Birth 1st

We’re truly so grateful for Elizabeth! It’s hard to express exactly how much she means to me and my husband. We cannot thank her enough! I found Elizabeth during my first pregnancy when I was looking for ways to ease my anxieties about the birthing process. My husband and I took Elizabeth’s Hypnobirthing course, which was such a calming experience and extremely beneficial, and then decided to hire her as our birth doula. That was the best decision ever! Elizabeth spent countless hours educating us in preparation of labor and delivery. We felt so well prepared for an event potentially filled with so many unknowns. I always felt safe and supported with Elizabeth by our side. Thanks to Elizabeth’s education and support I was able to have two unmedicated births, which is something I never thought possible for myself, until I found Elizabeth. Even after the births Elizabeth continued to be an incredible source of knowledge and assistance with breastfeeding support. She was immediately able to identify my son’s tongue and lip ties moments after his birth. The specialist she recommended for the revision was also amazing, we had a perfect experience. We also love the pediatrician our children see, another recommendation by Elizabeth. Besides being an incredible educator and doula, Elizabeth is an incredibly kind and loving person who is passionate about her profession, clients and their babies. We love Elizabeth and you will too!

Elizabeth is truly an angel on earth! I cannot thank her enough for helping me bring my beautiful baby into the world in the most peaceful way possible. I first met Elizabeth through my sister in law who had the most peaceful birth I’ve ever witnessed. I said to myself that when it’s my time to give birth, this is exactly how I want to experience it. I’m a physician myself and have witnessed multiple births during medical school and my internship. It doesn’t have to be scary like what you typically see in the movies or on TV. Labor can be the most wonderful experience and with Elizabeth’s guidance, it truly is! She really got to know my husband and I and spent a lot of time with us discussing our goals for birth. I felt so comfortable knowing that my birth plan was set in place. To further attest to how wonderful Elizabeth is, I unfortunately had a tragic event happen towards the end of my pregnancy with the sudden passing of my father. If it wasn’t for Elizabeth, I truly don’t know how I would’ve gotten through it. She even took the time to come to my home and help me with various breathing techniques and vibrational healing. I cannot recommend her enough. Having her by your side during labor is truly invaluable. She is worth every single penny as you can’t put a price on experiencing the most wonderful miracle of child birth. I am so thankful to have had such an amazing birthing experience and cannot wait to have her by my side during my next birth!

Elizabeth at Birth 1st is very good at what she does. She took the time plus even went overtime with us to make sure we knew what we needed to know, and felt comfortable with the birthing process. It was our first baby, and naturally we were nervous, so she did everything she could for us, got us all the information we needed, and made us feel comfortable. I highly recommend her!

Hypnobirthing Class Review: Elizabeth is a very knowledgeable instructor. If you look at her credentials you can see for yourself that she possesses a wealth of knowledge and expertise in the field of childbirth. Her personality and temperament made me feel comfortable enough to ask questions during class and seek clarification when needed. I was very impressed with the vast array of resources that she provided to our class to help us prepare for our labor & delivery. Although a lot of material is covered in the class, the pace at which Elizabeth disseminates and delivers the information made it possible for me to absorb and retain all the information and use it to help me have a positive birth experience. My favorite class session is when you envision your labor and delivery and choose how many hours you want to labor. That class session played a major part in motivating me to reach my goal of having an unmedicated birth. It led me to tap into the deeper parts of myself and my faith and that sparked me to practice the breathing and relaxation techniques daily leading up to the birth of my baby. The hypnobirthing techniques became second nature so when it was time to labor, it came natural to me, and I was able to put these techniques into good use. My previous labor experiences were very long on average 24 hours and resulted in me being medicated but, because of my work with Elizabeth this time around I had a much different experience. I did not need any medication instead I was able to trust my body and embrace the sensations I was feeling as an indicator to breathe and relax and allow my baby to enter this world with ease. That’s what happened and in 3x’s less the time than my previous experiences. If you take Elizabeth’s hypnobirthing course and put in the time and effort to practice the skills that are taught in each session, you will not regret it! Doula Services Review: Elizabeth is a P-H-E-N-O-M-E-N-A-L doula. Elizabeth provided me with all the information that I needed to know in order to make the best decisions for myself. I appreciate the fact that she never coerced or suggested anything when it came to making decisions. She ensured that I was well-informed prior to my labor & delivery so that I could be empowered to make the right choices for myself and my baby. She was nurturing, present, patient, and most importantly kind. Everything that you need your doula to be! She was an advocate for my birth plan and ensured that everyone present and involved during my labor & delivery honored my birth plan. She also has great interpersonal skills. Although she is present, she empowers fathers to be involved and supportive and shares strategies they could use to offer comfort and support. Elizabeth does this work with love, and you can feel it. You feel it in how she: comforts you, embraces you, encourages you, respects you, and speaks with you, and I strongly believe that’s what distinguishes her as an exemplary doula. For these reasons, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND Elizabeth as a doula and am ever so grateful that she was my doula!

It’s difficult to put into words how strongly I would recommend Elizabeth both as a teacher of hypnobirthing and as a birth doula. Every family should be so lucky as to be able to work with her to have the beautiful birth experience they deserve. In terms of the time and financial investment, WORTH EVERY MINUTE, WORTH EVERY PENNY. Preparing for your dream birth isn’t something you can do at the 11th hour, but if you put in the time and follow the guidance of Elizabeth, you are in the best hands possible to set yourself up for success. My husband and I went into this knowing absolutely nothing about childbirth and by the end of the online courses felt completely relaxed and totally prepared. Her method of teaching is concise, well organized and we found the material was very easy to stay engaged the time in class flew by. I personally hate online learning but truly looked forward to class each week. It was not at all boring and was really informative. I also wasn’t sure how much my husband would be focused in, but the support people are just as involved as the expectant mothers in class, so he was able to learn right along with me. The coursework is incredibly thorough so we weren’t left with any questions or unanswered concerns. We worked with another couple on zoom, which I thought may have been awkward but it surprisingly wasn’t. Elizabeth is a great teacher and created the zoom environment to be a safe space, free of judgment for everyone. In terms of working with Elizabeth as our birth doula, she came highly recommended from my sister-in-law and her sister-in-law. Both women had the privilege of having Elizabeth as their birth doula for their combined 3 children. All three of their hypnobirths were quick and easy despite some special circumstances, and their birth stories were positive. I felt very confident in working with Elizabeth from our first phone conversation. Her demeanor is so pleasant; it is like she was put on this earth to help mothers birth their babies in peace and comfort! If there is someone who has found their calling in life, it is surely Elizabeth. She is a wealth of knowledge that exceeds my understanding, she’s simply the best. She was prepared for everything, including pulling peppermint essential oils out of her Mary Poppins bag to ease my nausea and instant hot packs for my legs to calm my shivering! Most importantly, Elizabeth was able to provide sound guidance and help me make decisions throughout my labor and delivery when I may not have been in the correct mind space to do so without her. At the very beginning of my labor, we could have totally been thrown for a loop, but after conversation, discussing options and myself and my husband making a decision we deemed that it was appropriate to go to the hospital earlier than we had otherwise planned for. Elizabeth assessed my situation and by talking it through with us, my husband and I made a decision that was ultimately the correct one. I don’t know what we would have done without her! Probably panicked! The rest of my delivery went without a hitch, 6hrs start to finish in a hypnobirth that had the doctor saying “This is so unusual for a first time mother” and a L&D nurse saying “Whatttttt is this? I’ve never seen anything like this before!” followed by asking Elizabeth for her contact information!. Truly amazing. I was so thankful to have had my birth preferences typed out and presented to the medical staff so I was able to just focus on relaxation and birthing my baby instead of answering insurance questions. All this made possible by Elizabeth’s organizational skills and helping women make meticulous preparations. I really can’t recommend Elizabeth enough. I know that my dream birth was only made possible by everything she taught me and without her, it would have been a much different experience. I look forward to hopefully another beautiful birth story with her by my side in the future!

We are first time parents and Elizabeth was our doula. Throughout our pregnancy, she was a calm, reassuring presence and a fountain of knowledge. We took her hypnobirthing class which was very in-depth and packed with lots of information of the birthing process, what to expect during the labor and delivery, and how to be calm and relaxed, and still utilize the lessons we learned to this day. I had originally planned a hospital birth with an obgyn. But really, what I wanted was a natural home birth with as minimal interventions as possible. I just wasn’t sure if I could actually go through labor without any pain medications. Throughout my time with Elizabeth, she gave me information about home births without pushing the idea onto me. She believed in me and instilled that confidence in me. Our beautiful baby boy was born at home in May which wouldn’t be possible without Elizabeth’s help. If you are looking for a highly knowledgeable, caring, and supportive doula, I highly recommend Elizabeth. We are forever thankful to her.

Words can not express our gratitude for Elizabeth’s presence! She is just absolutely amazing! Elizabeth was such an incredible support throughout my pregnancy and birth of my son. We took her hypnobirthing class which we found to be extremely beneficial. I had such a calm and wonderful pregnancy, which I believe had a lot to do with all the hypnobirthing I did. My son is also a very happy and calm baby, which I attribute to hypnobirthing. It was also very useful during my labor. Elizabeth was my doula and provided me with a wealth of information throughout my pregnancy. I felt prepared and confident. I believe the most amazing benefit was that I did not have any fear surrounding my pregnancy or birth. The day of my birth she comforted me and guided me every step of the way. Even when things did not go as planned, she provided reassurance and empowered me to have the best birth possible. I highly recommend Elizabeth. She is kind, knowledgeable and understanding. She is like having your best friend with you! I couldn’t imagine my birthing process without her, and she will always have a very special place in my heart.

I thought Elizabeth was pretty incredible the first time, when I had my firstborn but she superseded ALL of my expectations the second time around. Thanks to Elizabeth I finally reached my goal of having an unmedicated natural delivery in a hospital. The first time there were unforeseen events that prevented me from reaching that goal but this time we had nothing stopping us and we did it! She believed in me when I stopped believing in myself. She pushed me with the right amount of passion, sensitivity, and compassion that I needed to give birth to my baby without any pain medication. It’s thanks to her and everything she has taught my husband and I that I managed to labor at home and reach 8cm nearly pain free. I felt so empowered and it was all thanks to Elizabeth. I’m beyond grateful to her and I pray that every single woman out there feels power and control over her own body and gives birth in the way that she chooses to. Personally, I couldn’t do that without Elizabeth. I’ll forever be grateful to her. Of note - an old friend who I don’t speak to that often anymore, hired Elizabeth as well and felt so compelled to thank me after giving birth to her first born. She felt such immense gratitude for me simply sharing Elizabeth with her. Says a lot when two old friends who don’t speak to each other anymore share a mutual feeling about one person and can come together to support each other during such an extraordinary life event.

My husband and I are first time parents and we worked with Elizabeth throughout my pregnancy. If you're looking for a doula to support you during your pregnancy and labor, we would highly recommend you reach out to Elizabeth! We took private hypnobirthing classes with Elizabeth at our home and I applied the lessons learned not only on the actual labor day, but everyday throughout the pregnancy to remain calm. While my pregnancy was smooth, the actual labor was not and we are so grateful to have Elizabeth by our side, literally holding my hand each step of the way, especially at our home during contractions and in the labor and delivery room. She not only served as our advocate, but she also provided alot of background information on what the nurses and doctors were doing. We were presented different options by hospital staff and she helped explain what those meant and worked alongside the nurses when our baby was not in an ideal position.  She is so caring, very patient and encouraged us to find out facts so we can make an informed decision that works for us. Most importantly, she gave us peace of mind, comfort and instilled calmness during labor when things weren't going as anticipated. Her presence helped create a positive birth experience when it could have easily been nerve-wrecking. After the birth of our baby, she came to our home to support me on breastfeeding and recommended other specialists to me. We are so incredibly thankful to have Elizabeth as our support system throughout my pregnancy and birth of our child.

Elizabeth is a godsend; she is worth every penny and more! She was extremely helpful for my childbirth. I have a history of precipitous labor one birth was 4 hour total, and 2nd one was 3 hour total, and I was worried that neither my doctor or Elizabeth will make it to my birth. I conveyed that to Elizabeth. On the day of my delivery at 6am, she came to the hospital within 5 minutes of my arrival; gave me a sense of relief. During the intense contractions, she was there right by my side. I was literally holding her hand and breathing through each one of the contractions. Elizabeth was also a strong advocate for us. I had injured my SI joint during a previous childbirth, and Elizabeth made suggestions for me to be in various birthing positions. Since I was able to labor in different positions on birthing ball and upright, I experienced no added joint pain this time. Elizabeth also suggested intermittent fetal heart rate monitoring to allow me in different laboring positions, and luckily my doctor also agreed. I was able to go 1/2 hr on and 1/2 hr off the monitor. My baby was born with one arm out, and while the other arm stayed in. I was able to manage through the pain without epidural and in the end without a tear! We are very grateful for Elizabeth's help!