As we got closer to our due date and reality was sinking in that we were truly going to have a baby (!) my husband and I talked about the idea of having a post-partum doula. We just wanted the peace of mind, especially because we did not have any family around and wanted to make sure we had some support if things were not going well. We found Regula on Yelp and then also found out that she was the post-partum doula for my husband's coworker who LOVED Regula. We engaged Regula to come a 3-4 days a week for the first 6 weeks after having our little one. We were so glad we made the decision to employ Regula. The first 6 weeks are so hard to navigate. Is he eating enough? Is he still hungry, is he sleepy, is it normal he is only sleeping for 20 minutes, should I try and keep him up, should I let him cry a little? So many doubts and questions. It was so wonderful to have Regula around to give that reassurance and confidence. Our son was healthy and happy, we still faced usual challenges. Our son lost a little more weight than the doctors want to see (~12%) so that was a bit stressful. As was my husband getting the flu when Oliver was 2 weeks old. Regula was our rock, personal lactation consultant, and support system. She let us know what was normal and what wasn't, and she put as at so much ease being there for us. She made such a difference to both me and my husband. Regula is also just such a lovely person, with such a calm and warm presence and was so nice to have some socialization during that time without being stressed about having a little one around because that is what she was there for. I personally would recommend everyone use a post-partum Doula (and Regula specifically!) if you've nervous about bringing your newborn home. She made such a big impact on us. She is flexible, will cater to what you need and help any way you best see fit. read more

Hiring Regula was one of my best life decisions. She came weekday mornings to help my husband and me adjust to parenthood for a few weeks postpartum. Her calming manner and touch helped ease all of us into my son's first month of life! She reassured me when growth spurts were happening and was invaluable encouragement the first tough weeks of breastfeeding. She was incredibly helpful in keeping our house tidy and baby's room in order, his clothes clean, pumping gear sanitized, and diaper rash at bay ... She set us up with a routine that we are still using and made the first month of insanity somewhat manageable. If you're thinking of having a baby, SERIOUSLY consider a postpartum doula and seriously consider Regula as that doula! read more

Prior to having our daughter, a friend of mine recommended hiring a postpartum doula to help in the first few weeks of our newborn's life. Having had one herself, she said it was so helpful to have not only another pair of hands around, but to also have expert advice on things like breastfeeding and basic baby care. After our experience with Regula, I couldn't agree more. Regula was such a calming presence in those first few weeks of new parenthood. I had a lot of challenges with nursing, and with both Regula's help and Marin General's Lactation Center staff (who also deserve 5 million stars), we persevered. She saw me at my absolute worst, and was still so supportive during those challenging moments. To be able to make a new mom, whose hormones are crashing around the house like a bull in a china shop, feel like she is fully encouraged without judgment is reason enough to work with Regula. It was evident with our daughter as well. How comfortable our baby felt with her presence was absolutely noticeable. Through watching Regula, I learned how to be more delicate, more patient, and more confident in taking care of my baby. My mother was in town at the same time, so there were moments where it could have seemed that we didn't need additional help. However, Regula was consistently proactive in making sure our needs were met. She capitalized on every minute of our time together. If she wasn't doing something with the baby or around the house, she would use lulls in activity to provide insight and give suggestions. To this day, I still follow her wise words to take a shower if I ever feel overwhelmed. What drew us to Regula in our interview with her was that she was flexible in her approach to parenthood. I would characterize my husband and I as middle of the road parents. We have tendencies toward both hippie dippie and yuppie depending on the subject. Regula made it clear that she did not have any agenda besides that of making sure we were raising a healthy child. I was comforted to know that if we chose to use disposable diapers, for example, it wouldn't be a point of contention. We highly recommend Regula and know that she will be a great contribution to any family. read more

Regula helped us welcome our 2nd child into our family. Before hiring her, I didn't know what a postpartum doula was, but after experiencing what having a newborn was like with our first child, I knew that I needed help. Regula came to us highly recommended by a friend who had used her when her twins were born. Regula is caring, knowledgeable, and experienced. Her calming demeanor made it possible for me to feel comfortable to leave her with our son so I could get some much needed rest. Her breastfeeding tips and advice were extremely helpful - even with a second baby. When the baby was asleep, she helped with light housekeeping, which kept our home feeling comfortable. Regula helped make the first couple of weeks enjoyable and stress-free so we could focus on the baby and integrating him into our family. Regula was also great with our 6-year-old daughter and helped her with the transition as well. Any family would be lucky to work with Regula and I can genuinely recommend her without any reservations. read more

I was lucky to have a pretty easy pregnancy and delivery, but because my husband could not take time off and my mom could only stay for a week after the birth of our baby, I knew I needed some extra help. Regula came recommended from a friend, and with her background in the medical field and lactation support I knew she had the "resume" background I was looking for. I kept thinking that I didn't need someone *so* qualified (given things being so "textbook" for me), however she had a significant role in three important ways: 1) guiding me through my baby not gaining weight, and being able to keep breastfeeding; 2) helping me identify that my baby had a milk protein allergy, and 3) supporting me in the most nonjudgemental way and making sure I got some sleep 1- baby weight gain: my daughter lost some weight (common) but was not gaining it back as quickly as the pediatricians wanted - I doing what I thought I was supposed to, but it wasn't working, I felt like a failure (complete breakdown in the pediatrician's office), and was about to start using formula (which is TOTALLY OK, and honestly I was just so exhausted and I hated the feeling of working so hard without my baby gaining) -- because of her background she was able to see that I wasn't keeping my child at a single breast for long enough at a time (my baby often fell asleep nursing) which meant she wasn't getting enough hind milk (the fatty part) - it wasn't so out of balance that there were other warning signs, so I don't think the pediatrician realized that was happening. As soon as I followed Regula's direction, my baby gained ounces each day and had a double chin within a couple of weeks with all of her weight gain. 2- identifying protein allergy: my baby had a good amount of gas and it caused a good amount of crying (poor thing was so uncomfortable) - she repeatedly told me that I should try to eliminate dairy and see how that went, but I kept eating yogurt, cheese, cookies made with butter... by the second month we had stronger, more obvious signs that led us back to the pediatrician, and after consulting with a pediatric GI specialist I finally followed the advice I had in the beginning - she had a dairy protein (whey/casein) allergy. After me eliminating from my diet after a few days baby no longer cried at night, no spit up, no blow outs, minimal gas... Regula knew what to advise me to eat and avoid, and helped me consider the dairy allergy as a possibility even before the doctor. 3- support and sleep: I knew that with someone as experienced as Regula I could hand over my new baby (and I was a major germ freak and totally not trusting of others to take my baby... at first) and get some sleep - I would not have slept much at all had she not been able to easily take my baby, and keep her happy and entertained, and even would help get her to sleep as well! Beyond that, as other reviewers have mentioned, she has no agenda - she pushes no philosophy, and she talked me through all kinds of new mom things with a great ear and lots of kindness and compassion. My mom was helpful, but she was not able to stay with me for long, and it was so nice to have someone (who also helped fix me snacks, tidied the kitchen, helped with the baby's laundry) to be with me when my mom couldn't. Additionally, had I really listened to her about the sleep feeding my baby might now (at 13 months) be a better sleeper -- please follow ALL of her advice!!! it'll help in the long run! Even if you think you have all your ducks in a row and have a great support network, it was a great decision to have Regula as an expert in our corner. read more

Regula was just recently our postpartum doula for our daughter born October 2011 and who is now almost 10 weeks old. My husband and I decided to hire a postpartum doula, being first-time parents, and we also don't have any family living nearby, let alone any family experienced with newborns. If you already have children, you will know what I am talking about when I say that those first days and weeks are some of the most challenging (and rewarding) we can experience. If you don't yet have children, suffice it to say that living the experience is quite different than all the books you read and conversations you have with your friends beforehand....it's much harder and it seems like no one really tells you that in advance. ;) Knowing that Regula was going to be with us really eased both our minds about getting through this major transition. Regula was with us every step of the way. From the time we contracted with her until the baby was born, she would call regularly just to see how I was doing and how the pregnancy was progressing. She could answer any question I had before the birth, and helped me in making sure I was "ready" in terms of all the stuff I needed to have (because I like to be prepared that way). After the birth, she came over the day we came home from the hospital and immediately set to work assisting me with breastfeeding and getting me used to caring for our new little being. I have to say, breastfeeding has been a challenge...and on top of being so dog tired and frustrated and everything that comes with being a new mother, I might have thrown in the towel if it hadn't been for Regula. I will forever be grateful to her for getting me over that hump so that I could breast feed my daughter, which was/is really important to me. She was so attentive and present and really out for me to succeed, even when it got tough. In addition to the invaluable help with breast feeding, she helped me get to know our little one, with things like this cry means she's hungry and that cry means she's gassy, how to deal with fussiness, advice about sleeping, what's "normal" for babies (you'd be surprised how often you wonder about that) and just provided much-needed relief so that I could take a nap, have a shower, etc. She also took care of all the baby chores and light housework like dishes, laundry, and just keeping things from looking like a bomb had gone off in the house. Since those first few weeks, Regula has continued to come over and support us, including for the occasional date night or whenever I just need a break. I know that our daughter will get the very best care with her and I never have to worry that Regula won't know what to do should there be an emergency. Most importantly to me, Regula is genuinely caring of the entire family, and a pleasure to spend time with (an important quality in the person you hire to come into your home during this particular life experience). She has a wonderful balance of supporting your decisions without her own agenda, while offering her advice on what will work best for the baby and you in the long run. She is extremely knowledgeable and experienced when it comes to all things about babies - she has seen it all in her career as an R.N., working in the NICU and with healthy babies, twins, preemies...you name it, including her own twin boys (now grown). It is obvious when she comes over that our daughter knows her presence, and she is always a happier baby after Regula spends time with her. If you check her references, you will find many more happy parents and glowing reviews like mine; people cannot say enough nice things about her. In fact, my husband and I were out to eat a few weeks before the baby came and happened to strike up a conversation with a couple sitting next to us who had three kids (one older and a set of toddler twins). It just so happened that Regula was their postpartum doula with their twins and remains connected to their family years later. It's hard to find the words to express what a tremendous difference her support has made for our brand new family in starting out on the right foot. I am sure we would have survived without her, like many people do, but it provided so much peace of mind to know we had expert and caring help. read more

Regula Keller was amazing for us. When I had my son, I was overwhelmed. We don't have any family nearby. Once my parents left and my hubby was back to work, I needed someone to help me! She was great with my son. She is so knowledgeable and professional. Regula was always on time and flexible with our times and needs. We used her to babysit when I was matron of honor in a wedding and my son was only a few months old. It was the first time I ever left him with anyone but I knew it would be okay because Regula was there. I almost don't want to leave a review here in case I need her as a babysitter! LOL! But, I can't keep her to myself. She is a wonderful postpartum doula and can help with breastfeeding, developmental play, sleep (yours and the baby's!), organic meals, light cleaning. read more

I initially didn't think I needed a postpartum doula because I had relatives flying in after I gave birth to my daughter, but my friend talked me into it and I am sure glad I hired Regula! This was my first child and I had no idea how challenging it was to come home with a new baby. I was sleep deprived, hormonal, and didn't have the slightest clue how to sooth a screaming baby. Having Regula as added support the first few weeks helped me feel more confident and less stressed. I found myself looking forward to her visits. The biggest thing she helped me with was breastfeeding. No one really tells you how difficult breastfeeding is, especially that first week when the baby is learning to properly latch and your milk has not yet come in. If it wasn't for Regula, I would have given up and switched to formula after the first week. She helped me with the latch and to train my baby to have a big open mouth instead of a shallow latch on the nipple. She also helped me establish a flexible schedule and pattern so I knew when to feed the baby and when she was just tired. She also recommended a special pillow and vitamin supplements to help with my milk supply. I am happy to say I am still breastfeeding today and am so grateful to have that support in the beginning. Regula has a calming presence, and gave me acupressure massages so I could relax and take naps during the day when I was stressed out and unable to sleep. Overall I highly recommend Regula and believe that hiring outside help is totally worth it, even if you have parents in town. read more

If you are a first time Mom with no family in the area who needs advice and help post C Section, Regula is for you! She helped me to catch some sleep, identified a bit of bilirubin in my baby's system early on, learn to interpret baby's cries, different holding positions, soothing techniques, breastfeeding advice, baby's weight gain concerns, bottle sterilization, etc. She also helped out with some light cleaning, laundry etc around the house which was a huge help! Also she is a very nice worldly lady! Highly recommend! read more

My wife and I just had our first child and feel blessed to have had Regula be part of those early weeks. Regula's energy is calming for both baby and the parents. She helped our little Henry by comforting him and understanding his needs and comforting him. She helped us by passing wisdom and guidance, be it how to read his cries, to burping techniques, to soothing techniques, to breastfeeding, to giving him his first bath. She is right there, always knowing what to do. Most of all her viewpoint is positive and reassuring, which is super important for first time parents. While it's time filled with great love and pride, there are trying moments and having Regula there helped us through those moments. I would highly recommend her. read more

Having Regula as our post-partum doula for my twins was a wonderful experience. My babies were born at 29 weeks and spent almost 3 months in the NICU and Regula was the calming, knowledgeable expert that we needed to smoothly transition to our new life at home. I was especially confident in her abilities, not only from her years of experience but she was the mother of twins herself. Regula was invaluable in helping with breastfeeding, soothing the babies and helping to establish a routine with confidence and ease. She was always flexible with our hectic schedule and helpful with everything in the household, including making sure I had healthy food to eat! We couldn't have managed as elegantly as we did if it weren't for Regula and I would recommend her to anyone looking for a baby expert to guide you through your first few months. read more

Regula Keller is an exceptional post partum doula, teacher, guide and healing presence. We had the good fortune of learning about Regula from my sister who worked with her when she had twins. Our experience in the hospital was particularly challenging. Our son was in the NICU for 10 days and I was in bad shape following emergency surgery after the birth. Regula literally escorted us from my hospital room to our bedroom at home and ultimately to a place of well-being. My husband and I both felt entirely supported by Regula through many typical and unexpected aspects of becoming parents. She taught us how to best support our son who needed additional medical care once home. She taught me about breastfeeding, nutrition, and much more. Her knowledge is wide and deep and her kindness is beyond measure. Given Regula's experience and background working with newborns, we knew we were in great hands and would learn what was necessary to be good parents and make a new home as a family. We felt completely comfortable with Regula in our home just as we felt completely comfortable leaving our son with her when we needed to leave home for hours at a time. We are eternally grateful to have had the opportunity to work with Regula. read more

Regula helped us for 6 weeks with our 1 month old, she was fantastic. It was incredible to have her education as a nurse, she had so many wonderful insights as to breastfeeding, sleep etc. I felt completely at ease leaving her with my son so I could go run an errand or get to yoga. She is warm, energetic and a great pleasure to be around. I would recommend her without hesitation. read more

We were recommended Regula by our doctors at One Medical and I have never been so grateful before for a recommendation! Regula helped us after the birth of our first baby and was a godsend. Neither my husband nor I have family nearby and Regula kindly and patiently walked us through the bewildering first weeks of parenthood. She taught us practical tips on how to care for our daughter such as swaddling and bathing, was truly wonderful at giving moral support and guidance on breastfeeding and was generally a fountain of knowledge, able to answer all our many questions and concerns. Without Regula there is no doubt that I would have given up on breastfeeding when my milk supply seemed to be failing and I was in a lot of discomfort but thanks to her help, three months on and it is going great! Regula's experience both as a nurse and a long standing Doula coupled with her kind and patient personality create a combination that is hard to beat. I trusted her entirely with my daughter from day 1 and miss her hugely. read more

Regula was an amazing doula for our twin girls. We met over seven years ago, when our girls where born and when she was our Doula. Throughout the years we have become close friends and cherish our continued relationship. Regula's knowledge and long-term experience with infants, her mature and supportive presence, and love and passion for infants are characteristics that make her an ideal Doula for any new parents. As a trained nurse, Regula brings a wealth of experience to new parents like we were. This was particularly helpful as one of our girls was in the intensive care unit for two weeks after her birth before coming home. Regula's knowledge and in-depth understanding of health issues related to smaller babies was very reassuring to us and I trusted her fully. Regula's supportive and mature personality made her a pleasure to spend time with. Her calm spirit and impeccable character were also felt by the girls, who loved to be with her and rarely cried. We all accepted her into our family and felt fortunate that we had her with us. In summary, I consider myself very fortunate to have found and worked with Regula. I know that without her support and help, my post partum experience as a new mom would have never been as positive. She is a true gem and I highly recommend her to any mom, especially a mom of twins. read more

Regula has been our postpartum doula on two occasions, and in both instances, she was invaluable. She is extremely knowledgeable about babies, and as new parents with no family nearby, we found her to be very calm and reassuring. Regula has a wonderful twinkle in her eye, and it's clear she loves her work; I loved talking to her about babies and learned a lot. We also found her fun and interesting, which is important during such a stressful time. We are very grateful we had Regula with us and highly recommend her. read more

Regula is very experienced with babies. She could put my baby to sleep in minutes. She could calm my crying baby and had a great understanding of what my babies needs were and taught me many useful tips on how to listen and read my babies needs. By being able to read my babies needs my baby is very calm and I owe a lot of this calmness to Regula's tips. I am so thankful I had her as a Doula, she has been incredibly helpful! read more

We hired Regula recently as a post-partum doula and benefited from her genuine warmth, vast experience and sage advice. She stepped in when we needed her the most and gave us peace of mind, not only with our newborn but older children ages 8 and 6 as well. She could handle all three expertly and we always looked forward to her time with us. read more

So, then we went on to have ANOTHER SET OF TWINS. Regula to the rescue again. It was wonderful to call upon her, knowing that she was a caring, gentle, trusted caregiver to our girls, and then our boys. It was great to have her back, and for her to see the girls she watched as newborns now talking and playing a dancing. A calming influenc read more

We chose to work with Regula because of her expertise with twin newborns, her training as a nurse, and her peaceful demeanor. From the start, Regula impressed us with her professionalism, skills and kindness. We already had a daughter before we had our twins, so we had some experience working with different infant care providers. Regular outshone everyone. Our son was readmitted to the hospital soon after we went home. Regula's medical experience as a NICU nurse, along with her confidence, reassurance, and calm helped us through the challenges of being readmitted to the hospital. She was flexible about the change in schedule, supportive, and gentle. I felt better knowing she would be there when we were finally able to come home. Regular always arrived ten minutes early and often stayed late to make sure we were ready to be on our own. She was affectionate with all three of our children and they responded lovingly towards her. Regula was compassionate and supportive towards me and my husband and our concerns and childcare preferences. She was the only person with whom I felt comfortable leaving the twins while I napped. When we sought her advice, Regula shared her wisdom without judgment and was gentle in her communications. She is more knowledgable than any of the nurses at Kaiser or CPMC. She knew about finger-feeding, supplemental nursing system options, nipple confusion, breastfeeding twins, lactation support options, nutrition and diet recommendations for infants and nursing mothers, feeding and elimination patterns in infants, infant illnesses, infant development, and so on. On my recommendation my sister, my good friend, and two expecting moms I have met have hired Regula. They all were very very happy with Regula. I recommend Regula Keller as a post partum doula without reservation. read more