Goals

Keep the birthing parent well nourished, rested, reassured

Respect the family's feeling and values

Offer self-assessement tools

Support siblings and the non-birthing parent

Coach on coping skills and parenting hacks

Support breast-feeding success

Organize a right of passage, ritual, or mother blessing ceremony

Provide a safe space to discuss self-care, moods, body image and intimacy concerns openly

Connect the family to local resources

A little bit about me

Proud mom of two amazing adult children and grandmother of a sweet toddler, sister, daughter, and settler on these ancestral lands, I hope to empower new parents on an affirming journey after your baby arrives. My grandmother was a strong influence in my life; I deliberately chose the image of a Nana as my "brand" for helping families to welcome a new baby and adjust to new home routines. 

 I offer experience, optimism, 1000 hours of recent training in post-partum care, a wide network of community connections and fluency in French, beginner Spanish, and empathetic English. A past prairie chicken from Winterpeg, I've made Victoria my home since 2004 and treasure each day in paradise. 

• Grandmother and mother of two who had both a vaginal and caesarean birth experience
• Professional adult educator with an M.Ed in health literacy
• Experienced teacher with 15 years experience
• Hold Infant/Child CPR and First Aid certification (2022)
• Trained under MotherWit Postpartum Doula Care (see motherwit.ca curriculum here )
• Participant in workshops with Doulas of Victoria
• Positive problem-solver with extensive community contacts
• Quadruple vaccinated for COVID, also vaccinated for HepB and TDAp, have MMR antibodies
  

Just think of a postpartum Doula as the aunt or wise village neighbour that you can call, grateful for her knowledge.    Caroline Crossley

.... recognizing the fallacy of maternal instinct, comes with some hard truths. A friend told me they had expected their child to arrive with a kind of upgrade of themselves as a parent. A download of skills and information necessary for the job. Adult 2.0 — but it never came.    
Chelsea Conoboy (2022) in Mother Brain: how neuroscience is rewriting the story of parenthood.