Have you ever met someone and thought to yourself, dang, that human was born to do this kind of…read morework and has a real gifting for it? That was my thought about Lauren after meeting her for the first time (she taught our 6 week birth prep course). This woman was in her element. She cared, she was knowledgeable, and and she lit up the room. To our pleasant surprise and an epic answer to prayer, she ended up being our doula and what a gift she was in that space for us too. Lauren knew when to say or do something and the art of not saying or doing. We ended up having a dream birth and I'm not sure I would have been able to do it without her support. She was a part of the dream birth. She came along and partnered with me and my husband in a way that complemented and strengthened. Lauren helped me to trust myself and my body. There are no guarantees with birth. I don't love Lauren because I had a dream birth; I love her because of who she is and am so grateful she was with us and for us in the tender, sacred space of birth. No doula is for everyone, but if something about her resonates with you, book a call to see if there's a match.

Lauren is incredible! She helped me bring both of my babies into the world and I couldn't imagine…read morethe birth experience without her. She brought such a truly compassionate, intuitive, calming, and empowering presence to the experiences, and navigated all of the twists and turns with us. She felt like part of the family, and made us feel so held throughout the entire process from prenatal to postpartum. I couldn't recommend Lauren more highly. I almost want to have another baby just to be able to work with her again! If you're considering hiring her, DO IT! She's the absolute best.

Talia I worked with Talia through out my pregnancy, birth…read moreand postpartum periods, and I am so grateful for her support. She truly works from the heart, which is something you don't come across often. Talia consistently went above and beyond her role, always making sure I felt comfortable, informed and supported. Her presence during such an important time felt more like having a sister by my side than just professional. I would absolutely recommend Talia to anyone looking for a caring, dedicated and compassionate

Thank you to Charley, who helped us care for our newborn an reassured me through many anxious…read morenights. This is my third baby and I was still an anxious mess and she helped us navigate so many things. She's an expert at newborn care and it shows in her work. 10/10 recommend. We also had weekend help from Priscilla and Las who were wonderful and I recommend both of them as well!! The agency was easy to work with, I have used them for all of my kids. Amazing experience.

My husband and I had a great experience working with Cradle and Coos to find our postpartum night…read moredoula to help care for our first child. After communicating the type of care and support we were looking for, we were able to select and interview several fantastic doulas and ultimately found Sheila. We trusted Sheila wholeheartedly with our daughter. She not only took care of her in the night, allowing us to get some much-needed rest, she genuinely cared for our whole family. We learned so much from Sheila as new parents. Everything from how to bathe our daughter, how to comfort her when she fussed, and more. Sheila has many years of experience with newborns but never passed judgment on our parenting approach and was completely open to doing things in the way that was most comfortable to us. She was a comforting presence in our home during the sometimes stressful early newborn weeks. We are forever grateful to Sheila and would work with her again in a heartbeat. We are so happy to have found her and Cradle and Coos.

We hired Meghan to take care of our newborn twins and she immediately made us feel comfortable. She…read morewas so easy to communicate with, did a walkthrough of our nursery, and shared great product recommendations even before the babies were born. Once they arrived, she handled their newborn colic and gas with ease. We slept well each night, knowing our babies were in good hands. She always went above and beyond to help, washing and sterilizing bottles, doing the babies' laundry, and even occasionally throwing in a load of our laundry. She sleep trained them towards the end of her time with us, and it was helpful to have her lead the process and give us a detailed plan to follow for naps during the day. She is such a treasure trove of info, I still occasionally text her now, even though our twins are older. If you have a chance to work with her, take it!

We worked with Meghan as our postpartum doula during the newborn phase with our twins…read more As first-time parents, there's an inexplicable amount of anxiety that comes with entrusting someone new in your home overnight, caring for your most precious little ones while you're asleep. From the start, Meghan helped ease that concern. She consistently made us feel that our babies' health and safety were being thoughtfully attended to, which was ultimately the most important thing for us. Meghan is very kind, easy to talk to, and approachable, which made communication feel straightforward and collaborative rather than stressful. She was also punctual and reliable, and on the rare occasion timing needed to shift, she was always proactive and communicative, which we really appreciated. Knowing that Meghan was caring for our newborns overnight allowed us to rest (as much as anyone with twins can), and that sense of security is invaluable in those early weeks. We appreciated her calm presence and professionalism, and would recommend her to other families looking for dependable overnight support, especially those navigating the newborn stage for the first time.

We had an outstanding experience with DOULAS by the BAY. They matched us with Mary Ann Cherie…read moreWolowski, who was with our family for the first eight weeks after our baby was born. She started right on the day after delivery while we were still at the hospital. This was incredibly helpful because it allowed my partner to focus on caring for our toddler while I recovered from my C-section and bonded with our newborn. Mary Ann was exceptional in every aspect of newborn and postpartum care. With her background as RN and an experienced nanny, she confidently took charge from day one. She handled everything--from swaddling and keeping the baby on a feeding schedule to making sure I stayed on track with pumping. She always had my pump parts cleaned, sterilized, and ready to use, which made those early weeks so much easier. She also gave me invaluable breastfeeding support. Thanks to her guidance, I established a full milk supply within just three days of my C-section, and I'm still successfully breastfeeding. She also referred us to an amazing lactation consultant who was an absolute game changer. Mary Ann was meticulous about everything baby-related and followed best practices in every detail. Her logging and tracking were incredibly thorough, giving us complete peace of mind. She was professional, respectful, organized, and kept everything spotless. The greatest gift she gave our family was rest. There were moments when it almost felt unreal how much recovery time my partner and I were able to get because we trusted her completely. She would even bring me a glass of iced water wherever I was--a small act of kindness that made a huge difference in my recovery. Because she took care of so much, I was able to focus on postpartum healing and even carve out time for simple self-care, like getting a haircut. Although her primary responsibility was caring for our newborn, she also formed a wonderful bond with our toddler and always made him feel included. She consistently went above and beyond by helping keep our home clean, making countless trips up and down the stairs without ever complaining, and never leaving before everything was tidied up--even if it meant staying a little past the end of her shift. We're incredibly grateful to Doulas by the Bay for matching us with someone who fit our family so perfectly. The agency made the process smooth, and Mary Ann exceeded every expectation we had. We wholeheartedly recommend Doulas by the Bay to any family looking for expert postpartum support. They gave us the gift of rest, confidence, and a much smoother transition into life as a family of four.

I reached out to find a birth doula and the initial meeting giving an overview of how they work was…read moreclear and straightforward. Doulas through this company are employees (not independent providers) and they stress that this is really good for always having a backup. We were then matched with 2 doula candidates and the scheduling process was easy and professional. However, we ultimately felt that these candidates were not properly trained or vetted. We never received any materials such as CVs for the doulas. The first doula said right away that she had never been a birth doula before and we would be her first birth. Her only experience was that she had been a night doula before. I was shocked that she had never even shadowed another birth doula as part of her training as a company employee. Bless her heart for being honest, but I did not want to pay to be her guinea pig. After this, I requested an additional candidate, but I was told the other one should be great. The second doula was also not a good fit. She kept emphasizing that at previous births hospital staff did not believe she was a birth doula (and thought she was just a family friend). It became clear why. I asked about her qualifications and she said she's working on her bachelor's degree even though she already has a master's degree. I thought this was strange and asked some follow up questions and ultimately could not determine what degree she had (maybe an associate's degree) or didn't have (definitely did not already have a master's). I also asked some basic medical questions about pain control and epidurals and she was not able to answer them. Ultimately we were able to find a wonderful birth doula through another matching company - experienced and with a real master's degree (in public health).

I can't imagine going through my childbirth experience without having a doula, and Collective…read moreHearts was absolutely wonderful. Here are some of the reasons why I considered not getting a doula, and why I'm really glad I ignored those and got one anyway: - What if I get an epidural, will the doula be useless? I wasn't planning on getting an epidural, but I had back labor and I was in labor for 48 hours. Shannon helped me so much throughout that time. I probably would have gone to the hospital after 4 hours of labor and been sent home if not for her. 100% because of her support, I was able to labor at home for the first 24 hours. And Shannon continued to be an amazing source of strength, advocacy, and support over my next 24 hours at the hospital. - My husband can be my birth partner and support person, why do I need a doula? My husband has never been through labor before, and had no idea what to expect going into it. We read books, took online classes, etc., but there is really no way to prepare for something as intense as labor. Because of Shannon, my husband felt so much more confident about knowing how to best support me. Also, I needed someone to be angry with during the worst contractions, and if Shannon wasn't there I think I would have been angry at my husband. Having her there is what allowed it to be a really positive and beautiful experience in our relationship. - Will it be awkward if some other person is just hanging around the whole time I'm in labor? I'm slightly introverted and my husband is VERY introverted, so I was a little worried that having someone new around would be awkward for us. But this wasn't the case at all. Shannon has a sixth sense about when to step back during the labor process; since my labor was 48 hours long, there were times when she asked us if we preferred that she leave for a few hours and come back later, and we took her up on it. Her ability to intuit the right times to ask this was amazing.

This review is so long overdue! Alli was the doula for the birth of our daughter, Ellie. Ellie is…read morenow 5 years old. And still I think of Alli often. Her presence at the birth was invaluable. Her knowledge and experience guided both me and my husband through some tenuous medical decisions. Her easy going, caring and loving support got us both through the rest. (And thank goodness she had Altoids on hand when my husband was trying to comfort me.) When I first told my husband that I wanted a doula when I was pregnant, his response was "Why? I can be the doula.". Very sweet, but having been through a birth now, he is the first to say to all our friends, "You need a doula. It's worth every penny and more."

I highly recommend Khatherine of Duyan Care! She was the first night doula we've ever worked with,…read moreand immediately put us at ease with her friendly, professional and knowledgeable demeanor. Khatherine took incredible care of our son for three weeks and also helped with breastfeeding tips as we'd been having a lot of trouble with our baby's latch; despite working with multiple lactation consultants, it wasn't until Khatherine observed and provided some helpful feedback that my latch drastically improved and pain subsided almost immediately. Khatherine was gentle and calm with our son, and treated our entire household with care and respect. She would wash our bottles, fold any laundry, leave our space tidy and provide in-depth notes on her night shift which provided invaluable information. It was evident she is passionate about her job and truly cares about the babies and families that she works with.

We cannot recommend Rita M. highly enough! She was our night nurse for first born and was with us…read moreon our very first night home from the hospital. As first time parents, we were learning as we went, but Rita immediately brought a sense of calm into our home. From night one, Rita was warm, attentive, and genuinely listened to every one of our needs and concerns. She quickly felt like a member of our family. She actually held our baby for the majority of the night, which, to us, was truly above and beyond. This allowed us to get much needed rest and gave us complete peace of mind, knowing he was in the best hands. Those first six weeks with Rita were invaluable. As a first time mom, I was truly able to rest because I completely trusted her. She was also incredibly knowledgeable and supportive with breastfeeding, pumping, and storing and freezing breast milk, answering all of my questions with patience and encouragement. What really set Rita apart was how much she cared beyond her basic responsibilities. Without us even asking, she took the time to read the instruction manuals for the bottles we were using and our baby carrier to make sure we were using everything correctly. As new parents, those extra "gut checks" gave us so much confidence and reassurance. Rita didn't just care for our baby, she cared for our entire family. She educated us, supported us, and helped us build confidence as new parents. Even now, we still keep in touch with Rita and send her updates on our little guy. We truly feel like we've made a lifelong friend. Rita M is compassionate, knowledgeable, dependable, and an absolute gift to any family lucky enough to work with her.

Michelle was my birth and evening postpartum doula for the birth of my daughter. Her nurturing wise…read morepresence eased both the UCSF L&D staff, my husband and myself during a most fantastic birthing experience. She knew when I may have pushed pain threshold too far and gently reminded me of alternative pain relief. Not to mention she used a technique called Spinning Babies to bring my daughter out of an awkward position. Once home, she kindly showed me changes in breastfeeding positions to diminish pain, cleaned dishes and watched the baby so I could take time alone. She held space for this incredible time and we love her like family.

As a first time Dad I was not the one doing the hard work, but for all the dad's out there, the…read morewhole process is not, I'll just say, the most straight forward for anyone involved. Going into the process there is so much unknown and so much that makes you unsure. The most important person to be comfortable in my situation was my wife. In order for her to be comfortable it was very important for me to be comfortable. I understand that having a doula is not necessary, but it sure did help me and my family. The preparation conversations we had made the experience digestible. The advocate we had in Michelle during the process was incredible. The support we had post-partum was so helpful. Michelle has done this so many times and is so familiar with everything going on. To have her on your team allows for everyone to be present and just helps so much. Technically: She knows her stuff. For instance, Michelle is trained in baby spinning and to the doctor's surprise we avoided a c-section at the final hour. It was nothing short of a miracle. Personally: Michelle is solid, levelheaded, caring, fun, patient, prepared and will advocate for you when you need it. She has a short questionnaire to get on the same page earlier on in the process and she stands by what you discuss. I can't recommend Michelle enough, and if you would like to discuss further please ask Michelle to put us in touch.