Our family learned so much from Des. Her differentiated approach is amazing. I've worked in…read moreeducation my whole career and wanted someone who knew best practice and could speak to recent research findings. She knows that one size doesn't fit all and I really appreciated her tips and tricks as my son went through all his phases. She respected our '(semi) attachment parenting' approach and put a specific individualized plan together that worked for our family. We were against letting our son cry and Des was warm and kind. Sleep is tough and we had a tricky infant. We still have our phases (he's two now) but he has healthy sleep habits because of what we learned from Des. My only wish is that I contacted Des sooner !

#twins. Wow. We called Desiree when we realized we had developed some not so great sleep habits…read morewith our twins. In the early months we were in survival mode with two babies and a five year old! I distinctly remember sitting on the couch with our older daughter watching the WorldCup while the twins were sound asleep swinging in the swings, which we quickly came to rely heavily on. To be honest, SO much of the early days are now a blur, but something that truly sticks out was the help and support that Desiree gave us throughout the first 2 years. Right from the get go we knew it was going to require our commitment and effort - there were two of them afterall! Each step, each transition, each shift, the kneeling down double handed tap - she helped us truly understand why we were doing what we were doing, and how what we were doing would be contributing to sound sleep habits these monkeys would have as they grow. Something I can't emphasize enough is how calm, thoughtful and compassionate Desiree was with us both. There were times where things were going so well, then All of a sudden they weren't. A new development stage hit and it felt like we had gone off the rails. But as we may have been exhausted, ever so empatheticly and calmly Desiree reminded us that our girls were in fact just growing and changing, we discussed an adjusted plan, and that it would indeed be ok. And it was. We stuck to the plan, each and every time, and each and every time things continued to go well. Desiree was always available and full of sound advice. We would not have sanely survived these past three years without Desiree's help, and for that we are immensely grateful. Thank You!!

My husband and I were lucky enough to work with Cassie for the birth of our first child. I…read moreinterviewed several Doulas hoping to find the right fit and right from the first meeting I felt very comfortable with Cassie. Unlike some other Doulas I met who seemed to have stronger opinions about things (epidurals, role of the husband etc.) , she was clear that my labour was my experience and she was willing to support us in any way we preferred. I knew that I would not feel pressured at anytime to conform to someon else's expectations of the labour process. Cassie was very helpful in the weeks leading up to labour as she came for a prenatal visit to discuss our birthplan and ease our concerns. When we went overdue she visited us again to provide some suggestions to ease discomfort and encourage labour. She was always timely, professional and most of all supportive. Outside of our in-home visits, she was always available via text, email or phone. During our labour Cassie worked to support my husband and I as we navigated through our labour. She helped provide me with whatever I needed, and would also provide support to my husband. She would often have things ready (water, cold cloth) to hand to my husband so that he could be the one providing for me. This aspect was really important to my husband because he wanted to make sure that the role of the Doula did not take his place. She actively assisted and reassured me throughout the labour and in the end we were most satisfied with her support. After the birth, she helped by taking some family photos and made sure I was comfortable before she left us to be with our new family. She kindly followed up with us a week later and answered our new parenting questions. Overall, our experience with Cassie could not have been better! We highly recommend her to anyone considering using a Doula. She was caring, supportive and really helped us have a great birth experience.

From the owner: Hello, My name is Cassie Sutherland, and I am a Birth Doula and Herbal Medicine Maker, living and…read morepractising on Coast Salish Territory, Vancouver, B.C. I am passionate about empowered birth, strengthening community access to health, and supporting families throughout their childbearing year. I create herbal medicines out of either organically grown or personally and ethically wildcrafted plants, to aid Mamas, babes, and families during pregnancy and beyond. Having been raised between the ocean and forests of mid-north Vancouver Island, I look to plants as medicine and our natural environment as a teacher. I believe that your body is capable of birthing your baby and that you intuitively know how best to do so, I simply support you in discovering that process.

Katarina, has helped me and my family heal leaps and bounds! She is genuine,caring and she believes…read morein your potential. If you just want someone to listen and say "there,there..." and stay how you are then don't see Katarina! If you are seriously ready to grow and Heal then she is a Gem!! She has been an Angel from above for me and my family.

From the owner: Do past experiences hold you back? Are you anxious and depressed? Do you want to "get over"…read moredifficult experiences but can't? I can help you heal and move on, using Trauma Therapy. My approaches include EMDR and Lifespan Integration Therapy. Are you struggling with parenting your children? Are they disconnected from you? Do you feel like you are loosing them? I can help you reconnect with them, using Dr Gordon Neufeld's powerful Attachment parenting approach. Are you struggling with an Eating DIsorder? Has food taken over your life? Do you feel alone and afraid? I can help you get your life back. I have over ten years experience as a Registered Dietitian and over twelve years experience as a Registered Clinical Counsellor. You and I can work together to find solutions that work for you. I invite you to call me and talk about how we can work together to reach your therapy goals!

My husband and I were looking into prenatal classes for the arrival of our new baby and we are so…read moreglad we were able to find Samara Birth Services. Amanda was our instructor and she was informative and engaging. She also baked chocolate chip cookies for the class which was a nice touch! The environment was intimate as we opted to do the weekend classes, which was six hour each day for Saturday and Sunday, and there were only four couples in the class. We went through the stages of labour and what to expect and had a lot of our questions answered. There were a few videos shown in class that was helpful for us to gain an understanding in the labour process (I can assure you the videos are safe to watch!) The class also included some very useful information for breastfeeding and the choices couples could face during delivery. We felt good about having all the information presented to us to consider and felt it wasn't biased one way or another. My husband and I both agree that the we were glad we took Amanda's classes. We feel it helped with our understanding and addressed our fears and anxiety. I highly recommend this class.

Such a great class! Amanda is full of information and energy! Lots of useful information about…read morebirth options in a small intimate environment. Left feeling a lot more informed on how to make the right decisions for myself and the birth of my daughter. Highly recommend.

My partner and I started working with Hannah for the birth of our first child about 20 weeks into…read moreour pregnancy. We knew from the beginning that we wanted to work with a doula and get additional support throughout the pregnancy especially during COVID. She is an incredibly compassionate person and really listened to our worries and desires and always gave us her honest opinion and helpful resources along the way. If there was ever a question that she didn't know the answer to, she would do her own research and follow up with a helpful email. Due to COVID, we did our prenatal visits both virtually on zoom as well as masked and outdoors. Hannah made us feel completely supported throughout our pregnancy and offered words of encouragement and frequent check-ins as we neared our due date. For my partner, she provided book recommendations, comfort measures, and advice for how to offer support and what to expect in the hospital. Fortunately we were able to have Hannah with us during our delivery and while labor didn't go quite as expected (does it ever?), Hannah was ready to spring into action with position changes, comfort measures, etc. She did a great job with my partner and I to support us differently during labor. She helped us step aside and discuss the pros and cons of suggestions that the doctors were making even when the doctors weren't really encouraging our feedback and decision making in the process. When my labor slowed down, she leapt into action and negotiated with the staff to get me into different labor positions despite having an epidural. After our delivery, she continued to check in with us via text message and was both encouraging and sympathetic. She came over to our home for her postpartum visit and we chatted through our birth experience and she helped us fill in some gaps that we had forgotten or were unsure of. My partner and I have often commented that without Hannah, we definitely would have had a different birth outcome. I would absolutely recommend working with a doula and we're so glad that we found Hannah! She is incredibly warm, knowledgeable, and is a wonderful listener and resource.

We are so thankful for finding Hannah to help us through the birth of our first child. In the…read moremonths leading up to our due date, we met with Hannah for prenatal sessions. She went above and beyond to answer our questions and provide us with evidence based learnings for everything that came up during our pregnancy. We can't imagine making it through our birth experience without Hannah being there to support us. Hannah helped us navigate dealing with doctors and nurses, and making sure we got the care we needed. Beyond that, she made the birth environment and experience as peaceful as possible; she even brought tea-lights to the delivery room! We really appreciated our final postpartum session with Hannah. After a tumultuous journey, Hannah made sure we had the tools for a successful fourth trimester. We can't recommend Hannah strongly enough, and she will be at the top of our list when it is time for baby #2.