Catherine K.

5/4/2025

My husband and I hired Linna at Womb to World MN as our birth doula for our first baby and could not be happier with our choice.  In the prenatal appointments, Linna listened to our thoughts, concerns, and questions with patience and understanding.  She brought examples of different medical tools and equipment for us to see and explained how it might be used.  We talked through different scenarios and what might happen during the birth and even practiced some birthing positions so I was familiar with them (ask about the rebozo!).  Linna also helped me write my Birth Wishes (Plan) in a clear and concise way so that all of the staff that I came into contact with during the birth were aware and informed.  She gently and confidently calmed so much of my anxiety around delivery - I felt so much more prepared after meeting with Linna!  During the birth, Linna was encouraging, supportive, and explained each step - making sure I understood all of my choices andhow they aligned with my Birth Wishes.  She helped me advocate for myself and reminded staff of my Birth Wishes when I was not able to advocate for myself.  She was very supportive of my husband and helped him advocate for me as well.  When we experienced complications in the Third Stage, Linna and her background as a Labor and Delivery nurse were instrumental in keeping me calm and informed.  Linna visited us in the postnatal period and, again, listened to our thoughts, concerns, and questions with patience and understanding.  She shared her wisdom and knowledge about newborns and helped so much with newborn care, mom self-care, and, especially, breastfeeding.  She was just a text away after those first few rough nights of transition and it was a reassuring lifeline. We could not have chosen a better doula for our birth experience and feel so lucky to have Linna as part of our birth story!

Dan Koewler

5/3/2025

When my wife first suggested a doula, I outright rejected the idea. It seemed like a waste of money, duplicative, and an unnecessary luxury. I could not have been more wrong. Hiring a doula was the absolutely the best thing we could have done to make the birthing process . . . memorable? Magical? Inspiring? There isn’t a word to describe how important to the whole process our doula was – and a lot of that had to do with the particular doula we chose, Linna from Womb to World MN.

I cannot say enough good things about Linna, but I am going to try, because I cannot overstate how integral she was to the whole process. Her demeanor, character, and simple presence is one of calm, caring love, and it was strong enough to affect everyone in the room, in every room she entered. Her knowledge, background, and experience is something I doubt we could have found in another doula – something that was essential to making our experience as good as it was. In sum, her personality coupled with her intelligence made her feel like close family, not like someone we hired.

I see now that THIS is what you want in a doula. Linna was able to guide us through the unknowns, and even more importantly, she almost unerringly predicted future points of difficulty before they even arose, putting us the best position possible to make difficult decisions during a stressful time. We almost give our daughter the middle name “Linna” out of pure appreciation; the only reason we did not is because Linna is so humble and kind that it likely would have embarrassed her too much to even ask her. I could write a small novel about her impact on the birth of our daughter, both before, during, and after the birth, but there’s simply not enough space. The best decision you can make – whether you know you want a doula, or are even still on the fence – is to reach out to her and have a conversation. You will not regret it.