My wife just gave birth yesterday and she heard a lot of the benefits of placenta encapsulation…read more After hearing about lotus birth services, she decided to have me contact Crystal for preparation of placenta consumption through encapsulation. What a wonderful person crystal was to work with. I was already stressed enough with everything following the arrival of my son, but she made it so much easier to deal with the placenta. She came to Kapiolani hospital to pick up the placenta and delivered the pills back the following day. Her method of preparation is also worry free. Definitely recommend this place if you have any questions or services for anything birthing related.

I contacted Crystal about placenta encapsulation after a close friend recommended her. After I met…read morewith Crystal I immediately regretted not having set her up as my doula for the entirety of my pregnancy. Crystal is professional yet sweet and you can tell she truly loves what she does. Not to mention, her prices are very reasonable for the care you are receiving. I had my placenta encapsulated and had a tincture made. Crystal was super helpful in explaining the process and making sure I was taken care of. I waited a few days after I gave birth to start the placenta pills because I wanted to catch up on sleep first and I only wish I had started them sooner. Since taking them I have lost all signs of baby blues, I feel great, and have noticed an increase in my breastmilk supply. I highly recommend Crystal for both placenta encapsulation and doula services.

Aloha, let me introduce you to Brianna who has been my postpartum doula since my first child was…read moreborn. I met her for the first time just before I delivered. My husband and I just moved from Colorado at the time. So we didn't have family or friends in Hawaii that can help us after I delivered. So I was a bit nervous about our new life. But ever since I met Brianna for the first time, she has helped, advised and guided me when I needed her. So acctually it was nothing to worry about. She is very kind, knowledgeable, patient, calm, flexible and hard working. My English is not perfect since I'm originally from Japan, but she is very perceptive about the moods of others, so I'm very comfortable with her. That's why I would also recommend her to moms who are from foreign countries. Oh, and she is a yoga teacher too. So sometimes I could get a private yoga lesson in our house. After yoga I got some massages from her. It was so good! She always took great care of our house, child (like her child) and also our dog! So I really appreciate her. Thank you so much, Brianna!!

At first the thought of having a stranger in my room during one of the most intimate and painful…read moretimes in a woman's life seemed odd. The first time my husband and I met her she was so calming, yet eager to get to know us and find out our ideal birth experience. By the time we left our first meeting she no longer felt like a stranger, and I knew that she was the perfect fit for us. She truly loves her job and it shows. In the following weeks she answered all my silly questions about pregnancy, birth and everything in between. She even made the hour drive to my house to show my husband and I some amazing labor positions to use before going to the hospital. When I finally went into active labor I had no idea what I was in for but she was right there with her positive reinforcement and calming attitude to help  relax not only me but my terrified husband. Together as a team, we labored over 24 hours. She did not leave my side once. With essential oils diffusing in the corner Brianna helped me change positions, did counter pressure for hours, made sure I was eating and drinking and  being the most effect during my labor.  My birth did not go exactly how I planned it, but Brianna helped us make informed decisions on our options and helped me be emotionally okay with was happening.  When I finally gave birth to my baby girl she even snapped a few quick keepsake photos. Brianna has kept in touch since birth to make sure everything is still going smoothly. She even did my placenta encapsulation. I highly recommend hiring Brianna. She will do everything she can to make your birth experience the best it can be. Her amazing attitude and wealth of knowledge make her a great asset to your pregnancy, birth and post postpartum experience.

I can't say enough wonderful things about Kiersten. She has a servant's heart, a passion for women…read moreand families, and the giftings of so many needed services during the postpartum period. She was so kind and a resource of knowledge to me during my postpartum period. She will be a blessing to all families who invest in themselves by hiring Kiersten.

From the owner: Placenta Encapsulation. Lactation Services. Childbirth Education. Postpartum Doula Serving the…read moreNorth Shore of Oahu, Honolulu, Waikiki, Kapolei, Ewa Beach, Mililani, Wahiawa, Waianae, Kailua, Kaneohe, Queens Medical Center, Kapi'olani Medical Center for Women and Children, Birth Center at Castle Madical Center, Kaiser Permanente Moanalua Medical Center, Tripler Army Medical Center & More. Placenta Encapsulation, Lactation Support, Meal Preparation, Belly Binding and Natural Infant Care.

Jill was truly incredible throughout my entire journey as my doula-- from pregnancy to labor and…read moreeven into postpartum. She brought such a deep sense of peace, confidence, and calm during a time that can feel so overwhelming. Her steady presence, encouragement, and knowledge made me feel safe, supported, and empowered every step of the way. I genuinely cannot imagine my experience without her by our side. If you're looking for a doula who will advocate for you, nurture you, and bring such grounding energy into your birth space, Jill is the one. And as a huge bonus for military families, she accepts Tricare, which makes her support even more accessible. I'm forever grateful for her.

Amazing doula services and classes. Excellent communication and responsiveness. Allowed me to have…read morea successful vbac:)

Yvonne is an extremely professional and experienced Doula, Placenta Encapsulator, Lactation…read moreCounselor, and Evidence Based Birth Instructor.. Having attended more than 50 births, Yvonne has extensive knowledge of the birth community and resources across the island of Oahu. Highly recommended for all our your needs for your birth.

From the owner: Aloha! My name is Yvonne Gray and I am a passionate birth professional offering premium…read more Birth Doula, Placenta Encapsulation and Breastfeeding Counseling Services for expecting mothers and their Ohanas on the beautiful island of O'ahu, Hawaii!service each month to 1-2 so that we can promise and commit to you and your family. Focusing on one family at the time ensures constant availability and individualized care. Packages available.

In general, I would not recommend this class to expecting parents who are not already affiliated…read morewith the church group that puts it on. The instructors seem very nice and likeable, and I don't mean to attack them personally, but the class is a major time commitment, and I feel compelled to share some of my concerns. First, the positives. The instructors are charismatic, and the pastor who leads it has a wonderful speaking voice. I honestly think she'd be fun to hang out with. The class includes useful instruction regarding techniques for labor, massage, writing a birth plan, etc. A lot of the stuff you're there for is somewhere in the class, so if you are willing to sit through it, you may get a lot of the information you came for in terms of feeling more prepared for your actual birth. Next, my concerns. (1) This class has a moderate to strong ideological tone and slant, especially re vaccines. You might be thinking, "well what did you expect from a free class from a group called Birth Believers?" It was honestly a bit more concerning than I had expected. A recurring theme of the class is: "your doctor is going to tell you X, but you shouldn't trust them, and in fact, you should probably do Y or even Z." The instructors will present this as them just providing you with information, but the presentation is not value neutral. You are meant to come away feeling suspicious of doctors and hospitals and favoring "natural" methods. For instance, they'll show you a 25-30 year old graphic video of how babies are traumatized during hospital births and contrast it with a video of an uncomplicated natural birth. Our experience with this was that it just contributed to our stress. One could say that this class presents a lot of their information using scare tactics and negativity. The most alarming example of this was their section on whether pregnant mothers should receive the COVID vaccine. This came up twice - in the first and fourth sessions. In the first session, the message was essentially, "there's no way to really know whether it's safe." I thought this was beyond the instructor's expertise, but I didn't really have a problem with the way she presented it. But in the fourth session, the pastor brought up the CDC's most recent guidance (that pregnant women should get the COVID vaccine) and although she faithfully conveyed the CDC's recommendation, she immediately undermined it by (in my opinion) grossly misrepresenting the study that underpinned the guidance. Audience members were reacting with outrage toward the CDC based on her representation of the data. This was infuriating and, frankly, irresponsible. It's one thing to say "we don't know," but this time, she may have been presenting data incorrectly and strongly implying that we should draw certain conclusions about the impact of the vaccine on rates of miscarriage and other events. The conclusions she was pointing to were, in my opinion, not at all supported by the data. I say irresponsible because a pastor has positioned themselves in a role of power and trust relative to students and congregants, and I suspect there are people who may not get vaccinated now because their view on vaccines is downstream of their decision to trust this pastor who has no expertise in that area. My broader point is that the instructors have an ideological agenda that goes beyond birthing and it gets in the way of what the class is supposed to be about. (2) This class is very long and does not use time efficiently. There are lots and lots of product recommendations and anecdotes in each session, and I am convinced that each session could have been 1/3 as long if it were tightened up. One of the teachers, who is very nice, told the birth story for each of her six kids. They were all very different, they were all interesting, but they were not useful to tired, working pregnant people on a Monday night at 8:30pm. Conclusion: If you're a secular person planning for a hospital birth, this class is probably not for you. This is a religious organization with an agenda beyond the nuts and bolts of birthing, and your time may be better spent with a paid class put on by the hospital where you're planning to give birth or some other organization in line with your values. If you're a religious person familiar with the ideology of this church, you may feel very comfortable in this space and this class. I would encourage you to consider alternative viewpoints regarding matters that seem beyond the instructors' expertise.

Birth Believers is a group that provides Childbirth Education, Doula Services, and Placenta…read moreEncapsulation. I don't know if you follow me / are friends with me on Yelp, or if you are just happening to see this review through looking up Birth Believers...either way, I want to make this clear: Never, in all of my years yelping, being Yelp Elite, and writing reviews, have I ever felt THIS strongly about a review, and about a recommendation. I 100% recommend this doula service. Every single fiber of my being is me telling you: Hire a doula from Birth Believers. Let's start off with some backstory: When I first became pregnant, one of my friends told that me that her biggest regret was NOT having a doula. I honestly thought she was crazy, or just had an unsupportive partner. "Well," I thought to myself, "MY husband is wonderful, and he will help me. We don't need to pay extra money on top of all these other new kid expenses!" I was just silly. Sigh. As I researched and learned more and more about the birth I wanted to have (medication free, natural, hypnobirthing) I kept seeing a theme--many women in my mom groups had traumatic birth experiences because of the medical professionals and interventions that they were forced to have. So many women in my groups were sharing horror stories, sharing success stories, and giving advice, and a resounding suggestion was--HIRE A DOULA. As I got closer and closer to my due date, I started really wanting a doula. Enter Yelp. Yelp offered us tickets to the Baby Expo, and my husband and I jumped at the chance to go! We wanted to get ideas, get more information, and just be more prepared. As we were walking the stalls of vendors and services, a friendly lady with a black Birth Believers shirt stopped me and asked if I wanted a foot massage. I sat and was quickly introduced to Melani. To make a long story short, we chatted, she massaged, and we really connected. We discussed birth, and what my plans for birth were. She encouraged me to enter the drawing for a free doula, which would be her (Melani), as well as enter the drawing for placenta encapsulation, to be done by Mari. After meeting Melani of Birth Believers, having great discussions, and thinking deeply about what we wanted for the birth of our firstborn, my husband and I decided to start saving up and budgeting to hire her. It is a professional service, so there is a cost to it--but the cost is definitely worthwhile. (We had originally wanted to get a doula and placenta encapsulation, but decided that we couldn't budget for both.) However, the same day that we made our decision, that night I received a text from Melani, informing me that I'd won the Baby Expo doula drawing, and that I'd be receiving doula services from Melani for free! She jumped right in to help me--she also invited me to church, and to meet after. We discussed expectations for the birth, and ways that I could make things smoother for myself (good stretches, nutrition, etc.) Throughout the weeks leading up to my birth, we met multiple times, she came by my house, went walking with me, and was always accessible. If I had a question about doctor's visits, nutrition, or pregnancy pains, she was always a text away. Melani was EXTREMELY accessible, and it made me feel so comforted to have someone I could ask questions to whenever I needed. She helped to review my birth plan, and made sure I knew what to expect in so many different ways. She was always there to give me advice, help, and to calm my fears. During labor, she helped beyond belief. She applied pressure through my contractions (which feels amazing, and is worth hiring her just for that!), talked me through labor, and encouraged me. I was a little worried that having her there would make my husband feel uninvolved, but he 100% was part of the birth process--and he LOVED HER! He agrees that she is worth her weight in gold-he has been telling all of his friends and family how she helped him to feel more comfortable, to know what to do to help me (she taught him hip squeezes and other techniques), and how having her there really made him feel more confident through the birth process, as a first time father. Melani really helped me before birth, through birth, and after. If you are considering doula services through Birth Believers, I STRONGLY recommend that you choose to do it. We also did the Placenta Encapsulation--I will try to update this review later to reflect what I've experienced with my placenta pills, but so far, I'm impressed! I really wish that I'd known these lovely ladies sooner, so I could have attended their free childbirth education classes. I'll definitely go next time we are expecting! If Melani is any indicator, I bet I'd get more out of these classes than the two sets I paid for through Kaiser. In summary, get a doula. Just get a freaking doula! Birth Believers is just awesome!!! I can't recommend them enough!

BEST DECISION I COULD HAVE EVER MADE. If you are a mother wanting to feel empowered with your…read morepregnancy and birth, please do yourself a favor and hire Selena and her team. You could be in no greater care than with these incredible women. Words cannot express how grateful I am to have had this experience. During my first pregnancy, I was living in LA and had every intention of giving birth in a hospital. By 35 weeks pregnant, I felt uneasy with the care I was receiving by the OBGYN and wanted to seek out other options. Long story short, I ended up hiring a midwife and doula and gave birth at home 3 weeks later. It was one of the best days of my life. With this second pregnancy, I knew I wanted another home birth from the absolute get-go, so this was my first experience having midwife care from the beginning of my pregnancy up until 6 weeks postpartum. Selena, Jasmine, and Amber have been the most gracious, helpful, knowledgeable, supportive, and loving team I could have ever hoped for. No matter what hour of the day (or night) they have been there to answer any questions and guide me through the entire journey. The level of care I received is unmatched. Truly, I can go on and on about how much I am an advocate for home birth, especially with a team like this one. I had the home birth or my dreams, in large part due to them. I trust no team more than them. We are family. Love them forever.

my husband and i had the pleasure working with Selena, Amber and Jasmine. we were both iffy about…read moregoing to a hospital for check ups and birth. having a home birth can scary as well but these ladies made it so stress free! Selena answered the million questions we had for her. made us feel that this was definitely the way to do our birth! i loved how she let us be hands on with what we asked. my husband caught our baby and handed her right to me. so beautiful and amazing. my body recovered amazingly as well. i've had 2 births in the hospital and this has been the best one yet! we got the HK Package a little pricy but worth it. it included the birth pool and liner. they also set up and break down for you. this was great since it allowed my husband and i to bond with our newborn with a clean atmosphere. i also used Jasmine service for my placenta made into capsules. this is a separate price not included in the package. after the birth, Amber was very attentive to our needs. she responded quick to our text and calls. she never made me feel as if i was a bother. she is very knowledgeable especially when it came to questions on breastfeeding. all my worries were normal lol but it helped when she provided information! Amber you were an amazing doula. if we're still on island for our next baby we would love to work with y'all again! thank you ladies!

My review is alil late but still valid because my sister just used them too so double whammy!…read moreWorking with Hoku Birth Services was so easy going, and the products were amazing. While your in labor its difficult to stay ontop of communicating with people but I spoke to them once and she was on standby awaiting my call on when to come by the Hospital. She definitely delivered 5star service and delivered everything to my hale once it was ready. Great company! Highly recommend!

Haley was so awesome. I called to inquire about placenta in capsulation. She was willing to…read moredescribe and provide all information and answer all of my questions. She was clear, detailed and so helpful. She was able to accommodate me quickly, came to pick up my placenta, encapsulated my placenta and made my tintures, and delivered the final product within 4 days. I was amazed. This was something I knew I always wanted and had intended to do research about but my baby came three weeks early and I was at a complete loss. But thankfully I found Hoku Birth Services and Haley and I am so grateful.