Testimonial for Gretchen Retka
Gretchen is a joy to work with. She has a warm and truly caring spirit and is incredibly knowledgeable about all things pregnancy and childbirth related. Our goal was to have an unmedicated vaginal birth, and I don't think this would have been possible, or it would have been much harder, without Gretchen's support throughout the pregnancy and labor. I didn't realize that we could be preparing for labor and birth in the third trimester, but Gretchen walked us through different positions to ensure baby is in the right place, and shared a lot of resources of what else we can do to prepare.
When I went into labor, Gretchen was supportive and responsive throughout early labor, and met us at the hospital right as my water broke. Though I was already 7cm when I arrived at the hospital, it took several more hours to fully dilate, and Gretchen made sure I was trying different positions and resting between contractions. The pushing stage was the hardest for me, and I also ended up pushing for five hours, but Gretchen coached me on breathing throughout and also gave me the encouragement I needed to believe that it was possible and to make the final stretch happen.
I'm so glad and relieved that we were able to have the natural birth that we wanted, and our baby girl arrived safely without any complications, and I also felt totally confident that no matter what we had to consider before and during the birth, Gretchen would help us think through the different options and would be supportive of whatever choices we made. She also gives excellent massages - I was incredibly tense after the delivery, maybe because of all the pushing and then holding baby and breastfeeding, and her postpartum massage was a lifesaver (and I think helped with milk flow as well).
My partner and I both think the world of Gretchen and are so grateful she was with us on our birthing journey.
-Jamie
August 23, 2023
Gretchen Retka
Holistic Sister
Birth Fee: $3000 to $3250
Postpartum Rate: $30 to $35
