In 2019 I started my "trying" journey. I had two children previously but due to a contraceptive implant issue I was struggling to get pregnant for a third time. Annie guided me on how to advocate for myself which helped me be officially diagnosed with PCOS and a difficulty ovulating by December 2020. Early 2021 I was able to get medicinal intervention and get pregnant with my sweet littlest. I relied heavily on Annie's advice about diet, exercise, remembering to listen to my body, and advocating for myself. I suffered the third trimester with chronic nosebleeds, turns out was an open lesion in my left sinus. I would have just given in and let it go if not for the gentle and kindly advice. Annie lives 6 hours away from me, and if it weren't for little Eevee being born in less than that, she would have been here for her birth. But I had her in my heart, mind, and ear helping me advocate for the best delivery I could have. Since then, I have continued to keep a close friendship with Annie, and can easily say that if you want the very best care and to feel like you not only matter but are family, Annie Hill is the very best of the best.

5 star care! Annie has been amazing at helping me with my heart care virtually. I am not a postpartum or one of her birth patients, however that does not stop Annie from giving top of the line care. Recently, she advocated for me while I was in the ER for better care than I was getting at the time due to my heart condition. By advocating for me, I was given better care than what they were trying to get away with. I have learned a lot about my heart condition from talking to Annie and she explains things in a way that you can understand and not feel lost. Her level of care makes you feel like you are truly important and that you deserve to be cared for. I truly and highly recommend Annie for your Doula needs or if you need someone to help support you during your medical care!

Annie was, hands down, the best decision I made for my pregnancy. She has a love and passion for what she does and it shines through her work. She was constantly over at our house doing pregnancy and childbirth classes with us, she was always answering my incessant pregnancy questions, and she always made me feel validated and heard. I know, for a fact, my labor and delivery would have been truly atrocious had she not been there. Pushing is absolutely exhausting and Annie had so many tips and tricks that made it so I could go on and get the kid out. Without her, I know that would have taken me hours. She also gave me a voice with the hospital staff. By the point of pushing, I was already tired, she reminded me of what I wanted and what was best for me. I'm glad I listened to her. After delivery, she was absolutely incredible. The second the boy was out of me, she was down with a pen writing everything with a fury. Every piece of information the doctors had, every one of my son's stats, and she explained to me what level of tearing I had was. She was great. Later, at home with the newborn, I had issues with latching and breastfeeding. She came over and watched me breastfeed, offered tips, and then just sat and talked with me about my PPA and all of the things being a new mother made me feel. If I ever decide to do this again, Annie had beter still be doing this and be in the area. I will be using her again.

Annie is a wonderful doula to work with, and has helped me with the birth of two of my children. Due to travel restrictions in place, Annie worked virtually with me, taking care to explain she was capable and experienced with using whatever video conference software I felt most comfortable using. She provided me with gentle stretches to encourage my baby to drop into place and help promote labour, which proved successful. Annie understood and respected my wish for natural pain management, and expertly guided me through my labour, helping me through the pain, and guiding me back on track when an unexpected contraction overwhelmed me. With her help, I had a quick, medication free labour, and no tearing, which is in stark contrast to my first delivery without a doula. I can't say enough good things about her services; you will not be disappointed.

My husband and I experience with Annie as our doula was brief but positive. We wanted a natural birth for our second child, and our experience with our first child led us to feel that we needed more knowledge and better advocacy. Annie was an acquaintance so we contacted her. She had a few digital forms to complete which we found one most helpful to us. It was a form that asked you to check mark how you wanted different scenarios or decisions to be followed. This helped my husband and I understand what we truly wanted for this birth. Our first meeting which had to be over the computer due to the initial lockdowns because of Covid. We had plans to meet up for the next meeting, in person if possible, to work on yoga ball techniques in May. Mid April rolled around however and I contacted Annie late one evening on her thoughts about kick counts. She offered to come right away with her portable monitor to ease our concerns even though she was trying to social distance. She recommended Memorial East in Shiloh IL to go to for monitoring so that is where we headed when we woke up the next morning. There we found out our precious daughter had passed away. Annie had called the Labor and Delivery desk and found out they did have a cuddle cot that we could use. Also that the staff was ready to take pictures, take footprints and get a package together to bring home with us when that time came. I asked her about managing discomfort and movement on a yoga ball because I was not ready to utilize what I had been preparing. She messaged me good resources and encouragement. She sent us a checking in message regularly. Postpartum I asked her about how to relieve the horribly uncomfortable engorgment I was experiencing and her resources of different teas and medicine led to the milk drying up in a few days. So like I said, it was a different experience but we are very grateful for her help and support. She truly cares and that meets the needs, whatever form that takes.

We had a WONDERFUL experience with Annie! I decided on placenta encapsulation with my pregnancy and from the moment I contacted her it was a great experience. The response time after inquiring about her services was very quick. She actually called to introduce herself and explain the process and answer any questions I had, which I thought made it very personable and in turn made me more comfortable. Everything was explained thoroughly. Then delivery day. Couldn't have went better. She immediately drove over for pickup witch was almost an hour away. I wasn't expecting them back til around the next week or so. She delivered them THE NEXT DAY so we had them before leaving the hospital!!! To say I was excited was an understatement!! And let me mention that it was a HOLLIDAY!! July 4th!!! I would absolutely use her services again should I be blessed with another baby and absolutely recommend her to any one who is thinking about encapsulation!!

Annie is a wonderful, kind and caring person. We talked about so many things throughout my pregnancy with my first child. More things than I would have even believed. She listened to what I originally wanted and supported all my decisions. Even though I am having to switch using her due to the path my pregnancy is taking (subborn little one just like her Momma) she is still going to be doing my placenta encapsulation which is something I very much would like to try. She offered multiple different ways that I could do it which is helpful because there is that ick factor. I am looking forward to seeing how it helps once my little one makes her grand entrance to the big wide world.

As I was planning the birth of my first child, I knew I wanted to ingest my placenta, but I wasn't completely sure in what form. After speaking with Annie about it, I decided that encapsulating it was my best bet. She agreed to come to my home and do the encapsulation once I was home from the hospital. The day after I got home, Annie came over and dehydrated/ground my placenta to make it ready for encapsulation. The process was quick and easy, and having it done in my own home made it so much easier for me!

I can't testify to how Annie is as a doula in a hospital since she was my homebirth midwife. I can say I think anyone that has her as a doula is getting a heck of a deal!  Out of 4 births I never felt better attended or cared for prenatally or post partum than with Annie.  My birth was very quick so I didn't need much support during the actual birth but I'm sure that the thorough care and lengthy discussion of my concerns throughout my pregnancy contributed to a speedy and confident birthing experience. Also I must add that out of all my providers over my years of OBs, nurses, midwives and other physicians I believe Annie is the only one that would have caught signs of PPD and made sure I got help.

Annie provided post-partum care, not just for our newborn twins, but for our whole family. From day one, Annie helped provide both a calming and confidence building presence. As we transitioned to our home from the hospital following a cesarean section, she helped take care of me and ensure that our children had that opportunity to spend quality time with me while I was less mobile. Her gentle and knowledgeable touch with our children put us at ease. She helped my husband understand more useful tasks and timing for them as well as more beneficial cooking options. Her ability to keep everyone and everything calm and relaxed was her greatest gift to us. As we learned to care for our twins’ needs, she gave us the confidence to do a multitude of tasks. Specifically, she was fantastic in keeping me positive with breastfeeding. With the C-section, my milk production was slow to start, but she helped me stay positive allowing me to progress quickly to feeding my children, pumping extra milk, and even tandem feedings. Being with her daily, she gave us help, not just with actions, but with options and tools we could use as we became more comfortable and our children became older. Annie is exactly who we needed to get our family started on the right foot. Thank you, Annie!