Frequently Asked Questions

The simplest way I can put it is this: I stay.

Your doctor comes in to check on you and leaves. Your nurses are wonderful, but they have other patients, and they rotate shifts. I am with you from the moment things start moving until your baby is in your arms. I don't leave. I don't hand you off to anyone.

What that looks like in practice is different for every birth. Sometimes it's massage and positioning when the contractions get hard. Sometimes it's sitting quietly and just being a steady presence in the room. Sometimes it's helping you ask the right questions when a doctor comes in with a recommendation you weren't expecting. It's whatever you need, whenever you need it.

I also spend time with you before your due date so we actually know each other by the time labor starts. We go through your birth preferences, we practice comfort techniques, and I make sure your partner knows how to support you when I'm not there yet. If you want to read about what the research says on doula outcomes, DONA International has a thorough breakdown. But honestly the families I work with usually just say they didn't realize how much they needed someone like this until they had one.

The short answer is that you sleep and I handle everything else.

When I arrive for an overnight shift you go to bed. I take the baby. I do the feeds, whether that means bringing your baby to you to nurse or handling a bottle feed so you get a full block of rest. I track feeding times, diaper output, how long baby slept and when. You wake up and I tell you exactly how the night went so you're not piecing it together from a foggy memory.

I'm also just there for the questions that come up at 2 in the morning. Is this normal? Does this sound right? Should I be worried? Those questions feel enormous in the middle of the night when you're exhausted and alone. Having someone in the room who has done this for 20 years makes them feel a lot less terrifying.

The postpartum period is genuinely hard. Most families aren't prepared for how hard. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has written about the fourth trimester as one of the most important and most overlooked phases of care for new parents. I couldn't agree more with what they've said.

This comes up all the time and I never get tired of answering it.

Your OB or midwife is there to keep you and your baby medically safe. That is their job and they are good at it. But they are not in the room with you for most of your labor. They're not hired to stay. Your nurses are incredible people doing a hard job but they have multiple patients and they change shifts.

Nobody in that hospital is paid to be focused entirely on you from start to finish. That is what I do. 

It's not that one replaces the other. Your medical team and your doula are doing completely different things. The Cochrane Library is one of the most respected sources of medical evidence in the world and they have reviewed this extensively. The findings are consistent: people who have continuous support during labor have better outcomes across the board. 

You don't have to choose. You deserve both!!

Possibly yes, and it's worth finding out before you assume it's out of reach.

Carrot is a family building benefit that a lot of employers in Fairfield County and Westchester offer, especially financial companies, hospitals, and larger corporations. Doula services are often included. Kiwi Doula is one of the only DONA certified doulas in Connecticut who is approved through Carrot, which means if your employer offers it we can work together using your benefit.

The easiest first step is to log into your Carrot account at get-carrot.com or just send a quick message to HR asking whether doula support is covered. It takes about five minutes and the answer might surprise you.

If you have questions about how it all works with Kiwi Doula specifically you can learn more on the Carrot Benefits page or reach out directly through the contact page I'm happy to talk through it.

I'd rather you hear it from me directly than find out later there were surprises.

Birth doula support with Kiwi Doula starts at $2,500 and goes to $3,500 depending on the package. That covers our prenatal visits together, my on call availability starting at 37 weeks, continuous support through your labor and delivery, and a postpartum follow up visit after baby arrives.

Postpartum doula support is $65 to $85 per hour for overnight and daytime shifts.

For context, most experienced doulas in Fairfield County charge somewhere between $1,500 and $4,000. What varies is experience, certifications, and what's actually included. Twenty years of births, DONA certification, and training in Spinning Babies and HypnoBirthing come with every package here.

If your employer offers Carrot benefits, it's also worth checking whether doula support is covered before you decide it's not possible. You can learn more about that on the Carrot Benefits page. A lot of families in this area have that benefit and don't know it.

The reason isn't just availability, though that matters too. It's that the relationship we build before your due date is part of what makes the birth experience what it is. We spend time together reviewing your preferences, practicing techniques, and ensuring your partner feels confident. By the time labor starts, you already know me, and that makes everything calmer. 

The reason isn't just availability, though that matters too. It's that the relationship we build before your due date is part of what makes the birth experience what it is. We spend time together reviewing your preferences, practicing techniques, and ensuring your partner feels confident. By the time labor starts, you already know me, and that makes everything calmer. If you are in your third 

I do book up, especially in the fall and around the holidays. If you know when you're due and you're thinking about it, it's better to reach out now and have the conversation than to wait and find out I'm unavailable. You can get in touch, and if I can't help, I'll do my best to point you toward someone I trust who can :)

Yes and it's work that matters a lot to me personally.

Planning a VBAC is one of the more emotionally complicated decisions a person can make. There's real hope in it but there's also a lot of fear, and often a lot of pressure from people around you who have opinions. Walking into that labor and delivery room without someone in your corner who knows the evidence and will stay calm and steady no matter what happens is genuinely hard.

I've supported a lot of VBAC births over the years in Fairfield County and Westchester. I know what the research says. I know how to help you advocate for yourself when the conversation in the room gets difficult. And I know what it looks like when a birth is going beautifully and when it needs to go a different direction.

When you're ready to talk about whether we're a good fit for your birth,  please reach out! I'd love to hear from you.

I'm based in Bethel, CT, which puts me right in the middle of a lot of Fairfield County. From here, I serve families across a wide stretch of southwestern Connecticut and into the Hudson Valley in New York.

In Connecticut, I serve Litchfield and Fairfield Counties, including Bethel, Danbury, Newtown, Brookfield, New Milford, Ridgefield, Redding, Wilton, Westport, Weston, Easton, Fairfield, Trumbull, Monroe, Shelton, Norwalk, Darien, New Canaan, Greenwich, and Stamford.

In New York, I serve Westchester County and Dutchess County, including Katonah, Armonk, Chappaqua, White Plains, Scarsdale, Mahopac, Pound Ridge, and Bedford.

I also support families delivering at Stamford Hospital, Greenwich Hospital, Norwalk Hospital, Bridgeport Hospital, Yale New Haven Hospital, Charlotte Hungerford Hospital, Sharon Hospital, Danbury Hospital, White Plains Hospital, Northern Westchester Hospital, Valley Hospital

If you're not sure whether I cover your area, just get in touch! If I can't get to you, I'll do my best to point you toward someone I trust who can :)