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SoulFlower BirthCare offers Birth and Labor support starting at 37 weeks.

While I do not offer free births during I am committed to supporting families from all socio economic backgrounds and lifestyles. I offer a sliding scale fee structure and allow for 2 payments to be made, an initial deposit and a completion payment at our final pre-natal visit before your due date.  If you experience pre-mature or precipitous birth and for some reason you were not able to contact me to attend the birth full payment is still due at our post partum visit follow up.

Post Partum Doula Care

The choices and services most applicable and helpful to your family are available, we can create a post partum package that addresses the needs of each individual family.

Services available include any combination of the following:

  • Gourmet Meal Preparation ( see detailed description)
  • Housekeeping including dishes, washing and folding laundry, sweeping, vacuuming, organizing specific spaces
  • Infant Comfort Care(Cradling, Swaddling, Diapering, Bathing)
  • BabyWearing and Sibling Care
  • Running Errands and Shopping
  • Herbal Comfort Care Recommendations and Preparations
  • Medicinal and Soothing Herbal Baths and Steams (see detailed description)
  • Uterine Wraps(Faja for helping shrink the uterus back to it’s original pre birth size)
  • Breastfeeding and Nutritional Support
  • Referrals and Resources for new families

Gourmet Nourishing Meal Preparation

Including special diets, vegetarian, vegan, gluten sensitivities, omnivore, carnivore, paleo, macrobiotic, ethnic and traditional diets included. I have specialized skills in preparing nourishing easily digestible and deeply satisfying foods for new mothers and families. My skills include dishes traditional for new mothers in Ayurvedic, Chinese and Nourishing Wise Woman Traditions. Included in my doula fee is any type of meal preparation and special meal requests. I can create a post partum menu plan customized to your family prior to your birth and create a shopping list pre-partum so that ingredients are on hand prior to the birth. The first meal post partum can be an incredibly important time for nourishing and comfort foods. Mothers often experience increased appetite especially during the first few days after birth, especially if a woman chooses to breast feed. Having a specific meal or series of foods available can help build the milk supply, restore strength, and speed healing time for new mothers.

I have been an avid and passionate chef and believer in the food as medicine tradition.  My first memories of cooking  for people began when I was 5 years old, and I have never veered very far from the nourishing traditions of my grandmothers and Roman father who instilled in me a deep love of cooking and nurturing.My after school tradition for most of my elementary years included watching Julia Child’s entire series the french chef and any other cooking instruction available to me. Much of my life’s work has been in learning about traditional diets, training, researching and most importantly cooking for people from clients to loved ones.I have worked as a personal chef and caterer and as an herbalist incorporate dietary recommendations and food based remedies as an integral part of my practice. I have been told coming to my house for dinner is always a symphony of flavors and experiences and an invite not to be missed.

Herbal Comfort Care for Mother and Baby

Herbal Sitz Baths, Uterine Steams and Vaginal Rinses, traditionally a succession of plant baths for 3, 6 or 9 days is advised. Plant Baths can be included in the doula care package you choose. Sitz Bath’s require a minimum of a 3 hour doula visit in order to fully prepare the herbs, clean and sanitize the the tub, allow the mother and baby if desired adequate time to soak and rest and to clean up remaining equipment.

Uterine Steams and Vaginal Rinses can also be included in the doula care package you choose and can be combined in succession with Sitz Baths once the perenium tissue has healed enough for a birthing stool or steam chair to be used.Uterine Steams require 1.5 hour portion of the doula visit and can be combined with other doula tasks during the 3 hour minimum.

When choosing a bath or steam package please note you can pre- purchase your own herbs from the list I will provide to all doula clients.I can provide you with my suppliers website and you may ship them directly to my office for mixing and weighing of your sitz bath and steam blends. Blending and Weighing for each treatment blend is included in my hourly doula rate for post partum packages.

If you would rather not have to think about purchasing your own herbs for these preparations, I can pre-purchase, receive, blend and weigh them for your bath/steam blends. The cost of this service is $125.00 and provides enough plant material for some combination of 9 sitz baths, uterine steams and vaginal rinses. Sitz Baths can be done anytime starting 1-2 days post partum. Generally I begin with 1-4 days of sitz baths depending on the package you choose. Uterine steams are generally done 1-3 weeks post partum depending on the healing of the perennial tissue. Vaginal Rinses can be used immediately following birth and will be prepared following my first post partum visit for as many days as I am at your home.

Traditionally in many cultures women were very meticulously cared for and nourished post partum for at least one month after giving birth. Women were also traditionally prepared and bathed prior to giving birth, and the babies were also ritually bathed to insure any challenges during labor did not linger. Every culture has their own beneficial treatments that help women’s bodies heal and restore strength, alleviate tension and aid the natural regeneration process of the uterine tissues. I offer my own version of these ancient traditions which have been passed on to me by South and Central American Medicine Women and through my own experiences with plant bathing and herbal comfort care. I combine medicinal and spiritually uplifting healing herbs and flowers into a sitz bath and or uterine steam blend. You can choose the type of treatment(s) that are most important to you. Some women prefer a series of medicinal sitz baths, while others enjoy a combination of medicinal blends, uterine steams and spiritual bathing ritual. All treatments are done in the privacy of your home with confidentiality and care placed on your specific needs. Traditionally a series of baths/steams is recommended of 3, 6 or 9 days. Sitz Baths can begin anytime post partum provided you feel able to stand and walk to the bath. I am always present for the bath in the first few days and nourish your comfort and care as my first priority. Uterine Steams can begin anytime after the first week of post partum time but often women like to wait until they are less sore before sitting on the birthing stool to administer the steams. The benefits of these plant baths is extensive but perhaps the most profound one I have personally witnessed is the reeling in of the immense amount of energy that has gone into pregnancy and birth. The new mother has so much on her plate, it is important to close down the conduit that has been running through her for 9 plus months. Often births have stories, histories, herstories, joys and challenges, bathing in medicinal and specially prepared waters can add an immense amount of cleansing, purification and closing of the previous journey to make space for motherhood, nursing, healing and restoring the bodies balance. Post Natal time is a special moment which for many lasts only a few weeks, or not as long in the “cocoon phase” as some would like. A series of baths or steams may seem like a luxury but perhaps consider it a foundation of the nurturing life you want to create for yourself and your new baby and a way to linger a little longer in this very special time.

The benefits of post partum sitz baths and uterine steams include:

  • Faster healing times for perenial tissue, vaginal tearing, and abrasions on the vaginal tissue
  • Shorter period of post partum bleeding and reduction in likeliness of hemmhorage
  • Increased immune function for mother and baby
  • Deep relaxation and reduction in likeliness of post partum depression
  • Faster healing of cord stump, rashes, thrush, baby acne and skin irritations
  • Increased sense of peace, nurturing and support for mother and baby
  • Increased circulation to joints, muscles and skin
  • Promotes deeper more restful sleep for mother and baby
  • Decreased likeliness of vaginal yeast infections from prolonged bleeding and tearing
  • Re-connection to the spiritual nature of birthing traditions
  • Increased awareness of the importance of self care practices and nurturance of the mother/baby