Dana Dachman-Soled

3/9/2021

My baby was due in February 2021. Due to COVID hospital restrictions which allowed a single support person (and must be same in L&D and postpartum), and since my husband had to be home with our other children, our plan was to hire a doula to support me during labor and then I would stay for one night in the hospital (either by myself if I was feeling up to it, or with the doula). We hired Priscilla McGee after being impressed with her knowledge and demeanor during a Birth You Desire information session.

Since my baby was breech, Priscilla met with us over Zoom an extra time to show us exercises. When baby was still breech after the next ultrasound, she drove over to our house to show us a more complicated exercise in person.

Unfortunately, I needed to have an unexpected C-section at 36 weeks.

Priscilla dropped everything and came when I called her from the hospital in triage. She gowned up and accompanied me to my c-section, provided support and took pics of those precious first moments.

Priscilla then stayed with me for **three** days and nights. She was there to support me during that whole time, not leaving the hospital and only taking a few moments to text her family. Throughout our time together, her demeanor was calm and kind and we actually enjoyed the time spent together. Priscilla assisted me with:

--breastfeeding, positions, latch, and even using an SNS (supplemental nursing system)

--emotional support when baby was taken to NICU and when I had complications after the c-section

--changing baby's diaper and handing him to me for feedings throughout the night

--interacting with hospital staff, asking questions about procedures when necessary

In summary, I cannot overstate the help that Priscilla gave me. I do not know what I would have done without her. I very highly recommend her as a doula who is skilled, caring and consistently goes above and beyond to help her clients.

Teegan

12/17/2019

We had a wonderful experience with Priscilla. I was hoping for an unmedicated vaginal birth after a previous C-section, and Priscilla's support during the pregnancy and especially at the delivery was instrumental in allowing the labor and delivery to proceed smoothly and with minimal intervention. We really appreciated how accessible she was during the pregnancy to answer questions and felt we had very good communication with her right from the start. She was very thorough at the prenatal visit talking through how she could best support us both individually and together. She has a very calm and steady manner which is just what we needed to stay focused during the intensity of childbirth. We would definitely recommend Priscilla to any family interested in working with an experienced doula.

Layla

12/4/2019

I highly recommend Priscilla McGee, who was critical in supporting my birth. She has supported more than 600 births over 20 years, and trained with Birthing from Within's Pam England. Throughout my pregnancy and beyond, her expertise has helped us make informed decisions with confidence. During my delivery, my first, I experienced excruciating back labor.  She helped coach me during the labor and showed me and my partner pain management and coping measures and provided hands-on support. Her assistance enabled me to have the unmedicated birth I had planned.  Her coaching helped me have a more effective and efficient labor: with her help I was able to have a relatively short transition/final stage. I experienced a complication immediately after delivery and Priscilla stayed with me for hours to ensure I got the best care. I cannot say enough how critical she was and how grateful we were to have had such an experienced and expert doula to support us. She is a lovely person and has a gentle,  confident bedside manner. Her presence and energy were exactly what I needed in that delivery room. Priscilla was always available to answer questions, and provide helpful resources.  Beforehand, Priscilla provided great research that I hadn't come across to help us make decisions about the birth. She was also available for lactation support after the birth, which was helpful while navigating the challenges of breastfeeding.  

Sarah

7/31/2019

Priscilla was our doula and provided fantastic support for our birthing experience. Our daughter was born almost two weeks past her due date, at which point our original doula Ursula from Birth You Desire had gone out of town. Ursula transferred us to Priscilla and I am so glad she did! Priscilla provided amazing counseling support when the stress and mental acrobatics of waiting for a baby kicked in. Her calm, considered and supportive demeanor made it easy to transition our doula - and I felt immediately comfortable with her during our first phone call. She was very flexible, ready to text or chat by phone anytime, and was on standby for a week while we waited out the 41st week for an induction. She had great advice for what to consider with options around acupuncture, sweeping the membranes, getting induced and most of all helped me to shift my mindset to reduce the stress of waiting.

The day of the induction Priscilla helped us understand how the process worked and what to expect. She met us at the hospital at the time of our appointment and waited patiently all morning for the pitocin to kick in to real contractions. She made sure I drank enough water and brought out the tens unit just in time. She kept me informed about everything going on at the time and was able to advocate for me when I decided I couldnt continue on pitocin. But when my body decided to keep going she jumped to action and made sure everyone was ready to assist the birth which was happening very quickly! After the birth she stayed with us until we had made it to the maternity room and set us up properly there. And after during the postpartum phase has been regularly in touch to see how mama and the baby are doing.

Priscilla has a wonderful humor, such a peaceful and reassuring presence and a real knowledge of all the steps and variations in birthing. In the end I was so grateful to have had her as our doula!