Pampered Pregnancy – Blissful Birth

“Tanya was at times my mother, my sister, my best friend or the strength of every woman who has ever given birth. Most times I just had to look into her eyes and I knew I could do it” – Molly, mom to Quinn 4/22/2011

“The doula’s knowledge enabled her to go “toe-to-toe” with my doctor without me feeling that I had to become an expert on birth practices. I just had to show up, focus, and have the baby!  I told my husband later that when they were asking me to push it felt like they were asking me to move a wall with my mind. As hard as I tried, nothing was happening. I honestly thought it was impossible. It became possible with the doulas.” -Dana, mom to Drake born 4/15/2011    Drakes Birth Stories – Mom’s POV & Doula’s POV

"Tough as nails Tanya"

“We are so happy we chose Get Babied – it made the birth a less scary and more manageable event. I’d recommend Get Babied to all of my pregnant friends.” – Stephanie, mom to Maxwell born 3/1/2011

Maxwell!

Erica's baby-daddy Dave and cutie Lillian

“The massage with Steph was  amazing and one of the best I’ve ever had!  Amy was really encouraging the entire time. She’ll always be special to us since she helped me bring Lillian into the world!  I think I would have stopped breastfeeding long ago if I hadn’t gotten help via email from some of you guys and so much help from the on-call lactation consultant.  We have plans to have more kids and hope to use a Get Babied doula again.” -Erica, Mom to Lillian born 8/2010

“Michelle really helped me bear down and find my birth goddess!” -Hailey, Mom to Vivyana born 2/14/2011

“Margaret supported me by talking about my fears around labor, birth and parenting.  Often, simply talking about them would make them disappear, so it was fantastic to have an objective, experienced, non-judgmental person with whom to share my thoughts.” – Justine, Mom to Fox born 10/30/2010

Family Cuny

“We are so happy to be home with our beautiful son and very happy with our birthing experience, even though it was so different from our original plan. Ame, you were absolutely amazing and your presence during our 2 days of labor was invaluable, not only to me but to Craig and my family.  I am completely impressed with your entire team at Get Babied and will not only continue to recommend you, but will insist on having you at my second birth a couple of years from now.” – Regan, Mom to TJ born 10/3/2010

Family House

“I just wanted to articulate how very wonderful our experience with you guys has been and how grateful we feel that you all were part of our birth journey. Thank you for being so generous. You all made me feel like I was surrounded by wise, knowledgeable women friends during my pregnancy and postpartum time the way women should be and have been throughout time…. in a way that’s hard to find in modern times when family lives in other cities and when our own experience (and that of our peers) is still pretty limited.” – Laura, mom to Lucy born June 29, 2010

Laura & Lucy

“Our birth did not go as expected, but both my husband and I feel very good about the experience. Both of us feel that having Ame with us for our labor and birth is what led to our feeling so positive about our birth experience. I was dreading giving birth due to past negative health care experiences and I am so, so glad that our birth was instead a very positive and empowering experience.” -Neil & Roslyn (their birth story here)

Read Sarah’s birth story!

“It was so very tolerable that before Dr Mingea checked me and told me I was 9cm, I kept this suspicion that my labor was possibly going to go on and on for hours. I didn’t feel like I was doing truly ‘hard work’ until the very end. Compared to delivering Stella with pitocin and no epidural, where I screamed and begged and was terrified, it all seemed too good to be true. I actually felt like Andy was doing the most work.

Alistair, Sarah, Stella, Angus, & Andy

I can’t imagine the birth any other way.  I got exactly the birth experience I had hoped for, except that it was even better than I would have thought possible. The ball, your suggestions for positions, your massaging and encourgement, the cold peppermint cloths at the end!  It all made for a completely different delivery than my first two children. The hands and knees position at the end was a god-send and I especially appreciate your expertise, because I would have thought that position would send him back up, rather than help him descend.

I am already so in love and grateful to Angus for providing me with a truly healing birth experience and a completely different idea of the birth process.  Steph’s presence and skills were beyond integral to getting the birth experience I hoped for!

Now, I have a deep desire to see more women empowered with knowledge about how much they can impact their own birth experience in a positive way.

Oh and thank y’all for being with me in the weeks leading up to his delivery. It was so helpful to have your input when labor felt so very immenant early on and then when I started to get to the ‘maybe I should induce’ stage.

Hooray!!!” -Sarah Sharp, jazz diva and mom to Stella, Alistair, and baby Angus (born 8/2/2010)

“I really do wish I had a doula for the births of my two children. Having someone with experience may have helped me make different choices in the delivery process as well as prepare a birth plan.  I would have liked to have had someone with this special knowledge through such an important process.  And having a doula does not mean you have to have a “natural birth” but it opens you up to ideas that may make the birth a more empowering and enjoyable experience.  The Get Babied! doulas all seem very caring and genuine.”  Susan C. King MD, Board Certified Family Physician

“Stephanie was not only a comfort to have around while I was in labor, but she was also knowledgeable about what was going on. When my water broke and contractions did not follow, the doctors wanted me to take pitocin to induce labor since there was a risk of an infection. I had heard that pitocin could make the labor more painful. Since I wanted to have a natural childbirth, I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to handle the pain enough to avoid the epidural. Stephanie had suggestions for getting the labor going without pitocin. She walked the hospital aisles with me for hours. In between breaks, I used a breast pump. These tactics did bring on labor, but it proved not to be strong enough to significantly cause dilation. In the end had to take the pitocin. After taking the pitocin, the contractions became intense and almost unbearable. Stephanie helped me manage the pain by massaging my lower back. Thanks to her support, I was able to give birth to our daughter without an epidural.

Elise

My husband, Tom, was also glad we chose to have a doula. When my water broke late at night, Tom contacted Ame, the doula on call, who told us what to expect when we went to the hospital. Her experience helped us to make the decision to wait until the morning to go to the hospital. The next day at the hospital, Tom was grateful to have Stephanie at my side while he was busy arranging to have friends watch our toddler and pick my mother up from the airport.

Thank you Stephanie and Ame for helping us feel more empowered for the birth of our second child, Elise”. – Angela mom to Isaac (2 years) and Elise (born 5/19/2010)

“I wish that I had met Margaret before the birth of my first child. I certainly learned that childbirth is unpredictable and can be overwhelming when it’s time to make important decisions.  She carefully reviewed our birth plan and was graceful with her recommendations and advice.  Margaret was flexible and adaptable with our needs. Our birth was in a hospital, and Margaret made the experience personal and comforting.  Having Margaret with us during the birth of our second child, helped our overall confidence. Margaret is a nurturing advisor that educates and assists beautifully with the birthing experience.” Kim Scoulios

“Ame did a great job – a great vibe in the delivery room.” -Devin Garza, MD Renaissance Women’s Group

Devin Garza, MD

I used a doula, Ame from Get Babied!, and she was amazing!  My husband was concerned at first about the whole “backseat” thing, but once he met Ame he felt a ton better; and after our birth experience he was soooo happy we had a doula and he raves about her too!  For my husband the big thing was that Ame helped him, help me.   Seriously the two of them were such a team together, hubby held my hands and talked / breathed with me and Ame did some hip pressing / massage during the contractions.  It’s hard to describe but really it was so wonderful having a doula and it was a great experience for my husband as well.  For a personal comparison, I didn’t have a doula with my first and my husband was much less involved that time. – Michelle – mom to Megan (2 years) and Ryan (6 months)

Please know Dave & I were/are so impressed with all of your love and support Ame – we’ve been pro-doula speaking to all of our expecting friends – hoping at least one of them will call and request your services!  You guys are incredible and we’re truly grateful! PS – every doula needs a rock star pose for her album! (Jill & Dave – parents to Dominic 6 months)

“We hired the doulas at GetBabied for the birth of our second baby.  Our first labor and delivery were very long and hard and we promised ourselves that having a doula would be high-priority for our next experience.

When I went into labor this time, our Get Babied! doula was on call and met us at the hospital within an hour of our arrival.  She was like a relaxing breath of fresh air when she arrived and continued to be a huge source of support throughout our natural labor and delivery.  She used aromatherapy, accupressure, massage, breathing and relaxation techniques to help me stay calm and focused.  At some point during active labor, my contractions slowed way down while I was lying on my side.  My doula massaged my calves and feet and I felt like it was a spa retreat right there in the middle of labor.

Her presence also allowed my husband to take breaks, eat as needed, and feel reassured throughout the process.  She had clearly had experience with what was available and helpful in the hospital (like squatting bars, telemetry for monitoring, showers, etc) and suggested those as we needed them.  Overall, our Get Babied! doula was an incredibly valuable, confident, and calm presence.  She kept us feeling good about our ability to have the natural birth we wanted and we could not have done it without her.

I also had the incredibly fabulous experience of a prenatal massage from Stephanie Scott.  What a wonderful treat!  Stephanie knows exactly how to make a pregnant woman feel pampered.

We highly recommend the doulas at Get Babied to everyone who asks about our birth experience.  If we find ourselves pregnant again, we look forward to having one of the Get Babied ladies there for us again!”- Annie — mommy to Luke (2 yrs) and Kate (2 days)”

“I decided very late in my pregnancy to attempt natural childbirth and knew I needed support in trying to obtain my goal. I had not met any of the doulas with Get Babied before going to the hospital. My Get Babied! doula arrived within the hour of being called even though it was the middle of the night.  She  was everything I was hoping to find in a doula.  She had a calming and reassuring presence about her.  She had several suggestions and tools to help me be more comfortable (massage, counter pressure, birthing ball, fan, scented oils, position suggestions, encouragement).  Perhaps the most invaluable part of her service was how she was able to guide my husband and help him find useful ways to be involved.  I’m very glad I contacted Get Babied!  Birthing naturally has been the most empowering thing I’ve ever done.  I’m certain I wouldn’t have reached my goal without my doula’s help!”- Bethany, mom to Violet (3) and Archer (2 weeks)