Shelia was absolutely key to me getting through 16 hours of back labor and ultimately having the unmedicated vaginal birth I wanted. She kept me active, applied magical counter pressure, helped me communicate with triage nurses, and helped me understand what was going on in the room around me. My pushing phase is a blur in my memory, but I clearly remember her repeating the mantra “your body is safe” over and over – she became my tether and my lifeline during that time. I wasn’t planning on having photos of my birth, but Shelia took some for us, and I am so glad she did. Seeing my husband’s joy and my son’s first moments of life melts my heart. I know I would never have had the amazing birth experience that I had without her. Thank you!

We chose Shelia as our doula for our first born during the craziness of Covid and are so glad we did.  From day one, Shelia made herself available for any questions or concerns and would respond back to us within hours. She provided us with resources for birth classes, pediatricians, and gave us her honest opinion about changing delivery hospitals halfway through the pregnancy. During an ultrasound at week 33 we found out our baby was breech. Shelia taught us different positions and gave us recommendations for chiropractors to help turn the baby. We took her advice and by week 36 our baby was head down.  At our 37 week appointment I had a high blood pressure reading which required an induction at week 38. Shelia was the first person we called and she calmly talked us through what we could expect for an induction. It was a super scary time as we were not anticipating an induction, yet alone an induction for medical reasons, but we felt much more prepared for the induction after speaking with her. As the induction took place and labor progressed, Shelia helped me to manage through the pain with breathing techniques and trying different laboring positions. There were several occasional where I began to feel defeated with the laboring process but she was there to  encourage me to continue on. Once our baby was delivered, Shelia stayed with us for a couple hours to ensure I felt comfortable with breast feeding and to answer any other questions we had. She also made herself available to us after we left the hospital and were at home with our little one.

I can’t say enough good things about Shelia. I really believe she is the reason we had a successful delivery. Shelia works well with the nurses, is well educated with the pregnancy and delivery process (and complications that may arise), is supportive, and is super easy to get along with. If you are thinking about hiring a doula, please consider Shelia.

Shelia is a warm, genuine, friendly, and confidence-boosting doula. She helped me to identify triggers and my own thought process about birth beforehand, assisted my partner and I to advocate for my health, and was with me as I brought our baby boy into the world. Her words of encouragement throughout the process allowed me to focus and not be overwhelmed. She knew exactly when to suggest a new position and respected my voice and emotions when something wasn’t working. Going through pregnancy and delivery during Covid was not easy and she was a caring, maternal presence that calmed me throughout.

As a postpartum doula, I can’t say enough positive things about her. She held space for me to process my experience and as I entered the new phase of motherhood. With her encouragement, I was able to learn so much in a very short period of time about self-care, making meal prep easy, changing diapers, soothing infants, and breastfeeding. Her support during the first month was invaluable and we, as a family, are forever grateful that she was a part of it.

I wish I could find all the words to describe what an amazing, rewarding and unforgettable experience I had with Shelia. Shelia is just simply a unicorn – wonderful, magical and the light that guided me throughout this journey. I could write an essay about about how she will forever hold a place in my heart for being there on the most beautiful day of my life 🙂 From the moment we met Shelia, she was an advocate through and through. She provided a constant flow of knowledge to me to enable my understanding and comfort of my upcoming birthing experience. I knew that I had always wanted to try for an unmedicated birth and was looking for the right doula who could help me achieve my goal. Shelia was so grounded and supported me from the first day we met all the way to the day that I gave birth. When I went into labor, Shelia arrived at our home late in the evening and stayed with me through all my early contractions until the early AM. My goal was to get to the birth center/hospital as far dilated as I possibly could – and Shelia helped guide me the entire time. She was there for every breath I took and recommended certain positions that supported and progressed me through labor. If it wasn’t for Sheila’s guiding light, I don’t think that I could have achieved my desire of an unmedicated birth (after 35 hours of labor).  Sheila’s wisdom and nurturing ability to provide support in one of the most empowering chapters of my life is something that my husband and I will always be grateful for. Sheila goes above and beyond and captured a birth story and timeline that I look back on every once in while with a smile on my face. She captured all the details that I’ll have the opportunity to remember forever and will one day share with my daughter.  If you’re looking for a doula who will advocate for you, be there on your big day and be a guiding light- Shelia is the one. I hope I am lucky enough again to have her as our doula for our second child 🙂

I cannot say enough positive and wonderful things about Shelia’s skill as a Doula. Shelia is such a warm and comforting person who confidently helped my husband and I through the childbirth process. She was there every step of the way– from the first trimester to the moment our daughter joined us. We literally could not have done it without her! I was terrified of childbirth — the pain, the process, everything. I told Shelia about my fears early on and she provided me the support but also the confidence I needed to endure my 29 hr labor. She was the right mix of loving support and a little tough push when I needed it. She said all the right things, supported my husband when he needed it, helped with hands-on support through the toughest parts of labor, was my advocate through and through, and took the most beautiful photos of the birth (photos I didn’t even know I wanted until after I had them!) She immediately helped with breastfeeding and got me a meal so I could rest and recoup. She also was there for 2 post-partum visits in those early days/weeks. 

I would highly recommend Shelia. She is skilled, knowledgable, and provides such a warm and confident presense during such a challenging time. We love her!

Shelia is simply the best. I could not have asked for a better individual to have on our team for the birth of our son. Shelia was with us every step of the way. What stands out most is how her presence and support helped us to feel safe. Her steadfast support of our desires and hopes brought peace and confidence in this experience continues to be unwavering, weeks after our son’s birt. Her spirit is gentle and kind, and our transition to life as a family of three has been as smooth and sweet as it is because of Shelia’s guidance and support. We hope to have her part of our future births. Her desire and value for our story as a couple and family of three shines in how she cares, loves and supports. We can’t thank her enough!

After my first child was born via c-section, I began a journey to ensure future children would be vaginally, despite being told this made me high risk, I knew my body was capable of giving birth with the right support team in place. One of the largest parts of ensuring a successful VBAC and positive birth experience was hiring a doula. I met Shelia and instantly knew I wanted her by my side during one of the most intense and empowering life experiences a woman can go through. She respected my candor about my birth expectations, and I felt confident in her calming demeanor, vast birth experience and warm personality. Sure enough she was by my side from start to finish when my labor started spontaneously. She labored with me at home, helping me feel safe and cope through unmedicated labor. She followed me to the hospital and continued to provide incredible support as I labored there as well. She helped ground me when things got intense, helped me advocate when I had questions about my care, and was there to discuss my choices when my original birth plan had to change due to unforseen circumstances. At one point she was literally spoon feeding me yogurt, I couldn’t have asked for a more attentive, caring human to make my birth amazing. She also gave my husband the freedom to experience the birth without feeling like he was overwhelmed. This made the entire room feel calmer, more secure and in control. My son was born at 2:07am, and she was attentive and by my side for over 20 hours without hesitation. My successful VBAC experience was largely due to her support, I couldn’t recommend her more highly as a doula.

Shelia was an incredible doula and both my husband and I are so grateful we found her! We had 2 visits with her prior to our son’s birth and she was both extremely knowledgeable and really helped put our mind at ease about a lot of things. But most importantly she really listened to our preferences and we both felt fully supported and prepared going into this experience. On the day of, Shelia was amazing. Even the nurses commented how great she was! She was so encouraging and always made sure we had what we didn’t even realize we needed (water, snacks, breathing and pain assistance!). Shelia was so great we ended up hiring her to do some post partum work for us. She really connected with our son and having those hours where I could nap/shower and know my son was being well taken care of was invaluable! I can’t recommend Shelia enough, I can’t imagine going through this wild experience with anyone else!

I absolutely loved my birth experience and it’s in large part because we hired Shelia as our doula. Here are some reasons we would absolutely hire her again and recommend her to anyone:

Compassionate support: her calm, supportive presence was just what I needed to work through my intense contractions. She helped me focus, stay grounded, try different positions, and applied the right pressure/physical touch so my husband could provide emotional support. Her support allowed my husband and I to stay connected throughout the birth. It was beautiful. I have no idea how women give birth without a Doula, especially with one as amazing as Shelia. 

She empowered us and helped us understand what we wanted: Instead of telling us what she thought we should do, she armed us with the information we needed to make informed decisions & have the kind of birth that we wanted. 

Continued advocacy: She helped us make sense of the things that we didn’t know any better about given it was our first labor. She helped me understand that my epidural was too strong and so we were able to lessen it, which allowed me to have more effective pushing & feel my daughter come out, all without pain. When we were all trying to sleep after I got my epidural, whenever a nurse or doctor entered the room, she was up and at attention, ready to translate the medical talk into language I could understand. She also helped me understand that I could ask for an anesthesiologist not a resident to place the epidural, and that I could request fewer people in the room while I pushed— both of which made my experience much more comfortable. 

Incredible photos: The photos she took during the birth bring tears to my eyes every time I see them. It’s like we had a professional photo shoot.

Post birth support: we appreciated that Shelia came to our house post birth and was available for phone calls too.

We absolutely loved working with Shelia. When choosing a doula, we were looking for someone who was not only experienced and friendly, but also interpersonally skilled and sensitive enough to support us through an emotionally complex labor and birth of our second child after the recent passing of our toddler son.

She was very open and committed to helping us realize our birth plan, while also helping us to adapt to things that did not go as planned. When my epidural malfunctioned and did not provide pain relief for almost two hours after placement of the catheter, Shelia kept me grounded and helped me cope through very intense contractions. At one point, her voice and her touch were the only things I could tolerate; she was the perfect combination of gentle, calm, steady, and encouraging. When I felt weak and out of control, she helped me find my center and emerge feeling strong and empowered. Shelia often intuitively knew what I needed and also left plenty of room for me to assert my preferences and requests.

Soon after the birth, Shelia sent us the most incredible, professional-looking photos of the labor and delivery, in addition to writing up the loveliest birth story. We are so immensely grateful to her for a most perfect labor and birth experience!