Laurel was amazing! We needed help getting on a more consistent daytime schedule and helping our 8…read moremonth old sleep through the night. With the detailed plan, daily check ins and overall support he was taking longer naps during the day and completely sleeping through the night after two weeks! Highly recommend!!

Laurel was very helpful in figuring out our child's sleep pattern and preferences. After working…read morewith Laurel, our child was able to sleep independently. Laurel was respectful of our wishes for a gentler approach. She was also very communicative throughout the process.

Hilary and her team were all top notch, and I would recommend them most highly to any newborn…read moreparent. We worked with Molly S for postpartum doula help. Molly was an invaluable support both emotionally and with practical help during a difficult time. It was like having a wiser, older sister help out and counsel a few times a week. She is kind, knowledgeable, and brings a lot of mom wisdom from parenting her own three kids. The back office structure and onboarding and contracting process were all fast and efficient. Highly recommend.

I truly do not have enough words to express my sincere gratitude and praise for Hilary and her…read moreteam. I sent Hilary a message at 2am after months of sleepless nights and she promptly replied the next day and set up a call for us to chat. She completely understood not only what I was going through and the help that my family and I needed but she has the kindest, most caring, loving and dedicated team who were willing to jump in at a moments notice to ensure that our baby boy got the love and care he needed so that the rest of us could get some much needed rest. If anyone is thinking about a night nurse or daytime doula, I would 1000% recommend Hilary and her team.

We didnt even make it to onboarding before we realized how unresponsive they are. They are clearly…read morenot all on the same page. We initially went to the first circle, which was great. They said all the right things, we met with Kerri, she said she was available and that she only takes 3-4 births a month(which is on par with almost all doula services we have interviewed), but we needed to wait for them to reach out to us via email before we could move forward. That email, despite us reaching back out, didnt come for a month. Then, they said Kerri was no longer available and that she only takes 1 birth and offered us a choice of 3 of their "newer" (less experienced) doulas, a month later, meaning we went without support for a month and then on top of that had to hunt for another doula. This group os a total money, profit driven business lead by 1 lady ananda, who claims to be the leading doula practioner in the area, isnt even available. They have a huge social media campaign that probably costs them alot, yet not one place (this yelp page is not claimed by anyone at time of post) to get honest feedback. DO NOT BUY INTO THEIR BS! Upon more research, THEY MISS 2/5 ACTUAL BIRTHS! the "doula guru" you sign up for is not at all guaranteed to be your support person, and they will just stick you woth some random person at their will. They are also the most expensive service we have found.

Chose Boston Doula Circle because of the collective wisdom and the claim that I would not need a…read moreback up doula due to the group model. Dena and Ananda each have 20+ years of experience, which was hard to find when we interviewed individual doula practices. Sad to report that my overall experience with the Boston Doula Circle was negative and it was not worth the high price at all. While I had positive experiences with Celeste, Kerri and Monica, the group model proved to be more beneficial to the doulas than to me when it came to the time of labor. Problem 1: the on-call system means you have no idea who will actually show up to your labor and not all the doulas on the team are created equal contrary to what they tell you. *Problem 2: the doula team provides 'phone support' for as long as possible before coming to you in person. This is understandably to prevent them from coming to you too soon in early labor. But in reality, it means you end up having to keep track of who is on call and at what time which is WAYYY too much work for a laboring couple. *Problem 3: the doulas stick to the on-call system no matter what is happening. This means you could be in the middle of a very scary moment during your labor and if it is time for her to switch shifts, she will leave you. They claim this switch is "smooth" but in practice it is quite distracting and disruptive. *Problem 4: the idea that they will not need a back-up because they have a team is undercut by the fact that they actually miss births quite often. And they take on WAYY more clients than an individual doula would, which means there is a high chance back-up actually will not be available during your labor. *Problem 5: Notice this is the first public yelp review. For some reason, you have to ask them for references instead of being able to view reviews online. They have not registered as a google business so cant see any google reviews and until recently did not have a Yelp page. When I hired them, they sent me a few references. But I assume those are clients who had a good experience with them. Once I had a negative experience with them and reached out to others who I met at their 'meet the doulas', it turns out that many people have not-so-good experiences with this doula practice. But you would never know by their lack of online review platforms. Please reach out to me if you want to hear more about a wide range of experiences with this practice. *Group model: Ironically, when we reached active labor no doula showed up and we were told that the only doula available was the one person we did not feel particularly comfortable with. So much for all the talk about not needing back up doulas. Seriously, they take on so many clients that they I think they actually miss many births. From my birth class cohort alone, they missed 2/5 of the births. Summary: I asked myself over and over again before committing to this doula practice whether or not the money would be worth it. The pricing is much higher than other doulas in the area. Ultimately, I decided to hire this team. After spending all that money, they were absent for the most critical moments of my labor, which was embarrassing and heartbreaking. To make it worse, they have yet to apologize and never made a genuine effort to reach out to me postpartum (at this point it has been 6+ weeks). Make no mistake, for Dena, this is a business. And the convenience and well-being of the doulas is the focus not that of the laboring couple. I had such high hopes so it pains me to say that I cannot recommend this doula practice. Dena is very good at marketing the group model as the answer to all doula problems, don't believe the hype. Pay close attention to their reaction to feedback- Instead of reaching out to me to acknowledge their shortcomings and consider how they might improve, they have disengaged and will mostly likely make up excuses for all the problems outlined above. Imagine what that means for how they will respond to your needs and requests.

We found Dina when we were struggling with breastfeeding our firstborn. She answered our inquiry…read morethe same afternoon and set up an in-home consultation quickly. From our first meeting, we knew she was exactly the help we needed. With over 10 years of experience in neonatal and pediatric care, Dina quickly identified our issue and adjusted our positions so our baby began latching and feeding smoothly. We experimented with different positions and times of day, and within a few weeks, thanks to Dina's help, we went from supplementing with formula to 100% breastfeeding. I highly recommend Dina to any new mom facing latching or positioning challenges. Thank you Dina!!

From the owner: Lactation consultations in person and virtually. Working with mothers and babies for over 10 years…read more Experience in NICU families and latch difficulties. Helping mothers navigating their breastfeeding journey prenatal and postpartum .

I used Alissa after I had my first child in February. She is just so wonderful. I struggled a lot,…read moreand she provided so much help. She helped as a lactation consultant, showed us the best way to swaddle, helped when I needed a break, and was just a great listener. Alissa was always available and quick to respond to any questions. I was afraid a doula would have her own parenting philosophy that she would force on me, but Alissa just helped me achieve my own parenting goals.

From the owner: Newborn care, new mom care, lactation supportread more

Ellie is an absolute gem. My husband and I first worked with her as a sleep consultant during a…read morebrutal 18 month sleep regression for our daughter. Both empathetic and whip-smart, Ellie helped identify specific actions we could take to get sleep back on track. It was so reassuring to make a plan with her and to have real time follow up so that we could course correct and adjust as needed. When we encountered some challenges with the 2 to 1 nap transition, Ellie was the only person we wanted help from and once again she was exactly the resource we needed. We also felt SO supported by Ellie as a birth and postpartum doula for our second child. Using zoom, email, text, and phone, Ellie was like an expert big sister in the weeks leading up to the birth, as well as in the beginnings of labor, and most especially in the early postpartum period. The birth escalated so quickly that there wasn't time for zoom support, but honestly the postpartum support alone was invaluable (and thank goodness for Ellie's nudge via phone for us to hightail it to the hospital-- our son was almost born in the car). Her expertise in sleep and lactation along with being a thoughtful and experienced mom of three... I truly can't speak highly enough. We will forever be grateful to Ellie for helping us grow into happier, stronger parents, and she will forever be our go-to for all questions parenting / birth / sleep!

Working with Ellie was a wonderful experience. I am so grateful that she was our doula for my…read morefirst birth as there are so many questions and unknowns. Ellie helped us navigate all of this and made me feel incredibly supported.

Rachel is such a cutie. She'll make you her favorite smoothies. And teach you how to stay healthy.read more

I recently completed a 3-month course of Wellness Coaching with Rachel Gargano. It turned out to be…read morea surprisingly incredible investment...in myself. It seemed like so much in my life was just wrong. I was feeling depressed, overweight and frustrated with myself for not being more accomplished in my life. Can you say low self-esteem? But part of my problem was not knowing what I wanted to accomplish. When I found Rachel, I went to her with the vague notion that I wanted something to change in my life. In fact, I wanted a lot of changes. Basically I set "improve my life" as a 3 month goal. I wanted to feel positive about myself, I wanted a sense of fulfillment. But Rachel didn't back away from my ambiguous needs. Methodically, week by week, she helped me identify the sources of my distress and set targeted mini-goals to work on tackling the issues I had. My personal experience started and ended with an emphasis on nutrition. I was overweight and unhappy. But with each appointment with Rachel, we uncovered a realm of issues that were unexpected and varied and entirely managed by Rachel's expertise! I was amazed that she had so much more to offer than nutritional advice. She dealt with my blues and my lack of motivation with calming advice and that list of weekly mini-goals that were doable, imminently helpful and always on track with my vision for the positive person that I wanted to become. Who knew that a gratitude exercise could make me appreciate my life? Rachel did. Daily, she had me write down 3 things that I was grateful for. This task turned out to be one of the most eye-opening for me. Try it! One thing that I registered every week was Rachel's non-judgmental attitude toward me and my problems! I never felt inhibited by what her reactions to my needs might be. From the beginning, I felt I could trust her and in turn I was able to honestly face my difficulties. It has been quite a journey and as of today I've lost 8 lbs and could not feel more positive about the direction of my life. I have optimism again but more importantly, I have tools in place not only to counteract negativity, but to actively work on positive change. An unexpected upshot to this whole experience has been my husband's involvement with "our" new way of life. He's lost 15 lbs and we plan our meals and exercise with a brand new sense of togetherness. I certainly didn't expect that. Rachel's Nutrition and Wellness coaching was so much more than I bargained for. It was a weekly boost that set me up for life.

I took the "birth doula 3 day course " this weekend and at first I admit I was scared because I…read moreassume this class should be taking in person vs virtual however after three days working and receiving information and being taught by Tara and Lorie. I left this class tonight feeling , confident and prepare to take the next step to becoming certified! so thank you both for making this class , fun yet informing us with so much!

Highly recommend Birthing Gently! I used them for my first pregnancy and delivery at Brigham and…read moreWomen's and could not have done it with out Mary! Tara was great to work with and had me virtually meet as many doulas as I needed to in order to find a match. Once I chose Mary she brought so much peace of mind to my pregnancy and was a constant presence throughout the pregnancy and labor and delivery experience. Plan to use them again for baby #2!