If you are looking for a skilled, knowledgeable, warm, and compassionate doula, you’ve found one in Karissa! Karissa became our doula just a few weeks before our daughter’s birth due to some scheduling issues with our previous doula, and I loved how she naturally slipped into an easy relationship with me and my husband. Karissa is a good listener and has a wonderful presence of calm and reassurance. She is always looking to figure out how she can help, whether it’s with massage, oils, providing warm rice sacks, changing positions, counting, or just about anything you’ll need. I felt so much more confident going into my second birth with her at my side. She was also a great support to my husband in assisting him with helping me, providing reassurance, and answering questions. She makes you feel listened to, and pays attention to what is happening with nurses, doctor, my partner, and myself. Karissa also took lots of pictures that will always be priceless for our family and a couple days after the birth she emailed a long and detailed account of the entirety of the birth, from the moment she walked in the door to our daughter’s cleaning and at last, cuddle time. I’ll always be so grateful for this as I didn’t take the time to write this all down with the challenges of a newborn and a 2-year-old at home. Karissa’s photos and her writing of the birth story will always be a precious keepsake for myself and my daughter. Giving birth is a scary and exhilarating time, and I’m so grateful we had Karissa to support us and our daughter. Karissa is a gem!

For anyone who’s considering using a doula, it’s one of the best decisions you’ll make. Karissa is amazing. She’s so knowledgeable and compassionate. As first time parents, no matter how well-informed we were, my partner and I didn’t feel like we really knew what we were doing. She provided the support that we needed to feel confident throughout my pregnancy. She was such a rock during my labor, with the best tools and suggestions to help keep me calm and comfortable, and to help determine the best time to go to the hospital. She also helped my partner understand his role in supporting me so that we felt closer despite having another person there. This was also during covid when we couldn’t have any family join us at the hospital. Giving birth is such a powerful and intimate experience that by the end of the day, she felt like family. She took the most amazing photos of the birth that I didn’t realize would be so incredibly precious to me until I looked back on them. She’s also an incredible resource postpartum, even helping troubleshoot challenges with our newborn. I think I would feel confident doing a homebirth next time, with Karissa by my side. Plus, she loves babies and you can never send her too many photos of your little one.