We really enjoyed the two-day accelerated hybrid birth class with Shalin. We feel confident going…read moreinto labor thanks to the class. Shalin was very knowledgeable and her passion for labor and birth was evident in her teaching style and material. We recommend this class to anyone wanting a comprehensive class on labor and birth in 2, 3 hour sessions.

My husband and I took "Comfort skills for an easier labor" course this past weekend and our…read moreinstructor Shalin had so many helpful tips for both my husband and I. We left the class feeling more educated and prepared for labor and delivery; especially my husband who learned coping mechanisms to help me power through contractions and pain management. It was a great course with plenty of information that wasn't overwhelming. We appreciated the hands on scenarios and guidance that was offered in this class. Thank you for offering this option to our community.

For my third birth portal, I decided to hire a doula for the very first time. I thank the universe…read moreevery day that Chazzlyn held and guided me through the most intense and transformational experience of my life. Chazzlyn brings her beautiful blend of evidence-based birthing wisdom along with her intuitive superpowers and caring heart to make women feel respected, loved and supported. I feel totally safe and comfortable with her, not only during labor but in this tender post-partum season as well. She also knows when I just need to be held, and holds space for me in the most heavenly way when I need to cry. Chazzlyn also accepts most insurance plans, for which I am extremely grateful as this made hiring a doula financially accessible for me and my family. She is passionate about her work with women. Though she is extremely experienced not just as a doula but also a midwife assistant, I also respect that she is continuously expanding her knowledge base and attends workshops because learning never ends. Contact Chazzlyn now and start your dialogue with her about working together. You will be so very grateful that you did. I know I am. She has changed my life and the life of my entire family for the better.

Chazlynn was such a gift to our family during my labor, birth, and postpartum journey. The entire…read moreexperience with her was just wonderful from beginning to end. She truly listened to me and cared for me in a way that made me feel seen and supported during such a vulnerable season. As I adjusted to life with a newborn while also caring for my toddler, her presence brought so much peace. She helped me navigate that transition with confidence and reassurance. What meant so much to me was that her support wasn't just emotional -- it was tangible. She jumped in to help with laundry, dishes, meal prep, and made sure I was actually nourished while nursing my daughter. That kind of practical care made a world of difference in those early weeks. She also encouraged connection between my husband and me, which was such a blessing during a season that can easily feel overwhelming and exhausting. I am so grateful we had her by our side. I can't recommend Chazlynn enough to any mama looking for real, compassionate, hands-on support.

I feel incredibly lucky to have had Shalin as my doula for the birth of my second child! Shalin is…read moresuch a warm, caring, and genuine person. As a doula, she is extremely capable, professional, and supportive. When I first connected with Shalin via videochat for a consultation, she instantly made me feel comfortable. I decided to go with Shalin based on how experienced and knowledgeable she seemed, as well as how comprehensive her doula services package was. Over the course of my pregnancy, Shalin visited my house several times to educate my husband and me about the birthing process, evidence-based approaches to birth, and different ways to prepare my body for birth, and to go over my birth plan. The whole process made me feel really prepared for the birth and gave me a greater understanding of what I wanted for the birth. I also appreciated that I got to know Shalin more during the pregnancy so that she didn't feel like a stranger at all. In fact, she is so warm and friendly that she felt more like a friend! She didn't push any particular views on me but wanted me to feel supported in my birth preferences.  When I went into early labor, Shalin was very responsive and kept checking in on me to see how labor was progressing, and when we decided to go to the hospital, she was super quick to meet us there. She was prepared in every way and set up lights and candles for the room. The hospital room was a vibe and very peaceful! Since I gave birth in a hospital setting, it was also important to me to have someone who could help advocate for me. When my hospital care team asked me to do certain things, Shalin checked in with me to see if I wanted to proceed with what they were asking. During the labor, she suggested different laboring positions and did counterpressure and other comfort measures, which helped me tremendously in coping with the pain. With Shalin's help and support, all my birth preferences were met! I had such a positive, empowering labor - something I never would have thought possible after my first delivery experience (without a doula).  I loved having Shalin as my doula and I highly recommend her! I can't stress enough how having her as my doula made such a difference to my second delivery experience. I am so happy with how everything went and really couldn't have done it without Shalin!

When I wrote this last time I was the supporting non-birthing parent. Thankfully just got the…read morechance to work with Shalin from the other side with the birth of our newest little one!! As always Shalin is the most incredible, compassionate, kind, resourceful, and caring doula. My full updated review is here below! :) https://yelp.to/Xwqw8UCKBk

My only regret with having Rowen as my midwife was that I didn't choose her from the start!…read more I started care with another midwife who I ended up not connecting well with and at 30 weeks we parted ways. It was a very stressful time and I was anxious about finding a good midwife so late in the game and having time to develop a close, trusting relationship before the birth. Rowen was all of that so much more. I really wish I had found her at the start as I would have loved to have shared my whole pregnancy with her. Rowen is a very intelligent and caring person, and a with-women midwife. She had complete respect for my point of view while also being able to educate and provide answers to any questions I had. She took the time to connect with me and really understand what I needed from her care and I couldn't thank her more for that. I wanted my children very involved in prenatal care to prepare them for our homebirth and she did all my checks at home, at my request. Her willingness to support my desired model of care was evident in every appointment. I ended up having some unusual health complications and Rowen was completely dedicated to furthering her knowledge and skills to support me through that. She is also very well established and connected in the bay area and was a wonderful resource in providing referrals for specialist treatment. If everything goes right, Rowen is the midwife you want at your home birth as she'll create the space just as you want for a wonderful, emotionally sensitive, safe birth. If everything goes wrong, Rowen is the midwife you want as she'll be in there to bat for you, working alongside the many bay area practitioners she knows well. I felt my baby and I were safe with her support and care, at home or in case of transfer.

When I found out I was pregnant with my second child, I knew I wanted Rowen to be my midwife. She…read morewas my childbirth educator and doula for my first birth and was by far the best of all of the birthing professionals I worked with during that whole experience. My entire prenatal, labor, and birth process was so different with Rowen. She practices a midwifery model of care that focuses on treating the mother as a capable and intelligent adult who is in charge of her own care, with the midwife there to provide expertise, information, and support. She was also fantastic about welcoming my husband and daughter into the pregnancy and birth process, and her standard visits are an hour so she can really check in with you about how things are going. Contrary to a lot of assumptions that a homebirth with a midwife is just for crazy fringe people who are anti medical science, I found after heavily researching all of my options that the model of care offered by Rowen and other midwives like her was by far the most evidence-based available to me as a woman with a low risk pregnancy in my area. Rowan wanted me to labor wherever and however I was the most comfortable, and she provides use of an inflatable birthing pool for women who want to labor or deliver in the water (I did both). My water broke early this time, and if I'd been in a hospital with practitioners insisting on unnecessary routine internal exams and/or a policy of c-secting at 24 hours, I would almost certainly have ended up being pressured or forced to have interventions that I didn't have to have with Rowen, either unnecessarily or because of the higher risk of infection in hospitals. Rowen and her assisting midwife, Hope, just monitored my temperature, didn't do any unneeded exams, and reassured me that I wasn't on an arbitrary clock. Rowen helped me with positioning exercises to get labor going, and after 6-7 hours of real contractions, I had a very straightforward, safe delivery of a second little girl. My postpartum recovery was much easier, and the entire process, both clinically and in terms of my and my family's experience, was just night and day compared to my first birth. Rowen also works with a specialist who helps file and process insurance claims and has a great record of helping families get their insurance to cover all or part of Rowen's fees, which are much cheaper than working with an obstetrician even though she spends significantly more time with her clients both prenatally and in labor. Ultimately, I can't recommend Rowen highly enough.

My husband was hesitant to hire a doula. He had all the typical concerns: cost vs benefit, do we…read moreREALLY need someone to provide advice and guidance, what will a doula do that a nurse won't do. Etc. This was our second birth. Our first went okay but wasn't enjoyable by any stretch and fell short in many ways. Specifically knowing and fully understanding all options and their implications. This time I just really wanted someone knowledgeable and experienced who was completely our advocate. Murial came highly recommended by another trusted healthcare provider. Murial has been amazing. She listened and taught us how to be better at getting the care we wanted. My husband felt totally supported and relieved of the burden of going it alone as my only support. That was HUGE! She was available every step of the way - and thankfully, due to an unexpected change of doctors - was our security and constant in a whirlwind of change right before the birth of our son. We LOVE Murial and highly recommend her to anyone wanting an intelligent, caring, knowledgeable birth educator and personal advocate.

Murial Barkley-Aylmer was our sibling doula, and I cannot recommend her highly enough. She is an…read moreincredibly special person. She is a birth/sibling/post-partum doula, and she was a gift to us in all those capacities. Our primary arrangement with her was as a sibling doula for our 3yo son during the birth of our second child. She and our son already had a relationship before the birth because she nannied very part time for us for a while (before she made the switch to doula work), and our arrangement with her was for her to come to the house once my labor had started, and then she and our son could go "have a little adventure" while the baby was being born. Murial is, in my opinion, a priceless combination of calm and bright energy. Her presence is soothing - for a few hours before our son woke up, she was able to act as a birth doula for me, and I still think about her gentle foot...holding?? (I mean, wtf was she doing?! I don't know, but it was amazing.). But she also has this bright energy that both kids and adults are super attracted to - creative, fun, silly, respectful, empathetic, intuitive - all the things I wanted in the person who was going to be with my son during such a pivotal and vulnerable moment in his life (the birth of a sibling). He had a fun time on his adventure with Murial, and then she stayed for a few hours after they returned - she made sure I was fed and my needs were met, made me a placenta smoothie and prepped and froze more placenta, and continued to help with our son. In the months after the baby was born, we continued to have Murial come a few times a week in the capacity of post-partum doula. Her help and presence were critical to my mental and emotional health at that time - the baby was colicky and a poor sleeper and finicky nurser, our son was regressing in many areas, and my husband's back went out(!) and then he went back to work. But when Murial was in our house, everything seemed to be okay. One other nice thing about Murial is that she is a certified counselor. So she is basically a professional listener/empathizer/guidance giver. :)

Katie is incredible! I had my daughter in April 2010 and after having a difficult beginning I…read moredefinitely felt quite anxious with my start into breast feeding. Katie was extremely kind, patient, very encouraging, and very relaxed with me. She had great resources and was very good about getting back to me when I had a question or concern. She had so much knowledge on early childhood development which was a huge help with learning the ways of my new baby. Very importantly was that I never felt judged by her. She always encouraged me to do what worked best and to listen to myself and my daughter. I've been successfully breast feeding for almost 8 months and I truly couldn't have done it with out Katie's wonderful support. I have a new found confidence in myself and a very lovely nursing relationship with my daughter. Katie is the best out there and and a real natural at her work.

From the owner: Trusted breastfeeding and postpartum support from a caring, board certified lactation consultant…read more Serving Nevada County families in person and families everywhere online.

What would we have done without our team!? I genuinely cannot imagine another birth without the…read moreRRDS team! Hailey and Maddee were a dynamic team that supported us in prep, L&D, and postpartum. Hailey was our primary doula and she came in with such expertise, attention to detail and passion for what she does. She listened so intently to our needs and helped us curate a birth plan my husband and I felt confident in, and ensured our medical team followed our plan. At the time of birth she not only ensured all my needs were met but also guided my husband on how best to provide me support to create an intimate and connected birth experience. As first time parents the availability and responsiveness of this team helped us navigate L&D and the early weeks. My only regret was not signing up for this team earlier in my pregnancy!

I truly wish there were more than five stars that we could rate give this team. This service has…read morehelped us with our second child like no other. There were multiple unforeseen circumstances that came up after our child was born, such as illness of our oldest child, Medical emergencies of myself or my wife. They have come through whenever we needed help. They moved things around on their schedule to help when needed the most. The feedback they gave every night was helpful as well. They are truly Masters of their craft. Theyre very good with communication, taking care of the newborn and just overall good people. I don't think I've met a kinder group of people. You could really tell that they put their hearts into what they do. It's not just a job to them. They are here to help mothers get through the most difficult time after childbirth. I could see the struggles my wife was going through, and I did my best to help, but I knew that it wasn't enough. Rebecca and her staff provided that extra edge we needed to help out my wife. They truly are a godsend.

These incredible women. I cannot say enough about their amazing spirits, willingness and…read morecomfortability in serving and how cared and looked after they make you feel. They are lights to our community and to the families they are able to serve. You will absolutely not regret utilizing their services and the goodness and warmth they can bring to really difficult transitions. Their knowledge and skillset is optimized for care and loving kindness.

I am disappointed to write that I was ghosted by this company during a very sensitive period in my…read morelife. My husband and I are new residents to California and I am currently pregnant with our first child. We have no family in the area. I had a phone consult scheduled with the owner, Ms. Michele, on January 5th, 2026. She called me on time and we both mutually agreed to move forward with the on-boarding process for doula services for my pregnancy. She requested that I call my insurance company and gather the information for her in an email. I did this, and sent her an email the following night, on January 6th. I didn't hear anything from her, so I sent a text message to both her work and personal cell phone number on January 9th. No response. At this point, I am 37 weeks, and anxious to move things along for doula services. The weekend and Monday goes by, and I still have not received a reply. I decide, as a last attempt, to call her. I called both her work and personal cell phone and left a voicemail on each line on Tuesday, January 13th. Nothing. Shame on the owner, Ms. Michele, for stating that she will move the process forward and said she will have a doula for me for my birth. She lied. She disclosed to me during our consult that she is a mother herself and had over twenty years of experience working as a L&D nurse. This provided me great relief and happiness, only for it to be crushed when she never replied to my messages. How can someone with this sort of background make a promise and then not follow through? Ms. Michele should be ashamed of herself not only on a professional level, but also on a personal level. This seems to be a wider issue with the Doula profession as I was ghosted by another local Sacramento doula company as well as the Volunteer Doula Coordinator at Mercy Hospital of Folsom. I believe doulas are a valuable asset to a woman's birth experience, however, I will not be wasting my time anymore trying to arrange one for my pregnancy.

Tara is simply the best! My delivery was an amazing life experience. She was attentive, gentle…read moreyet firm and made me feel as relaxed as someone can be during labor. We did almost all of my labor at home and she got me to the hospital in perfect time for the delivery. My request was to be 100% natural birth. She helped guide my pregnancy wishes to full fruition. Would I recommend her? Absolutely yes!

Tara is warm, comforting ,and knowledgeable. She is exactly the person you would want guiding you…read morethrough pregnancy and birth. Her care didn't stop after birth either , it extended far beyond that. When I was worried about my sons jaundice she accompanied me to the ER and waited with me for hours into the evening while his levels were checked. She was a true advocate for us in a place where it's easy to feel timid and pushed along. And even though his levels were fine , she taught me it was better to have peace of mind and okay to seek reassurance. I'll never forget her kindness .