Sarah provided me with compassionate and expert support in my journey feeding my kiddo. I greatly…read moreappreciated her warm, non-judgmental approach and her wise advice. She was able to meet with me on short notice, followed up via text to check in on me after our first appointment, and has fielded several questions via email, even while she was traveling. I am very grateful for her support and would highly recommend her!

At 5 days postpartum, I was feeling incredibly stressed and overwhelmed, but Sarah came to our home…read moreimmediately to help. She spent several hours with my husband and me, teaching us everything from the basics of breastfeeding and milk supply to the specifics of breast anatomy. Her calm demeanor was exactly what we needed; she completely eased my anxiety and gave us the confidence we were lacking. This was truly the most helpful support we've received since coming home from the hospital. If you are looking for an expert who is both knowledgeable and deeply compassionate, look no further.

Serena's support was truly a vital blessing in an unbelievably challenging chapter. I had a…read morepremature baby who was struggling with feeding and weight gain. Nothing was working. I was triple feeding and burning the candle at both ends on top of the emotional strain of feeling like my body failed. Serena made me feel grounded and whole when everything felt chaotic and out of my control. She normalized some of the challenges that we were experiencing. She gave me really grounded advice that helped me set expectations. Including really thinking about risks and benefits when dealing with a baby who had oral aversion. Rather than focusing on every feed or every ounce on the scale, she helped me focus on the big picture of helping the baby feel safe and in control in his own body and developing a mother and infant bond that would support our long-term journey. Not only did she offer a calming presence, good advice, but she continued to be available and responsive weeks months, and even years down the road. She supported me with my second baby years later, and has continued to be a supportive, trusted person in my life. I call her my Milk Fairy GOdmother. She truly was a blessing.

It is no wonder Serena has 5 star ratings. Our 8 wk old baby started showing slow weight gain and…read moreas a first time parent, I was so worried and overwhelmed. From our first call, Serena was kind, thorough and asked all the right questions. She made time to come over within days, immediately pinpointed the issue, and created a clear feeding plan that gave me so much relief. She even reached out to our pediatrician right after and they called me the same day to schedule a weight check by end of the week! Serena's care doesn't stop at your session -- she checks in often and is always available by text, making me feel completely supported and never alone. She's warm, friendly, non-judgmental and turned a scary situation into something manageable. We're still working with her but I couldn't wait to share. Even though we're not out of the woods yet, I feel a million times better knowing Serena is by our side. If you're considering working with her, don't hesitate -- she's a gem!

I cannot say enough wonderful things about Amrit! She guided me through my entire feeding journey…read morewith my second baby without any judgement. More importantly, she was compassionate and practical which can be VERY hard to find in the lactation world. She attentively asked me my goals for feeding this time around and then helped me make a game-plan at each step. Ultimately, I was unable/chose to stop nursing and pumping. While I personally felt so disappointed in myself for that, Amrit was nothing but supporting and loving. She supported me in any decision I made to keep my baby happy and fed and for that i'm forever grateful. She also helped me figure out how to get on a pumping schedule (when I needed to) and eventually how to wean without getting mastitis. Although my feeding journey eventually did not include breastfeeding, I'm so so happy I found Amrit to help me navigate all the things that come along with feeding a newborn. I felt like I was always in wonderful and capable hands and would recommend her to every new mom who needs some support. Breastfeeding is HARD and Amrit never made me feel guilty or bad. She simply supported me and helped me find something that worked for me and my family. Thank you again Amrit for all of your love and support with baby Ryan!

I owe my entire breastfeeding relationship to Amrit! I nursed my oldest for 2.5 years and needed…read morevirtually no help. Things were much different once I had my son. She taught me so much and I could NOT have learned the things I did had I not met with her! She was able to help me latch my son on in the office and we have been thriving since our visit! Ahe was told she can not accept patients with my insurance, and yet, she saw us anyway!!!! I am so grateful and genuinely believe we would have failed without her help and over 40 years of experience! She is unable to see other women with my insurance (I have state funded mediCal) unless they are a Bayside patient. However, if you have private insurance you can contact Bayside in Berkeley and make an appt. There's a $37.50 copay for the visit.

I booked an in-home visit with Molly a couple days after returning from the hospital. I was blown…read moreaway by her knowledge and attention to detail. My first feeding journey was rough and took about a month to get comfortable so I wanted to make sure I started in the right direction for my second. Molly helped significantly, within a few days after her visit I had feeding nailed down. She's such a joy to work with and was very thoughtful. Thank you Molly!!

I am so so so thankful for Molly…read more Our 4 month old was refusing the bottle and we had tried an assortment of strategies including several different types of bottles, timing, positions, etc and had pretty much given up on trying the bottle. We were truly at our wits end. Molly was able to quickly identify that our daughter has a high palate (the roof of her mouth is higher than normal), so holding the bottle normally wont touch the roof of her mouth which was causing her to get frustrated with the bottle. Molly showed us a simple positioning technique to add pressure so that the bottle nipple to touch the roof our baby's mouth and she will now take the bottle reliably! Such a huge huge relief. Thank you Molly!

Ellen was caring, effective, and helped us overcome challenges to reach our breastfeeding goals.read more

Working with Ellen for lactation support with my 3rd baby was one of the best decisions I have…read moremade!! Even though I had had two prior breastfeeding journeys, they both had their complications/challenges and I knew I wanted to have some support on-hand before my 3rd baby. Having a private, in-home lactation consultant was nothing short of amazing. Ellen even did a prenatal visit where she learned about my past breastfeeding experiences and challenges and listened to my goals and worries for this time around. In the past, I had only ever seen LC's in a "hospital outpatient" relationship and while those providers were experienced and competent, the setup really lacked continuity of care that I think is really important in a breastfeeding journey. Ellen did wonders to soothe my instinct to pathologize every little thing, and also brought me up to speed on the new evidence-based guidance for flange sizes and mastitis/clogged duct protocol as a lot had changed from my 1st two babies. She helped me ID a tongue tie much earlier than my 2nd baby, and with her updated protocol recommendations, I can now say I have made it 6 months EBF with no mastitis (something that was not the case at ALL my 1st two times). I really enjoyed working with Ellen and always looked forward to her visits. Even though it was my 3rd baby, I know that I would not be having such a positive breastfeeding journey if not for Ellen. She helped remove a lot of the anxieties and frustrations I had. Learning how to do "laid back" breastfeeding from the comfort of my own bed/couch was an absolute game changer and my baby breastfed with Ellen's support has had much better head/neck strength from the get-go from her nursing position. My body has been so much less sore/worn down from this position too. I wish I had discovered it years ago! If you are looking for lactation support - please consider working with Ellen beginning from late 3rd trimester - having that continuity of care from the first few days home from the hospital was an incredible gift. I can't recommend her enough from my experience!

Hiring Lenore as our doula was one of the best decisions we made. She was consistently warm,…read moregenuinely caring, and incredibly responsive. Her professionalism and organization were impressive, yet she remained completely approachable throughout. Lenore empowered me to create the birth plan I wanted and provided resources to help me feel prepared. She walked alongside us through important decisions and connected us to wonderful providers, including a pelvic floor therapist. During labor, her support both at home and at the hospital was critically helpful. I'm so grateful for my beautiful birthing experience! It was also reassuring that she was a known and respected presence at the hospital. My partner was initially uncertain about hiring a doula, but now says without hesitation that it was one of our best decisions. I cannot recommend Lenore highly enough.

If you are looking to hire a doula, look no further. Lenore is absolutely incredible at what she…read moredoes, and choosing to have her on my birthing team was one of the best decisions I've made. I honestly couldn't imagine going through the birthing journey without her. She provided so much insight, support, and value throughout every step of the way. During the prenatal sessions, she was intentional about getting to know my partner and I, as well as my birthing preferences. When the unexpected happened, she was there to offer me a fresh perspective and the right questions to ask. Lastly, when it came to giving birth, she knew exactly what to say, exactly what support I needed, and kept me feeling embodied and empowered throughout the entire experience. I can confidently say that I would never have been able to achieve my desired birth without her.

Katie Howser is the absolute best! She supported me through my journey of providing 100% breastmilk…read morefor each of my four children for a full year. While I was fortunate to have an abundant supply, Katie was always incredibly supportive of whatever path I chose, including transitioning to formula if needed. Her care goes well beyond breastfeeding--she is there to support you with whatever you need. Whether it's teaching you how to swaddle, showing you how to safely bathe your baby, or simply holding your little one so you can take a well-deserved minute to breathe, she does it all. I would recommend Katie to anyone. She is a truly amazing lactation consultant!

I honestly can't say enough good things about Katie. I worked with lactation consultants with my…read moreprevious baby, so I thought I knew what to expect--but Katie is in a completely different league. The depth of her knowledge, experience, and professionalism is unlike anything I've encountered. She helped me through literally every postpartum breastfeeding challenge I had. She recognized that my baby had reflux and a cow's milk protein allergy before our pediatrician did. She helped me finally get recurrent mastitis under control and, more importantly, taught me how to prevent it from happening again. She guided me through a difficult oversupply, improved my baby's latch, and always had practical, thoughtful solutions. What really sets Katie apart is that everything she recommends is evidence-based. When we discussed different treatment options for mastitis, she even sent me research articles explaining the reasoning behind her recommendations. I never felt like I was just getting generic advice--she took the time to educate me, answer every question, and make sure I understood the reasoning behind everything. Knowing she trained at Cleveland Clinic made so much sense after working with her. Her level of expertise is truly exceptional. I can say without hesitation that working with Katie was one of the best investments I made after having my baby. She is worth every single penny, and I recommend her to every expecting or new mom I know. If you're wondering whether to book with her, do it. I truly don't think you'll find anyone better.

I sought help from Kelly as a last resort after a month of baby struggling to get back to birth…read moreweight. I was prescribed triple feeding which was totally unsustainable. She helped tremendously and gave us so much confidence as parents. She was so patient and knowledgeable, and professional. We got the latch down and were able to drop the triple feeding routine. Here we are almost a year later still nursing and growing right on track!

Kelly is the best lactation consultant any mama could ask for!!! A week into my breast feeding…read morejourney with my first baby I was ready to give up. (We saw a horrible lactation consultant at Kaiser who made me feel like I was starving my baby and tried to move us to formula immediately.) Thankfully we found Kelly on Yelp and she was able to see us the next day. She listened to my concerns/frustrations with breastfeeding, then watched me nurse my baby and gave such compassionate guidance. She gave me so much confidence!!! Fast forward to today, my baby girl is 9 months old and I am still exclusively breastfeeding!!! Breastfeeding is so much harder than anyone ever told me it was going to be. My recommendation for any first time mama would be to make an appointment with Kelly and get all the support you didn't even know you would need, it makes a world of a difference!

It's 8pm on a Saturday night and I am relaxing on my couch having a glass of wine. My little man…read morehas been sleeping in his crib since he fell asleep there, ON HIS OWN, SEVEN minutes after we put him down - without a peep. You read that right. Since I have such ample time, this review will be a long one. I gave you fair warning. I'm not so rigid to think or expect that every night will unfold like tonight. There will be teeth! walking! talking! more regressions to come. However, a month after starting this process, it has become a reasonable reality for me to expect that on more days/nights rather than not (meaning NAPS and bedtime), he will go to sleep. It is a work in progress, but Dahlia guided us through it with the confidence and clarify we ourselves needed to provide to our son for the process to work. The backstory: At 11 weeks old, my son morphed from our lovely sleeping newborn waking twice a night to waking EVERY HOUR, needing to be soothed back to sleep...while sleeping in our bed. As the weeks dragged on, it became clear he was not going to outgrow this hiccup in an amount of time that would preserve my sanity (or marriage lol), and things were snowballing from bad to dreadful (more on that below). He eventually settled on a pattern of waking 4-7 times per night; however, he started having negative sleep associations to most every soothing trick in the book. I won't waste time listing such strategies or the gimmicks I bought on Amazon. Well-meaning folks always shared their soothing strategies. Well, if you can envision it, we tried it. Don't start to tell me about white noise and black out shades. Eventually, NOTHING WORKED except the boob. So sleep - meaning all naps and bedtime plus the night wake ups - became an hour long battle with raging, screaming, kicking, tears. All of which did not guarantee an outcome of sleep in the end! This was a vicious cycle on repeat at least 4 times daily which went on for almost two months (give or take some days where baby was so exhausted he slept well for a night or two). On top of this, I had impending abdominal and oral surgeries. Just icing on the cake. We knew we had to sleep train. After pouring through blogs and books about the various sleep training techniques and studies, I still had reservations (and extreme anxiety subjecting my baby to this), and needed someone to lead me through its ups and downs. Alright I'll be honest - sleep training is mostly down. It is painful. Gutwrenchingly PTSD painful if your baby is anything like mine. Enter Dahlia. She is honest, positive, supportive, respectful, and above all, will use her knowledge to SEE YOU THROUGH IT. She makes herself available and genuinely wants to help you. I cannot thank her enough and I definitely promise you will not get that from a blog. So dread. I used to DREAD naps and bedtime. The clock would hit 5:30pm and my heart would sink a little. My soul would wail a sad song. Now, I think about the time I can spend writing long reviews and blogging while he's sleeping. And the biggest plus? The little man wakes up RELAXED and RESTED and happy to see me. THANK YOU DAHLIA!

Dahlia is the BEST! We hired her for 3 months of postpartum work, which is no small task with…read moretwins! She was so caring, nurturing, and gentle with our babies, her experience was only outweighed by her sweetness and profound gift for "twinning". I feel so lucky to have had her work with us, she taught us (first-time parents) so much, from swaddling to bathing to infant massage! Every morning when Dahila arrived it was a ray of sunshine and positive energy, my babies responded so well to her songs, her feeding techniques, and her cuddles. We were so sad to say goodbye to her when it was time, and are almost jealous of the next family that gets to work with her! :) :)

We feel so incredibly lucky to have had Marilou as our postpartum night doula. I ended up needing…read moreto be induced earlier than expected, so we had to arrange support at the very last minute. I was honestly pretty anxious going into it because we didn't have the opportunity to interview or even speak with her beforehand, and we were simply going off her profile that was shared with us. But from the moment she arrived, she immediately put us at ease. She was with us for those first few nights home from the hospital, when I was exhausted, emotional, and very newly postpartum. She had such a warm, gentle, and calming presence, and having her there made those overwhelming first nights feel so much more manageable. She was incredibly sweet and attentive with our baby, but she was equally caring toward me, always checking in and offering thoughtful tips for both newborn care and taking care of myself during recovery. She helped with feeds, baby laundry, and washing and assembling bottles and pump parts, and was always punctual, dependable, and proactive. Most importantly, we felt completely comfortable having her care for our brand new baby during such a vulnerable time. Our only regret is that we didn't find her sooner! Because everything came together so last minute, she was only available to be with us for a few nights, and we absolutely would have loved to have had her for longer. We're so grateful she was there when we needed her and would wholeheartedly recommend her to any family looking for a kind, knowledgeable, and genuinely caring postpartum doula. Thanks Marilou and Doulas by the Bay!

We had a wonderful experience with Brenda. She came to meet us before the baby was born, which was…read morereally helpful and gave us a chance to get comfortable with each other beforehand. Once the baby arrived, she was incredibly helpful, especially with tips and guidance on how to soothe him and help him get to sleep. She was so kind, gentle, and caring with our baby, and it was such a pleasure to have her with us during these first days. We're very grateful for all her help and would absolutely recommend her!