I'm sharing this because I wish I found someone like Casey sooner…read more I've had two sessions so far, and both were deeply personalized and exactly what I needed. In the first session, we revisited childhood memories and worked on rewriting the emotional experience I carried as a child, especially not being able to understand why my parents were busy and working (even though they were doing their best with what they knew). We ended with a chakra rebalancing meditation that helped my nervous system settle in a way I didn't expect. The second session focused on my recent grief and the patterns it has been triggering in my relationships. Casey guided me through an imagery meditation where I practiced giving myself the love, safety, and security I've been trying to find externally, and leaving the pain in the past where it belongs. It felt like emotional closure, but also like learning a new way to care for myself. Casey truly feels like a walking hug. She's present, loving, grounded, and radiant. I felt held the entire time, and I left feeling more supported than I've ever felt in a romantic relationship. The biggest gift is that she's helping me learn to provide that same compassion and safety to myself, and heal my codependency from the inside out. She has been one of the most profound people the universe has placed on my healing path. If you're considering working with her, I can't recommend her enough

Casey is something special. I've called on her when I needed help, processing and general guidance…read moreon what this big world is. She's not fluffy, she's not too ethereal, she's a modern woman's support system. She's kind and helpful and open. Each time I connect with Casey, I know it won't be the last. If you're on the fence, reach out and schedule time with her but I deeply suggest doing a natal chart reading to get your bearings. Thank you Casey!

Abbie was everything I was looking for in a doula: knowledgeable, responsive, and calm. My birth…read moredidn't go quite as planned and Abbie was there to help at every turn. As a first time mom, I was very happy to have a doula and I would recommend Abbie as your doula 100%.

Best Doula ever!! Sorry for such a late review... We were due with our second one in November. I…read morecontacted Abbie somewhere around July 2021. And she immediately replied back when I told her I really really really want to go for a VBAC after a very traumatic c-section with my first born. Abbie gave me the dates when she can come over to our house and discuss everything about our past birth experiences and future plans for this new birth and baby. VBAC was something I have been dreaming all these years as my c-section recovery was too much for my body and it didn't let me bond with my baby. I told abbie everything and she supported me and my decisions from the first day we met till the day we bid goodbyes to each other. She taught so many ways, exercises and labor positions to cope with everything related to birth especially a VBAC birth. She gave us so many resources about what to expect for our labor, birth, baby and even breastfeeding. The best part was that she was so accommodating and friendly that her presence never felt like a stranger or a new person, but rather it felt like I knew her for so long. We had to change the location of our birth in the last moment after my water broke, because the hospital we chose was over-booked, she never even flinched about that change and went ahead with whatever was needed in that moment because I felt that for her my needs and my mental health and support was most important in that moment. So if you want an experienced, patient, extremely supportive and gentle doula who will listen to you, suggest you what and how you can do things right and who is very resourceful, hire Abbie right away!!

I had a terrible experience with my first birth in the hospital with standard care. I wanted to be…read morein the care of someone that aligned with what I wanted and believed in. Angela, was wonderful, warm, welcoming and caring. She encouraged me and gave advice that was so helpful! I wouldn't be where I'm at in my mom journey without her! Every time I met Angela was important to me, it was like meeting with an old friend or sister. I was especially thankful for the advice for the breastfeeding book she recommended-that was life-changing. My time in the hospital visits were stressful and traumatic, so, the hands-on care that was provided was a breath of fresh air. I felt heard and seen. Even when I had to go to the hospital, Angela was an advocate by my side. Her advice and visits during the postpartum phase were wonderful as well. I felt like Angela took the time to care for me AND my baby. With midwifery care, the baby is a patient as well. There is less unnecessary poking and prodding and much more love and attention. With the standard care given by doctors, they are often cold and even demeaning. They look at things backwards and always act as if you or your baby is sick and dying until proven otherwise. I wasn't able to have a home birth, but still had a vbac in the hospital, I didn't give up and I found strength and resilience that I didn't have previously. I was able to really listen to my body and do what I and baby needed.

Angela was such a dream to have at our birth. She is knowledgeable in all areas and made us feel…read morefully confident and comfortable throughout the entire pregnancy and birth. She is thorough, patient and kind. We we're blessed to have her as our midwife. We couldn't recommend her more to anyone considering a homebirth. Best decision ever. Angela, thank you for everything!!!!

As a first-time mom, I knew I wanted a doula. After the first call I knew Laura was the right fit…read more Her warm demeanor and openness made her feel like a friend right away, and I appreciated how deeply she cared not only about me, but about including and supporting my partner. Laura took the time to come into our home and explain everything in detail, helping us feel informed and comfortable. During the pregnancy, she was always just a text away, especially when I was feeling impatient for the baby to arrive. She was right by my side during the birth of our son, and continued to be a steady source of guidance during the roller coaster of postpartum. We are so grateful to have had Laura as part of this journey and would absolutely choose her again.

I had a bad experience with this Doula when she was based in San Francisco Bay Area. I had a rough…read morepregnancy with complications and early induction and felt like Laura was more concerned with payment than my care. I paid the full amount and eventually opted not to have her attend to the birth after some texts I found insensitive. (I'll never forget the "sorry I triggered you" text.)

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).

Did a prenatal massage with Gracie and she's wonderful! The room is nice, she had all the comfort…read morepillows and really listened to where I noted any aches or pains to address. She also included some breathing techniques which was nice. Afterwords she also offered drinks and snacks from the studio lounge which being pregnant is always appreciated. Loved my massage here.

I reached out to Brilliant Births to find a birth doula. They offer a matching service and…read moreconnected me to 3 doulas who work independently (not employees of BB). We were really fortunate to find our birth doula (who we love!), but the other 2 candidates were not very impressive. The first doula missed our appointment with no follow-up communication. We were initially confused and thought she was the coordinator for BB, because she only communicated by text. The actual meeting was just by telephone so there was no face-to-face interaction, which felt strange. We could've easily FaceTimed or Zoomed. So communication and reliability were not great. The second doula abruptly canceled our half-hour appointment when we were 10 minutes late for a 30-minute appointment due to my husband wrapping up a Zoom meeting. During our appointment time, she was responding to my emails (in which I apologized for being late), but insisted she could no longer meet with us. I thought this was a really bad sign about what she would be like to work with - labor and delivery is rarely precisely timed and some flexibility is needed. In addition, her email said that she lives in Portola Valley, but we live Berkeley (also where Brilliant Births is located). This also struck me as strange, because it would take 1.5 hours for her to arrive to meet us at the hospital, which is not ideal.

Tara is real-life Mary Poppins…read more My husband and I first spoke with her when we were expecting our first baby, and we had no idea what to expect or what questions to ask. She came to meet us in person to ensure we felt comfortable with her, provided multiple (glowing) references, and gave us lots of suggestions and advice even before the little one showed up - things to have on hand for the first weeks, how to organize the nursery, and more. She even sent me a little care package with postpartum goodies. We weren't sure how it would be having someone in our home overnight, but Tara immediately made us feel comfortable with her warm, gentle presence. Thanks to her care, my husband was able to get full nights of sleep and I slept as much as possible while still nursing every few hours. We both rested soundly knowing our baby was being well cared for. Throughout the month she was with us, Tara helped us get into a rhythm as a new family and gave invaluable advice on everything from breastfeeding to baby gas to the best pajamas for midnight diaper changes (double zip!!). Now two months in, we are feeling confident and joyful in parenthood - very much thanks to the foundation she helped set for us. We both love Tara and have already agreed she will be our first phone call whenever we decide to have a second child.

Ms Tara is so amazing, as a mother of a 12, 9,6, and 2 year old I can attest. It was so comfortable…read morehaving Tara here to help care for our baby so I could work. I hired her the moment I met her, and i really appreciated that she was just as (if not more) cautious as I am with the safety of my babies. She mostly cared for my son, from 3 months until 15 months. Hopefully she comes back... Tara is a blessing. I am so glad she was here to help out family, she is truly invaluable.

I cannot recommend Nina enough, she is truly an infant whisperer…read more We worked with Nina for the first five months of our son's life due to his unique needs, as he required feeding around the clock. From the moment Nina started with our family, she was calm, caring, incredibly knowledgeable, and completely trustworthy. As a new mom navigating some extreme postpartum anxiety, trust did not come easily to me but Nina changed that almost immediately. Her presence is so grounding and reassuring that I was able to fully rest at night knowing my baby was in the absolute best hands. Our son was also very high needs, with severe reflux and slow weight gain, which made those early months especially challenging and stressful. Nina handled everything with such confidence, attentiveness, and compassion. She not only cared for him beautifully but also gave us guidance and support that made a real difference in his care and our peace of mind. Ester also supported our family on several nights, and she was exceptional as well equally calming, attentive, and wonderful with our baby. It was clear that the level of care and professionalism extends across the team. Nina has a rare gift with infants and an intuitive understanding of what they need. She didn't just help us get through the newborn stage she truly made it a more manageable. Any family would be incredibly lucky to have her. I wholeheartedly recommend Nina (and Ester!) to anyone looking for exceptional overnight care. I would also be more than happy to speak directly with anyone considering working with Nina, she can connect you with me if helpful.

Nina was an absolute breath of calm, fresh air when we brought home our first baby. She knew…read moreexactly how to care for our little one at night (soothing him, top off feeds, diaper changes, etc.) while also being a support system for me when I was going through such a big physical/emotional change in my life. Our baby loved her so much, too. Her expertise in caring for newborns is incredible. Nina is respectful, warm, and professional. I recommend Nebula Doulas to any family looking for assistance from a night doula when you bring your new babes home and need extra support (and as much rest as you can get!).

Tamra is literally the BEST with our baby. There is no one else I would reccomend higher and would…read morework with her 100000x again. She truly was a blessing to our family and I happily woudl be a referral for anyone interested in working with her. Our daughter absolutely loved her!

Tamra was nothing short of incredible and to be honest felt life saving. Having her during the…read morefirst nights of bringing my first child home helped our family get into a healthy feeding/sleeping routine for the baby and ourselves. She is knowledgeable, kind, fun and really helped to ease a lot of the stress I had with being a ftm. She helped my BF journey and was there to provide incredible support and guidance. Having her was truly a gift for my son but also for my mental health. I throughly enjoyed having her with us during the night feedings and she deeply understands how to connect to you during this very interesting chapter of life. , Tamra made everything feel as if I was on a team rather being alone in the night trying to look up suggestions on anything and everything related to a newborn. Tamra is/was a game changer for my whole family. We cannot thank you enough and will forever be grateful!

As a new parent, the postpartum period is challenging enough without having to deal with the stress…read moreand disappointment of a difficult agency. While Stork and Sprout does have some excellent doulas on its team who provided great support and coaching, my experience with the agency's leadership was overwhelmingly negative. We had a particularly difficult time with Brittany. She demonstrated a pattern of manipulation, gaslighting, and lying, both to us and, from what I understand, to her own employees. Our contract promised consistent coverage, but the scheduling was erratic and communication was poor. We were left to wonder many nights if we would have support, and for several weeks, we only received 1 to 2 days of support instead of the 6 to 7 we paid for. When we requested a refund for the services not provided, Brittany refused and even fought our bank with out-of-context emails and more lies. She claims she "offered a refund" but is even today refusing to honor it as she says in the response. The lack of professionalism extended to some of the staff as well; one sick doula was sent to our home and intentionally caused our newborn physical pain. Brittany treated us like we were the difficult ones and responded with empathy-less chatGPT emails to manage the situation. We were also led to believe we would have one primary doula with a backup, but over the course of our service, we had seven different doulas come to our home. This complete lack of continuity made an already difficult period even more stressful. Based on my experience, I would advise new parents to skip Stork and Sprout and work directly with an independent doula. You will not only save the 30-40% extra fee the agency charges for scheduling, but you will also avoid the toxic and difficult management. This experience is unacceptable for a service that costs tens of thousands of dollars and demands payment upfront months ahead of providing the service. We were not able to switch easily due to the inflexible Carrot reimbursement process through the employer.

I truly couldn't have accomplished my VBAC goals without the incredible support of the Stork and…read moreSprout birth doula team. From the very first moment I needed them through labor and all the way until I was settled into the maternity floor with my new little boy, they were there every step of the way. Their calm presence, deep knowledge, encouragement, and advocacy made all the difference during such an intense and meaningful experience. I felt supported, empowered, and never alone. I am beyond grateful for their care and dedication and would wholeheartedly recommend Stork and Sprout to anyone preparing for birth--especially those pursuing a VBAC.