Our Doula Philosophy
We support women and their families while providing informational support to enable them to make informed choices for themselves. We work to maintain the sanctity of the birth space as originally intended. As your Doulas, we are working for you, not your caregiver or hospital. We do not have a preconceived idea of how we think your birth should be - our role and goal is to support you in achieving the birth experience YOU desire and feel good about. We sincerely look forward to having the opportunity to share a very precious moment in time with you and your family.
About Vanessa Pisias
Vanessa had her first baby, Wyatt James Abeloos, on November 9th, 2009. She is now accepting Mama's as a Postpartum Doula and will be back to Birth Doula-ing with us in 2010. See her bio below...
Big bellies and glowing Mommies absolutely fascinate me. Ever since I was a child, I’ve been captivated by them. As I got older, my interest grew into a passion for child birth and I knew I wanted to be a part of it. It was only natural for me to want to learn the art of birth assistance and to embrace my own natural abilities to provide support and comfort. I completed my certification through DONA (Doulas of North America) and have been assisting births since June of 2006. In April of 2007, I became a Lactation Counselor through Nursing Mothers Council of Santa Cruz. I am also a certified HypnoBirthing Practitioner and have been teaching since October of 2007. In November 2008, Diana and I attended an Advanced Doula Training workshop led by Penny Simkin herself - which was a great experience. Just recently Diana and I became certified as Post Partum Doulas, we completed the training in April of 2009. I have a B.A. in Anthropology from UC Santa Cruz. Currently, I am working as a full time Doula as well as at Harmony Birth Resources as the part time Office Coordinator. For more information about me, please see my personal Doula website www.vanessathedoula.com
About Diana Hurwitz
I was blessed with three very different labor and delivery experiences; a hospital birth with interventions, a home water birth with a Midwife, and a hospital birth with a Doula and no interventions. All of these experiences were meaningful to me in their own way. Now I have embarked on a journey to assist other women and their families through one of the most memorable times of their lives. I completed my certification through DONA (Doulas of North America) and have been assisting births since July 2008. I have also taken classes at Natural Resources in SF to supplement my training. In September 2008, I became re-certified in Adult, Child and Infant CPR. Then in October 2008, I participated in the Birthing from Within Mentor and Doula Training workshop. In November 2008, Vanessa and I attended an Advanced Doula Training workshop held by Penny Simkin herself - which was very informative and enlightening. After Thanksgiving 2008, I left Google as a Finance Manager to pursue my dream career as a Doula full time! For more information about me, please see my personal Doula website www.dianathedoula.com
About Sandra Darrow
My decision to become a doula has been life altering. After caring for my terminally ill mother in our home for the last few years until her death in January 2009, I realized that I needed to look for a career doing something that inspires me. My past career in IT was appropriate at the time and the jobs I took in the years I was raising my three children were also important in terms of helping support our family. Nevertheless, the opportunity to work in a field in which I could derive personal meaning was something I have hoped for throughout my life. When I learned about doula care, I was moved immediately and understood that this was just such a career. To learn about this following my mothers’ death and realize I could incorporate all the skills I had learned in terms of caring for another made it an even more perfect fit while emphasizing that personal meaning that I sought.
I have a 26 year old daughter, and two teenage sons. We are a very close family, and they all support my new career choice. My husband recognizes how happy this has made me as well and is supporting any logistics with the kids or my familial responsibilities that need to take place in order for me to attend births, trainings or to just process what I have learned. While I don’t have the number of births under my belt that Diana and Vanessa do yet, I am adding to my experience daily. I am enjoying the educational enrichment that this work is giving me nearly as much as attending births. I love doing the research that needs to be done when a client asks me a question I don’t know the answer to; it’s like a bonus education! I am so honored to be working with Vanessa and Diana now since we discovered that we have much in common in terms of our style, philosophy and our enthusiasm and so we look forward to working together, and with you. For more information about me, please see my personal Doula website www.sandrathedoula.com