Testimonials
Erika
Birth Reflections
My birth experience was not entirely straightforward, and there were aspects of the aftercare that were traumatic and left a lasting impression on me just when I was learning how to be a mum for the first time. Talking to Katie about my experiences, and being allowed the time to really explore my feelings around what happened during and after labour and birth, really helped me to get clarity on why I felt the way I did and how those experiences had made an impact on me. The support Katie offered both before and after the birth of my son was a real comfort at a time I needed someone to understand what I was going through. I really felt Katie cared, and wanted to help me process what I’d been through. I would not hesitate to recommend a de-briefing session with Katie if you have had difficult experiences during labour and birth, or simply want to talk through what it was like for you.
Toddler Parent
Parenting
I just wanted to say thank you so much for today. Parenthood is difficult at the best of times, but to have someone talk to you about options, approaches and the psyche of a toddler is very helpful. The information you provided was so helpful to allow me to reflect and draw my own conclusion on what’s best for my toddler.
I must admit I was a little apprehensive thinking you (as part of ToddlerCalm) would be teaching (possibly preaching) about how I ‘should’ be parenting a challenging toddler. But to be given pro’s and cons on certain parenting approaches has certainly made me think twice about what I do.
I am just sorry that informative and helpful courses like this aren’t available through sure start centres and health centres.
I have come away feeling that my partner and I have some work to do with our gorgeous sparky cranky pants, but that we are moving in the right direction.
Thank you
Alison Clasper
Birth Doula
Choosing to have a doula was one of the best decisions we made for our family. We were fortunate enough to have two doulas, including Katie, leading up to and at the birth of our baby in late October. Katie has a wealth of knowledge about babies, breastfeeding, and birth; she shared resources and links with us to ensure we were well-informed in all areas. We met with Katie several times prior to the birth of our baby where she helped us to feel confident facing our birth and to write a birth plan to tackle any situation. Unfortunately, our birth was not straightforward but my husband and I both found Katie to be a guiding light through the chaos. Following the birth of our baby Katie used her breastfeeding expertise to support us and was available on more than one occasion to guide us directly. Katie’s compassion and strength were invaluable to us. I cannot imagine having a baby without her by my side.
Lisa Durant
Birth Doula
After a fairly traumatic first birth, I was adamant I wanted to feel more prepared and relaxed second time around. We were lucky enough to have the support of two brilliant doulas, and I instantly felt connected and comfortable with Katie. Not only is she warm and caring, but she’s extremely knowledgeable and experienced in birth, babies, feeding, sleep and everything in between! This allowed me to feel prepared, relaxed and actually excited about the birth! I stripped away all my fears, release the weight of my previous experience and opened up the possibility that I could have the birth I wanted. And I did! A wonderful, drug-free, calm, home water birth. It was honestly such a positive, empowering experience, which wouldn’t have been possible without the support and guidance of my doulas. We also felt fully supported in those early days of feeding queries and sleepless nights too, which was invaluable. I can’t thank Katie enough, she helped create an experience I’ll always treasure
Jessica Fisher
Postnatal Doula, Sleep Support
Katie provided me with invaluable emotional and practical support during a very challenging time with my unsettled newborn. She is incredibly warm and empathetic as well as knowledgeable.
Thank you, Katie for all you did for our family. xAnna Panna
Sleep Support
After meeting many sleep consultants for my child’s sleep who sent me to various checkups for my child and implied many ways it’s my fault, finding Katie was a delight.
For starters, she gave me a peace of mind by explaining when children really do need medical attention and made me realise I’ve not missed anything. She also was the first person to say that some babies sleep differently and there’s not always a problem with the parents or the baby but more so with adjusting to the situation. I think it’s really important to communicate to worried parents.
Furthermore, I loved how she was honestly explaining that what we do will help but our baby will change too and not everything that changes will be her doing but my baby’s development too. This might seem like an odd thing to mention but I just felt it was such a lovely thing to add – our work together is important but she immediately states she wouldn’t take any credit for what my baby did herself.
Our 1 on 1 sessions were brilliant. I felt heard and listened to and she gave our family a lot of very useful information. She also followed up with an elaborate and tailored to us email to make sure I remember all the details. It was like talking to a friend who understands what you’re going through and has just the right advice.
I’m meeting her for more sessions as there’s so much to know about baby sleep and I feel like she can teach me so much more! But some of our troubles have already been fixed, some, as she said, because the baby has grown and situations have changed but most thanks to her! She not only gave us brilliant tips on how to approach our difficult situation but helped us with our own mindset and with finding solutions to be less tired whilst having a baby with a challenging sleep pattern.
10/10 would recommend to anyone struggling with their children’s sleep or even their own self esteem as a parent.
Thank you for helping our family have a better sleep! :)
Evlyn Shadlock
Sleep Support
We had a one on one phonecall with Katie about our baby’s sleep. Katie took the time to listen to how we are feeling and what we were looking to achieve with his sleep. She then explained where he is currently with his development which helped us to understand what we should expect from him and how to support him through this stage. The way Katie explained all of this to us has allowed me to be confident in our approach around his sleeping habits and believe in my own intuition. Thank you for your support Katie xxx
Victoria Manning
Birth Doula, Postnatal Doula
Katie came highly recommended through both of my sisters so we were delighted when she was available to support with our first baby. From the moment we met her, through the pregnancy, birth and during the first stages of parenthood Katie was an amazing support. Katie is incredibly knowledgeable and infinitely caring, always on hand to help understand our options and support our choices (with the many hurdles along the journey). Her passion shines through, we need more Katies in the world! I honestly believe we wouldn’t have been able to have the birth we wished for without her! When feeling at my most vulnerable Katie offered just the right level of reassurance without interfering. We will be forever grateful to Katie! (And if we are lucky enough to do it all again we would love Katie to be there with us!)
Natalie Barker
Birth Doula
Choosing to have a doula for my second pregnancy after a long difficult first birth and shortly after losing my mum was the best decision we made. We will always be grateful for Katie’s support throughout the pregnancy and on the day of delivery. Katie is so caring and warm with extensive knowledge about pregnancy, birth, and all things babies and breastfeeding. We met with Katie several times prior to the birth of our daughter and spent lots of time discussing our birth preferences and she shared very useful resources helping us to feel confident facing the birth. Katie was incredible during the delivery (which ended up being very quick!) kept me calm and ensured our birth preferences were followed. Following the birth of our baby Katie visited for a birth debrief and helped to support us through various breastfeeding issues, she was available on a number of occasions to offer advice and recommended a very helpful support group. We would highly recommend Katie and she will always have a special place when I think about the birth of our second daughter.
New mum – SK
Birth Doula, Postnatal Doula
Katie was my doula when I gave birth to my son in October 2012. When I think of Katie, the first word that comes into my mind is “patience.” It was my first pregnancy, and I spent two sleepless nights at the hospital to deliver the baby. The progress was so slow that I got tired and started to hope someone would somehow just get the baby out. Katie was with me throughout the process without getting any rest, but she remained extremely calm, caring and attentive. She kept reassuring me that I was doing the right thing, and that each contraction was getting me one step closer to meeting my baby.
In the end, I had a memorable water birth that I had always dreamed of. I picked up my son and breastfed him while still in the water. I do not think this would have been possible had it not been for Katie’s support. For every contraction, she held my body and breathed with me, which helped tremendously to maintain the rhythm. The rhythmical deep breathing made a remarkable difference in coping with the pain. In between the contractions, she did everything she could to make me feel comfortable, from wiping my sweat, giving me massage to helping me eat and drink.
My partner was not present, and the midwives were too busy to pay close attention to me until the actual delivery stage. So I cannot imagine how things would have been without Katie. But even if my partner was there with me, I am certain that Katie’s support still would have made a big difference. Having given birth herself and gone through various trainings, she knew exactly what I was going through, which seemed to have given her added confidence and sympathy.
Katie also helped me as a postnatal doula. As I was then a graduate student, she looked after my baby while I attended lectures. Although my son was only a few weeks old, I felt comfortable leaving him with Katie because she knew him from birth, and she made me feel like she cared about him just like I did. I only asked her to look after him, but she often also cleaned up my room like magic. This was extremely helpful because it was difficult to maintain order in the room while taking care of a newborn for the first time. I appreciated the childcare experience she shared with me as well.
Katie is a wonderful doula, and she made a big difference in the beginning of my life as a mother. If anyone would like to hear more about my experience, my contact information can be obtained through Katie.
Kirsty and Kevin Houston
Birth Doula
After a very traumatic first labour we decided to look into hiring a doula to support us in our second birth experience.
We met Katie and instantly clicked with her and knew she was the right person to work with.We met with her on 3 occasions prior to labour, discussing things such as our past birth experience, our birth plan, feeding baby and generally getting to know each other better.
We found her very knowledgeable and understood exactly what we wanted from this birth experience. Katie was also always contactable by phone or email.
By the time labour came I was very comfortable with her presence.
Herself and my husband worked in perfect partnership throughout. I spent a long time labouring at home, which was due to their support.
Upon arrival at the birth centre Katie gave me the confidence to stick to my birth plan and achieve the birth I had visualised for us.
If we were to have any more children, I would love to have Katie with us again and I can whole heartedly recommend her. We found her presence invaluable.
Elena and Emilio Venditti
Birth Doula
Having had a difficult first birth experience two years previously, we decided to have a Doula when we were due our second. Katie provided the support and information we needed in antenatal appointments, that not only helped us better understand our first labour experience and put to rest our worries of history repeating itself, but also provided us with the knowledge and confidence we needed to look forward to the birth of our second child. We had a truly wonderful experience welcoming our second born into the world, so we believe all our preparations with Katie were totally worthwhile, and we wouldn’t hesitate to recommend her.
Parent of older child
Parenting
Katie joined us at home for pancakes in the kitchen, giving her a chance to see us all and how we were together. She chatted to our son and let him take her into the garden and show her his tree house.
Afterwards Katie let me talk a lot and I felt she’d got a real idea of our parenting journey so far. She had lots of suggestions for things to try in different situations, to maintain connection and to re-connect when needed, to respond to different behaviours and to manage our own feelings. She was generous in sharing stories of her own (checking I welcomed this as not everyone might) which I found very helpful. She also showed me some books I might want to read around various themes.
It became clear Katie knew a lot about many different areas including brain development and emotions, non-violent communication, attachment, EFT/tapping and other techniques for emotional self-regulation, love-bombing…
After our meeting I felt reassured and optimistic, with lots of things to think about. Katie followed up with an email sending me links about things we’d addressed, and setting out the long-term parenting goals we’d discussed.
I would highly recommend this service to anyone who feels the need of some parenting advice and support