Testimonial for Raya Sagdejeva from Shweta Dambal

Testimonial for Raya Sagdejeva

I am so glad that my husband and I worked with Raya for the birth of our first child! Honestly, given that it was my first pregnancy, I had no idea what to really expect during the actual birth even with all the reading, googling, etc. In fact, my husband was the one who suggested I look into a birth doula since he knew we both would need the extra help :). After going back and forth for a while, I finally decided to look into finding a doula and met Raya when I was 33 weeks pregnant. We ended up meeting outdoors (she was very cautious about covid) and having a great introductory conversation. I didn't have to deliberate much to decide that she would be perfect to help me and my husband in the delivery room. We had two pre-birth meetings, during which Raya helped us understand what to expect right before the birth, signs that I was getting close, what to look for, how she could help, etc. She also showed us various exercises and techniques to ease labor pain that we were able to practice before going to the delivery room. Furthermore, she always promptly answered any questions I had and tried to back all of her responses with scientific evidence, which I appreciated! At the hospital, Raya was a great help and assisted my husband and me based on the items we had discussed in our prior meetings. She knew exactly where to go at Duke Regional (where I was admitted) and also had such a good understanding of the resources available to help me through my labor. She stayed the entire time until our son was born, ensured we were doing okay after the birth, and made sure the three of us had some precious alone time together. She was also accessible and available after the birth and provided us with several resources to help us ease into our new "routine." Overall, I'm just so glad that we were able to meet Raya and have her be part of our very special day! We highly recommend her!

-Shweta Dambal

January 09, 2022