I provide the following services in the surrounding areas of Duluth, Cloquet, Barnum, Moose Lake, and Sandstone, Minnesota:
- Birth Doula
- Childbirth Education Weekend Course
- Prenatal Bodywork and Movement Instruction
- Newborn Dynamic Body Balancing Sessions (CST)
As your doula, I believe in the design of your body and your ability to navigate a natural birth. By embarking on a journey with me of learning about how your body is designed to prepare for and give birth, you will be starting down the path toward your own informed, empowered, and sacred birth.
As a bodyworker, I have been trained through Dynamic Body Balancing with Dr. Carol Phillips with much of the training around Craniosacral Therapy (CST)/ Myofascial Unwinding (MFR). These are gentle and hands-on experiences, using a light touch to restore balance within the fascia. This allows our muscles, bones, and ligaments to able to balance and realign, and we free up the flow of our nervous system and blood. I am a Spinning Babies® Aware Practitioner and can provide Spinning Babies® sessions for pregnant parents. I am also trained in the Body Ready Method® and can individualize movement instruction and tools to create a functional core and pelvic floor, minimize pain, and increase body resilience and also help with baby positioning. The bodywork I provide can help a breech baby turn. I am passionate about supporting pregnant bodies!
-Amanda
Doula Testimonials
"Amanda was fantastic. I felt prepared for my labor and birth, but it did not go the way that I had envisioned it and neither I nor my husband would have gotten thru it the way we did without her help and presence. She provided both physical and emotional support throughout a long labor. Her counter pressure techniques during contractions made the pain tolerable. She provided invaluable support, encouragement, and calm presence to my husband throughout the whole process, even staying with him after our baby was born and I had to be taken to the OR. If/when we have more children I will definitely seek Amanda's help again." - Nicole
“Amanda was beyond helpful during the trying labor and delivery we ended up with. She was the key to my success in getting the birth I wanted!” - Meredith
“Amanda was an amazing resource for me and my family during my pregnancy, labor, and postpartum. I was so impressed with her attention to detail, guidance during pregnancy, and motivation to form a close relationship before the birth, as well as how often she checked in with me after baby was born. She had great input during my labor, made me feel safe and calm, knew when to give space, and helped guide us when calling our midwife and making decisions. I know she did even more than I was aware of while I was laboring, pushing, and recovering that I am so grateful for. My husband was also impressed and grateful for how much she did during the labor and afterwards as far as cleaning. Amanda also took some amazing photos for us. We are so glad she was there!” - Aurora
It's about more than "Healthy Mom, Healthy Baby"...
Let’s move beyond this limited narrative that society demands we accept of our birthing experiences. In fact, let’s move so far beyond it that you write your own narrative. Past the list of what you don’t want in your birth and on to what you do want.
What do you want? How do you want to feel? How do you want your environment to feel? How do you envision your labor? What is your vision for the moments your baby is born into this world? For the birth of your placenta? For the hours afterwards?
Safe. Secure. Unobserved. Powerful. Gentle. Supported.
These are some adjectives that my clients have used to describe their desired birth narrative. Has anyone truly asked you what you want (and listened)? Have you fully asked that of yourself and your baby?
Now is the time.
The first step in getting the birth you want is deciding what you really want. Is your birthing team committed to supporting the birth experience you desire? I am, and I would be honored to support you and your vision for this birth.
Summary of Doula Services
Prenatal Support
A time to gather information, look into options, plan, connect, and prepare.
Prenatal appointments are generally 1.5-2hrs in length, and usually 3 (or more) appointments.
Labor and Birth Support
With your partner as your main support, your body and your baby do the work they were designed to do. As needed, I will support you directly, but my main intention is to facilitate your partner (or whoever you choose to be your support person) in being your best support while I hold your space with a calm presence and a trust in your ability and your intuition.
Postpartum Support
As you adjust to your new parenthood and work through the changes in your body, I will support you and be available to you. We will have at least one postpartum visit, and I will check in with you over the phone for two weeks after the birth of your baby.