Doula Recs for High Risk Pregnancy?
I’m seeking recommendations for Doulas who are comfortable supporting high risk deliveries in hospitals (and willing to travel to John Muir). I wish I could deliver at home or in a birth center, but because of my health, those are sadly not options. I’d love a very experienced doula who is comfortable and confident in a hospital setting. I’m against unnecessary interventions and want someone who will be incredibly knowledgeable and supportive as well as a strong advocate for me.
Nov 11, 2023
Parent Replies
Meadow Evans is a dream. I don't know if she will travel to John Muir, but otherwise she can do what you need.
Grey Crane - Bodywork and Birth Support (greycranembody.com)
Hi there, thanks for sharing this and I am wishing you ease and comfort during your labor and delivery. My doula was with me for 70 hours of labor and an ultimate c-section delivery which was not wanted or intended and happened because of complications. She was my advocate more than my partner was and I don't know how I would have survived the pain and decisions and discomfort without her. We gave birth in Kaiser Oakland and she has experience with some home, and more birth center, and hospital births.
Her name is Juli Diamond and her email is juli [at] yourecodoula.com. Wishing you luck!!
Hello! I highly recommend Pamela Star (she goes by Star). She was my doula for my high risk pregnancy/birth and was wonderful. She is comfortable with hospital and home births (mine was at Alta Bates), and has supported parents at many many hospitals. I imagine John Muir is among them.
We chose Star after a traumatic first birth experience including a terrible doula who essentially abandoned us, so I was extremely discerning this second time around. Star is warm, nonjudgmental, and excellent at advocating for your needs.
I’m happy to share more of that would be helpful!
I normally wouldn't leave a negative review for anyone online, but because there's a recommendation here for Pamela Star, I wanted to chime in to say that Star was my doula a couple years ago during a high-risk pregnancy that resulted in an emergency c-section and I do not recommend working with her. One of my L&D nurses at UCSF, who was wonderful, shared after my delivery that she had never before seen a doula be so absent and unhelpful. I'm happy to share more details offline.
I just gave birth and became high risk at the end of pregnancy due to preeclampsia. I can’t imagine going through delivery without the support of our doula, Katie Seifert, particularly as we had to make decisions on interventions throughout a long induction. I don’t know about John Muir as we delivered at Kaiser Oakland, but I’d definitely recommend interviewing a few doulas to get a feel for who you want present. If you have the budget for it, I was also very grateful for our postpartum overnight doula, Ruby Neal, who’s support helped my whole family recover from the hospital experience.
https://www.katieseifert.com
I would strongly recommend Yula Paluy! She helped me achieve the VBAC i was hoping for and is very down to earth and data driven in the recommendations and support she provides. https://yulapaluy.com/doula