This review is long overdue. Katie, in many ways, truly saved my life and my family during one of…read morethe most challenging periods after my son was born. My newborn had an extremely difficult sleep pattern. He sometimes needed to be held all night long and wanted to breastfeed every couple of hours. At the same time, he refused bottles and formula completely. I was exhausted, overwhelmed, and our family dynamic unintentionally made the situation even harder. Katie came into our lives and helped us with so much more than just sleep. She helped us establish a healthier sleep and feeding schedule for my son, but she also supported me through the entire process. With her guidance, I eventually realized that breastfeeding was no longer the right choice for me and my family. With Katie's patience and expertise, we successfully transitioned my son to bottle feeding--something that had previously felt impossible. What makes Katie so special is the way she combines incredible professional knowledge with genuine love, patience, compassion, and understanding. I never felt judged or pressured. I felt supported, cared for, and confident that she truly wanted what was best for both my baby and me. Katie is truly an exceptional sleep specialist, but to our family, she became so much more than that. I will always be grateful for everything she did for us, and she is someone I consider a friend for life. If you are an exhausted parent wondering whether things can actually get better, I cannot recommend Katie highly enough. She changed our family's life for the better.

Katie was a godsend. She came highly recommend, and for good reason. Her guidance and support was…read moreone of the best decisions we made early on, and we were so lucky to have her. We have family relatively close by, but it's difficult to overstate how helpful and reassuring it was to have Katie arrive each night full of smiles, warmth, and calm, confident advice. She helped us build sleep habits, helped my wife recover faster, and was an all-around warm, helpful, knowledgeable coach/fairy godmother during one of the most significant transitions of our lives. Katie's extensive experience helped us navigate sleep, feeding, diaper changes, bathing, and every other aspect of caring for our tiny new human. Like many others here, I mean it when I say Katie will be one of the first to know when we're ready to have our second. Thank you Katie!!!

Larissa was an amazing postpartum doula for our family. She helped us through 10 weeks of overnight…read morecare after welcoming our second child, our daughter, who came with some medical challenges around feeding. She was knowledgeable, calm, and always kept us informed about how our daughter was doing each night, which meant so much during such a stressful time. She also handled the little things, like washing bottles and pump parts, that made a huge difference while I was recovering. On top of all that, she was reliable, easy to communicate with, and just a genuinely warm presence in our home. We felt completely comfortable with Larissa caring for our newborn and would absolutely use her again. If you're looking for a compassionate, knowledgeable postpartum doula, we can't recommend her enough.

Larissa is a phenomenal doula that I highly recommend. She is very knowledgeable, caring, and…read morefosters a safe and supportive environment. In the short 6 weeks we had together, Larissa successfully started sleep training our baby. By the end of our time together, our baby was sleeping 4-6 hours through the night. We really appreciate how hard she worked for us. She brought us so many baby carriers to try, taught us how to baby wear, gave advice on breast pumps, and even taught us how to give baths and file nails. She is a hard and diligent worker and we appreciate her efforts! She is a wealth of knowledge and I'm always amazed at how much she knows. Larissa was so instrumental in our baby journey that I'm already hoping that she'll be available for my future pregnancies. I only wish that my baby could remember the love, care, and attention she was given by Larissa!

I found Lauren through the Evidence Based Birth website. I was so grateful to have a doula who was…read moreup to date on the research and would help support us in pushing against some unnecessary hospital conventions while still being generally pro-medicine. Lauren was very responsive and helpful throughout our pregnancy. We had great prenatal visits and texted and emailed about some concerns that arose. Lauren always replied promptly with great insight and calm. She was just the same way on the day I gave birth. I texted her early in the day that I was feeling contractions but I thought they might be Braxton Hicks. She suggested I focus on other things and time again in a few hours. Later that night it became clear I was going into labor. I waited a bit too long before asking Lauren to come - I had just started to feel the urge to push when she arrived. But I knew I was in safe hands. She drove me to the hospital while my husband grabbed our bag. Along the way she bent over so I could lean on her through the contractions. I gave birth to our beautiful baby girl 40 minutes after we arrived at the hospital. Lauren cooled my face with a cold towel and massaged me through the contractions. She also took lovely photos just after the birth. An hour later, I turned up my husband and said, "I could do that again." It was no doubt thanks in part to Lauren's emotional and physical support. She stayed another 2-3 hours after the birth as well to make sure we were all settled. Lauren has also been helping a new doula Emily train. Emily attended our birth as well and it was helpful to have her extra set of hands!

I sent an inquiry about availability and setting up a consultation for being my birth doula BUT…read moreShe's not accepting clients right now due to being a recent mom. I appreciated her prompt response to inform me.

Absolutely hire Fernanda if you can! We worked with her for 3 months after our daughter was born…read more Our daughter was born 2 months early and spent a few weeks in the NICU, so we were anxious when we brought her home. Fernanda was a life saver: We immediately felt at ease with her, and it was a huge relief to have someone we could trust caring for our baby overnight. We were actually able to get some sleep early on, which kept us sane. Our baby comfortably sleeps for a long stretch at night in her bassinet thanks to Fernanda. Fernanda also helped us get set up for longer term success with sleep. This included: - Advice on setting up the nursery before the baby was born so things were easy to grab. - Sleep conditioning. This included things like advice for our baby's day routine and advice on creating the right environment (room temperature, whether the room was dark enough, etc.). - Guidance on how to handle the baby on nights when we were on our own. - How to swaddle our baby. Our baby was a swaddle escape artist, and Fernanda showed us how to swaddle in a way that actually kept her arms in. She generally made our lives easier by with: - Washing pump parts and storing milk. - Reports in the morning on how our daughter did overnight. - Gear suggestions. The essentials list she provided before the baby arrived and when we asked for ideas were all on point. - General advice: recognizing when our baby was ready to go up a diaper size, identifying when she was ready for a faster flow nipple on her bottles, how to burp the baby and help the baby pass gas, and other things that take time to get a feel for as first time parents.

We feel incredibly lucky to have found Fernanda during those first few months with our daughter. As…read morefirst-time parents, we had endless questions, and Fernanda was such a reassuring source of knowledge and support. She guided us through everything--from how much to feed our baby, to understanding fussy phases, to answering all the little questions that every new parent worries about. One of the biggest gifts she gave us was sleep. Thanks to her guidance and support, our daughter was sleeping through the night by 12 weeks, which made such a positive difference for our whole family. Because Fernanda cared for our baby overnight, we were able to get proper rest ourselves and truly enjoy our time with our daughter during the day instead of constantly feeling exhausted. She also remained calm and dependable in unexpected situations. During a small earthquake one night, she stayed with our baby, keeping her safe and comforting her in the crib while I made my way to the room. That moment really showed us how trustworthy and composed she is. Fernanda is warm, knowledgeable, patient, and genuinely cares about the families she works with. She helped make what can be an overwhelming transition into parenthood feel so much smoother and more enjoyable. We are incredibly grateful for her support and would wholeheartedly recommend her to any family looking for an exceptional postpartum night nurse.

When interviewing doulas, I knew Fabienne was the one based on her gentle confidence and lovely…read morepersonality within minutes of meeting her. And when I asked her why she'd became a doula, her answer that she'd had an exceptional birth experience created a vision in me that I too wanted to experience an exceptional birth......and I knew she'd be a big part of that! My husband and I had taken several birth education classes before we had our first prenatal education meeting with Doula. Within 30 minutes of her practical yet lightheartedly humorous instruction, my husband turned to me and said "I've learned more than from her than in 12 hours of classes"! Fabienne was there through many late night texts over several days during pre-labor (as a first time mom, thinking i was going into labor). And when my water broke, she was there inhumanly fast and made us feel so confident, peaceful and yet in control of our experience. When I look back at my birth, I joke that if I had to choose between the three people in the room (my mom, my husband and Fabienne), I'd choose Fabienne to be there. And it's only partially a joke! She so effortlessly was there as my friend, my advocate, my voice of reason, my coach and the glue that bound the beautiful chaos into the happiest time of my life. And she did it through 26 hours of labor!!! Even after our little one was born, her knowledge was instrumental, from swaddling properly (a newborn is very different than swaddling a doll!), to avoiding wet through diapers to properly wrapping for skin to skin. She was the best part of our birth experience outside of meeting our son and we hope to have the privilege of having her there when we have our next child! I can't recommend her enough.....your child is likely the most monumental thing that will occur in your lifetime. And the situation and people surrounding that will forever be part of the fabric of your memories. Having her knowledge, experience and love as part of that will be such a gift.

My husband Ian and I had a wonderful experience with Fabienne…read more We met Fabienne at a "Meet the Doula" night at Blossom Birth and unanimously agreed that Fabienne would be the best fit for us. Over the course of my pregnancy, she was there every step of the way with her non-judgmental, accepting approach; finding humor, fun, and friendship throughout the process. I would recommend her lovely services to any lady anywhere!

As first-time parents, we were looking for a postpartum night doula who qualified for Carrot…read morereimbursement and would be a good fit for our family; including our dog. After meeting Arrieanna virtually, we immediately felt comfortable with her. We worked with Arrieanna for the first 12 weeks after our son was born, and her support was invaluable. She provided overnight newborn care, helped with feedings, and offered breastfeeding support, including guidance on latching and reassurance about what was normal. She also taught us practical newborn care skills, such as swaddling and how to use various nursery items we had received as gifts. What stood out most was her kindness, positivity, and communication. Each morning, she provided detailed updates about feedings, diaper changes, and our son's overall disposition, giving us peace of mind. After a C-section and delivery complications, the overnight support allowed my husband and me to get much needed rest and be more present during the day. I highly recommend Arrieanna to any family looking for overnight postpartum support. If you want to prioritize rest and recovery during those early newborn months, Arrieanna is an incredible resource.

I worked with San Mateo Doula for about 6 weeks postpartum. Ari and Jessica were both wonderful…read morewith my son Luca. He was a fussy little guy who was keeping me up all night long. From his first night with Ari and Jessica, he was calm and barely made a peep all night! This put me at such ease. They were understanding and flexible when I was going through numerous bottles and nipples trying to find the right one. Sleep is so important for your postpartum recovery and mental health. I highly recommend anyone who is having a baby to hire a doula even if it's for one night a week. It truly does wonders for your recovery and mental health. Thank you Ari and Jess

We are so grateful for the day doula support and care that we received from Ludgy during the…read morenewborn stage. She was great with our son and was also very supportive to us as parents with encouragement, guidance, and help throughout the day. Ludgy was also very flexible when needed and definitely brought peace of mind during a time where I felt overwhelmed and in need of rest. We highly recommend Ludgy to any family needing postpartum support.

Ludgy cared for my daughter as a daytime doula from the time she was two months until she started…read moredaycare at four months old. Initially we had only planned on 8 weeks but we extended for another month when we realized the huge value, insight and care she brought to our family. From our initial phone call, she listened to our concerns and challenges and proactively offered tips and advice. She also had alot of great product recommendations to make our lives easier, and even went out of her way to get a secondhand bottle sterilizer from a former client since I was reluctant to spend money on more baby supplies. Ludgy was confident in care and very attentive to my daughter. She played and sang with her, supporting her as she did her first roll at three months old! It was a relief to know that my daughter was in good hands while I rested or did errands. This is my last baby, but if we had another I would definitely want Ludgy to come back! We miss her!!

Michelle was my birth and evening postpartum doula for the birth of my daughter. Her nurturing wise…read morepresence eased both the UCSF L&D staff, my husband and myself during a most fantastic birthing experience. She knew when I may have pushed pain threshold too far and gently reminded me of alternative pain relief. Not to mention she used a technique called Spinning Babies to bring my daughter out of an awkward position. Once home, she kindly showed me changes in breastfeeding positions to diminish pain, cleaned dishes and watched the baby so I could take time alone. She held space for this incredible time and we love her like family.

As a first time Dad I was not the one doing the hard work, but for all the dad's out there, the…read morewhole process is not, I'll just say, the most straight forward for anyone involved. Going into the process there is so much unknown and so much that makes you unsure. The most important person to be comfortable in my situation was my wife. In order for her to be comfortable it was very important for me to be comfortable. I understand that having a doula is not necessary, but it sure did help me and my family. The preparation conversations we had made the experience digestible. The advocate we had in Michelle during the process was incredible. The support we had post-partum was so helpful. Michelle has done this so many times and is so familiar with everything going on. To have her on your team allows for everyone to be present and just helps so much. Technically: She knows her stuff. For instance, Michelle is trained in baby spinning and to the doctor's surprise we avoided a c-section at the final hour. It was nothing short of a miracle. Personally: Michelle is solid, levelheaded, caring, fun, patient, prepared and will advocate for you when you need it. She has a short questionnaire to get on the same page earlier on in the process and she stands by what you discuss. I can't recommend Michelle enough, and if you would like to discuss further please ask Michelle to put us in touch.