Meet Danielle
Postpartum Doula
Danielle became a doula when many 20 somethings were thinking about traveling or corporate paths, before she became a mom to 3 and a gestational carrier. Taking a few years to focus on raising some tiny humans of her own, she now brings her experience of motherhood to her attentive doula care, helping babies sleep peacefully while making sure parents are well cared for too. Danielle loves to help newborns develop a sleep routine that can result in more rest for parents even after she is done supporting their postpartum recovery.
More About Kat
We met Danielle 15 years ago and hired her as the youngest doula on our team, enjoying her natural talents with babies and soothing the tender time for parent after babies arrived. Danielle loved working with multiples and families adding a newborn, and we wished her well when she married her first love and began her own family. Now 15 years later, Danielle’s 3 kiddos are in school, and her love of babies has returned her to the doula world after serving friends and family—keeping her baby skills updated and applied with love.
Kat loves supporting and helping in any form needed by postpartum moms—especially feeding, comforting, sleeping, and all the questions a new parent ask when a baby is so fresh and seems so fragile. Her favorite way to help families is by getting to teach them about their newborns and help build confidence in their knowledge, especially new soothing techniques that have worked with her during her shifts with babies.
Kat says this about her work:
While I am often focused on baby so parents can rest, I also love taking care of mommas, in any way they need. I love to help clean/tidy up, boil bottles and sterilize, do laundry, and do a bit of meal prep. I love making soup- I would say this is what I am best at! I also like baking, protein muffins that are easy to keep in the freezer and just warm up.
Kat offers daytime support, overnight care and also the delightful Sunrise Doula service. If you haven’t considered sunrise doula care, it is a combo of daytime and overnights, with the doula arriving at 5 or 6 am to start care after the baby handoff.
Typically the doula sends parents back to bed, providing baby care while also starting daytime chores like emptying the dishwasher, making a hot breakfast, starting the laundry, often while babywearing. After a parent-led baby feeding, Kat sends them off to the shower for some self care, gets baby ready for the day, and makes sure mom has a warm meal before she leaves her shift. New Dads love that they can get in an early morning run, check in with work, or grab a bit more sleep after a long night. If parents are newly recovering, Kat offers sitz baths, preparing bedside tables, and belly binding techniques. After the sunrise shift, moms are left with many of their chores done, feeling rested, well fed, and ready for a day with baby. Only a few of our doulas offer this shift, and we have seen the benefits to starting the day with someone taking amazing care of parents and baby, so be sure to ask us about this offering with Kat.
Here are two recent client reviews:
“Kat was absolutely wonderful and made me feel really comfortable. It was obvious by the way she held my 2 month old that she has lots of experience with babies. Kat held him, wore him in a baby carrier, and played with him. Since I exclusively breastfed, she helped with getting him to take a bottle and sent me a list of tips. She was great!””
“Kat was an amazing help during a difficult transition. She communicated well and always brought a sweet spirit of kindness and peace with her. She checked in and was willing to help with whatever I needed. The time she spent with my little preemie freed me up to take care of myself. She was very gentle with him and gave him a lot of tender loving care.”
Kat lives in SW Portland with her 1-year-old golden retriever, Booker, near her parents and older brother. In her off time she creates pottery at a studio in Lake Oswego, reads and writes poetry, and of course loves taking Booker on long hikes to wear him out. She visits the local parks and especially the gorge and enjoys the community where she lives where Booker has many furry friends.