Past Doula's Of The Month:

Michelle Chrastil, MA, CPD

Michelle as a Doula    As a CAPPA trained and certified Postpartum Doula (CPD), I have been working with families as a Postpartum Doula for 5 years and recently expanded my practice to serving women as a Labor Doula. As a Postpartum Doula, my mission is to help ease the transition into parenthood by providing various forms of support. Different ways I can support your family, include working overnight shifts to help you get much needed rest, breastfeeding instruction and troubleshooting when issues arise, providing basic infant care instruction including how to give baths, cut nails, and get out of the house with infant, provide tips on feeding concerns, and assist with teaching babies to sleep through the night.    

As a Labor Doula, my role is to work with you and your partner to help you have the type of birth experience you are looking for. Labor Doula services include a minimum of one prenatal visit to discuss or create your birth plan and to provide an opportunity for us to discuss your concerns. This prenatal visit also allows an opportunity for me to share how I can help your during your labor, which includes ways to manage labor pains, involve father in birth, and advocate for your wishes with the hospital staff.       Please send me an email through the Contact Us section to set up your Free initial consultation, where we can discuss your needs and ways!
I can help you meet your goals.

You may also contact Heather by contacting us. Come meet Heather and other Doulas at our Meet the Doulas Night, free to parents!

Heather Holden

I believe relaxation is the key to an incredible birth experience.  

When you are familiar with what works for you, it’s easier to slip into deep relaxation during birth. This may change throughout labor and that’s why it’s important to have options. And perhaps a doula! 

Birth is the transformational process of a woman becoming a mother, new families forming, and the celebration of welcoming a new one into the world.  

AWAKEN is a private practice and my healing studio since 2005. I offer a unique massage experience and the most innovative energy medicine to date. Together both are wonderful ways of managing pain, clearing fears, calming the nervous system and balancing the body. 

You may also contact Heather by contacting us. Come meet Heather and other Doulas at our Meet the Doulas Night, free to parents!

Sancken Burgess

My Philosophy

One of the many beautiful things about your birth is that, it is your birth.  Therefore, my philosophy is your philosophy. 

My Intentions   

My intentions are to provide you and your partner with an atmosphere of support and loving guidance throughout your pregnancy and your birth.

It is my goal to honor you the birthing mother and your birthing rights.

I aspire to enhance the art and instinctive and intuitive nature of the doulas role.  I understand and recognize that birth is a transformational life experience and a rite of passage.  I believe in the doulas purpose to support women in their physical, emotional, spiritual, and social needs during pregnancy, birth and postpartum.  Above all I protect the desire of women and trust in the beauty and strength of their bodies to bring forth life.

About Me

I became a massage therapist and doula because I wanted to work with women in labor and help aid them in the miracle of pregnancy and birth. 

I am a graduate of Mark Manton’s , Massage Therapy Institute of Colorado.  In the early spring of 09 I completed the CAPPA doula program.  I am also a member of the Colorado Doulas Association. Most recently, in order to better serve my clients, I completed Kate Jordan’s Pregnancy, Labor and Postnatal Massage Certification in Santa Monica, CA. 

Since the birth of my son, I now more than ever recognize birth as a key life experience that you the mother will remember for the rest of your life. I bring to my work a unique passion for serving new families and a strong commitment to excellence in the doula and massage profession. 

“I am here to honor your power and to help maintain that power as you transcend through your birth” 

You may also contact Sancken by contacting us. Come meet Sancken and other Doulas at our Meet the Doulas Night, free to parents!

House of Doula

House of Doula is a professional network of highly qualified service providers who work with expecting, postpartum, and growing families. Membership standards are set forth by industry experts to ensure the highest quality referrals.

As Birth Doulas,

Our role is not to replace partners or family during the birth. Instead, we become an additional member of you birth support team, assisting you in achieving your individual family's birthing goals.
Women have a right to evidence-based information and informed consent during the labor and birth process. Women and families have worked very hard to gain access to a full range of birthing options and choices. We offer evidence-based information to assist your family in making informed decisions. We agree to honor your choices and support your family in the decisions that you make for your birth experience.

You may also contact House of Doula by contacting us. Come meet some of the Doulas from House of Doula at our Meet the Doulas Night, free to parents!

Amy Swagman

I am a member of the Colorado Doulas Association, La Leche League, House of Doula, and the Mountain Midwifery Doula Program.  I am a certified doula through CAPPA and an accredited LLL Leader.  I have also attended the Mountain Midwifery Advanced Practice Doula Training.

I like to say that Haven's birth made me a mother and Lyric's birth made me a doula and aspiring midwife.  With Lyric's beautiful water birth at Mountain Midwifery birth center I realized how wonderful birth could be if surrounded by attentive, nurturing people in a relaxed environment.  I was hooked and realized I needed to be a part of the birth world!
I offer:

• labor doula support

• sibling support (for those who want to include their children at birth)

• birth/pregnancy/newborn photography

• unlimited free breastfeeding support within the scope of La Leche League (I am also an accredited LLL Leader)

• babywearing consultations accompanied with trial slings

• pregnancy/birth/newborn photography

• I am also a part of Belly Bliss and do henna tattoos for their "Belly's Night Out" and "Ivory Tent" events.  I specialize in henna tattoos during pregnancy and am free for private appointments, Mother Blessings, Blessingways, baby showers, and private parties.

When it comes to birth I believe that it all boils down to choice and circumstance.  Women need to be free to make choices in childbirth that are right for them in respects to where, how, and with whom they want to give birth.  If unforeseen circumstances arise I am thankful that we often have ways to correct them.  I also believe that birth is first and foremost a normal, natural event.  I believe that women intuitively know how to birth and what is best for them, their bodies, and their babies.  I think birth can be a life-changing experience if a woman is surrounded with people whom she trusts who care for her.  Although I have my personal birth preferences I try not to push an agenda with you.  My goal is for you to have the best birth experience possible as defined by you, not myself or anyone else.  It's your birth, not mine and every woman deserves to be empowered in the process.
I also think it's important to view birth from a holistic perspective of the whole family.  Partners need to feel they are valued and have a role in the birth.  It's the birth of their child as well!  My goal is never to push a partner out of the way but to nurture the family as they transition into parenthood.  This is also why I love doing sibling support.  It was such an amazing experience to have Haven at Lyric's birth.  She loved being there and really bonded with her baby sister. For people who choose to have a child included in birth it can be a powerful thing.

You may also contact Amy by contacting us. Come meet Amy and other Doulas at our Meet the Doulas Night, free to parents!

Amanda Glenn M.A,
Certified Labor & Postpartum Doula (CAPPA)
Lactation Educator & Child Behavioral Consultant

Amanda Glenn is a faculty postpartum doula trainer for CAPPA, one of two leading international birth professional associations. She also serves on the board of the Colorado Doulas Association’s mentoring committee and the community advisory board for Family he University of Colorado, Denver with a special emphasis in Early Childhood Education and Adult Learning in 2004.

In 2006, Amanda founded House of Doula, a growing network of highly qualified service providers who work with expecting, postpartum, and growing families. Amanda provides labor and postpartum doula services, lactation education and support, parenting classes and behavior and developmental consultations for children age birth through 3 years. At Belly Bliss Amanda teaches “Transition into Toddlerhood” and “Sibling Preparation” classes. In addition to traditional labor doula services, Amanda also provides sibling support for families who wish to have their older children involved in the birth of their younger siblings.

Professional Philosophy
“The journey into parenthood is one of powerful growth and bonding. I honor and support each family’s individual birth & parenting goals by providing compassionate support, active listening, and educational resources which empower families and relieve stress during childbirth and the postpartum period.”

Why I do this Work
I love working with new and growing families. I utilize my M.A. degree in Educational Psychology, combining knowledge of both adult learning styles and infant development into my approach as a doula. I bring this
understanding into the home as a postpartum doula and into births as a labor doula, enabling me to actively engage and support parents during this profound transition in their lives. My first birth experience at the age of 10, witnessing the birth of my little brother, shaped my belief in birthing women as beautiful and powerful as well as my understanding of the unique challenges that a family can face during birth and the postpartum period.

Whitney Nichols
I believe that birth is as unique and awesome as every woman about to become a mother and every baby being born. I think that each woman/family has the right to make their own choices as to what their birth experiences should be. I would hope that these choices would come from a place of education, confidence and empowerment, rather than fear. I find it a joy to work with families of all make-ups in all types of birth settings with a variety of birth experiences.

I have certification through the Academy of Child Birth Educators, am DONA trained, and have also completed the Advanced Practice Birth Support program through Mountain Midwifery and Cocoon Enterprises.

Being a doula is my passion and I am proud to offer individualized care to each family I work with, including offering a sliding scale for payment. I believe that every woman should have a doula and hope to be able to provide my services.

I am also have three wonderful children, two boys ages 6 and 2, and a little girl 6 months.

I am a member of DONA International, Colorado Doulas Association and the On-Call program through the Mountain Midwifery Birth Center.

Miranda Cacek
Certified in Prenatal, Labor and Postpartum Massage
Certified Labor Doula

I believe that birth is a natural, everyday miracle that deserves respect and compassion and as with everything in life, there are variables during the birth process that cannot be predicted and medical assistance is sometimes needed. I am there to help you navigate your options and facilitate communication between you and your care provider, as well as offer comfort and reassurance throughout your birth experience.

I tailor fit my doula services to meet your needs and provide a focus on helping you have an intimate and enjoyable birth experience.

Experience in Birth:
Unbeknownst to me, I was a doula before I even knew the word "doula" existed. I began as a labor coach for my sister and during that experience I realized that this work was what I was supposed to do with my life. Since that day, I have had additional experience assisting with c-section births, scheduled inductions, VBAC's, high-risk and single moms, and moms who have labored with and without medication.
I have also experienced, personally, a medicated birth, 2 medication-free births, including one waterbirth. I believe my varied experiences enable me to approach labor with an open mind and to trust the birth process and as such, I encourage my clients to trust their intuition on how to birth their baby.

Certifications:
~Nationally Certified Massage Therapist-NCTMB 2005
~CAPPA Certified Labor Doula - June 2006
~Certified in Prenatal, Labor and Postpartum Massage- Jan 2007

Education in Birth:
~CAPPA Labor Doula Training- July 2004
~"Optimal Fetal Positioning" JoAnn King- March 2006
~"Aromatherapy for the Childbirth Professional" Laurel Wilson-May 2007
~"Nurturing Underserved Women" Cocoon Enterprises- June 2007
~CAPPA Lactation Educator Training - Jan 2008

Shea Marshall
CMT * Prenatal/Infant Massage * Massage Doula

I began my journey through motherhood about 17 years ago with the birth of my precious son – a first baby, born with no interventions on the day he was due – June 18! That was one of the most empowering experiences of my life. Following the next two years, I welcomed my beautiful daughters – three natural, normal births in all. I know the strength women gather from their birthing experiences – it affects their relationships with their babies, husbands and selves. My goal is to be a small, yet integral part of that exciting process.

I have been a Certified Massage Therapist since 2002, and received doula training through the Institute of Somatic Therapies, as a Certified Massage Doula – which requires a certification as a Massage Therapist before enrolling. Through that span of time, I have been working with pregnant women, and providing massage during labor.

Although pain relief is an important aspect of support, I love being a doula because it encompasses so much more – information education, advocacy without grazing the proper boundaries as a doula, tapping into the heart and soul of every birth, expending enormous amounts of energy for untold hours or days. Being a doula is as natural for me as being a mom!

My dedication lies in combining the heart & hands of a Certified Massage Therapist with the passion & expertise of a Birth Doula. That love and support is evident through every stretch, every exhalation, and every compression of a hot-stone to the sacrum! Each client receives the invaluable information they need to make the best decisions for their family, and the strength from their doula to carry them through. Support also includes nutritional sustenance with snacks and nutritional aids for the journey ahead. Postpartum services include 2 hours post-labor support, postpartum massage and teaching infant massage to parents (if desired). My aim is to guide each family through their own rhyme and rhythm in labor – to the most amazing birth experience possible.

I am a current member of the Association of Bodywork & Massage Professionals, the Colorado Doulas Association, and DONA.

Michaela D. Zach

Professionally, Michaela is a DONA certified birth doula, Lamaze certified childbirth educator, and an American Heart Association certified CPR, First-Aid, and AED instructor.

Personally, she is proud to have lived in Colorado for over 20 years. She enjoys snow and water skiing, camping, reading and being a ski and hockey mom to her two boys ages 15 and 9.

Michaela believes that pregnancy and birth, and protecting that memory for every birthing woman she encounters, are her true calling and passion. She states that every birth she attends is a privilege and honor. She emphatically shares with her clients that “Having a baby is a life changing event for everyone and a memory you will carry the rest of your life.” She has supported a dynamic and diverse clientele from various backgrounds and lifestyles in the Denver area. Michaela’s mission statement and core philosophy is “There is not a right or wrong way to give birth, you can’t fail birth!”

We are both proud and honored to have asked Michaela to be our first “Doula of the Month”.

Doulas, we would love to have you involved in this event! Please email us at info@BellyBliss.org for more information.