me back some time to get more good sleep--no waking up from postpartum anxiety to check if baby was ok since I was confident she was there to care for him. She really takes the time to understand you and your baby and your particular situation/pediatrician recommendations to put together a feeding/sleeping plan. My baby was underweight which was very stressful in the beginning and she was so supportive through the triple feeding and pumping and had lots of great advice in addition to the recommendations from our pediatrician. I would work with Jodie M. again if we have another baby!

I've felt very cared for by everyone I've encountered here throughout pregnancy and postpartum, but…read morewanted to especially highlight Ocean Berg. In just a couple lactation consultancy appointments, we've made so many breakthroughs in feeding with Ocean. I love how she attentively watches our baby for cues before trying to come up with a solution. She is super encouraging and strikes the right balance between being a great listener and getting right to the action, which makes for very productive sessions where we get a lot of practice in. We had also attended her childbirth class when I was pregnant, which I had found pretty educational. For example, she had made us feel very comfortable with fentanyl as a painkiller during labor, which turned out to be extra important for me since the anesthesiologist wasn't available to give an epidural before my baby came out so I had to rely on fentanyl during labor. My main complaint is that introductions took quite a while because every couple in attendance answers 5 or so questions, and it was hard to schedule the class online and also reschedule it when the dates changed. Lastly, I love that Newborn Connections has Saturday lactation consultant appointments available. And also the appointments end up very affordable after being billed to my insurance!

(1) Lactation Consulting. Christen Chang is an amazing lactation consultant. She's super patient,…read moresuper gentle, super knowledgeable, and super caring and empathetic. We met with her several times in the first two months of our journey with breastfeeding. The initial first few visits were to learn the ropes, and the second month's visits were to troubleshoot challenges that arose. Christen is so great, no amount of praise or explanation could do justice to just how truly excellent she is. (2) Classes. We also took first aid, child birth prep, and breastfeeding classes with Newborn Connection. The sign up process and web interface is unintuitive, but the classes themselves were helpful, fun to do with partner, and a good opportunity to meet other expectant couples in the same phase of life as you. (3) Rentals. Lastly, we rented a hospital grade breast pump here. If your insurance covers it, or if you can afford it, it's great to have because it's much more effective than retail breast pumps. If you plan on pumping for more than 24 months (i.e., 2+ babies for 12+ months), buying hospital grade might be cheaper than renting hospital grade.

Julie is a lifesaver. I texted her early one morning on recommendation from a mutual friend, and…read moreshe was at our house by noon that day. Our son, only 4 days old, had refused to latch upon leaving the hospital. Julie showed us multiple techniques to get him latching again and had useful tools with her such as bigger flanges for my Medela pump and a nipple shield. She spent time each visit writing and revising a detailed feeding plan customized for us based on all the information I gave her. I've seen her three times and each time she was very attentive, on time, and prepared with a scale to weigh my son to track his progress. She is definitely someone you want if you're having problems or even just a slight concern about breastfeeding. I highly recommend her!!

Being a first time mom and finding out my baby was having trouble gaining weight was pretty…read moreperplexing and stressful when he seemed to be breastfeeding well. Julie came out and did multiple visits at my house to help me come up with a feeding plan for my baby and I. Her friendly demeanor, extensive knowledge, and positive encouragement, left me feeling confident that we could continue exclusively breastfeeding and supplementing with pumped breast milk. Not only did she help us come up with a plan during the visit, she later sent a detailed email including the baby's current weights, the feeding plan, and a couple helpful videos with examples of positioning/latching techniques we discussed during the visit. It was very helpful to be able to see it all in writing and refer back. My baby has continued gaining weight after implementing our plan and I am forever grateful to have met Julie and for the amazing difference she made in my first month of being a mom.

Sarah provided me with compassionate and expert support in my journey feeding my kiddo. I greatly…read moreappreciated her warm, non-judgmental approach and her wise advice. She was able to meet with me on short notice, followed up via text to check in on me after our first appointment, and has fielded several questions via email, even while she was traveling. I am very grateful for her support and would highly recommend her!

At 5 days postpartum, I was feeling incredibly stressed and overwhelmed, but Sarah came to our home…read moreimmediately to help. She spent several hours with my husband and me, teaching us everything from the basics of breastfeeding and milk supply to the specifics of breast anatomy. Her calm demeanor was exactly what we needed; she completely eased my anxiety and gave us the confidence we were lacking. This was truly the most helpful support we've received since coming home from the hospital. If you are looking for an expert who is both knowledgeable and deeply compassionate, look no further.

TLDR; YES if you're a first time mom considering Kinspace, you need to sign up. It might seem…read moredaunting (another thing I need to do NOW?) but trust me it's worth it. My baby and I started at 2 months postpartum, have done a full year of Kinspace, and just "graduated." We've learned so much! Susan is phenomenal. The community is amazing and supportive. You'll meet local moms with babies of the same age, and together tackle a bunch of parenting "firsts" in the first year. I can't imagine going through it all without Susan and our mom group.

Hands down, this was the #1 best thing I did for myself and my baby postpartum…read more Susan has created such a safe and welcoming place for moms to meet other moms and learn about all things motherhood. Motherhood can be incredibly lonely and isolating and meeting up with the other moms weekly was truly a blessing. We learned so many tips and tricks and Susan always answered all of our questions. I not only came out of the group with so much knowledge but now I have a whole group of mom friends and friends for my son! I am so incredibly happy I joined Susan's group and I encourage every new mom I know to do it too.

It's rare that I'd describe a retail store as "life changing" but this little shop was. In my raw,…read morepostpartum days after an emergency c section and a ten day stay in a hospital, I was breastfeeding and desperate for clothes I didn't feel terrible in and that I could breastfeed easily in. I stopped here and not only did they provide a cozy, private place for me to breastfeed with a helpful Breast Friend pillow, they also had changing tables and a scale for me to use, which brought me peace of mind. Then the nice young lady working there (after giving me space and privacy to nurse) helped me find nursing bras that I love (bravado, sadly being discontinued) and I even found some great nursing shirts that I wear every day. Please support this wonderful women owned shop!

Healthy Horizons is a great place to get lactation help and they have such cute clothing as well…read more.... have to remember to stop here for the next baby shower! I am writing this review because Sheila Janakos doesn't just help new parents in her store/lactation support center but she is also a generous soul who helps the community. I have been on the board of a nonprofit for 32 years now called Nursing Mothers Counsel which provides free lactation support via phone with volunteers trained in lactation and counseling support. We are a great back up source for parents who may not need the expert support that Sheila and her IBCLC staff provide, or who are in need of support after business hours. We are so grateful to Healthy Horizons for donating 4 Medela Symphony Pumps to NMC for use as grant rentals for low income families we serve. This substantial donation will certainly help many low income families in the Bay Area and Santa Cruz County. Sheila has remained an affiliate member of our small non-profit and supported NMC with donations throughout her many years associated with our organization. Thank you so much Sheila and Healthy Horizons for your generosity and support!

I highly recommend booking Shawna to encapsulate your placenta. I used her services for my first…read moredelivery and it was a pleasant and easy experience. Her website is very thorough in explaining the process and booking was really easy. I went with having her pick up the goods at our hospital. My delivery happened at 10pm and we contacted Shawna at 6am the next day, and she was able to get to us by 11am the same day for pickup. Communication was friendly and quick which we really appreciated. After the pills were delivered, Shawna sent a helpful email with suggestions and tips on taking them. Also, I went with the coffee flavor for the pills and it really did mask the taste. 10/10, highly recommend!

Shawna out did her self with my placenta encapsulation. Shawna drove to my house to pick up my…read moreplacenta, and home delivered my pills within 24hours of picking up my placenta. Her quick response to my questions and needs gave me a sigh of relief so I can focus on my baby. My baby and I are thriving during our postpartum. I highly recommend Bay Area Placenta.