As a mother, I know that our birthing and postpartum experiences affect us for the rest of our lives. My work with families has further proved this to be true. Birthing parents remember their birth experiences and they remember how they felt during them. They also remember how they felt during their early days with their new baby. I know that you hope to look back on these times and remember that you were autonomous and in control of the decisions being made. I know that you’d love to remember feeling strong, confident, and trusted. As a doula, I support parents who want autonomy in their birth experience and I help them connect to the birthing and parenting instinct that is already within. I wholeheartedly trust the process of birth and I wholeheartedly trust that parents know what is best for themselves and their families. Through our work together, I will strive towards a result in which you feel confident and trust yourself to make the choices that you feel are right for you and your baby.
My first child was born via cesarean section, my second birth was a hospital VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean), and my third child was born at home. My 3 wildly different birth experiences place me in a unique position to support a varied range of birth experienes with deep understanding. Through these personal birth experiences, my work in the community, and my work with families, I have come to the firm belief that prenatal care, birth, and postpartum care should be family-centered and I support families to make autonomous, evidence-based decisions throughout pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period.
All the Details
Doula Training/Certification
- DTI trained and certified doula, 2013
Activism, advocacy, and additional birth work
- Founder and chapter leader of ICAN of the Seacoast, a nonprofit whose mission is to improve maternal-child health by preventing unnecessary cesareans through education, providing support for Cesarean recovery, and promoting Vaginal Birth After Cesarean (VBAC). Please see my VBAC info page for more on ICAN and VBAC access in Dover, Portsmouth, and surrounding areas.
- Co-founder of New Mama Project, a community for new parents to share their truths about their postpartum challenges and find support.
- DTI Doula Educator
- Co-Director of Birth, the Play in June 2017, to benefit Hope on Haven Hill
Continuing Education
- Ithaca Breastfeeding Coalition Conference with Dr. Christina Smillie, 2013
- Breastfeeding Workshop for Birth Professionals with Jen Deshaies (certified childbirth and postpartum doula, certified lactation counselor) of Bluebird Birth and Breastfeeding, 2014
- Stand on Your Rights Workshop: Demystifying Legal Rights in Childbirth & How to Use Them with Cristen Pascucci of Birth Monopoly, 2014
- “The Truth about VBAC” Winter Webinar Series with Jennifer Kamel of VBAC Facts, 2014
* I serve families birthing at home and in hospitals, including, but not limited to, the following facilities: Wentworth-Douglass Hospital, Portsmouth Regional Hospital, Exeter Hospital, York Hospital, and Frisbie Memorial Hospital.
