Shelia attended the birth of our first child, and also gave us postpartum support (two visits along with answering countless questions by email and text). We don’t have any relatives in the area, and relied on her for both emotional support and knowledge. She has been invaluable in ensuring this huge moment in our lives has been as emotionally positive and stress-free as possible.

Shelia visited us twice before the birth and answered all our questions about pregnancy and labor. She is very easy to talk to as well as very knowledgeable and experienced. Labor caught us a little off-guard (water broke a few weeks early and labor needed to be induced); Shelia was very good at helping us get over our initial shell-shock and into a good frame of mind to tackle labor. She was instrumental in keeping my wife focused on her breathing and contractions – she was a rock for my wife and me, and just made us feel that everything was always under control. Labor and birth was such a postive experience for my wife and I, and I know it would have been much harder without Shelia. Finally, she has been so helpful to us postpartum, both in terms of knowledge, but also someone we could talk to to help reduce our anxiety and calm our fears.
What makes Shelia such a great doula is a combination of her warmth and her knowledge. She is extremely warm, friendly and emotionally available; you can tell that she truly cares about the families she works with and has their best interests at heart. Furthermore, she is very knowledgeable about pregnancy, labor and post-partum care – she answered countless questions and pointed us to valuable resouces. She’s also very straighforward and precise in her answers; we felt like we were getting the right amount of information in a very clear way. Finally, she has a strong personality and is able to make suggestions and take charge during labor, but also is able to take a backseat when things are going well.