Katie Jansen

11/28/2024

My family and I have nothing but love for Karen! We needed last minute sibling care for our three children and Karen very quickly became part of the family as I, unplanned, delivered baby girl at home just 6 days later after meeting her. Having never delivered at home, I wasn’t aware of all of my postpartum options for baby and I. Karen introduced us to the option of having a midwife come to our home and care for baby and I could not be more grateful for going that route. I was able to get cozy in my own bed, Karen took care of our children and reassured them that baby and I were okay. She stayed with us all day and all evening playing with the kids and giving my husband the time to spend with babygirl and I. Not to mention the fact that she also brought us dinner in that first week as well!! Karen will forever have such a special place in our hearts as she helped to create the most magical experience for us as we started life as a family of six.

Dyna

7/4/2023

Extraordinary! If I were only allowed to use one word to describe my experience with Karen, it would be that! She not only understood the main needs I had for my 3rd birthing experience but excelled at it. After meeting and speaking to her before our littlest one's arrival, I was confident that my needs would be met. She was so easy to communicate with which made our unexpected early arrival so much less stressful. You can really tell that she listened to the kind of pain management tools that helped/worked best for me. She was also great with my two older kids while my husband came in to cut our son's umbilical cord. Let's be honest when you don't have any other assistance in the area and have more than one child that extra pair of hands and emotional support really helps with the overall birthing experience. I didn't want to deliver alone knowing my husband would have to be with our other children, Karen really eased that fear for me and she stayed with me at the hospital until baby and I were settled and ready to take on the world together! I cannot rave enough about her and wish that I had used a doula sooner with my other two kids. If my husband and I were to have another kid, hands down I would not skip a beat about reaching out to Karen. Thank you so much for my most memorable birth thus far!

Catherine Lubbe Higginbotham

5/23/2023

Having Karen as my doula made SUCH a difference in my birth experience. As a first time mom, it was so comforting to know that she knew birth better than either me or my husband did, no matter how many books we read! She was always at the ready to answer my questions over text, and was so helpful in telling me when it was time to go to the hospital. During labor, she did breathing exercises with me, and coached me through each contraction and even through the pushing stage (the OB was a little late coming in the room). I gave birth unmedicated and she helped me into different positions and reassured me with positive, encouraging words the whole time (which made ALL the difference in the world!). I am a Christian so she also prayed for me, which helped me immensely towards the end. Karen is so caring and kind and professional and she really knows what she's doing!! She was so respectful of my wishes and was a true advocate and comfort to me during one of the most intense times of my life. She also met with me afterwards just to check in with me and baby to see how we were and to talk with me about the birth so I could really process everything that happened. I can honestly say her presence was a Godsend. If you're hesitating, hesitate no more. You will be forever grateful you had Karen at your birth!

Whitney

4/22/2023

As a first time mom having never experienced childbirth before, I was quite nervous about being able to give birth naturally.  No one in my family had ever done it before so I had no one to turn to.  I had done a lot of reading and preparing.  I worried that because I wasnt doing 'breathwork exercises,' yoga every day, daily affirmations that I wasnt doing all I could to prepare.  Every time I met with Karen, she assured me that I was doing a great job and that she will help me get through it when the time comes. She put my mind at ease before birth. 

I had a LONG labor and Karen stood by me the entire time.  I wont go into detail about my birth here, but I would have never been able to birth my son naturally without any single person in my birth team which consisted of my husband, two midwifes and Karen.  I absolutely needed her support and I am so happy that I stumbled upon her profile on doulamatch.  Having Karen at my birth had a huge impact and I got the birth experience I wished for!

Savannah Hamblen

3/22/2023

Karen is a true gem. From the start she was so kind and knowledgeable and truly made me feel comfortable. She helped tremendously during my labor, and really cared for me postpartum. Her communication is great! Highly recommend!

Rachel Glenn

10/14/2022

Karen was a vital and cherished part of my birth team! As a military spouse living away from family, having a caring helper (and very experienced birth coach!) on the day of my birth made all the difference. We met several times before the birth and she helped me understand the process, what to expect, and what all of my options were. While she provided me with information, she did not judge any of my personal decisions. Once I went into labor, she came over to our house and helped me breathe through contractions. This was one of my favorite parts of having Karen as a doula. As a first time mom, the birth experience can be pretty intimidating. Knowing when to go to the hospital and if what you are feeling is normal can often cause first time moms to make decisions out of fear. Karen helped me through that process and we went to the hospital at the perfect time! At the hospital, she advocated for my birth plan and continued to help explain my options. After the birth, she continued to assist me through my struggles with breastfeeding. Karen is naturally kind and gentle, but also highly educated and experienced! I could not recommend her more!! 

Marissa

8/20/2022

Karen's presence is motherly, understanding, sincere. She is experienced in birth care and attentive in her support. Karen helped me feel safe in the hospital when I was transferred from my home birth space and remained available for as long as needed, all while respecting the space for my partner and I to connect. We are so thankful to have had her to walk alongside our birth experience.

Taylor Hicks

3/18/2022

I want to start off by saying that I feel terrible for not writing this sooner. My son was born 7 months ago and I have been so deep in the midst of motherhood with (now) two kiddos that I forgot to write a review for Karen, who SO deserves good reviews. Now that, that has been said, I want to applaud Karen a million times over for the work she did with me. I hadn't originally had a doula in the budget for my homebirth but because my midwife, Mary, had literally just delivered another baby as my water broke, she sent Karen to my house to be there for me until she could make it over. This was the first time I met Karen and she immediately brought a sense of calm to the space. My contractions came on strong and hard right away, much different than my first birth. They were only 2-3 min apart and this lasted the entirety of the 13 hour labor and eventually they were coming on right after another without any breaks. I felt out of control and Karen held my hand and breathed through every single  wave of contractions-- reminding me so gently to breathe down into my pelvis and not high up into my chest. This made a world of a difference. Her patient and kind eyes told me everything was going to be okay. I needed that, someone right there with me in my face helping me through. However I believe if someone else needed a different kind of support, Karen would have been so intuitive as to what they needed and would be that for them as well. She was an expert at the craft of caring for a birthing mother and if I ever have another child I will, absolutely be asking her to work with me again. Birth is so intense and wild yet her gentle and calm  nature made it possible for me to dig deeper into myself and find my own power to birth my son right in the comfort of my own home. I highly, highly, highly recommend her. 

Hannah Wilkerson

6/11/2021

Karen was the part of my birth that I absolutely could not have done without.  She combined her knowledge with unsurpassed compassion and intuitive care.  She anticipated and cared about the smallest aspects of the whole process.   her calm encouraging manner was the still in the storm.   I can't recommend her highly enough. 

Janelle Winston

6/11/2021

Karen was in two of my three births and her presence there made all the difference. My first birth was long and arduous with pre labor for days before his head fully engaged and real labor started. I was already exhausted when it started, so I needed all the help I could get. Karen and my midwife worked seamlessly together to support me and when things got scary and he wasn't breathing, she was calm and confident and comforting. With my second, it was a fast and crazy birth that left me feeling out of control and scared and again Karen was there ministering peace and care and comfort. I was so thankful to have her there with me in both of these very different births, because of her great ability to bring peace and comfort in the scariness of birth. I missed her in my third birth, when she couldn't come because she was sick. I would HIGHLY recommend her to anyone!