I'm sure this isn't true (since women have been giving birth for a number of years), but I do not…read morethink I could have made it through my daughter's birth without Jamie (or my husband and best friend). The birth did not go according to plan due to complications that developed in early labor and I was in an inordinate amount of pain for a long time without dilation progress. Jamie's comfort techniques helped soothe this pain over the course of many hours. She stood by us through the entire labor. Jamie was also very helpful by asking smart questions to the doctors and hospital staff--questions my husband and I were too exhausted/in pain to remember to ask. The day we got back home from the hospital, we were confusion about breastfeeding and Jamie over to assist and reassure us. This visit was separate from our post-natal meeting that occurred a few days after that. I cannot recommend Jamie more highly to guide any woman through her birth.

My daughter was posterior as she came out, so my labor was particularly long - 43 hours, of which…read moreJamie was there for 19 - and difficult. Jamie was the calming and stable presence that I needed as things became incredibly intense, especially since I had opted to forgo medication. The positions she suggested to ease pain, encourage regularity in my contractions, and to help me rest were invaluable, and I am pretty sure she massaged my lower back for at least 10 hours over the course of labor. I really do not think I could have gone through all that pain and uncertainty, especially as a first-time mom, without Jamie. Every step of the way as I was ready to freak out because I thought something was wrong, Jamie was supportive and assured me that what I was going through was completely normal, which helped me calm my mind and steel myself for the next level of intensity. At the same time, she was never intrusive or judgmental, and she had a great sense of when to switch off and just be in the background in order to conserve her own energy for the long haul. My husband also loved her - Jamie helped him feel like their roles in the birth were complementary and he never felt useless. I highly recommend Jamie and her services!

We are first-time parents who were set up with Kathy and Kim through this service, and had a truly…read moreincredible experience working with them. It meant so much to have such kind and capable hands around as we transition into life with a baby. I could tell they both really care about the mom and especially the baby's wellbeing, which means so much as a mom. Both Kathy and Kim are such kind people and are so easy to be around, and I really enjoyed having them as part of our family for these last few weeks. Ruth, You are lucky to have them on your team, and I highly recommend Ruth's service to anyone looking for a doula.

We had a phenomenal experience working with Tishara as a night doula. Tishara was incredibly…read moreprofessional, knowledgeable, and a huge help in learning how to understand and care for our newborn. We are incredibly grateful for her assistance!

Kasia is a breath of fresh air - much needed - when you're getting ready to bring a baby into the…read moreworld. I especially appreciated her Theta healing. I had a toddler while pregnant with my second and my work with Kasia created space for self care. Additionally Kasia provides guidance on nutrition and anything else you might need both prior to birth and afterwards. She's a wonderful resource. Birth is one of life's greatest transformations of energy. Having Kasia in the room made me feel supported on all levels. Her genuine presence made me feel safe and relaxed. I cannot recommend her enough.

Kasia epitomizes the name of her company- Honor Nature. She has facilitated me in having the most…read morebeautiful natural birthing experience with confidence. She is very knowledgeable, caring, warm and is there to truly assist you in any way possible. I also had a Theta Healing session with Kasia, her calming presence and genuine intentions will help you ground and reconnect you to your higher self. Being an expectant mother can feel overwhelming and scattered at times, she has helped me to restore myself and paved a way for the big day. During my vulnerable moments, I know that I can always count on her. I don't know how I would've been able to endure the entire labor process without her, seriously! She is a godsend to me!!!

This was our first baby -- not knowing what we didn't know, Colleen provided a regular and much…read moreneeded blend of factual and emotional support. Sometimes that was making sure I had coffee or that my partner got to go to the gym, and other times was about the theory and science of various parenting practices. She came to watch us at home and support what we truly needed and pushed us to try things to optimize our parenting behaviors. In addition, her local contacts put me on a solid breastfeeding plan when I was not producing milk and thought the situation was hopeless. We were with Colleen for two weeks and I truly believe that without this time and what we learned, it would have taken us months to get on solid footing. Colleen was a godsend and genuinely celebrated with us as we became better parents each day. I couldn't recommend her enough and do not think anyone should do this without her!

Colleen took care of our son from age 3 months - 9 months, which gave my husband and I a break and…read morealso allowed me to get back to some part-time work as a business owner. As first time parents, it was really important to us that the person taking care of our baby when we were working or out of the house was specifically experienced in working with tiny babies. Colleen was amazing. She was always super patient and kind. In addition to taking care of him, she gave us tips in areas like sleep, activities, and eating as he grew. We are grateful that she was the first person outside of our family to spend significant time with our son!

One year ago, on this exact day I gave birth to my son (first child). Today on his first birthday I…read morecan't just help thinking of Myla as she played such an essential role on my son's birth. I was lucky to have a smooth pregnancy over the course of the nine months and had a very clear idea about my birth preferences. However, I was concerned about the strict protocol of the main hospitals of New York City. My husband and I are both Italian and birthing process in Italy is different than here. So, we started looking into doulas and interviewed quite a few of them. Myla was the one who impressed us the most. With her calm and peaceful manners but also her deep knowledge on anything related to birth, we both felt she was the right doula to assist us. Myla was really crucial in giving birth of my baby. I had a natural birth and my son weighted 11lb 10oz: a shocking news for everyone especially since I was able to deliver him naturally and with no C section. Having a natural birth was my main wish but I am aware I wouldn't been able to accomplish that without Myla's support. She helped with breathing, soothing massage and expert touch to get my baby in a lower position. My husband was engaged all the time and the three of us literally 'worked' as a team over the long hours of labor and then pushing. Myla reminded us to take our time before rushing into any decision and we truly felt reassured with her on our side. I remember one of the most experienced nurses praising on Myla as she pointed out how lucky we were on having such a knowledgable and passionate doula assisting us (and I guess she had seen quite a few over the years). And yes, we truly felt blessed in having Myla on our side. The process was painful, I won't lie, but without Myla I would not have been able to deliver my baby without a C section. I'm glad I was able to safely accomplish my wish. After my son was born Myla took the time to make sure my baby latched and she even took so many pictures of the three of us during those first moments as we wished to have a memory of those. We could count on Myla even after the birth experience, as we met her again a few days after leaving the hospital to provide guidance and helpful advice with our newborn. "Grazie Myla!" - You were a precious gift to our family.

Having a doula during the birthing process was integral to making the day of my son's birth as…read moresmooth as possible, and Myla exemplifies this. Myla was an incredibly kind, supportive guide through my pregnancy process. She helped me cut through the noise of opinions and blogs and provided the resources to know what and how to talk to my birth team (doctor, hospital, partner, etc). Pregnancy can be a roller coaster of emotions and even fears and Myla helped navigate what questions we would potentially want to ask and how to ask those questions to empower ourselves to make the right decisions. My confidence when it came time to enter into the actual birth I can absolutely attribute to Myla. During my birth itself, Myla was there to help me have a positive experience. Whether it was soothing massage to ease labor pains at home, or just reminding me in the hospital to ask for time to think about choices that I needed to make, her focus and incredible knowledge and many years of birth experience made everything easier. I felt confident that I was making the right choices because Myla was there with me. After the birth Myla continued to be a crucial resource. She is a lactation consultant and guided me in the breastfeeding process. In the hospital she got my supply started and helped me navigate challenges that continued once I was home Myla's full continuity of care from pregnancy to newborn is invaluable. I experienced curve balls throughout the entire time and was able to navigate everything and ultimately have a successful confident experience thanks to Myla.

I can't say enough positive things about Yvette. She was my online baby nurse and got me through…read morepregnancy and while my little girl was a newborn. I always had so many questions and Yvette answered me immediately or if I called she would Always answer. Her advice was ALWAYS Spot On! I couldn't have done it without her. She was also my brother's baby nurse in NYC twice!.... Needless to say, My family loves her.

Yvette is a master. She helped me with my twin girls and I would have been lost without her. She's…read moresmart and comforting, full of decades of experience. I stuck to her plan when they were babies and it still continue with it to this day. My kids are amazing sleepers! I credit it all to Yvette.

Kimm Sun and Kateryn Nunez of Heart Science Midwifery were my midwives for my third home birth, in…read moreJuly 2020. I loved the experience and recommend them highly. Kimm and Kateryn are certified nurse midwives and provide complete prenatal, home birth and postnatal care. They have a friendly office in Brooklyn for pre-natal appointments. I had my baby during COVID, so for the last half of my pregnancy they switched to a more-Zoom approach, while still having me come to the office for key in-person checkups. They do most testing (including COVID) in house, but refer you to specialist clinics for the 20-week ultrasound and one of the early blood tests. They work with an insurance billing specialist who works with many other NYC-area midwives. My previous two babies were also home births without analgesics, so I have (ahem) low expectations of labor and delivery... hopefully this won't come as a surprise to most people reading this... it pretty much sucks. I do it at home not because it doesn't hurt, but basically for safety reasons, as my mom had 4 C-sections and had a lot of health problems as a result, and hospitals do tons of unnecessary C-sections. Good recent research to look up on this topic is Hutton 2019's meta-analysis of intended home birth, and Scarf's 2018 meta-analysis which also includes data about safety to mothers. In any case, back to the birth, my water broke at about 3am, labor started (slowly) at about 3pm, and the midwives came around 8pm when I thought things were really far along. I like to take my time and not push too hard, so that everything has time to stretch the way it should. But the baby's heart rate decelerated over time, from about 140bpm to about 90bpm, and at that point Kimm and Kateryn told me "the baby is telling us that she wants to come out." They helped me change positions for the next contraction, change for the next contraction again, and then Kimm said "you can push her out on the next one"... and I could, and did, just before midnight. The best part about home birth is after the baby arrives. I snuggled our new little one and my mom and two older daughters came to meet her. Then my husband and kiddos took the baby to bond with her some more, I delivered the placenta, and then took a bath while the midwives cleaned up. We had a champagne toast and dessert, and I took a nap on the couch while the midwives chatted with my mom and did the newborn exam. (Everyone was wearing masks of course.) Then Kimm and Kateryn headed home and we all went to bed. I wanted to include a note on some medical questions people ask me about home birth, although please recognize I'm not a doctor and you shouldn't believe everything you read on the internet. My understanding is that no home birth midwives offer medicines for pain relief during labor, because the side effects of those drugs, like lower blood pressure, need a hospital setting to manage safely. However home birth midwives do bring medical supplies to your birth, including supplies for newborn resuscitation and to prevent hemorrhage. About 10-15% of home birth moms transfer to the hospital, usually because they're tired and labor is lasting a long time. Midwives solve the "cord around the neck" problem all the time, with their little finger, just like OB's do - my first two kids both had the cord looped around their neck. And midwives solve a declining heart rate by delivering the baby, which based on this experience I would say they know how to do effectively. Thanks Kimm and Kateryn for a great birth experience! Expectant parents reading this, all best wishes for finding the right people to take care of you and your family during your birth!

The minute I saw Kateryn in a YouTube video about NYC midwives, I knew HeartScience was the…read morepractice I wanted to support me through my first pregnancy. And my instincts were on point! Kateryn, Eva and Kimm were EVERYTHING I needed to help me through my prenatal, homebirth and postpartum journey. And I am 100% sure they will be an incredible support to you and your family as well! Their approach is genuinely YOU-centered and holistic. They gave me the care, education, tools and resources that I needed to maintain my mind, body, and spirit. And I know they will do the same for you! They also created the space for my partner and family to be a part of the experience, which I loved! I am forever grateful for their care, attention and expertise.

I cannot emphasize what a crucial part of my pregnancy and daughter's birth Stephanie was for us…read more Stephanie provided the exact support we needed; from the moment we hired her to the days leading up to my labor to the birth of our daughter to the days after and everything in between. Any question, request, guidance needed - Stephanie was there. She made us feel no shame in asking the smallest questions. She was clear about when something was evidence-based vs her intuition/experience. She never pushed us to do anything and was always supportive of decisions we made. It was important to me and my husband to have a natural birth, which was my main motivation to hire a doula. Truly could not have delivered this baby without Stephanie (I mean, I would have, of course - but likely after much more pain and decisions I would later regret). She was with us on the phone (my husband, mostly) as soon as my water broke and she was with us in person by the time contractions got heavy to get us through the later stages of labor and the pushing/delivery process. Stephanie worked so in sync with the midwife and nurse on my delivery team - it took a village! In addition to Stephanie supporting me, she was also an amazing guide and support to my husband - equipping him with reading materials before delivery and coaching him on best ways to support me throughout labor and delivery. In the days after our baby was born, we talked to Stephanie every day. She visited us to make sure baby was latching properly, showed me some other tips and tricks for feeding, and has continued to provide us with guidance on feeding and pumping and all feeding things! When I become pregnant with baby #2, Stephanie will be among the first to know - could not imagine doing a totally natural birth again without her!

Hiring Stephanie as our doula was one of the best decisions we made while preparing for the birth…read moreof our first child. When my partner and I started looking into childbirth education, we quickly realized how much we didn't know and how overwhelming it could be to research everything on our own. From our very first meeting with Stephanie, it was clear how knowledgeable she is. She focuses heavily on evidence-based information, which was exactly how we wanted to approach decisions around birth. I became interested in attempting an unmedicated birth, although I was only about 60% confident I could actually do it. Stephanie never doubted me. From that point on, all of our preparation and meetings were geared toward helping me achieve that goal. She was always quick to respond to texts and emails and provided detailed, thoughtful information whenever we had questions. Stephanie also did an incredible job coaching my partner ahead of time so he knew how to support me during labor. In our prep meetings, she walked him through different techniques and ways he could help when things became intense. Because of that preparation, he was able to really play an active role during labor. Even during labor itself, Stephanie continued guiding him on how to support me in ways that were actually helpful in the moment. When things were very intense, she would gently coach him on what to do, whether that was how to help with breathing, positioning, or encouragement. If he wasn't sure whether something he was doing was helping, she gave him feedback and reassurance so he could keep supporting me confidently. That support for both of us made a huge difference. When my labor started, I was able to text Stephanie updates and questions and she was always quick to respond and help ease my worries. At one point she had another client in labor (which we knew was a possibility), but her backup doula came to my house and provided wonderful support until we went to the hospital. Stephanie met us there and immediately helped me focus on breathing and staying calm. The moment I'll always remember most was during the pushing phase. I was exhausted having been awake for nearly 36 hours, but Stephanie's coaching and encouragement made such a difference. Her reminders to breathe for the baby and "blow out the birthday candles for the baby," along with her steady counting and encouragement, helped me push through and ultimately deliver my baby the way I had hoped. One unexpected benefit of working with Stephanie is that she is also a lactation consultant. She helped us prepare for breastfeeding, explained how pumping works, and helped us troubleshoot breastfeeding our baby a few days after coming home. I didn't expect that level of support, but it ended up being incredibly helpful. Stephanie is incredibly knowledgeable and very honest. She gives you the information and may offer a recommendation, but she never pressures you if you decide differently. She's straightforward, fact-driven, and clearly very dedicated to her clients. Working with her truly showed me how valuable doulas can be. Stephanie was wonderful to work with, and I would not want to have another child without her by my side.