She-Tara was truly an integral part of my birthing experience. She educated my husband & I in the…read moreweeks leading up to my delivery and made us feel comfortable asking any question we could think of (at literally any time we had a question). She let us know what all of our options were and empowered us to feel in control of our own experience right down to the 'adjusting at home' stage. When I went into labor, she came to the hospital immediately and supported us as much (or as little) as we needed her to and contributed to the safe and healthy delivery of my baby girl. We are grateful for her and highly recommend hiring her.

Let me start off by saying Sarah is amazing and knows her stuff…read more I had a lot of girlfriends that had postpartum so I wanted to do anything I could to not get it with my first baby and this was one of those things to help. It might sound a little crazy but my placenta pills gave me energy when I was exhausted made me a happy mommy and I knew 100% that I was going to do it again with my second baby. I'll never forget coming home with my first baby and waking up in the morning and thinking that my dogs were so dirty ( and they are inside very clean dogs) I thought to myself -now I know why people get rid of their pets when they bring home newborns then my husband gave me a placenta pill and right away I was back to my old self nursing my baby on one side and holding my little puppy on the other side...lol!! I don't know what that was about..... maybe my hormones and my brain adjusting to a brand-new baby, nevertheless I never got baby blues postpartum or anything AND my milk came in with both kids pretty much the same day as I got my pills. Sarah makes it such an easy beautiful process I highly suggest using her and everything she provides I believe deep down in my soul and my brain that this works. Happy baby happy mama

Sarah is one of the most passionate and knowledgeable professionals that I have encountered…read moreregarding natural birth and related services. My husband and I attended her Bradley Method course along with five other couples. Her presentations were consistently filled with invaluable educational content and a delivery that was very easy to understand. She presented research based approaches and information, and recommendations that enhanced our pregnancy and ensured a healthy delivery. As each topic was discussed, she demonstrated such eagerness to share in our journey. In fact, she was always available to assist in answering questions and to help us make informed decisions prior to and after baby. In addition to her superb Bradley instruction, I utilized her services to encapsulate my placenta. Though I do not have a comparison, I was happy with my postpartum results as I attributed my smooth recovery to her services. I highly recommend Sarah to all expecting families! If you have the opportunity to attend sessions in a group that is what I recommend, as we have established lifelong friends along the process. Most importantly, we have a VERY happy and healthy beautiful baby boy!!! Congratulations to all of you in search of services related to your growing families.

My husband and I hired Tara and Susanna as doulas ahead of our first child's birth in 2017, and…read morespecifically worked with Tara. We had a phenomenal experience, which resulted in working with them again for the birth of our second child in March 2021. In both cases, Tara and Susanna were tremendously helpful resources leading up to the delivery date. We always appreciated their candor and insights about what to expect and importantly, what our choices were (which was especially good to know during our first pregnancy). Tara and Susanna were always very responsive and detailed in their communication with us, and importantly, right ahead of the birth. For both births, I had a relatively quick active labor and Tara was there exactly when we needed her. She did an excellent job of ensuring my husband was involved in the labor process and provided us very helpful guidance on managing pain/new positions/breathing techniques. During my first birth, she proved to be a trusted advocate for me in a stressful situation (that almost resulted in an episiotomy), and although my second birth was relatively "uneventful", the quick nature of it made it very intense so we were grateful to have Tara's guidance and calm presence to help us through the birth. We feel very fortunate to have worked with Tara for both births, as her presence was extremely helpful in both cases!

My husband and I hired Susanna and Tara first as doulas, and later as midwives, to support us…read morethrough the pregnancy and birth of our first child. I simply cannot overstate how integral their care, compassion, expertise, and knowledge have been to the entire process of having our son. From the first prenatal visits with Susanna and Tara, they were open, non-judgmental, caring, and insightful. They worked with us to create a birth plan, sent us helpful information to assist us in making informed, evidence-based decisions for our son's care, and were always available for follow-up questions and discussions. Not only are Susanna and Tara both unmatched in their professionalism, but they are also kind, funny, brilliant, and the type of people who just make you feel comfortable and safe. When Covid began to surge as our due date approached, we reached out to them to consider a home birth and ended up contracting them to be our midwives instead of only contracting for doula care. It was the best decision we ever made during our birth and pregnancy process and I wish we had done it from the beginning. As midwives, Susanna and Tara provided the same level of care and insight as before, with an added level of expert care that we were impressed by time and time again. At the actual birth of our son, Susanna and Tara guided and comforted me through 10 hours of labor at home. I quite simply could not have done it without them. When I eventually needed to transfer to Mount Auburn for an epidural and what turned out to be a more complicated birth than anticipated, they accompanied me as far as they could to the doors of the labor ward (they were not allowed inside due to Covid), keeping me as calm as possible and helping me through every contraction with compassion and kindness all the way from our home to the hospital. Our son was born healthy and happy, and we came home to face the ups and downs of life as new parents with the knowledge that we were fully supported by Susanna and Tara. Their help became instrumental once again as I struggled with postpartum anxiety and breastfeeding issues--coming to my house at the drop of a dime when I was desperate for help, and only a phone call away to talk us through our challenges as they arose over the first few weeks. I cannot more highly recommend Susanna and Tara as doulas and midwives. In many ways, I feel like they saved me during my most vulnerable time and made me feel stronger and more empowered when I could have so easily felt defeated instead. Hire them. It will be the best decision you make for your entire pregnancy and birth!

I delivered with the Midwives at Mt. Auburn Hospital just over a week ago and can't say enough…read morepositive things about labor and delivery as well as the recovery period. I had read rave reviews about Mt. Auburn (including multiple people claiming to have had a "wonderful" labor there), all the while wondering how wonderful labor really could be. I now understand completely. From the moment that we called the hospital after contractions started to the arrival and long delivery process, each nurse and midwife that took care of me provided the utmost care, professionalism, and explanation of what was happening next and why. Amidst the inevitable anxiety of a first labor, I felt fully cared for and at ease. I can't thank the nurses enough for their tremendous care during both the labor and delivery process, as well as postpartum care for myself and baby. Postpartum, the nurses and a wonderful lactation consultant provided guidance on everything from what to expect during the first few days of our newborns' life to feeding techniques to giving the baby a first bath. Recovery was peaceful and allowed us time to bond as a family of three. By the time we left the hospital, we felt prepared enough to care for our newborn and with the opportunity to call with any questions that we might have. Thank you, Mt. Auburn!

I'm very disappointed by my recent experience with the Midwives at Mt. Auburn Hospital. My prenatal…read morecare was pretty standard, nothing exceptional. I had a low-risk pregnancy and everything went according to plan. The midwife I saw continually pushed for induction through castor oil, membrane sweeps, and evening primrose oil - these are not proven to be effective and are not positively backed by scientific research. I cannot believe that they don't follow evidence-based research when making medical recommendations. I went into labor spontaneously and progressed well. However, during my entire active labor, the midwife was in the room for no more than 5 minutes total. She basically did a quick pelvic exam and then left me on my own. I had no one in the room with me other than my husband. There was no nurse and no midwife - I felt so unsupported. After about 6 hours of labor, the midwife came back in and suggested a peanut ball and a warm bath, but she disappeared without setting me up with either. I guess my husband was supposed to figure this out? She returned a few hours later and I requested nitrous oxide - She said I needed a form for this (which was already in my file) and disappeared again. I never received anything to manage my pain and never saw the midwife again. I would have hoped that the midwife would have suggested labor positions to ease pain, pressed on my back/hips, showed my husband some ways to help (we took Bradley classes, but some extra direction in that moment would have been appreciated), provided encouragement, shown care, and simply been present. I feel like I was ignored and neglected. No one even brought me water. It wasn't until an OBGYN arrived that I felt like I was validated and heard - she got an anesthesiologist and I received an epidural. The OBGYN delivered my baby via c-section after failure to progress. My after-care at Mt. Auburn was pretty good. I felt all the nurses were caring and competent. I had to self-advocate to get time with the lactation consultants, but they were helpful. Takeaways: If you want support of any kind during labor, you'll need to hire your own doula. If you plan to breastfeed, arrange for your own postpartum doula or seek support from a non-hospital affiliated IBCLC. I am exclusively breastfeeding in spite of the care I received and not because of it. Just find a good OBGYN and forget about all the midwife nonsense - they're basically useless.

THIS PLACE IS THE BEST -- I have been seeing Dustienne weekly for about a year for pelvic pain. I…read morecan literally say that Dustienne is the best medical provider I have ever worked with! From the very beginning she was kind, empathetic, and trauma-informed (so important in any medicine, but especially pelvic care). Over the course of our treatments she healed my pelvic floor and taught me how to understand my own body and maintain the gains from therapy. She always took the extra time to explain what she was doing, ask permission before touching my body, and made me feel comfortable and appreciated. For a therapy that can at times be painful (emotionally and physically), I was surprised to find that after a few weeks I was looking forward to going to my weekly session! Dustienne incorporates yoga and holistic practices into her treatments to the extent that the patient wants them. I would say I have a medium-low interest in holistic treatments and I never felt like she pushed them on me, but that they were always something available if I was interested. I like to understand how things work, and she would pull out medical books with diagrams and show me medical articles and walk through them with me. I think she really meets her patients where they are at and provides them with what they need. Her space in Back Bay is welcoming and calming and very comfortable -- lots of plants and a beautiful view of the Charles. It has a really healing vibe and isn't sterile-feeling at all (but of course it's clean and her COVID preparations were thoughtful and clear). I live in the Cambridge area and it was easy for me to drive and find parking (especially during the pandemic). I believe she doesn't take insurance, but the charges are very reasonable and I was able to get reimbursed by my insurance for the full cost (ie she doesn't charge more than the reimbursable rates for at least my insurances, I've had Cigna and Aetna.). Scheduling is super easy, and she was always available by email for questions about the treatments, billing, or scheduling. My appointments were an hour and 15 minutes -- 5 times the amount of time I get with provider anywhere else but for the same price! If you are wondering if you might need pelvic physical therapy, GO and have a consultation at Flourish! I suffered for years with tight pelvic muscles that affected my sexuality -- I couldn't even use tampons and I always thought something was wrong with me. Being able to heal my body has had a really profound affect on my relationship to myself and my physical/sexual health. If you are starting on your healing journey or working on your pelvic health after trauma or giving birth, definitely try Flourish!

My gratitude to Dustienne knows no bounds. She is an amazing, skilled, talented, trauma-informed…read morephysical therapist. Dustienne not only did gentle, effective internal pelvic floor work; she also taught me about trauma, and how to respect my own limits to re-teach my body what was safe. Some days I'd go in really hoping to do internal work, but my body just wasn't open to it so we'd work on something else. She was so careful to never allow me to push past a boundary. This, of course, actually helped my body learn to trust intimate touch again, and heal the dysfunction and trauma that had been living in my pelvic floor muscles for over three years. I will be eternally grateful to her.

Tara is an expert and the exact person I needed to make my birth experience something I could look…read moreback on with joy and empowerment instead of trauma. Thank you Tara for all of the support you provided along the way in addition to the day-of and postpartum period.

My husband and I wanted to hire a birth doula to make us each feel more comfortable and confident…read morewith labor prep and the process of birth and labor itself (this was our first child). We both wanted someone to support and advocate for us in the hospital if need be and I wanted an experienced person to be with me throughout my time at the hospital to help me through an unmedicated labor should I decide to go that route. After lots of research and interviews we hired Tara for her calm, capable demeanor and her level of experience as both a a doula and a midwife. Tara visited our home twice in my later pregnancy to get to know us and to understand our wishes and build my birth plan. She also helped us to prepare for early laboring at home with labor positions and advice on staying hydrated and resting as much as possible before going in to the hospital. I went into the process with an open mind, thinking that I might attempt an unmedicated birth but I wasn't at all against an epidural or other pain management should I feel it necessary. Tara never tried to dissuade me from that plan in any way which I really appreciated. I ended up laboring at home for 18 hours before going into the hospital - throughout the day we were in constant contact with Tara and she listened to my voice and my contractions to help us make the decision as to when to go in. The nurses at the hospital told us we timed it perfectly when I got there. After a couple of hours laboring in triage with very intense contractions, I made the decision to get an epidural. My labor progressed quickly after my epidural and shortly after Tara arrived at the hospital, it was time for me to push. She worked alongside our amazing Beth Israel nurses and doctors in a really cohesive way and was a grounding presence helping to keep me hydrated, calm, and making sure I was as comfortable as possible and that my husband was able to be by my side and supporting me like he wanted to. She kept a log of events that happened during my labor (which I definitely would have forgotten/been unaware of) and even took our first family photos once our son was born. Since I had an epidural and had labored at home for most of the time, our time with Tara was much different than I had envisioned (she was really only physically there with us for my time pushing). Had I gone ahead with an unmedicated birth, we would have made "better use" of her since I would have felt like I needed her in the hospital with us sooner. Nevertheless, my husband and I were so grateful for her calming presence throughout the day and for the time we did have her there with us despite not feeling like we "needed" her as much. It was still so nice to have her with us! We are so grateful to Tara for her guidance and support and highly recommend her to all other parents-to-be!

Alex is completely amazing. My first time doing a guided meditation was very fulfilling…read more Alex is also an extremely compassionate and caring person who truly goes well beyond her clients' expectactions.

Short version: Yes! If you are considering reaching out to schedule a FREE consultation or to book…read morea session - do it. Long(er) version: I first came to Alex at Empowher You last August. I was considering attending one of the Meditation/Group Reiki classes that I had found on Meetup and reached out to schedule a free consultation (not a requirement to attend one of her classes). Alex got back to me quickly and we met for a consultation that week! During our initial meeting, everything felt right and I chose to receive my first healing - Life Activation. My life began to shift immediately! I got a new job, was finally able to move out of an apartment that I'd felt stuck in for years, and felt ready to begin to address issues that were keeping me from growing and connecting with my higher self for years. Since receiving Life Activation, I have gone back to Alex for Ensofic Ray, Spirit Activation, Negative Energy Clearing, Shamanic Aura Healing, and Soul Retrieval! In my experience, each service is like a little (or giant) booster that helps me to power through blockages and accelerate my healing and growth. You still have to do the work, but Alex will help you to remember that you can and that you're worth it! About 8 months into my healing journey I am amazed with the progress that I have made. I am so grateful that I have made the decision to heal and continue to make that choice; I do not believe I would be where I am today without the support and guidance that I've received from Alex at Empowher You.

I have always dreamed of having a water birth. At first my partner was unsure about a home birth,…read morebut after consulting with the Birth Matters team, he got on board and we were able to birth our little on at home, in peace, without any complications. This was largely due to the care and the experience of our midwives at Birth Matters. We cannot thank you enough. You answered all of our questions, you were comprehensive, you were accommodating, and turned my family into home birth believers! I highly recommend the Birth Matters team and would do this all over again if and when we have our second child.

I contacted Sarafina and Jessica of Home Birth Matters Midwifery Care in February of 2011 upon…read morefinding out we were pregnant. The pregnancy didn't last long, sadly. Both midwives spoke with me on the phone daily while I was having complications and though I never met them, the offered so much support to Big Love and I through our loss. They offered encouraging words and made me feel normal in what I was experiencing. During the summer of 2011 we found out we were pregnant again. I once again reached out the the midwives and made an appointment for a home visit to discuss planning our home birth. They came to our home, hugged me, and lounged around on my couch just chatting about the care they had an answered all of our questions. Since that day, Big Love and I knew that they were the right choice. They just felt like old friends from the start. We opted to have home visits as opposed to office visits. Every visit they would come to our home, check my belly, answer questions and have a few laughs. It was a great way to get to know them and by the time my labor came, I had no issues with showing them any of my lady bits or bodily functions. Sarafina and Jessica were always encouraging. Our parents had concerns about having a baby at home so we invited them to one of our home visits. I think they must have asked a hundred questions. The midwives sat there with smiles on their faces, cool, calm and collected and answered every single one with confidence. Our parents have been home birth converts from that day on. Early May I went into labor. Awhile into labor Sarafina arrived followed by Jessica soon after. There was no intervention and little interruption during my labor. They would offer suggestions every now and again but mostly just followed my cues. They would check the baby's heartbeat with a fetal monitor from time to time and talk me through contractions. At the last of my labor I went into the birthing tub and everyone sat nearby, talking me through pushing. The midwives saw that our baby was being born with his hand and an arm near/around his face. They had great poker faces and didn't give anything away. They very calmly guided me through pushing and helped reposition my leg to give the baby a little extra room to pop out. Mickey was born exactly 13 hours after I went into labor at 4:40pm. I was oblivious to him actually being out and Jessica handed the baby under my arm and into my hands saying "Kati, look at your baby". I could hear the smile in her voice. ***Okay, you came for a review not a birth story right??? Well, you're getting both. Birth is important and these midwives kick major ass.*** Jessica and Big Love weighed Bebe Smash and she took many measurements. She tenderly turned the baby over, smiling the entire time and I knew that my child was in the best care with these two. Our family came and they quietly left saying they would be back for hugs and a visit the next day. During postnatal visits they came to check on me and the baby. I had difficultly with breastfeeding but Jessica sat right next to me and showed me different positions for Bebe Smash to be in while I tried to get the hang of it. She shared her own stories of early parent difficulty that made me feel much better. Sarafina sat on a little stool and rubbed my feet. They were just so loving. I called them and texted them a hundred times over the first 3 weeks with questions and pictures. They responded to every one. Often calling hours later to check up on my progress. With any new concern my husband would look at me and say "we'd better ask the midwives". A call or a text later and our fears would dissolve into the abyss. How lucky we were. During one visit they did a heel prick on Bebe Smash for some blood work. He didn't make a peep while Sarafina blotted drops of blood onto the paper and I commented on how he didn't even move. She told me - and this is how I feel about the care me and my family have received from both Sarafina and Jessica through this entire experience - "it's because we do it with loving intention". I can honestly say that my husband and I genuinely love these women. I can say with certainty that they love us in return. And they love our son, we've seen that through the excellent care they've provided over the past year. These women are more than midwives. They love so honestly and yet so professionally. I can't imagine any other way to go through the stages of having a baby. We often comment on what we're going to do once we're done having babies. I'm confident we will find a way to infiltrate their lives so we can know them for many years to come. We have a healthy, happy, thriving baby boy and I know it's because he has led a very gentle life - from his days as a little sesame seed, through birth, and until now when he's learning to roll over. They were instrumental in helping us achieve this for him. We are planning more births and without a doubt, these women will be a part of those as well.