Testimonial for Natalie Bardsley,
Natalie was our post partum doula for the first 5 weeks after welcoming our second daughter.
We had a different post partum doula with our first who came during the day a few times - it was helpful, but also informative for what we wanted our second time around. As the birthing parent, I knew I needed a calm grounding presence to help me through those first crazy weeks of adjustment and I knew we needed overnight support to capitalize on the time our three year old was asleep. After interviewing several other doulas, I was drawn to Natalie's breadth of experience as a doula and a mother, her professionalism, her sense of humor and her genuine expression of understanding for the vast array of decisions parents are faced with around feeding, sleeping and everything in between.
Natalie made herself available to me via phone before our first scheduled overnight. When I reached out 4 days post partum about something, she could sense the need for support as I was suffering from insomnia, loss of appetite and physical symptoms from my milk coming in. She immediately came over to get acquainted with my family and offered small helpful gestures of support for hours until there was some semblance of peace (ex: tidying, rocking baby, talking, making gentle recommendations, chatting with my preschooler, ensuring we all ate dinner together). The way she so quickly integrated and legitimately helped without any direction in what felt to me like utter chaos was very special.
Every "Natalie night" helped us inch our way towards feeling normal. She was a natural with the baby and the routine - always responsive to whatever system I wanted to try that evening - and even sweetly calmed our other daughter down during an overnight crying fit so she wouldn't wake us up. Our late night conversations while feeding and pumping always helped me tackle whatever was at hand that day and feel more confident. We feel so lucky that we found Natalie!
-Annie
January 11, 2021
Natalie Bardsley,
Giving Hearts Doula and Sleep Consulting Services
Postpartum Rate: $65
