This is a hard review to write, as it’s for someone who has now become a part of our new family, and we will never be able to thank enough for just how much they supported and guided us through the arrival of our son.
We spoke to several Doulas, who were all amazing, before choosing Verina. Verina stood out for being extremely knowledgeable, intuitive, humorous, compassionate, as well as showing a genuine curiousity about us, why we wanted to use a Doula, and choose a home birth. Looking back, I think Verina chose us as much as we chose her, and she certainly sealed the deal with Nell by saying she would be with us until we were in bed with baby next to us, and either a cup of tea or glass of champagne!
We learned so much through our sessions with Verina, giving us confidence in creating our birth plan, which was built on science and fact (two key things; position and soft cervix!), and enriched with Verina’s experience. Verina has a rare ability to guide you through positive enquiry and discussion, allowing you to make informed decisions, without ever overstepping the boundary of whose choice it is.
Our baby needed a little extra help to be delivered after a wonderful home birthing experience, which meant a trip to the hospital for the final stage. Thanks to our work with Verina, this eventuality was covered in our birth plan, so we knew exactly what our decision criteria were. Verina stayed with us throughout our hospital journey, intervening at certain points to explain what was going to happen, and what we should expect in plain English, as well as contextualise any risks that were being explained to us very rapidly (for good reason). I can’t put into words just how thankful I am for Verina being there during that time, and helping us welcome our son to the world.
Verina still continues to support us in the next stage of our parenting journey, including the delivery of some outstanding homemade sourdough and biscuits! In short, if you’re looking for a Doula, it’s hard to imagine making a better choice than Verina.
Thank you again Verina, love, Stef, Nell, and baby
