Akilah Lindsey
Birth/Postpartum Doula (DONA)
Certificated Lactation Educator Counselor (UCSD)
Childbirth Educator (Lamaze)
WHAT PEOPLE SAY
I am so glad to have found Akilah as the birth doula for my first pregnancy! Akilah is extremely knowledgeable, professional, patient, kind and was a tremendous support to my husband and myself before, during, and after our daughter’s birth. When we were first considering hiring a doula, we knew that we wanted someone that would help us to understand what was going on and to feel empowered to make good decisions about the birth process. We met with Akilah twice before Ruby’s birth. She provided a lot of useful information and responded to our questions thoughtfully. Akilah helped us to formulate our birth plan and to feel as prepared as we possibly could for the birth. Throughout the process, I appreciated that, rather than telling us what we should do, Akilah explained the pros and cons of various decisions. I never felt like she would judge me if I decided to do things differently than what we discussed or planned to do. As I had hoped for a natural, non-medicated birth, I ended up being induced and received an epidural. The induction took four days, and each day, Akilah checked in with my husband to see what my progress was. By the third day, in asking for my permission to come visit at the hospital, Akilah came to be by my side and give my husband a rest. Though there was not much we could do to speed up the induction process, Akilah kept us calm, comfortable, confident and reassured. In understanding our frustration and disappointment in anti-partum, Akilah came equipped with aromatherapy and massage oils to transform my sterile environment into serenity. By the next day, my dilation was stuck at 4cm and was threated by a possible C-section. During the last pelvic exam before the C-section, I somehow dilated to 9.5cm in just a few hours. We were finally getting ready to push! My husband contacted Akilah immediately and she arrived at the hospital right on time! At 5:22pm on January 27, 2018 I gave birth to a healthy baby girl. Akilah stayed bedside with me while the baby was measured and weighed. She did not leave my side the entire time, ensuring that all my needs were met as everyone else’s attention was all on Ruby. After being transferred to the post-partum recovery room, Akilah made sure that I had the support I needed through learning how to get Ruby to latch for the first time. After we settled in and were ready to enjoy our new family, Akilah made sure we had everything we needed before she quietly left the hospital. A few weeks after Ruby’s birth, we had our postpartum meeting with Akilah recapping the entire birth process as well as discussing any issues we were having. We have been in contact ever since! Akilah is still there for us when we have any questions or concerns! Looking back, I am very happy about my birth experience and am so thankful for Akilah for being a part of it! ️
Miya A.