Doulas and Hypno Birthing Classes

I am currently in Kathy Woo's class and I cannot reccomend it enough. 

Im still pregnant so I can't speak to the efficacy of Hypnobirthing itself, but Kathy has given me so much information and confidence about the whole process. 

I honestly don't understand how anyone could go into the birthing process without taking a class like Kathy's!!!

She is so funny, relatable and knowledgeable I wish she was still doing Doula work! 

I am not using a doula, my husband is very confident after this class that he'll be able to play that role. 

Hi there! I just wanted to respond to recommend my doula who was absolutely amazing. I met her through Birthways meet the doula night and felt an instant connection with her. Her name is Shoshana Friedman Hawk and you can check her out on http://www.encirclingmothers.com/

Hi Andrea,

While I did not use Yume as my doula, I did utilize her for accupuncture to try to induce my labor naturally. You can learn more about her here:

http://www.acudoulayume.com/

She was very responsive and I would be open to using her as my doula for future pregnancies. 

I recently had a natural birth at Alta Bates that was attended by one of their staff midwives, my husband and my doula (who I would recommend, but this is not her usual line of work). If you have any questions I'd be more than happy to chat or type with you about the experience. 

All the best,

Kelly

Hi Andrea,

I highly recommend Blythe Lee of 3 Daughters Doula. In addition to delivery, she does 3 prenatal visits and talks about the process in a very scientific and engaging way. Then 1-2 postpardum visits.  She is so warm and easy to connect with. Both my husband and I felt like we had known her for years after our first meeting. She worked with the hospital staff very well and they were happy to have her help.  Happy to give more details if you want to message me personally.

Kim

I can recommend Judy Sarna - (contact judysarna<at>icloud<dot>com):  She is a DONA Certified Doula/Postpartum Doula, and also a certified HBCE (HypnoBirthing Childbirth Educator).  She was recommended to me by my friend, who is also a childbirth educator.   I worked with her during my Postpartum period, and she was so great that I wished I had known for before my birth! 

I highly recommend Britt Urban. I worked with her for the birth of my son in March and had a wonderful experience. 

http://www.urbandoulacollective.com/

i would highly recommend Shoshana Friedman-Hawk and Lori Jaffe. They work as a team and were absolutely incredible. Working with Shoshana and Lori was the single best decision that we made in creating our birth plan. From the expert and thoughtful pre and post natal support and education that they provided, to the immense support throughout labor, we couldn't be more grateful. 

Shoshana was on call when I went into labor 2 weeks early. She was the first call that I made, and helped me find a sense of calm, remain grounded and take the steps that I needed to when my mind was in a million places. This was the case throughout the entire process. Shoshana provided steady, grounded and comforting support during the most vulnerable time in my life. She had a fabulous way of helping me mentally reframe the pain into positivity in regards to the baby progressing just the way she should be and making her way down to greet the world. She created a sense of excited anticipation in a time that I could have easily gotten mentally lost in the pain. Shoshana was incredibly empowering. She was steady and comforting and knew just the techniques to manage the pain, distract me when necessary, and even managed to make me laugh during labor. 

 While Lori wasn't on call when we went into labor, she was a wealth of knowledge during our pre and post natal visits, not to mention that she also stopped in twice throughout labor and brought so much warmth and support with her. We felt so genuinely cared for, and Lori went above and beyond.  Shoshana and Lori are a fantastic team and we felt like they had become part of our family throughout the process of working with them. We will absolutely be wanting to work with them again if the opportunity presents itself.

I worked with Lori Jaffe as a postpartum doula, though she is also a birth doula. She was a rock-steady presence for me as I navigated those disorienting first few weeks and months of parenthood. Her calmness and confidence with a baby was a comfort and an education to me. I learned innumerable tips from her every time she came over, and I also felt totally secure leaving my baby in her capable hands as I took the time to do some things for myself. I appreciate that Lori is good mix of spiritual and practical -- she prefers natural methods as much as possible, but also puts a premium on what's safe and (every new parent's urgent need) what actually *works* for your baby. It's clear that she really cares for each baby she works with, as she still checks in with me and wants to know how my little boy is doing, even though she is no longer coming regularly to our house. Plus, she brings what moms of newborns often need most of all: good company!

Lori also made a huge impact on childbirth for me, even though she was not officially my birth doula. When my water starting leaking early, she responded quickly to my texts and calls and guided us on how long to wait before going to the hospital. Because of her, I was able to wait, spend a quiet night at home, avoid the labor induction that the hospital wanted to give me, and deliver quickly and naturally when baby was ready.

Lori is at https://doulamatch.net/profile/9208/lori-jaffe