I am trained and certified through the organization Doulas of North America. I am trained in Childbirth Education through Birth Works. I am also a member of the Northeastern Illinois Doula Association. I am certified in Neonatal Resuscitation. I have a bachelor’s degree in music and art ministry from Wheaton College.

In 1979, I was extracted with forceps from my fully sedated mother in a small Texas town. Wounded from this trauma, she chose a different path for my brother and sister – who were both born peacefully at home eight and sixteen years later. Through my mother’s search for this alternative, my teenage-self learned a lot about the possible empowerment of a woman in childbirth. I read “Birth Without Violence” by Frederick Leboyer and discovered that there are alternatives to the chaos and lights and screaming you see portrayed in the media. I was intrigued.

So when I became pregnant with my own child, I built upon this foundation and applied what I learned to my own experience. I drank good tea, ate well, exercised, invested time in connecting to my unborn child and prepared myself for the hard work of labor. I was blessed with a beautiful, powerful labor experience (assisted by our excellent doula, Sharon Dreifuss).  The birth of my son two years later was no less incredible as he arrived faster than the midwives!

I desire to perpetuate the love and care I received through my labor experience. I can do this best by loving you in your labor. Penny Simkin, a founder of DONA (Doulas of North America) and a childbirth educator for over forty years, has discovered in her research that women remember the way they were treated in their labor more than any other aspect of the experience. She has stated, “The potential for psychological benefits or damage [to the mother] is present at every birth” (Simkin, 210).

The purpose of my service is to make this the best experience possible for YOU.

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Simkin, Penny. “Just another day in a woman’s life? Women’s long-term perceptions of their first birth experience. Part I.” Birth 18.4 (1991):203-10.