Services

If you are thinking you might be interested in hiring me to be your doula, please contact me, and we can schedule a consultation face to face. This is at no cost or obligation to you, and it will give us a chance to meet, in person, so you can decide if I am a good fit for you and your family. I encourage all pregnant moms to interview at least three doulas before making a decision.

Once hired, I provide 2-3 prenatal visits. I am also available to you by phone or email to answer questions outside of our appointment times. Some things that we might do during our visits are:

• Map out a birth plan
• Discuss comfort measures that might work for you
• Practice relaxation techniques
• Talk about previous birth experiences and attitudes
• Ask and answer questions
• Pamper you with a hand massage or foot soak

Two weeks before your due date I will be "on call" and ready to go 24/7. As soon as you go into labor, I am able to come and assist whenever you would like. Some moms want help laboring at home, while others want to meet at the hospital. I will stay with you until 1-2 hours after the baby is born, making sure that your needs are attended to before I leave.

We will have at least one post-natal visit in your home within two weeks after the baby is born. This allows us to discuss the birth, and I can answer any questions you might have about breastfeeding, newborn care, sibling adjustment, etc. During that visit I can also assist you with any tasks that you might need help with, so that you are able to enjoy your time with baby.

I am able to attend hospital births in Corvallis, Salem and McMinnville (Oregon) and home births anywhere in the Willamette Valley. If you live outside of these areas, and are interested in hiring a doula, feel free to contact me as I may be available or can refer you to someone who is closer to you. Please email me for information about my rates.

Contact Information

I am able to attend births in the Salem, Albany, Corvallis and McMinnville area.

If you would like more information about how a doula can help you have the birth of your dreams, please email me at sweetpeasdoula@gmail.com.

I promise to get back to you in a timely manner.

Meet the Doula

My name is Amy. I am a 31 year-old mother of two small sons, and the wife of an accountant. In a previous life I was a social worker and a high school counselor. I live in Dallas, Oregon (about 10 miles West of Salem). Through my own experiences of birth, one an interventive, two-day induction and the other a drug-free, natural experience, I developed a passion to work with women, helping them achieve the birth of their dreams.

The first time I heard the word doula was from the childbirth educator who was teaching the class I attended before the birth of my first son. She, herself, worked as a doula, and I just thought it was the strangest thing that anyone would want a complete stranger to attend their birth. When I found myself pregnant again, several years later, and feeling a lot of anxiety about how my second birth might play out, I thought about the prospect of hiring a doula for myself. It turned out to be one of the best decisions I ever made, and I attribute the presence of my doula to helping me achieve the peaceful, natural birth I had dreamed of.

That experience inspired me to pursue doula training through DONA (Doulas of North America) and to learn as much as I can about pregnancy and childbirth. I love to listen to others' birth stories, and I believe sharing our stories can help spread a positive message about birth in our society. I hope to include birth stories on this blog. Please email me at sweetpeasdoula@gmail.com if you would like to learn more about how a doula can assist you in your labor and delivery.

Welcome to Sweet Peas!

Welcome! I have decided to create this blog to document my profession as a doula, while also opening up a forum to discuss a variety of topics related to pregnancy, birth, breastfeeding and parenting. Information is power when it comes to developing ideas about how we want our own birth and parenting experiences to be like, and I think that everyone should feel empowered and confident to make the decisions that will be best for their own family. I named my business after the pet names I have for my two little boys, John and Charlie. They are my inspiration for all of the birth work that I do.

Check back soon to read more about what doulas do and about what services I provide.