Jane Gajsiewicz

12/14/2023

Kathleen was the most amazing support of our family throughout my pregnancy and into post-partum. My birth was challening and Kathleen really helped us stay in the moment and keep things positive. Her help post-partum was so essential for in the transition to parenthood. 

Caryn

12/13/2023

My husband and I loved working with Kathleen. I was feeling anxious going into my induction, and Kathleen's advice totally soothed me so that by the time I arrived at the hospital I was feeling calm and ready. I know so many other moms who had a traumatic birth experience, but it was the opposite for me: I look back fondly on my time in the hospital with Kathleen at my side. She helped my husband a lot, too, so that he could focus on what he does best and not try to be everything all at once for me. I definitely recommend Boston Area Doulas: childbirth isn't something you should have to do alone (nor should your partner have to be your only support)!

Megan and Tim

1/6/2023

Kathleen was a pleasure to talk to.  We initially were disappointed she was not going to be our doula herself but she did an excellent job matching us with a daytime postpartum doula and even helped add some emergency nighttime support on a moment's notice.

Information was clearly presented to us and communication was excellent.  We would highly recommend anyone looking for a doula to reach out to Kathleen!

Alice

9/23/2022

In the anxious first weeks as new parents to a tiny baby, Kathleen was indispensable and helped us become a happier and more confident little threesome.

After being present at his birth (and supporting us through pregnancy), she was a much needed calm presence in our home with a wealth of baby knowledge, postpartum and mental health care for the birth and non birthing partner.

As two recent arrivals in Boston with no family to help us, it was like having a kind and non-judgmental friend visit you.

She did everything from teach us how to soothe and bathe him, to scooping up a crying baby and sending two exhausted and starving people for naps or a walk whilst she looked after him, cooked us delicious meals and did the washing up.

She was a kind ear for all our panicked, sleep-deprived questions, and a vital resource, helping us trouble-shoot breast-feeding issues and providing referrals to therapists, as well as being a genuine pleasure to have around.

Kathleen is the closest Boston has to a professional mother for new parents!

Carly B

5/22/2022

Hiring Kathleen to help with our birthing process was one of the best decisions we made. She helped us understand all our options going into the process with really thoughtful, practical information. I felt fully supported in all my choices. Having her support at the hospital was invaluable, both her emotional calmness helping keep both my husband and I grounded and reducing the worry and anxiety, and her techniques in pain management helping me get through the contractions and birth. I don't know how I would have gotten through the birth without her. She really listened to what we wanted and tailored her approach to meet us where we needed her. I can't recommend working with her enough.

Pratima

5/17/2022

Kathleen and Jenny are a superb team! My husband and I honestly could not have gotten through the 4th trimester without them! I interviewed a bunch of doulas and went with Kathleen because she was super knowledgeable having worked with many parents before, shared resources when we had questions or concerns on things, and was always careful to support us on whatever we decided rather than share unsolicited advice! They were the only ones I trusted leaving my newborn son with while I slept or went for groceries/errands. They were always on time, reliable, and taught me so many things about newborn parenting I honestly would not have figured out on my own. Highly recommend them especially for first time parents. 

Pratima

5/16/2022

Kathleen and Jenny are a superb team! My husband and I honestly could not have gotten through the 4th trimester without them! I interviewed a bunch of doulas and went with Kathleen because she was super knowledgeable having worked with many parents before, shared resources when we had questions or concerns on things, and was always careful to support us on whatever we decided rather than share unsolicited advice! They were the only ones I trusted leaving my newborn son with while I slept or went for groceries/errands. They were always on time, reliable, and taught me so many things about newborn parenting I honestly would not have figured out on my own. Highly recommend them especially for first time parents. 

Melissa Pykelny

3/30/2022

Kathleen was a joy to work with! She is extremely knowledgeable and I appreciate her non judgemental, educational approach to baby care. She is kind and approachable and has a calming demeanor. Having her as a postpartum doula was so helpful for my husband and I. She attentively cared for our son, gave us helpful tips with breastfeeding and bathtime and allowed us to catch a bit of rest in the madness of the newborn days. If anyone is considering a birth/postpartum doula, I would highly recommend Kathleen! You won't regret the extra help and excellent care. 

Kate Shamsuddin

3/21/2022

Kathleen is incredible! She supported my husband and me through the birth of our first son, and she was reliable and helpful from the time we first spoke on the phone all the way through the after care visit. She leads herself with a very calm demeanor and strictly works to support the family with their needs at all times. Looking back, we couldn't imagine our birth experience without her!

Keri

12/22/2021

I can't recommend Kathleen enough for your prenatal, labor and delivery, or postpartum experience! Thanks to Kathleen, I felt prepared for birth as we considered most possibilities labor could present and the options I would have at each juncture. As a result, I had an incredible birth experience! I felt informed and empowered in the early stages, and during active labor Kathleen was a rockstar never leaving my side. She supported me by offering constant massage and pressure, suggesting new positions to try to move labor along, ensured that I stayed hydrated, and helped set up my 'golden hour' with my daughter.

Kathleen's postpartum support has been just as significant. She cooked and cleaned for us when everything felt chaotic around us, held baby when we needed rest, and has helped me think through some of the challenges I was facing as a first time mom. I am so grateful she has been a part of my transition into motherhood.

Janine Acciardo

12/16/2021

Kathleen is absolutely wonderful to work with! As a first time mom looking to have a labor and birth as natural and unmedicated as possible, I wanted a doula to help me understand my options and be there for support. Kathleen took the time in our meetings to share these options and to get to know myself and my husband. I felt excited about and confident in my birth plan through everything we learned from her. She was a huge support from my moment my water broke until our baby girl arrived! She was also great to work with postpartum on some things I had questions on as a new mom. Kathleen is kind, supportive, a great teacher, knowledgeable and I highly recommend working with her as your doula!

Rachel

12/2/2021

We loved working with Kathleen. She is very knowledgeable about all things baby-related and definitely goes above and beyond to help babies and families adjust! She was very helpful with our feeding and food allergy problems at the start of our baby's life. She also takes great care of the rest of the family at this important time of transition.

Julie

10/22/2021

Kathleen helped us out when I had my second. She has a lovely, calming energy and I trusted her right away with both kids (my newborn and my toddler). She is an unbelievable multitasker and was able to play with my toddler, tidy up the house, do the dishes, and hold the newborn when needed. She was flexible and able to quickly switch tasks according to my needs at that moment. It was great working with Kathleen!

Jasna

9/23/2021

Thank you Kathleen for everything you did. Your knowledge, experience and care helped alleviate our fears as new parents. You did so much for us-- helping us take care of Adela, giving tips and suggestions and cooking delicious meals. We really enjoyed the conversations that we had during morning coffee time. Thank you for being such a calm and joyful presence in our journey as new parents.

Jasna and Waazim

Stephanie

9/8/2021

Working with Kathleen was one of the best decisions I could have made. I only wish I had started working with her sooner. Kathleen is a deep listener who is creative in her therapeutic approach and is always willing to take the conversation in whatever direction I need. She supported me during a difficult transition in finding a sense of balance with being back at work. Kathleen also supported me in revisiting what was a difficult labor and delivery period. I would highly recommend Kathleen to friends and other potential clients.

Maggie

6/3/2021

My husband and I loved my experience working with Kathleen! We are so grateful we had the chance to work with her, and would highly recommend working with her. 

What I most appreciated about working with Kathleen is her approach - she's both thorough and thoughtful, balancing sharing all of the information, data and analysis we asked for, alongside empathy, emotional support and consciousness of who we are and what we need. I didn't realize how much I needed that kind of support until we started doing our sessions with Kathleen. I feel like she provided incredible balance for us, and opened up the way my husband and I were thinking about the rest of our pregnancy, our birth and the 4th trimester too. 

Kathleen's approach is much more human and I really appreciated that, especially when we got news that changed our birth plan pretty dramatically. Kathleen helped us pivot into our new birth plan, providing so much emotional support, sharing a variety of stories from women who had also gone through that and just provided an outlet for me to explore my concerns and fears with. I also valued the information and guidance she offered on breastfeeding, which I believe contributed to me and my son seeing better feeding results in the first hours, days and weeks after birth, and less anxiety for me in questioning what was going on. 

On the whole, we felt more prepared, supported and balanced going into the birth and now in the first few weeks of having our son because of Kathleen. We hope to work with her again if we're blessed enough to have more children. 

Debbie

4/27/2021

Kathleen empowered me to feel more confident about caring for my baby. It is so easy to second-guess yourself or feel as if you're doing everything wrong. Kathleen helped me to trust my instincts, and as a result, I spend less time worrying and more time enjoying being a mother.

The most valuable part of having Kathleen's doula support was her wealth of knowledge about newborn care and the comforting, supportive way in which she shared that knowledge with me. I wasn't very confident about breastfeeding and how best to help my baby sleep better, but she was so reassuring as well as informative, and she helped me to feel better about both. She had great advice on how to set up good nap time and bed time habits early on for my baby. Following her advice, I learned how to help my baby put himself to sleep. Now I am able to put him down in his crib while he is awake, instead of gingerly trying to transfer a sleeping baby into the crib while praying for him to stay asleep.

I would definitely recommend Kathleen as a doula. Not only is there so much new information that you have to learn when having a child, but putting that information to practice can be so difficult when you're in the thick of the newborn haze. Having a doula is invaluable because they have the perspective that a new parent can sometimes lack. Kathleen has the perfect combination of being supportive and kind in conjunction with being extremely practical and knowledgeable, and with such a calming presence. She also has two kids of her own, so her empathy is very real.