Happy Hearts Birth Doula Services

Informed support. Grounded presence. Heart-centered birth.

Birth is powerful. It is intensely transformative and deeply personal. Birth is an experience that most mothers and parents will always  vividly remember, and can affect the mother and baby's health and well-being for the rest of their lives. This means that  birth is very important! 

Birth experiences can vary widely, from very negative to very positive. There are a multitude of factors that can affect labor progress, birth outcomes, and the birth experience. Some of these factors may be unpredictable, while other factors are affected by choices the birthing person may make, such as:  the location of birth, the providers, the participants, and the procedures (interventions or lack thereof) accepted  or received. 

Each birth is unique. Each labor unfolds in its own timing, and follows a labyrinth of infinite possibilities. Many families may choose to include an experienced doula as part of their birth team to  assist in navigating this process, increasing the likelihood of a positive birth experience, and improving the odds of better birth outcomes. 

What is a doula?

A doula is a trained, non-medical support person who provides:

• Emotional reassurance 
• Physical comfort measures
• Education and guidance
• Continuous presence during labor and birth
   

Doulas do not perform medical tasks or replace your medical provider. Instead, they focus on you — your comfort, confidence, and experience — helping you feel supported and empowered as you move through birth.

Clarification: Midwife vs Doula Care

You may notice something a little different here — I am a midwife offering doula services — and it’s completely normal to have questions about what that means.

While midwives are licensed medical providers, doula care is a separate role. When I serve as your doula, I am not acting as your medical provider. Instead, I step into a Monitrice role, assisting in providing reassurance and navigation of early labor prior to the arrival of your birth team. 

This unique combination allows me to offer something very special.

What is a Monitrice?

A Monitrice is a trained midwife who provides continuous labor support similar to a doula, with the added ability to offer select clinical assessments while you are laboring at home.

This may include:

• Listening to and evaluating your baby’s heartbeat 
• Assessing labor progress
• Performing a vaginal exam when appropriate and desired
• Monitoring maternal vital signs
   

Monitrice care is commonly chosen in special circumstances, such as:

• Planning a vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC)
• First time giving birth
• Prior rapid (precipitous) birth or long labor (prodromal)
• Prior experience of coming and going from labor and delivery triage multiple times
• Healing from a previous traumatic birth experience
• Wanting additional emotional and clinical reassurance during labor
• Needing a Hospital Birth Advocate that can assist you in weighing benefit and risks of interventions that deviate from your birth plan

Additionaly, families seek Monitrice support when they desire:

• Extra reassurance during early labor, regardless of planned place of birth
• Support informed by clinical knowledge 
• Discerning normal vs abnormal labor process and progress
• Thoughtful guidance around timing and transitions

Hospital Advocacy and Informed Support

• Clear explanation of medical recommendations in real time, using plain language 
• Support navigating hospital policies, procedures, and consent discussions
• Help ensuring your preferences are heard and respected within a medical setting
• Guidance through unexpected changes or decision points during labor
• Calm support during conversations about interventions, monitoring, or pain management
• Assistance slowing things down when appropriate so you can ask questions and make informed choices
• Support maintaining a respectful, collaborative relationship with your care team
• Advocacy that prioritizes your safety, autonomy, and emotional well-being—not confrontation

When I serve as your Monitrice, I am not acting as your primary pregnancy or birth care provider.

This means:

• I am not your primary prenatal care provider
• I am not your planned delivering provider, and will not attend a birth when another licensed midwife or physician has not been hired to attend.
• I am not providing medical advice, but can provide evidence-based education and guidelines
   

Once you are admitted to the hospital or your birth team arrives, my role naturally and intentionally transitions into that of a Birth Doula — offering continuous emotional support, comfort measures, advocacy, and presence throughout your labor and birth.

That said, birth can be unpredictable.

In the rare event of a precipitous birth, or other emergency were to occur before your planned provider or medical team is able to arrive or attend, I will render aid as able and act in the best interest of safety until medical care is present.

Monitrice care offers :

• The warmth and reassurance of doula support
• The intuition of an experienced nurse-midwife 
• The confidence of informed decision-making
  

My approach to doula and Monitrice care is rooted in:

• Respect for your choices, preferences, and autonomy
• A desire to  support your birth partner and family
• A desire to create a professional and courteous rapport with your birth team while remaining your advocate

As your monitrice/doula, "I want what you want." Your body, your baby, and your birth are unique. I do not believe there are hard "right vs wrong" decisions in birth. The most important factor is that you feel informed, unpressured, and feel your autonomy and dignity  is respected.
 

Whether you are planning an epidural or low-intervention hospital birth, birth center birth, or homebirth, my role is to walk beside you — offering steady support, informed reassurance, and a calm, loving presence throughout the process.

I aim to provide:

• Support that feels nurturing and grounded
• Someone who understands birth enough to embrace the knowns and the unknowns
• A blend of intuition, clinical experience, and calming presence
   

I would be honored to support you through of the most important days of your life.