"Being a man, I never thought much about how difficult the delivery of a baby could be. Having a doula at the event made the experience much more enjoyable. Liza really helped balance the overall needs of my wife as well as myself over the 5 hours of intense labor. During the labor process, my wife became focused on her gut instincts as well as her immediate needs. As the contractions became more frequent, it became my sole responsibility to be there for her to hold on to. That made it very difficult to attend to my wife's other needs, her sore back, the frustrating discomfort of the monitors wrapped around her belly, the pillows that seemed to always be in the wrong place, etc. Without Liza there, I really believe that my wife's level of discomfort would have been much greater. Having a doula there to massage
my wife's back, make sure she wasn't too cold or too hot, or just hold her hand made all the difference in the end. Liza brought a
great energy to the room which would have been difficult to provide had it just been the two of us."
-- Corey Silverman

" Liza -- thank you thank you thank you! Both Corey and I felt immediately comfortable with you, and I'm so pleased with how our birth worked out. You offered such tactful advice and suggestions
in the early stages and when things really started cooking, it was a tremendous relief to know that we had you as our guide."
-- Leanne Silverman

"I embraced having Liza as our Doula from the beginning but it wasn't till go time that I actually realized what an important part of our little miracle she was. I would recommend Liza's services any day of the week, especially if you are striving for a natural birth. The knowledge and heart she brings into the process made it all the more comforting...not to mention having an extra pair of hands really came in, well, handy. A loving thank you to you Liza!"
-- Nir Wittenberg, Aba of Kayla Zara

"Having Liza at the birth was a huge advantage! I was able to go with the baby to the nursery when he was born and it was great to know that my wife had an independent advocate when I left the room. Liza's knowledge and expertise really helped bring order and calm to a chaotic situation."
-- Martin Kyne

"HypnoBirthing was a wonderful experience for our whole family. I say whole family because we were all relaxed. My older daughter saw her mommy taking good care of herself throughout birth and taking time to practice meditation and I am confident that my calm, happy, baby felt the effects of a calm mother. Not once was I anxious about her birth. My husband and I cannot say enough wonderful things about our doula, Liza. She’s like an old soul who was a wonderful companion to have with us during birth. She really helped guide us on our beautiful birth journey. She was so wonderful and reassuring for the both of us and most importantly, just her presence made our birthing space calm. She’s really a wonderful, caring person. Even after I gave birth she stayed with me because her presence grounded me after a very speedy birth at the hospital. Also, she helped us talk through medical procedures and gave us a much-needed fresh perspective. I can’t say enough wonderful things about Liza and the remarkable way she worked with us throughout our birthing experience."
-- Katie O'Boyle

"Words cannot express the gratitude for the caring tenderness you brought to the delivery room the night and early morning our little angel made her way into our arms. It was more than magical... I feel that because of the time Nir and I spent with you learning about the birthing process and what it really meant to trust that our baby could be brought into this world naturally, we strengthened our family bond before our daughter, Kayla ever took her first breath. Your wisdom, patience and expertise brought a world of peace and calm to our first steps as new parents and for that I am forever grateful to you. With so much love, Susan"
-- Susan Wittenberg

"Hiring Liza as my doula made the birthing process a great event! She took the stress off my husband so he was able to enjoy the experience more, and she helped me understand what was going on and how to focus. The nurses were not always in my room, so I really needed two people to help me out: giving me water to drink, massaging my feet, talking me through contractions, filling my bath and helping me in and out, and suggesting different positions to ease labor pains.

My back labor made staying in bed while on the fetal monitor quite painful; luckily Liza asked the nurses if I could sit on an exercise ball instead of lying in bed while still on the monitor. The nurses agreed, and I moved onto the ball. This felt so much better and really helped me mentally know I could move forward without an epidural. I'm so grateful Liza suggested the change in position!

Liza helped me throughout the birth experience, not just while in labor. Meeting with my husband at our home before labor to practice different techniques helped prepare me. I was unsure about breastfeeding, so she loaned me a book to help me prepare as much as I could. Immediately after labor, she provided much-needed snacks before I could order a meal. Seeing Liza in our home after the birth was like seeing an old friend."
-- Liza Anderson

"When Nikki told me that she wanted to use Hypnobirthing, I was, to say the least, a bit skeptical. But, being a supportive husband, and knowing what was good for me, I agreed to look into it and not make trouble. A friend of ours recommended Liza at Doula Baby and when we talked, she seemed very friendly a nd we scheduled a visit. Now, to be honest, while I was being supportive, I was also very concerned. Hypnobirthing was one thing, but hiring a doula was something else. I thought that a doula was going to take my place in the delivery room, that this was going to be expensive, and that the benefits just weren't there. I can also now honestly say that I was dead wrong on all counts. Having Liza involved in our birthing was one of the most important decisions that we made and we are so blessed to have had her there.

Getting to know Liza, I was immediately at ease that she had no plans to take over the delivery room. We discussed the roles that she and I would have at the hospital. Liza encouraged me to be as involved as I felt comfortable with and that she would be there to support the both of us. She provided all sorts of information and I did some independent research on doulas and found a wealth of studies showing an absolute benefit to having one, financially and more importantly emotionally. We went through the Hypnobirthing training and I found myself truly enjoying the experiences. I even learned to use the techniques in my own daily life. Liza diligently went through our questions and provided us with items to discuss with each other and our doctor regarding different birth options. There were all sorts of items that I never would have thought of that were really important to us.

When Nikki began having surges around 6 pm, she was prepared and, with Liza's assistance, stayed at home until midnight when the surges became closer than 4 minutes apart. Liza met us at the hospital and that is where she absolutely shined. Liza made sure the lights were kept at a minimum, ran to other rooms to get extra pillows, kept cold washcloths coming, and all the other thousand little things you don't think about until they are coming at you all at once. Liza helped us to present the birth plan to the nurses and doctors and made sure to remind them of our wishes when we were busy and distracted. She was never disrespectful or confrontational to the staff and did a great job of creating a team effort with them, even when there was disagreement.

The Hypnobirthing was nothing short of amazing. Nikki had surges for 12 hours in what is referred to as "back labor", one of the more painful things you can go through. As it turned out, our son was tangled in his cord and unable to position correctly (thus the long labor period and the back labor). But even with this, the only extra intervention that was needed was that I had to rub her back during each surge. And let me tell you, having Liza there became a total necessity at that point. I was able to focus all of my attention on caring for my wife and massaging her back while Liza took care of the Hypnobirthing scripts and everything else. I honestly have no idea how we would have done this without her there. Nikki never yelled, never screamed, and never took any medication for the pain. In fact, there was a moment about 9 hours in when we heard a woman down the hall who was giving birth and screaming and it hit me that we were actually having a baby, this was it, this was the birthing process. It was nothing like I had ever imagined, been told about, or seen in movies. Yes, there was pressure and some discomfort. But Nikki was in total control. There was no freak-out moment or screaming or rushing. The whole process was calm and collected. It was actually serene. The nurse assigned to us, who had been supportive but skeptical of the whole concept, told me afterwards that she was astounded at how well it worked.

Though Nikki had progressed very quickly (9 centimeters 2 hours after arriving at the hospital for her first child!), because Joseph was tangled, he could not come out. Liza again helped us as we fought to give the natural process a little more time. Liza did a great job discussing options with us and the doctor so that each time, we felt that we made an informed choice. We trust our OB and that he had the best interest in our child, but I'm not sure I would have felt as empowered or informed if Liza had not been there to help us explore alternatives. I think we always would have wondered if we gave up too early or if we asked the right questions. After monitoring for an additional few hours, Joseph stopped responding to direct stimulation and we decided that it was time to allow medical intervention by way of a c-section.

But this was not the end of Liza's help. While Nikki was being sedated (a process where we were not allowed to be with her), Liza stayed with me, explaining what would be happening and generally helping to keep me from panicking. Then, she was allowed to be in the operating room with us. As my son was put on the warming table and I saw him for the first time, I remember Liza saying "that's your son, that's your baby boy". Strange, but it seemed to take her saying that for it to sink in. She remembered to grab the camera out of my pocket, which I had totally forgotten about, and snap off a number of our first precious pictures, something that would have been lost without her. Then the realization hit me that my son was leaving for the nursery but my wife was staying in the operating room for a bit longer. Had Liza not been there, I am pretty sure I would have freaked out. But Liza was able to stay with Nikki and comfort her and look after her while I stayed with my son. While we had hired Liza as a doula to help ensure a natural birth, her assistance when things did not go as planned was just as important.

It's now been 3 months and Joseph is a happy, growing boy. Even though things did not work out for us to have a totally natural birth, we look back with grateful hearts. With Liza's help, we were given every chance to have a natural birth. With Liza's help, Nikki was able to break out of the mindset that childbirth had to be an excruciating ordeal and instead have a peaceful experience. With Liza's help, I was able to focus on my wife and let things flow around me, knowing that she would handle them. With Liza's help, we were able to make really hard decisions and do what was best for our son. With Liza's help, this was a wonderful birth experience that we can cherish."
-- Michael McCoubrey

"My husband and I were considering hiring a doula but we weren’t sure that’s what we wanted to do. After meeting with Liza we decided it was a MUST to have her support us during the birth of our daughter. We were so impressed with what she had to offer and felt much more comfortable knowing we would have an experienced advocate in the birth room to help make our experience the best it could be. On “game day” Liza exceeded all of our expectations. She is such a joy to have around and we really appreciated her help. She worked well with the hospital staff and served as an indispensable part of our team. We highly recommend Liza - what she provides is worth at least twice the cost!"
-- Julie Nirvelli

“We can’t thank you enough for all of your guidance and support throughout our pregnancy and birth. Most of all, we appreciate how available you made yourself to us- it was this unconditional care that had the most value. Know that we have great respect for you and your role and that we would easily recommend you to others. Henry thanks you too for helping to calm his parents!”
-- Jean & Danny