Birth and Postpartum Doulas
Hello! My name is Lyssa Zawalski (she/her), I am a postpartum doula based in Littleton, Colorado.
While I have lived around the world, Colorado has been my home for most of my life. I am
thrilled to be here and to serve this community of birthing people.
My path towards becoming a postpartum doula began after having my daughter, who is now 5
years old. I experienced a lot for a first time parent: a traumatic birth, several PMADs (Perinatal
Mood and Anxiety Disorders), difficulty breastfeeding resulting in a tongue and lip tie revision, a
partner who was sent away for months at a time as early as 5 weeks, and having a child very far
away from family. I’ve spent the last 5 years engaging in deep healing work, attempting to make
sense of a time that felt so insurmountable, so painful. Throughout this journey, I knew I was
destined to work in the postpartum space in some capacity. I felt called to work with other
parents navigating postpartum; I wanted to provide some of the support that would have been
transformational for me during my 4th trimester. Being able to provide a compassionate, safe,
and inclusive space to families as they evolve during postpartum is truly a dream realized.
Professionally, I carry with me 7 years of experience as a high school and middle school
teacher, experience as a social worker, experience as an adult-learner coach, and experience
as a product manager. I have been afforded opportunities to work in very different industries,
challenging me to build new skill sets that beautifully compliment my work as a postpartum
doula. I am in the process of completing my DONA International postpartum doula certification
and expect to be done by the beginning of 2025.
When I am not working with postpartum families, you can find me outside in my garden, hiking,
spending time with my family and friends, practicing yoga, making art, and camping!
I am grateful to be of service to my community and look forward to meeting the beautiful families
I will have the pleasure of supporting.
Tara(she/her) is a birth and postpartum doula serving Northern Colorado and surrounding areas. She believes birth support should be accessible and inclusive to all people. As a birth doula she brings a calming energy to the birthing space and highly believes in supporting birth preferences. Whatever aligns with you, she honors. Tara offers a variety of skills and tools to support a positive birth experience. She incorporates her skills as a Social Worker which include, being trauma informed, an empath, critical thinker, active listener and advocate into her doula work.
Tara strongly advocates for extended postpartum care to help bridge the gap from pregnancy to postpartum. Her goal with postpartum support is making the transition go as smoothly as possible, while nurturing and nourishing the newly postpartum family.
Tara completed her doula certification with Peaceful Birth Company and completed her postpartum training with CAPPA. She is passionate about continuing her education and has attended a number of trainings, including spinning babies and education around reproductive justice through Birthing Advocacy.
Outside of birth work, Tara is spending time with her family, photography, being outside, live music and focusing on her studies to complete her MSW.
Hello! I’m Elizabeth Bean(she/her), the birth doula behind EB Doula!
I started getting interested in birth during my first pregnancy. I had an incredible birth experience at the birth center, and from that time on, I learned as much as I could about pregnancy & birth.
But it wasn’t until several years later that I realized that birth work was my calling, when my sister-in-law was in labor and I kept asking for updates. My mom (half-jokingly) suggested that if I was so interested in birth, I should become a birth worker. Something clicked inside me, & I immediately started researching how to become a birth doula. I was trained and am certified through DONA International.
My approach to providing birth support is best described as informed, empowered choice. I want my clients to be able to decide what they want their birth experience to look like, &feel comfortable knowing that I will do everything in my power to help them achieve their birth goals.
I have been married for 13 years, and have two young daughters, a dog, & a cat. When I’m not geeking out over birth, I love to spend time outside, cook, read, make wreaths, work on my garden, help my husband with home improvement projects, & just hang out with my family.
Justina(she/her) I am a Birth and Postpartum Certified Professional Doula through Allo Doula Academy. I am a 30-year-old (almost 31) Colorado Native, I have 2 dogs, a stepdaughter and amazing partner.
I discovered my passion for birth work years ago when I watched "The Business of Being Born" I had never thought that depth into birth before other than admiring my great grandma, who had 11 children unassisted. After watching the documentary, I had put birth work and becoming a doula in the back of my mind. I truly did not feel like I had what it takes to open my own business. I went on and obtained my Bachelor’s degree in Criminology and Sociology with a minor in Psychology and then a few years later obtained my Masters of Science in Human Services Administration. I have always had a passion for helping others, I thought I would follow in the footsteps of my father and work in juvenile corrections; however, I quickly discovered that it was not the career for me. I then went on and started my Social Caseworker career and helped families reunite with their children. I served as a social worker for almost four years and then made the decision to “protect my peace" and felt in my soul that being a Social Caseworker was not my passion.I decided it was time for a career change and time to start following my dreams. I have always been intrigued by the birth process. I found courage and faith and left my career without a job and started Just Birth LLC. I must say that I am extremely proud of myself. One of my inspirations regarding birth was my great-grandmother had 11 children, unmedicated, and for a while thought that was how everyone gives birth.
Krystal(she/her) started her doula career in 2015 and has been advancing in the profession ever since. As a birth doula, she impacts pregnant and birthing families on their journey through birth. As a result, her clients feel educated, safe, and supported throughout their entire journey.
Krystal has taken many additional training and certificate programs for advancing her comfort measures, ways to support the physiological birthing process, and several different birthing method practices. Krystal supports and respects all the ways to birth. She is there to provide her support and expertise for those choosing medicated birth, unmedicated birth, cesarean birth, and everything in between. Her hope and goal for her clients is that they feel respected, confident in how to advocate, and that they have a positive outlook on their birth experience.
When Krystal is not attending births, she is usually doing something crafty or adventurous with her family. She enjoys crafting, sewing, puzzles, and ice cream. Krystal and her husband live together with their two boys ages 10 and 7, their two cats, and two pups. Family time is usually spent gardening, walking the pups, and taking trips up the mountain, and going on fun family dates.
Krystal feels that she has truly found her passion and calling in life as a doula. She feels honored and blessed to be able to work with birthing families and support them through one of their biggest life transitions.
Hi y'all! I'm Claire Kagan(she/her): a yoga teacher, birth doula, and Ayurvedic postpartum doula with a background in Social Work (LMSW) and a holistic mindset around health, pregnancy, birth, and postpartum. I'm based in Boulder, CO, and I serve families in the Denver and Boulder areas. As a yoga teacher: I'm an RYT-500 with specialized training in Ayurveda, Prenatal Yoga, and Trauma-Informed Yoga. Due to my social work background, I'm mindful of the intersection between mental health and movement, and I always strive to make my class offerings trauma-informed, inclusive, Health at Every Size-informed, and accessible to all.
As a birth doula: I always say that I like to think of a doula as a birth-focused social worker! I bring in my background as a social worker and skills as a doula to provide education around the birth process, empower you to be your own self-advocate, and work with you to make sure that all of your needs are met and your wishes are honored, before, during, and after birth.
As an Ayurvedic postpartum doula: I provide 6-8 weeks of holistic, Ayurvedic, full-body support for you after birth. This includes full meal support, herbal supplements, massage for you and baby, belly binding, herbal baths, and working with you to build a sustainable routine that prioritizes the rest you need and deserve!
Courtney(she/her), OTD, OTR/L, CBD, is a pelvic floor occupational therapist, birth doula and co-owner of OWN Your Pelvic Health, a Denver based in-home and virtual pelvic floor therapy practice. She was drawn toward the birth world and perinatal pelvic health during her doctoral internship at a birth center in Virginia. Her eyes were opened to the lack of education and support provided to birthing people throughout pregnancy and postpartum which often led to birth injuries, birth trauma, difficulty breastfeeding, and mental health concerns. She became a certified birth doula during that time and has since used her birth experience to guide her work as a pelvic floor therapist. She loves to work with people throughout pregnancy as their pelvic floor therapist and birth doula, attend their birth, and provide support immediately postpartum. She finds that these clients tend to be more satisfied with their birth experience and have faster recoveries. She uses her expertise in manual therapy, corrective exercise, and holistic treatment techniques to optimize her clients’ health and pelvic floor function at every stage of pregnancy and postpartum. Commonly treated conditions include pelvic organ prolapse, pain with sex, diastasis recti, pelvic girdle pain, constipation, and urinary & fecal incontinence. She also loves working proactively with pregnant people to plan for birth and fast-track recovery. With extensive experience attending births in all settings, she understands how to help clients balance their bodies to have easier births, she coaches them through labor positioning and pushing, and she provides achievable postpartum goals to assist in healing and regaining strength.
Link to website: www.ownyourpelvichealth.com
Link to book: https://ownyourpelvichealth.janeapp.com/locations/home-visit-online-consultations/book
Kaylan(she/her), RN, BSN, BS, CLE, PCD(DONA) obtained her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Duke University School of Nursing in 2011, after obtaining a BS in human physiology from Boston University in 2006. After working in the intensive care unit and heart catheterization lab, she decided to stay at home with her then three children in 2018. Kaylan became passionate about birth and women’s health in 2013 while pregnant with her first child, as she became aware of the gap in our current healthcare surrounding women’s health in pregnancy, labor and postpartum. She has shared her nursing knowledge, experience, and doula training about pregnancy, labor, birth, postpartum, and parenthood with countless families. Kaylan has 4 kids and lives in Denver with her husband, Scott. Kaylan offers childbirth education, breastfeeding classes, postpartum classes, and bonding courses. She also offers doula care and postpartum support.
Courtney (she/her) is a Certified Birth and Postpartum Doula (CLD/CPD) and Certified Lactation Counselor (CLC) and has been supporting families welcoming babies since 2017. Courtney's philosophy when it comes to supporting birthing families is to ensure families feel well-resourced to be able to make evidence-based decisions that align with their values, and enjoys learning about new resources to provide to families. Courtney is trained in Spinning Babies and enjoys educating families about the benefits of this approach to labor and birth when meeting before birth and providing hands-on support while attending births. Courtney is passionate about educating families about the benefits of breast/chestfeeding and is excited to provide lactation support to new parents. Courtney lives in beautiful Salida with her partner, dog, ducks and chickens, where she enjoys spending time in the mountains and connecting with the tight-knit birth community in the Arkansas Valley.
Alyssa (she/her) is a devoted mother of two and served as a surrogate mother in 2019. She is a health and wellness enthusiast with a passion for herbalism and yoga. Alyssa began her herbalism studies in 2010 under the guidance of Zia Parker and has since continued her education under Aviva Romm, MD. She has been a certified yoga instructor since 2006 and received her certification in pre-postnatal yoga instruction in 2013 from Katie Wise and Kirsten Warner. With over 10 years of experience as a birth doula, Alyssa has a deep understanding of the physiology of pregnancy and birth. Her knowledge and expertise allow her to provide exceptional care and preparation to her yoga clients, helping them to prepare for labor, birth, and postpartum recovery.
As part owner of a postpartum care company, Alyssa is dedicated to providing exceptional care to mothers and their families. She currently coordinates postpartum care and manages the office, while also offering her expertise as a certified birth and postpartum doula, certified breastfeeding specialist, and certified pediatric sleep consultant. Alyssa's approach to sleep consulting is gentle, holistic, and evidence-based. She is committed to promoting healthy sleep habits and practices, and she takes a personalized approach to each family she works with. She understands that every family's needs are different, and she works collaboratively with her clients to create customized sleep plans that work for their unique situations. Alyssa is excited to offer her expertise in gentle sleep solutions to help families achieve restful nights.
In her free time, Alyssa enjoys spending time outdoors with her family, practicing yoga, and continuing her education in health and wellness. To book a consultation please email: AlyssamarieKaplan@gmail.com