Purple Doula

My wife and I had a really rough time the first week of our daughter Sophie’s birth. We asked for help from my sister-​in-​law, a midwife, who recommended Laura. And, boy, what a world of difference Laura made in our lives! She is so warm, so intuitive, so easy to talk to, and her experience and natural way with babies (and their parents) just shines through.
Laura was there to assist with Sophie when we needed that, to help with light straightening up or baby laundry when that was called for, even being with Sophie when we just needed a nap or some alone time as a couple (which you totally forget you need when in the throes of dealing with your first baby!)
When we realized we needed some night doula help, Laura took care of that. She recommended 2 great doulas, Kat and Alex (who I also highly recommend), and Laura helped us coordinate with them a schedule that worked for everyone.
Laura just stopped by for a follow up visit today and it was so great to see her. Sophie is almost 3 months old now and my wife and I have (finally!) got the handle on things. Thanks, in no small part, to Laura.
Thanks Laura!

The amount of women who are unaware of the existence (or definition) of Doulas is astounding to me because I honestly cannot imagine my birthing process without Laura. I am a yoga teacher and energy worker, so for me pregnancy and birthing was an incredibly intuitive and spiritual experience. Having said that, my sensitivity levels were off the charts and it required copious amounts of exercise, yoga and mediation to regulate, well, ME for 9 months. My pregnancy was a surprise as was the fact that I was having a baby with a man who I had only been DATING for three months; needless to say, I sought out grounding, solid, strong figures to accompany me in my journey at that time. That is how I found Laura and I COULD NOT be more grateful, its just not humanly possible. She was without a doubt, my magical sanity wizard.
The element of pregnancy that men just don’t understand, (how could they), I believe, is how we get to feel the ancient, sacred, wisdom that connects all women and mothers throughout time. We hone in. We understand. And somehow, we are able to listen to non verbal information or, intuition, that is softly spoken from peculiar sources. While what I have written might come across as crazy, I know it did to my boyfriend, I never felt judged by Laura. I never felt anything but support from her. I feel that what I asked of her, was sometimes «out there» but she always had an answer; a plethora of options of answers actually. For example after I had given birth I THEN decided I wanted to have my placenta encapsulated so I could eat it. Laura had, in her phone, a network of people who offered that service and Patty Garcia was at the hospital picking up my placenta within 2 hours. Talk about connected and efficient!
By no means though, am I skipping over the essential importance of a Doula, the birth! My son’s happened quickly. as in contractions changing from 8 minutes, to 3 minutes, to one minute apart within 30 minutes, while I was in the shower none-​the-​less! Laura was there for me every minute of it. I really needed a female rock, she was my rock. Every change that happened (because my birthing plan fell apart) she knew what to do. Every time I felt like I was losing control, I gravitated towards Laura’s support. She walked me, she rocked and swayed me, she didn’t let me cave in and get pain medication because that was really important to me (before minute to minute contractions that is, then I was BEGGING for them), she had oils and homeopathic herbs, visualizations and loving, carefully chosen words, her tone was always what I needed and she always matched my energy. I truly believe that I was able to have a truthful organic birth because she honored and nurtured me from a woman into motherhood. Now, when I find women unsure of what a Doula is I simply tell them you don’t need a Doula, you need a LAURA.

Laura did a great job preparing us and educating us about labor and delivery before our son was born. She was generous with her time and patient. Due to my very fast labor, Laura, unfortunately, was not able to be at our house for it, but met us at the hospital and helped guide me through the final pushing stage of labor. Some of her preparation also helped me to labor on my own at home given the speed of it. She also helped a lot with my son’s first latching and shared some helpful resources. Laura is a warm and knowledgeable doula to work with.

Laura was extremely helpful and supportive in the birthing of our son. What set her apart from other candidates was her expertise and professionalism, her confidence, our ease and comfort with her, and the well thought out preparation process leading to our big day. We felt confident she knew what she was doing and would be able to support and lead us at every stage. It was very important to us to have a great guide through this amazing, new journey.
Prior to going into labor, Laura helped us understand the process and make informed, unbias decisions about our birth preferences. She is very knowledgable and helped us prepare to try and have a natural birth. At the same time shes very respectful of how we wanted to shape our experience and not presumptous about how our experience «should» be. She also prepared us mentally and emotionally in case the birth process didn’t go exactly as we envisioned it. During labor, Laura helped my husband and I with pain coping strategies and helped my confidence with breathing techniques, massages, verbal assurances, etc. She was patient and focused during the labor even as everyone was becoming exhausted. She was there post birth to help with latching and checked in with us for weeks afterwards.
Laura definitely helped make the birthing of our son one of the most amazing experiences of my life.

While I was pregnant I interviewed a few doulas, and I quickly chose to work with Laura because she was organized and prepared, and she was very easy to get along with. Laura has a good attitude and a good sense of humor, and she got along great with my husband and me.
Laura was very supportive and helped me personalize my plan and prepare for how I best responded to different relaxation techniques. She also helped my husband and me review questions in advance so that we could educate ourselves ahead of time. This really helped me feel ready.
At the hospital, Laura was wonderful with us and with the staff; she was professional and pleasant. In fact, I noticed that the nurses were picking up on phrases she was using to encourage and comfort me, and they started using the same language and tone as she was. That was a huge sign to me that they had respect for her while they were doing their work, which put me at ease.
Laura really helped my husband on game day, so that he could best help me. Her guidance for him was so helpful especially as we both got more tired from being up all night. She always had good ideas for comforting me. Having somebody to support us really lowered our stress levels, allowing us to focus.
My birth experience was so positive, and even better than I ever imagined. I know that Laura was instrumental in this outcome, and I am so appreciative of her efforts. Looking back, I can’t imagine what the birth would have been like without a doula. I am glad that I chose to work with a doula, and I recommend Laura sincerely and wholeheartedly.

I was prepared to hire Laura as our doula five minutes after meeting her. Laura’s easy, warm, confident nature immediately made us feel we’d known her forever– a very important quality when choosing a doula! When my water broke unexpectedly before my labor started, Laura was our first phone call. She was reassuring, and knowledgeable about methods to help bring on contractions once several hours had passed and I still wasn’t in labor. After 20 hours I hadn’t progressed to a level that the midwife on call was happy with, and we made the difficult decision to induce. Laura knew this was a very uncomfortable situation for me, and in the heat of the moment, she grounded me, reminding me that there were things we could do to make this experience more comfortable.
When the pitocin unexpectedly kicked in hard right away, Laura stepped in and intuitively knew what to do: where to apply pressure to my back when I literally couldn’t speak, and how to coach my breathing and vocalizing to help alleviate the intensity of the induced contractions. I literally could not have survived the process without her. In hindsight, the thing I appreciated most about Laura’s contribution was that she knew what to do when I could not do for myself. My husband and I were well prepared, but one truly never knows how a first childbirth experience will go, and I was grateful to have her steady presence keeping us on an even keel. Also, the midwife on call for our birth was not very warm or encouraging– bad luck to be sure– but having Laura present helped keep a tense situation positive and meaningful.
After the birth Laura helped us get started with breastfeeding, and because she helped us get such a great start latching, I never had the terrible times in early nursing that plague many first time moms. If we have another child, as is our plan, Laura will again be one of our first calls. I strongly recommend her services– I’m glad to know her, and will be forever grateful!

We love Laura! I knew I wanted to have a doula present at our birth to help both myself and my husband get through and process everything that was going to happen. Laura stood out from the beginning, her warm smile and relaxed disposition put me at ease immediately. After we choose her as our doula she was graciously available to answer any questions I had even before we met for our pre-​birth meetings. She was very prepared with a lot of information and spent a great deal of time answering our questions and helping to ease our concerns. I appreciated her knowledge of natural births but also her willingness to assist in a medicated birth should I decide to go that route. Every interaction leading up to the birth of my son with Laura was great. Then came the birth and wow, was she awesome!!! I called her when I realized I was having regular contractions and she was eager and excited for us but helped me get a bit of rest before things really got going. I had a quickly progressing labor so when I woke up from a nap we were immediately heading to the hospital and Laura met us there very soon after I arrived. Her presence through the labor was helping and calming, and her knowledge of what was happening and going to happen next helped me realize everything was going to be ok. She was so helpful for my husband as well because she kept him informed and also while I was resting I could hear the two of them chatting which made me so grateful that he was being taken care of as well. She was an instrumental part of our birth experience and we will forever hold her dear in our hearts as she helped us bring our baby boy into the world! She stayed with us for a while after he was born and we felt so connected to her. We miss her now that we’ve had our baby and will definitely be calling her again if (when) we have another.

We contacted Laura very close to our September due date and we were very fortunate that she was available. After taking a birthing class at St. John’s we realized that we definitely needed a doula for support. From the very first meeting Laura was knowledgeable and personable. Both my husband and I felt very comfortable with her. The following two meetings we had to review our birth plan and labor positions were extremely helpful. I had not thought much about what I wanted or expected during labor and through my discussions with her I felt better prepared for it all. Our baby boy decided to be two weeks late and and it was a bit stressful with everyone eagerly anticipating his arrival. She referred me to an acupuncturist that specializes in pregnant women and also in getting labor started. As a last ditch effort I took castor oil on Saturday and that got some labor pains going but they weren’t long enough or spaced close enough to really call it active labor. I checked into St. John’s on the following Monday morning where they first tried to break my water to get contractions going. After a few hours of no progress they started me on oxytocin and that’s when we called in Laura. From the moment she arrived she helped me get through each contraction by breathing and counting. This is what worked for me but each woman is different. She was so effective in helping me manage my pain that I got to 8 cms without an epidural. By this time I had been in active labor for 9 hours and finally got the epidural which allowed me to sleep for 3 hours. I woke up and was ready to push which took another 3 hours. She was vital in managing my pushing, reminding me to breathe, and counting how long each push should be. All in all I loved having her there with me through my labor and delivery and highly recommend her.

If you’re wondering if it is worth it to have a doula, I say absolutely! At first I thought it was a luxury or something that «regular» people shouldn’t need but my fiancé saw the benefit in it and encouraged me to meet with a few. After meeting with Laura, I knew I had to have her and that she would be the right fit. She’s supportive but never overbearing. I felt very comfortable with her as if she was an old friend. When giving birth, comfort is one of the most important things for a smooth delivery. I had a natural water birth with midwives at my home. My labor was six and a half hours and I credit laura for keeping me peaceful yet strong. She played relaxing ocean waves while I was laboring in the tub which was a nice touch. She made sure I was hydrated and best of all she gave my overwhelmed fiancé peace of mind as she and he were partners in helping me give birth. I highly recommend her and will always be grateful for her help delivering my beautiful 8 lb 11 oz girl on June 18, 2013.

Laura was our doula for our August birth and I strongly recommend her. We really appreciated all of the hours of prep meetings to get ready for the birth, including practicing different positions and coping mechanisms to help with contractions. My husband and I weren’t able to take any official childbirth classes, but even if we had, I think that we both would have forgotten a lot of coping techniques in the moment (actually hours and hours) of labor. It was helpful to have a doula there 100% of the time to help me manage the pain, and also help my husband help me manage it. She spent forever rubbing my back while I was laboring, and I will forever be grateful for that. Laura had a lot of suggestions for coping and seemed to be completely committed to us throughout the long process, and that was most important to me! Thanks Laura :)

Laura is wonderful and I highly recommend her as a labor doula!
She has a very natural gift of helping women through labor. She’s kind, empathetic, intelligent and responsible.
I gave birth in May 2013. Laura met with me and my husband twice in the weeks before I went into labor (for a few hours each time), to provide labor prep. She was also available by phone and email, to answer questions and provide support. She gave us educational materials specific to our needs. I was pretty overwhelmed the couple of weeks prior to my labor and called Laura a few times to chat. She was so supportive and insightful and helped me to regain a sense of empowerment.
During my labor she was truly awesome. I had a very intense, long labor and Laura spent two full nights with me and my husband, one at our home and one at the hospital. She was a steady, calm yet powerful presence as she supported me through every contraction, hour after hour. She continually helped me to tap into my own inner power and intuition, she helped me with positioning, she encouraged me, she rubbed my back and brought me juice, she went to get food for my husband, she continued to remind me of my birth plan and helped me think through different medical options during my labor, etc.
My wish was to have a doula who wouldn’t interfere with my communication with medical staff during labor, and I discussed this with Laura in advance. She respected that, and when medical issues arose that required my input or consent, Laura simply reminded me of what I had decided in my birth plan, and assisted me in thinking through my options.
Bottom line, she played a significant part in making my labor be the very positive experience I remember it to be. Without her, I expect my labor would have been overwhelming. If we have another child I am most definitely asking Laura to be my birth doula again!