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Maggie
“Dara was very flexible and willing to meet us ‘where we were’ as a family in her service and offering of advice. At first, what we really needed was a positive, encouraging presence who could both be trusted with our baby and relieve us of care and household chores for a few hours. This was a huge relief and she humbly did a great job of just being there for us and baby. She was a very good listener too, and met whatever situation arose with grace. Within a few visits, I felt great trust in her with the baby and was able to start asking my own questions about postpartum and parenting. Dara helped me so much, with flexibility and a willingness to step in wherever needed! She integrated service, listening, and education extremely well.”
Victoria
“Words can not begin to express how thankful I am for all of Dara’s incredible support during my postpartum period. I don’t know how anyone goes through the fourth trimester without the support of a doula, and I feel eternally grateful to have had you as mine! Your presence was not only needed to provide support during those nighttime hours but was something I personally came to rely on to get me through each day. The sheer exhaustion of caring for a newborn was predictable…but I was unprepared for the postpartum anxiety I would feel and the desperate need to talk to someone about the details of my labor and delivery, my breastfeeding journey, and my day-to-day life with a new baby. Thank you for being that person for me and showing so much empathy and compassion. You always asked the right questions, remembered so many details, anticipated my needs, and displayed such genuine care for my and baby’s well-being.”
Hannah
“During my fourth trimester and as a first time parent, I really struggled with learning to breastfeed and how to ask for help. I felt unsure about recognizing important newborn milestones, and most of all I worried about setting important boundaries with my extended family during their first visits with our daughter. Dara’s approach as a doula is effortless, nonjudgmental, observant and informed, and incredibly cool and kind. She reassured me of my concerns and gave me the resources I needed to feel confident in my approach to different, new skills that I was learning. She reminded me to be patient and gentle with myself as I grew into my new role. Dara helped educate both my husband and me about newborn play and cognitive development, she baked us banana bread every week, read our daughter books, sustained the care practices that we cherish (e.g., baby-wearing), and was quick to support our growing and changing needs as a family. Dara is incredibly validating and quick to remind new parents of their growth — I found this very reassuring and comforting. When I felt closed in and cooped up, she gave me the space I needed to manage my mental health. When I felt overwhelmed, she shared the load with me. Most of all, Dara is safe, kind and warm, communicative, and trustworthy. I cherish her for all that she has given us in her time as our doula”
Jillian and Carter
“As first-time parents we thought we were hiring Dara to just ‘hold down the fort’ overnight so we could get some sleep, but her postpartum knowledge and high standard of care created an experience for our family that far exceeded expectations. Working with Dara is a breeze because she is genuine, kind and her communication skills are exemplary. She helped us navigate the uncertainties of newborn parenting by asking thoughtful questions, actively listening to build our trust and offering guidance and advice when prompted. She was essential as a breastfeeding coach—without her patience and support I would have given up nursing within the first month. Do yourself a favor and hire Dara. Not only is she a total pro, but she will become a fast friend to you and your family.”
Alanna
“Dara has been a close friend of my husband and I for many years. For as long as I have known her, I have seen her devotion to early childhood education. I recently had my first baby when she began her journey to the birth/postpartum world. When I became pregnant with my second, I knew her services would be perfect for our family.
She ingratiated herself with our toddler and infant immediately, which was really the greatest help of all. I was most surprised with her creativity; Dara had a game and a song for every occasion. She also gave us all great tips and tricks for learning everything from manners to navigating meltdowns.
A third set of hands makes a huge difference when it comes to postpartum success. I quickly realized that it was going to be our toddler who required the most attention during this time, rather than our newborn.
Dara really went above and beyond for both kids.
Having such an experienced, knowledgeable, and loving caregiver for our family is the best thing these new parents of two could ask for.”
Steven
“Dara stayed with us for several weeks to help care for mother and baby and it was the best decision we ever made. She is warm, caring, loving, and wonderful to have around! We also have a two year old who fell in love with her within 5 minutes of her arrival. Months later he still talks about his beloved “Aunty Dara.” It’s obvious Dara has many years of childcare experience. I recommend Dara to anyone looking for postpartum, the impact she had can’t be understated.”
Nicolle
“Dara was an incredible gift to our family with the birth of our first child. We had no idea what we were getting into, and Dara came in and made it all feel workable. She tended to us so lovingly, educating us about baby, nursing, milk, and baby wearing. She nourished us with smiles, food, and encouraging words. I will definitely hire her again for a future child and recommend you do too! Her presence during this joyful and challenging emotional and physical time was healing, supportive, and helped us tremendously to settle into our new roles and responsibilities as parents.”
Becca and Ethan
“We were so grateful to have Dara’s support in the first few weeks after our daughter was born. Her overnight visits allowed us to get some solid sleep, which was a real relief during the postpartum period. Dara provided advice and information about breastfeeding in a supportive, encouraging way. She was readily available for anything else we needed, from cooking a nourishing meal to picking up diapers. We would recommend her without hesitation.”
Sam and Charles
“I’m not sure words can do justice to how grateful we are for Dara’s help. She started working with us on our first night home from the hospital (where we got almost no sleep), and came in the door with a calming, reassuring, and capable energy. As anxious first-time parents, Dara offered us much more than sleep – she answered so many questions, she provided emotional support, and she helped with breastfeeding challenges. Dara integrated herself into our household and helped us set up new routines, spaces for baby care, and more. She took our cues, and she never judged. I will be forever grateful for the nighttime chats where she listened to and helped ease my new mom fears, and even sat on the end of the bed when I was anxious and didn’t want to be alone. We live across the country from our families and friends, so Dara became an essential part of our “village”. Even after she stopped working with us, Dara checked in regularly to see how we were doing. She had a sixth sense for when we needed extra support, and offered help on a particularly tough day. If I had one wish for new parents, it would be that they could all have an amazing postpartum doula like Dara supporting them through the early vulnerable weeks.”
Lauren
“I am a medical provider who spent a decade in end of life care. I know of the pivotal importance of who you select to walk with you during big transitions. Dara is a gentle, intuitive spirit who nurtures the whole family- not just baby. But this nurturing is in this unassuming way that feels entirely uninvasive. My husband often commented on the energy Dara brought into our home- always peaceful, thoughtful, and caring. She is like a lovely fairy godmother who swoops in behind the scenes and attends to things you never asked her to do and then- poof!- she is gone until her next appearance. I trusted her wholeheartedly with my son. She adored him and that was apparent. I rested well knowing he was in the best of hands. Dara also earned my trust in the kind way she interacted with me during a time in which I felt vulnerable and unsure as a new mom. I cannot recommend Dara enough. I imagine she will be a perfect fit for your family as she was our. We’d like to keep her our little secret, but we know families, and therefore our world, are better and happier for the care she provides!”
Kari
“We are forever grateful to Dara. My husband and I were new to the state when our beautiful baby girl was born and it was so intimidating to not have our community around us. Dara stepped in and helped us immensely. She watch the baby while I slept, she helped with laundry, she helped with meals, she helped me figure out my breast pump, helped me learn how to breastfeed, and helped organize snack boxes at my various stations. I honestly think the most important thing was that Dara knew what we needed before we needed it and learned where things were in our new house before I did. She was a listening ear when things were overwhelming and has a beautiful calming presence that help us feel at ease. I cannot recommend her enough. I remember one day in particular, I was struggling with feeling like I wasn’t enough for my baby. Dara took care of so many things around the house while I napped that day and I didn’t realize until later that night that she had left a sweet, encouraging note at my bedside. It’s the above and beyond moments like that that we are so thankful for.”
Kendall
“As adoptive parents, my husband and I landed in New Mexico to meet our son in an unfamiliar place far from our support system. It was completely overwhelming. Dara activated an instant network for us AND our birth mother. She connected us with her network of doulas to support our birth mother through the birth, and provided us with the support and guidance we needed to transition home from the hospital.
In a process very focused on taking care of logistics and supporting the birth mom, we didn’t realize how impactful it would be to ask for support for ourselves. Dara’s support made it possible for us to recover with naps. She helped with simple chores and meal preparation, and was so easy to talk to as a gentle emotional support during a time of significant transition. Her warm and honest demeanor made us totally at ease with her in our home.
Dara exceeded our expectations and made us feel whole and human during a challenging time. We are so grateful for her services and highly recommend her to anyone preparing to bring baby home!”
Meghan
“Dara was instrumental in helping us through the early months of being new parents… with twins no less! Not only did she give us the precious gift of sleep (which might have been the most critical thing for maintaining our sanity and marriage) but she taught us so much about how to appropriately care for our new twins. Dara immediately felt like trusted family when she walked in on the first day. She is a natural caregiver and she tackled juggling two newborns with grace… something that even intimidated me for a long time! As a new mom, it is hard to accept help, but Dara was great at taking both babies almost as soon as she walked in the door in a way that always felt like a gift. We came to truly look forward to nights when Dara was coming over, knowing that our little ones would be cared for, we would learn new skills and tips to try, and we would get some much needed sleep, making us more capable parents during the day. We are so grateful for Dara, who is now forever part of our family!”
Gina
“Hiring Dara was the best decision we’ve made! She was a tremendous help and really put us at ease. Milo is our first child so we were full of anxiety anticipating his arrival. As new parents, we knew practically nothing about caring for a newborn and Dara stepped right in to coach us through it all. Dara was kind enough to check in with me during the final months of my pregnancy and helped with any worries, fears or anxiety I had. She has such a calming energy and absolutely no judgment even if I had the silliest questions or concerns.Once we got home from the hospital Dara arrived with a cheerful smile and knew exactly what we needed and how to help. She stepped in right away so we could get some sleep and have a fresh start in the morning. She helped me and baby learn how to breastfeed, cooked us nutritious meals, and helped clean up around the house. I had such brain fog I couldn’t figure out how to use any of the baby products we got from our baby shower. She helped set up the rockers, baby chairs, carriers, taught me how to build and clean bottles, taught us about proper milk storage, the list goes on and on. Dara’s help is truly invaluable!One of my favorite things about Dara is her calming nature and no judgment attitude. She really knows how to deal with the emotional roller coaster that comes with childbirth. Some of my fondest memories with Dara are the late night conversations we had about womanhood, child birth and life.We love Dara and I can’t wait to reunite her with Milo so he can see the wonderful woman that helped introduce him to the world.”
Gina
“Dara came to help us with our 2 month old for a few overnights per week at a time I was really struggling to figure out breastfeeding (she is a lactation specialist too!). Of course we were also in the midst of our toddler acclimating to new baby life.
Dara came in each night with a calm, loving presence and helped me in my own goals while finally allowing me to get some sleep. She rescued our family in a great number of ways and helped set us on a better rested path. I will be forever grateful! I highly recommend Dara for any and all of your doula needs – I wish we had her with us way earlier on in newborn days!
If you are expecting, reach out to this amazing person and enjoy her lovely presence and warmth in your life!”
New Beginnings with Dara LLC provides certified postpartum doula and lactation support services to empower new families in the Catskills and Hudson Valley regions.
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