Reviews
Positive Experiences
Alison:
I got the natural birth experience I wanted because of Karen. Some of that is luck - but a LOT has to do with her support, guidance, ideas, and calm steady presence. She helped me stay comfortable at home longer so that I spent less time in the hospital - part of my birth plan
I was calm through the whole 23 hour birth from when my water broke to when I held my son for the first time. It was such a relief to have someone to turn to with questions or to advocate for us in the hospital. And yes, when I asked for an epidural she instead gave me sip of water and fanned my face... but I was grateful for AFTER anyway! Ha!
Having Karen as our doula was amazing and totally worth the investment.
Posted 3/26/2019
Kaitlin:
It's hard to put into words what an integral part of our birth experience Karen was. Just knowing she'd be at the birth kept my anxiety at bay throughout my pregnancy, which in and of itself is a gift, but having her there from my first contractions straight through the birth of our daughter made a process that had always scared and intimidated me feel empowering and beautiful. Our goal was an unmedicated childbirth, but back labor made it difficult to keep that very strongly held goal in mind. Karen's calm presence and "in the moment" mentality kept us on track---she never judged, but she also knew what we wanted. She helped us stay in the comfort of our home for as long as we could and helped us make it through labor without medication (though she got quite a workout doing hip presses for hours on end!). Throughout my labor, I never once had to stress about making sure our birth plan was being followed: I knew we were in good hands and I could just focus on bringing my daughter into the world. In the end, we had the incredible birth experience we wanted, and we owe so very much of that to Karen.
Posted 4/27/2019
Sara:
Karen, thank you so very much for all your time, help, advice, and support. Our birth was so amazing and even more than we could have hoped for. I could not have done it without your classes. I also loved how your HypnoBirthing class involved my husband so much as a birth companion. This whole experience brought us even closer together.
Robin:
Karen was my doula when I had my daughter. I wouldn't have the same birthing story without her. She was amazing and if I had it all to do over again I would have her by my side again and again. One thing that I tell everyone is that if it wasn't for her I know I wouldn't have had my daughter naturally. The exact scenario she gave me in our discussions long before I went into labor, happened. We had already discussed what I wanted to do if it happened. I was so grateful for those early discussions and decisions to be made before I was in the middle of labor and not exactly myself. A simple reminder of what we talked about was all I needed to keep going and avoid an epidural. She said transition from labor at home to labor in the hospital is just that, a transition where you can lose momentum and feel like you need an epidural once you get out of the zone. She asked if I wanted her to remind me I was handling them before the transition from home to hospital and I can get back in the zone if I want to try before just taking an epidural. That's exactly what I did and I have to tell you I never imagined labor could be so amazing, natural, and bearable. Thank you Karen. I owe my birth story to you. May 18, 2017