Due to my privileged position, and very personal experience with Silicon Valley doulas, I can tell…read moreyou it has been nothing short of exceptional since their inception. Czarina brings over 20 plus years of experience, extensive training, and a true passion for supporting families through one of life's most meaningful transitions -- welcoming a new baby. Her background covers everything from lactation consulting and sleep training to postpartum depression and psychosis support, patient advocacy, birth preparation, and more. She's worked with over 300 families over her career thus far, providing truly personalized and compassionate care each and every time. Her depth of knowledge about the birth journey, babies, and the postpartum period is remarkable, and she always approaches her work with professionalism, empathy, and a calm confidence and experience. One thing I respect deeply is her clarity and integrity when it comes to her business policies. She has a no-refund policy that's clearly stated in her contract (which is completely legal and standard for her field). The reason is simple and fair, much like many other businesses she reserves specific dates and times for the families she assists and does not take other clients during those scheduled sessions. When someone cancels or tries to back out of a contract she's already set aside that time, so it's clearly ethical that her time and commitment are respected. If you're looking for a highly skilled, knowledgeable, compassionate, empathetic doula who combines unmatched experience, professionalism, and genuine care, Czarina is the person you want by your side through pregnancy, birth, and beyond.

TL;DR: Last-minute cancellations, fell asleep on duty watching our newborn, refused hands-on baby…read morecare, offered useless virtual support, prepaid for 13 nights, and refused refund. We're disputing the charges with our credit card company. Do not recommend. We hired Czarina for evening doula services shortly after welcoming our newborn, hoping for support and rest. Unfortunately, the experience caused us significantly more stress than doing it alone. The most alarming issue was that she repeatedly fell asleep snoring loudly while on duty watching our newborn. This happened on multiple visits. We could see and hear her sleeping, which meant that instead of resting, we stayed awake monitoring her to ensure our baby was safe. When we addressed this directly, her response was shocking: she claimed she was doing it to "train us to be better parents" and get us used to sleeping while the baby sleeps. As exhausted first-time parents, this felt unreassuring and completely unsafe. We hired a night doula to reduce anxiety, not to monitor the caregiver. Beyond the safety issues, basic doula duties were neglected: * Refusal of Care: She was unwilling to help wash the baby and unable to provide clear, hands-on guidance for newborn care. * Household Help: She provided little to no assistance with basic household tasks. * Ineffective Virtual Support: She attempted to substitute some support with "virtual" sessions, which offered zero value to us as parents who needed physical, hands-on help with a newborn during overnight hours. Her reliability was poor, with multiple last-minute cancellations and rescheduling. Most importantly, we prepaid for 13 nights of service. When we terminated the arrangement due to the safety concerns and poor service, she refused to provide a refund for the unused nights. We were forced to escalate this to our credit card company to try and recoup our funds. Czarina was pleasant to speak with initially, but her actions put our peace of mind at risk and violated our trust. If you are looking for reliable, hands-on postpartum care that allows you to rest, I strongly recommend looking elsewhere. Ask specific questions about staying awake during night shifts, hands-on newborn care (including bathing), refund policies, and what "virtual support" entails before hiring.

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!

We cannot recommend Neri enough. As first-time parents planning an unmedicated hospital birth, her…read moresupport made all the difference. Neri helped us prepare mentally and physically leading up to the birth -- from putting together a solid birth plan to answering questions, addressing research-related anxiety, and being a thoughtful, validating listener. During labor, she was absolutely indispensable. She joined us at the hospital and supported us through every stage with incredible skill and professionalism -- changing positions, massage, breathing guidance, aromatherapy, ice chips, and always knowing what to do next. We truly could not have done it without her. She also advocated for us with the medical team and helped make our unmedicated birth happen, even when others doubted us. Neri is calm, grounded, professional, and genuinely prioritizes her clients with personalized care. We will absolutely be reaching out to her again when we're ready for baby number two!

I feel so lucky to have had Neri as my doula. With over 20 years of experience, her knowledge is…read moreincredible, and she always provides professional guidance. During my late pregnancy, I experienced some complications, and Neri immediately referred me to specialists for check-ups. Initially, we hoped for labor to start spontaneously, but eventually, I needed induction. Neri gave me personalized advice based on my body and my preferences. I chose not to use a water ball and wanted to rely on medication to induce cervical dilation and contraction. Most doctors recommended the water ball, but Neri suggested trying Cervidil. To my surprise, it worked beautifully--I developed regular contractions and eventually experienced a spontaneous rupture of membranes. When I gave birth, my Pitocin dose was very low (only 4), and even with an epidural, I was able to push by changing multiple positions like hands and knees. Throughout the entire process, Neri's professionalism, patience, and support gave me confidence and peace of mind. I highly recommend Neri to any expecting parent--she's not only an experienced doula but also a caring and supportive guide through pregnancy and birth.

Carolina is the BEST EVER!! Extremely grateful to her for giving me support during postpartum. We (…read moreme and my baby ) go to her mommy and baby yoga and we love it. Even though my baby is crawling now, Carolina encourages us to attend her sessions. She is extremely attentive to both mine and my baby's needs. My little one loves her and feels extremely calm in her sessions. Her wisdom and advice has helped me recover from postpartum issues. She's prompt to respond to questions and has high quality resources to offer. Highly recommend. Grateful to her for everything she has been doing for us.

This would have been 5 stars based on the breastfeeding class I attended. I was reluctant to even…read morego to any breastfeeding class because it was important to me to not be attached to the idea of breastfeeding, and I was worried I'd be beaten over the head with how important it is and set myself up for mom guilt if it didn't work out. Quite the contrary, the speaker was really approachable and practical. She talked through just about every scenario and offered a really great mindset - feed as much breastmilk as you can whenever you can, and it's totally OK to make up the difference with formula. Unfortunately, the baby care class dropped this down to 4 stars. It was borderline a waste of time. The instructor was scattered and not very helpful. Lots of tech challenges. Not much help in the way of answering questions or providing practical advice. Very limited hands on practice. I went with a friend because my husband was out of town and I was almost embarrassed that she wasted time in that class with me.

If you are pregnant and trying to decide where to give birth, I HIGHLY recommend Casa Natal! All of…read morethe midwifes are caring and will sit with you for hour long visits to answer your questions. The center is BEAUTIFUL and also has huge tubs you are actually allowed to birth in, unlike other (all to my knowledge) local hospitals that do not allow water births. The perfect in between if you do not really want to do a home birth but want a home birth-like experience in a very gorgeous and peaceful setting! It is also super close to a hospital should you need it (most people do not) and while not needed was great for my peace of mind. They also have a call line where you can ask questions postpartum that is very helpful. Overall, I had a beautiful birth thanks to them and am very grateful. Birth is something you only do a once or a few times in your life, will remember forever, and I am very glad I got to experience this with the team at Casa Natal.

I had my baby girl in June 2021 and I'm so glad I chose Casa Natal (los gatos) for her birth…read more I was with an OB for the first half of my pregnancy and I was able to see the difference in the care provided at Casa Natal versus my OB's office. My OB appointments lasted for only 15 minutes and I didn't feel supported or heard. At Casa Natal, every appointment lasted for an hour, the midwives checked not only for my physical but also my mental health and answered all of my questions. I was able to get acquainted to Melissa, Julia and all the student midwives during my visits. I also took the breastfeeding class that Emily hosted and it was informative and helpful. Coming to the actual birth, it was truly a beautiful experience. I got the exact birth that I had hoped for as a first time parent. I felt supported throughout my labor. Melissa, Tara, and Charlie attended my birth and were the best team I could have asked for apart from my husband. Tara and Charlie guided me with different positions and techniques to help progress with the labor. After about 6 hours of laboring at the birth center, I delivered my baby vaginally, without any interventions and I was back home 4 hours after my baby was born. They also provided me with excellent postpartum care and lactation support. If you're looking for a holistic natural birth experience, look no further. This team is it!

TLDR: Choosing to work with Liat was the best decision I made for my birth. I cannot recommend her…read moreenough and am already looking forward to working with her again. I worked with Liat for the birth of my first child earlier this year, hoping for an unmedicated delivery in a hospital setting. From our very first call, her deep understanding of the healthcare system -- where it excels and where it falls short for labor and delivery -- immediately put me at ease. I knew I'd be in good hands. In our two prenatal meetings, Liat taught my husband and me so much about approaching labor both mentally and physically. The sessions were eye-opening and genuinely prepared us for every scenario we might face. I took birth classes too, and while they were helpful, my time with Liat was by far the most valuable part of my birth education. When the day came, her support was nothing short of extraordinary. She monitored my contractions, came to both my home and the hospital, massaged me through every contraction, helped me reposition, and guided us in navigating the hospital staff with my birth preferences. For hours on end, she was warm, calm, and completely present. It's hard to put into words how deeply cared for I felt -- she has a rare gift for making people feel safe and at home during one of the most vulnerable moments of their lives. My birth went beautifully, exactly as I had hoped, and I owe so much of that to Liat. Both my husband -- a physician -- and I are certain we could not have had such a wonderful experience without her.

Long overdue review for Liat - (VBAC: September 2024)…read more I had an unmedicated VBAC and I cannot stress enough how important Liat was during every minute of labor and delivery. During my first pregnancy i didn't have a doula and barely got any help from the hospital staff. During my initial visit, I was impressed with her confidence (she gave the exact same info as my OB) and chose her to be doula during birth. During early labor she gave the right guidance to manage pain and prolong the stay at home. That helped us reach hospital during active labor which was a key difference from my previous C-section. The hospital staff were surprised that I had progressed so much in my labor, managing at home. Liat helped with different positions during active labor at the hospital, massaging my back which helped during contractions. During pushing, Liat had me push with different positions (I got no inputs from the hospital staff) I trusted her inputs and presence which helped me stay calm mentally. Baby boy came out in a perfect way, and it was truly a dream birth. She had a great relationship with my husband and made him feel at ease throughout labor and delivery. After birth, Liat continued to check in with us every single day to make sure my recovery and everything with the baby was going well. I did not plan for unmedicated birth given that pregnancy and birth are not within our control. But with Liat's presence, I had full confidence to give birth without epidural. 100% recommend Liat!!

Have you ever met someone and thought to yourself, dang, that human was born to do this kind of…read morework and has a real gifting for it? That was my thought about Lauren after meeting her for the first time (she taught our 6 week birth prep course). This woman was in her element. She cared, she was knowledgeable, and and she lit up the room. To our pleasant surprise and an epic answer to prayer, she ended up being our doula and what a gift she was in that space for us too. Lauren knew when to say or do something and the art of not saying or doing. We ended up having a dream birth and I'm not sure I would have been able to do it without her support. She was a part of the dream birth. She came along and partnered with me and my husband in a way that complemented and strengthened. Lauren helped me to trust myself and my body. There are no guarantees with birth. I don't love Lauren because I had a dream birth; I love her because of who she is and am so grateful she was with us and for us in the tender, sacred space of birth. No doula is for everyone, but if something about her resonates with you, book a call to see if there's a match.

Lauren is incredible! She helped me bring both of my babies into the world and I couldn't imagine…read morethe birth experience without her. She brought such a truly compassionate, intuitive, calming, and empowering presence to the experiences, and navigated all of the twists and turns with us. She felt like part of the family, and made us feel so held throughout the entire process from prenatal to postpartum. I couldn't recommend Lauren more highly. I almost want to have another baby just to be able to work with her again! If you're considering hiring her, DO IT! She's the absolute best.

We are very grateful to have had Stephanie as our doula for our recent birth! From the initial…read morecalls, to the birth and postpartum visit, you can tell that she not only has a great deal of expertise, but also deeply cares about ensuring that you have a positive birth experience. Thank you Stephanie for helping us welcome our new little one into the world, and we would strongly recommend her services to others!

We had the honor of having Stephanie as our doula for our second pregnancy. Stephanie is extremely…read moreknowledgeable, friendly and professional. Although the birth didn't go as planned (do they ever?), Stephanie still made sure that I was well taken care of at the hospital and postpartum. We would be delighted to recommend her to all our friends and family!

Lara is here today for a "What's My Baby Saying?" session, and although tired with our 3 week old,…read morewe are thriving! We are so glad to see her since we did the "Bringing Baby Home" classes before our sweet little guy was born. We learned so much during the weekly sessions before, so it is exciting that we aren't freaking out since Lara taught us proper expectations for our relationship with each other and for dealing with a newborn baby at the same time. For us the class was sort of like pre-marital counseling, but pre-baby! Even though we have a pretty great marriage with open communication, we needed to talk through our upbringings, our parenting expectations, conflict resolution with each other and also how we plan to resolve conflict with our son. Lara was a great mediator for us and helped us work through some issues. It was very hands on! I would definitely recommend the classes for anyone expecting a baby!

When I was coming across Lara's listing on Yelp I immediately knew she was the women for the job. I…read morewas wondering where to get some basic info and help for helping out with my sisters who are 2 years and 4 months. She was very informative and answered any question I had. She even had the answers to questions before I asked them. I am glad my friends recommended me to you and I recommend anyone else to her as well!

I've been taking mostly restorative classes at Yoga 6 Santa Clara for a few months after many years…read moreof yoga in other places. I like the community's focus on keeping clean props and a welcoming, calm space. The teachers are all very caring and each bring something a little different. I recommend trying teachers a few times, as each one takes a little getting used to, though each class type has similar structure. I do like the mini reward of the lavender scented towels at the end of class!

I went on the weekend they were hosting free classes, my friend and I booked their Y6 class as it…read morewas the only spots that were open. Initially, the description did not say that the class was heated so imagine my surprise when we both went into the room and it was HOT. The class itself wasn't too hard but it eventually got too hot my friend and I that we had to step out 30 mins in. The front staff was actually kind enough to recommend other classes that were low heat and low intensity free of charge since we weren't able to finish the class. She definitely did not have to but because of the great service I will be coming back!