Testimonial for Laura DePasquale, CD(DONA)
In the second paragraph of my review I'm going to give the reasons that I would not hire Laura again. The third paragraph will contain the postives aspects of her Doula services.
After being in labor for 24 hours, I called Laura at 5am between contractions (I am a single mother and therefore didn't have a husband there to make the call for me). She was clearly annoyed that I called and woke her up at 5am. She also stated (verbatim) after I told her I was in pain and stuck at 3 centimters dilated; "well, you don't sound like you're in pain". I was, as you can imagine, a bit shocked and didn't quite know how to process her reaction. I was in between contractions when I made the call and obviously wasn't in a lot of pain right at that moment. I was exhausted and asked her to please come in. It took Laura 3 HOURS to get there. Her actual drive was an hour at best (she wasn't competing with traffic; I delivered on Memorial day). She obviously went back to bed. By the time she got there, I was 4 centimeters dilated and the anesthesiologist was prepping to give me the epidural. The look on Laura's face when she arrived was clear. She knew she messed up.
Some of the postivies about my experience with Laura were the following; she played wonderful music which allowed me to drift off to sleep. She brought an eye mask which felt wonderful! She gave me a foot massage. She took amazing photos during the actual delivery. She provided instruction to my friend Esther, who relayed everything Laura said to the doctors. She visited with me a couple times before and also after the birth to check up on me.
I hope this information helps you to make an informed decision. When I think back on my labor, I wonder how my experience would have been different had she reacted accordingly when I needed her most.
-Carey Finn
March 15, 2017
Laura DePasquale, CD(DONA)
Holistic Beginnings,LLC
Birth Fee: $1200 to $2400
Postpartum Rate: $50 to $60
