Recent review
This is honestly a difficult review to write… not because there is any shortage of reasons to praise Cherish, but because no amount of it can truly do justice to explaining just how meaningful her presence was in my journey from pregnancy through childbirth. As a headstrong person intent on going about a “natural” birth within the healthcare system, I knew I wanted to have a doula to help campaign for me, to provide me support and tools through one of the most vulnerable and raw processes a woman can go through. I interviewed many doulas, and while many seemed qualified on paper, I just knew something was missing. Then as fate would have it, I came across Cherish. We had an initial call to discuss the variety of services she offered. Already then, speaking with her felt natural, like meeting someone who you knew could be a friend. It was easy to sense that she genuinely cared, and exuded passion (and compassion). We had meetings and check-ins throughout my pregnancy, to discuss logistics such as my birth plan, generalities like how I was feeling and how certain tests went, as well as address more spiritual matters like my feelings around becoming a mom or subconscious fears that were surfacing for me. Every time I was filled with awe and gratitude for the perfect alignment of her complete holistic support that I knew I had been seeking all along. To make matters more complicated, I went over my due date and with each passing day, my doctor (and the healthcare system) started to tout medical fear mongering to push me into an induction that I knew I did not want/need to do. After every check-up, Cherish and I would connect to logically discuss from a place of knowledge and trust. It was not simply “We are not inducing”, but rather “We are trusting all positive signs of the monitoring and taking an educated stance on it not being medically necessary at this time.” To make a long story short, at 41 weeks and 6 days I finally gave birth to the most perfect, healthy and beautiful baby girl. There was no epidural, no cascade of interventions, no “emergency c section”. If it were not for Cherish’s support, I have no doubt my story could have gone very differently. Instead, when I think about my labor, even with all the variables I could not control for (and that is childbirth at the end of the day), I feel like I had as perfect of an experience as I could have wished for. Not because it was without its share of complexity, but because I truly felt I was in the best hands. Cherish’s presence carried me through every minute of labor’s pain and challenges. I wanted my labor to be intimate with just my partner and myself, and having Cherish did not distract from that in any way. (She had also met my partner in advance of my labor to provide him with tools to help support me in the process.) I ultimately felt more comfortable with her presence in my delivery room than I would have been with my own family. She truly has a place in my heart for life, and there is no question that if I were to go through this process again, I would hope (and be so lucky!) for Cherish to again be by my side.
- Dana D.
