Alina

12/5/2024

Where do I even begin? Shantell is my angel. I had a traumatic first birth experience and I wanted to do everything I can to not experience that again. For me, this plan meant a lot to regain a power I felt was taken from me after having an emergency c section with my first child. This time around, I wanted to have a doula to advocate for me, an unmedicated birth at a birth center with a midwife. I 100% know that I would not have pulled through with my birth plan to have a VBAC without her by my side. From pregnancy she guided me to not only have my body feel strong but my mind as well. She helped me to stay positive and calm. I call her my bestie because we were texting or calling almost every day which gave me so much peace of mind to have someone to talk to about anything and everything. Now let's talk about the labor... Shantell is a strong, tall woman and I felt entirely safe with her by my side (such a huge bonus that she's so much taller than me!). She held me when I needed to feel comfort, carried me when i felt weak from contractions and continued to talk words of encouragement in my ears as i kept my eyes shut to focus and breathe through the contractions. Postpartum she encapsulated my placenta which I believe really helped level my hormones this time around. My bestie, my angel.. I am so blessed to have crossed paths with you! You helped me gain my power back and the confidence that I really can do anything. 

Katie

6/14/2023

Shantell was my postpartum doula/night nurse and started helping me two days after I came home with my son. As a single mom without any friends or family able to stay with me when I first came home, Shantell was the lifesaver that helped me have a speedy recovery and allowed me to sleep restfully the first two weeks we were home. She was always on time and during our catch-up at the beginning of her night, she always took the time to check on me and make sure I was doing okay and offered support and advice. She was also very friendly with my german shepherd, which meant a lot that she got along with all my kids. Anytime I’d drop off milk to her downstairs in the middle of the night, she was snuggling my son, helping with any baby chores I’d requested help with, or just keeping a quiet and calm environment for him to sleep during the night. She offered helpful notes during the morning handoff and provided a written log of their nights so I could better understand his schedule for the nights I had him by myself. She is incredibly kind and caring and I highly recommend Shantell for whatever support you need with your delivery and child care!

Rebecca Hatkoff

4/23/2023

Shantell supported me in the ten days after my son was born and boy oh boy did I appreciate her support! As a single mom I was worried about caring for my son and caring for my own recovery after my C-section. She arrived on time every night, brought my son to me when he was ready to feed, and burped, changed, and comforted him when he wasn't eating. I got to both rest and bond with my son in those early days thanks to her help. Plus, she was able to answer my questions about cluster feeding, oversupply, and other things that came up. And she did a great job striking the balance between being present and available to me and invisible so she wouldn't disturb me while sleeping or interfere with my bonding while feeding. Honestly couldn't have asked for more ??

Diandra

8/8/2021

As first time parents, having Shantell as a doula was very helpful for my husband and me. From the time my water broke and we notified Shantell, she was very responsive, calling and texting to check in and see how far apart my contractions were and if she needed to come to the house to help support us. When we decided to head to the birth center, Shantell met us there. She supported us and took turns with my husband giving the pressure I needed to deal with back labor for 14 hours straight. And when our midwife suggested that we head to the hospital to try to move things along, Shantell drove us there. She stayed with us through the night when I got the pitocin and epidural, making sure that we felt comfortable with all of the decisions being made. I did not plan to give birth in a hospital so it was very helpful to have her there so that she could be our sounding board and help us feel comfortable with our decisions. She spent the night with us at the hospital even though she had her own son at home, and in the morning when the doctors insisted on a C-section, Shantell was also there to talk it through. She was proactive in reaching out to our midwife to get her involved in talking over the decision as well. In the end, a C-section was necessary, but we wouldn’t have felt as confident making the decision as we did without Shantell. When we were discharged from the hospital two days later, she was the first person to visit us at home to see how we were doing. She also does placenta encapsulation and had my capsules ready to go along with a card and little gift for baby. We could not thank her more for what she has done for our family. On top of all of this, she was the back-up doula for my original doula, so it was by chance that I ended up working with Shantell, but I couldn’t see it going any other way. Things happen for a reason, and Shantell was there for us when we needed her. I would definitely recommend her to anyone looking for a doula.

Diandra

8/8/2021

As first time parents, having Shantell as a doula was very helpful for my husband and me. From the time my water broke and we notified Shantell, she was very responsive, calling and texting to check in and see how far apart my contractions were and if she needed to come to the house to help support us. When we decided to head to the birth center, Shantell met us there. She supported us and took turns with my husband giving the pressure I needed to deal with back labor for 14 hours straight. And when our midwife suggested that we head to the hospital to try to move things along, Shantell drove us there. She stayed with us through the night when I got the pitocin and epidural, making sure that we felt comfortable with all of the decisions being made. I did not plan to give birth in a hospital so it was very helpful to have her there so that she could be our sounding board and help us feel comfortable with our decisions. She spent the night with us at the hospital even though she had her own son at home, and in the morning when the doctors insisted on a C-section, Shantell was also there to talk it through. She was proactive in reaching out to our midwife to get her involved in talking over the decision as well. In the end, a C-section was necessary, but we wouldn’t have felt as confident making the decision as we did without Shantell. When we were discharged from the hospital two days later, she was the first person to visit us at home to see how we were doing. She also does placenta encapsulation and had my capsules ready to go along with a card and little gift for baby. We could not thank her more for what she has done for our family. On top of all of this, she was the back-up doula for my original doula, so it was by chance that I ended up working with Shantell, but I couldn’t see it going any other way. Things happen for a reason, and Shantell was there for us when we needed her. I would definitely recommend her to anyone looking for a doula.

Rebecca Hirst

8/5/2021

Shantell is an amazing doula. We feel at ease and supported around her. She offered so many comfort techniques to help me cope with labour. She taught my husband new ways to help my pain relief.Her advice was invaluable and I will recommend her to friends and family! 

Zendra M

2/3/2017

We met Shantell around month six into our pregnancy and within five minutes we knew we wanted her as our doula. She was kind, attentive and knowledgable. She didn't force her opinions or views on us and she was very helpful from the get go. She stayed with us throught the delivery and made herself indispensable. We were very fortunate to have Shantell as our doula and you'd be doing yourself a solid by hiring her. Second best decision we made. First was having our beautiful boy. Thank you Shantell.

Roger McDonald

Esme Bianco

1/19/2017

It is hard to find adequate words to express our gratitude to Shantell, who was our birth doula for the arrival of our son in October 2016. From the moment we met her we were taken with her kind, nurturing and calming demeanor. She was extremely attentive and patient as we discussed our birth wishes, and she had so much to contribute from her own experience. She was incredibly supportive leading up to the due date, regularly checking in with me and easing any worries and anxiety I had.

On the day of our birth she was nothing short of incredible. Both my husband and I have no idea how we possibly could have coped without her. I had a very long, difficult labor which ended in an emergency C-section and Shantell was by my side the entire time. Without having to be asked she provided amazing comfort measures, (at one point she stood behind me with the shower head aimed at my back for about 2 hours!!); including massage, essential oils, counter pressure, or just reassuring words; and when one measure was no longer helping she had something new to offer. At the same time she knew when to give me and my husband some space. When she wasn't allowed in the OR for the C section itself (only one person can accompany you and my husband was with me) she waited several hours until she was allowed to visit me post surgery. In total she was with us for over 24 hours.

My husband found the labor a lot more stressful than he had predicted and was so grateful for Shantell's incredible support and wisdom. Her postpartum visit really helped me to process the birth, and to come to terms with not having had the natural childbirth experience I was hoping for.

From the bottom of our hearts we are so incredibly grateful to Shantell and would not hesitate to recommend her. She was an essential part of my birth experience, and if I have another baby there is no way doing it without her by my side!

Rina Rapoport

4/22/2016

Our experience with Shantell was very good and we were very happy to have her by our side before and during our 1st birth.
We were referred to Shantell and met with her very close to the due date. We had an immediate connection with her and she made us feel very comfortable with our birth plan and wishes towards the labor & birth.
On the birth day, Shantell arrived to our home very fast after we called her and helped me a lot with my labor at home –she was supporting, encouraging, calm and patient.
When we decided to go to the hospital, Shantell was with me the whole time, and was very attentive to me and my needs. It was very important to us to have a natural delivery without medical interventions and Shantell was there to help us communicate it to the medical staff in a very polite and delicate way.
Shantell was there to support my husband as well and it felt like a team during the whole time.
Right after the delivery, Shantell took beautiful pictures of us with our baby and stayed with us until we settled in.
2 weeks after the birth Shantell visited us at our home and gave us advise and tips.
I would recommend Shantell to my friends and very happy to have her by our side once again with delivering our 2nd baby !

Tricia Tan

1/28/2016

Shantell was awesome. I am a SMC and she was with me all the way. I had my birth plan written out and it was all honoured by my doctor. My labor/birth was 45 mins. Thank you Shantell for being there to support me.

Amy Lemay

8/31/2015

I wanted a VBAC with my second child, and got one with Shantell Kennedy. She provided crucial support for both myself and my husband, and was a wonderful presence in the room. She knew when to step in and offer advice or give a massage, and also knew when to fade into the background and let me do my thing. I had a very positive birthing experience. She even checked in on us again two years later, just to see how we were doing. I would absolutely recommend her services. Thank you, Shantell!