Testimonial for Maggie Gott (Watkins)
Maggie was exactly what we were hoping for, and I'd recommend her to anyone. She is warm, skilled, professional, and experienced.
Specifically, we hired Maggie to be our post-partum coach and pressure-relief valve. Neither my wife nor I had ever cared for an infant before having one of our own, and we didn't have close family nearby to help/teach us. So we read books, attended classes and so on, and learned the essential skills. But we still had a big gap around the practical realities of taking care of a baby, all day every day. A few examples:
- how can we establish a daily/nightly routine that is reassuring/comforting to our baby? what does that need to include?
- I'm overwhelmed by the idea of running errands with the baby-- help!
- how do I change a diaper in a public restroom if there is no changing table?
- can you show me a better way to hold the baby, given my physical size?
- how can I make bathtime nice, rather than traumatic, for my baby?
- my partner is freaking out and I want to help, but everything I say seems to make it worse-- help!
- am I wearing this baby-carrier correctly? why does it still feel so weird?
Plus a bunch of other things we didn't know to ask about. My favorite example: "I think the temperature in the house is just right, but I think the baby will sleep better if you double-layer the swaddle"--- our baby literally started sleeping through the night RIGHT THEN. Not to mention the immeasurable value of getting a solid night's sleep now and again, after handing the baby off to someone who we trusted deeply enough to simply not worry until morning came.
Having a baby has been transformative for us and I wouldn't call it "easy", but having Maggie on our team really boosted our self-confidence, and that's really helped us enjoy things. I wish every set of parents could have a Maggie-- we feel very lucky to have found her.
-Stephen Ayotte
July 29, 2018
Maggie Gott (Watkins)
The Homestead Doula
Birth Fee: $1800 to $2350
Postpartum Rate: $25 to $45
