Briana Mager Doula Profile

After attempting without success a med-free birth with our first son, I knew as soon as I found out I was pregnant again that we would be working with a doula. Briana was the first and only doula my husband and I met with - and knew as soon as we began talking that she was the one for us. The prenatal meetings with her were incredibly informative and enjoyable; she gave me lots of tips for managing my pain at home and helped me to pin down the parts of my birth plan that were most important to avoid overwhelming the nurses at the hospital. The day I went into labor, I progressed very quickly and decided to go to the hospital sooner than later. She met us there quickly and supported me and my husband, helping with my breathing and position changes. I attempted pushing in the traditional position without luck, and it was Briana's suggestion of a different pushing position that had my son born in 2 contractions instead of taking much longer. She was calm, collected, and an amazing resource in keeping me calm. If at any point during my contractions I stopped breathing or breathed too fast, I would hear her breathing and it would bring me back into rhythm. I never felt out of control during my labor, and a lot of that is due to her presence and the way she helped my husband to help me. I opted to do the placental encapsulation in hopes of avoiding some of the post-partum mood swings, and it has been a 180* difference from my last birth. At barely a week post-partum, I feel normal. But the best endorsement comes from my  husband - "she was 100% worth every penny". I look forward to having our next child, and hopefully will be able to have Briana by my side again. In fact, I'm going to miss seeing and talking to her!

Briana helped me obtain my best birth experience! I had a difficult pregnancy with an unstable pelvis.  About the 7th month I was starting to get nervous about my OB being there most concerned about the baby and I was afraid that my needs and desires wouldn't be honored.  I found Briana through 2 different routes. I did my own research on momslikeme.com to find more info about an unstable pelvis and she answered my post, and then I asked my physical therapist for doula recommendations and she had a business card for Briana.  My husband and I interviewed her and I knew I wanted her to attend my birth before the initial meeting was completed.  She is very knowledgeable and helped to answer our questions and decrease my fear of my needs being ignored.  I wanted a natural birth, but my water broke at midnight, contractions didn't start on their own, so i was given pitocin.   I learned the breathing techniques from the Bradley Method and Hypnobirthing from books she lent to me.  During L&D she helped me change positions, instructed when to wait to push, and used the TENS unit on my back during the long and hard contractions.  I got the birth I wanted and if I got pregnant again, I would hire her again.  I highly recommend her.

Briana Mager was a wonderful doula and my husband, Jake, and I were so lucky to have had her at the birth of our beautiful daughter, Rebecca.
From our first meeting with Briana, we knew we wanted her to be our doula -- her warm demeanor, her vast knowledge and her personal experience made us feel very comfortable and confident.
She also taught us a lot about what to expect during our first couple visits together.
When my water broke, we woke Briana at 3:48 in the morning to ask her what to do next and she was patient, thorough and helpful to us. She met us at the hospital and helped us remain calm, think through our decisions rationally, and stay true to our most important goals.
I also believe that I greatly benefited from Briana's placenta encapsulation services -- I had a lot of energy and a quick post-partum recovery.
 

I first located Briana on stldoulas website, and she telephoned me almost immediately after I sent an email.  We met a few days later at a local sandwich shop.  I knew immediately that Briana would be the right doula for me.  She put me at ease and answered all of my questions.  During my pregnancy Briana stayed in touch regularly and was always available to answer my questions and to help allay some of my fears when complications arouse around 24 weeks.  She met with us twice at our home and helped us to arrange private childbirth classes.  I had to have a hospital birth due to a medical condition and knew that I would be unmedicated, due to a previous spinal fusion and a desire to avoid having any narcotics or Stadol.  Briana supported each of our decisions along the way with a gentle manner that defines her.  When it was determined that I would need to be induced at 39 weeks, Briana was sympathetic and supportive.  uring my actual labor Briana stayed by our side for all 14 hours.  The one brief moment that she did need to step out, one of her associates (our chilbirth instructor) stepped in to make sure that we were not alone.  She was supportive, calming and a positive influence in the room the entire time.  She was also our advocate to ensure that our wants and needs were communicated to the staff.  She also ran to get our nurse when I began involuntarily pushing and she realized that things had prgressed rather suddenly from a 7 to 10.  As my husband told everyone afterwards, I don't know how anyone can give birth without a doula there!  we would reccommend her to anyone with the highest confidence.

Briana was the doula for my 4th child. She was very good and I would recommend her to anyone who needs help in having the labor and delivery of their dreams.

Briana was so very supportive and encouraing. She has a vast amount of knowledge on how to deal with pain.  She made the labor i went through bearable and always made sure i was comfortable and got me whatever i needed. At the end when i just wanted to be done, she was very soothing and comforting, helping me to get to the best part- the baby coming out!

You cannot go wrong by going with Briana as your doula. I wouldn't have wanted anyone else.

Briana was my doula for my third child and I felt like she took the time to get to know me as a person even before we went to the hospital.  She was supportive and encouraging in all aspects of my labor.  I felt that her knowledge empowered me to be my own advocate to the doctors and nurses so that I was able to have the birth that I truly desired.  Before I went to the hospital, she gave me strategies to avoid being induced, during my labor she encouraged me to use different techniques to manage my labor and helped me to not give up.   I truly can't say enough about her professionalism, her desire to always learn more to help her clients, and her bedside manner that made me feel as if I had a good friend helping me.   I would highly recommend her to anyone- for Bri this is a work of the heart and not just a job.

Briana was amazing!  I could not have done it without her.  A successful VBAC after almost 24 hours of labor and no medications.  She provided great support - emotionally, physically, mentally.  She gave me her all - all through the evening and night and morning...  I would recommend Briana to anyone who wants to have the maximum support for their upcoming birth!