Personal Introduction:
I am a birth doula based in Coleraine, on the North Coast of Northern Ireland. Mum to two children and a scientist by training, both roles contribute to my work as a doula. As a mum I experienced pregnancy, labour, birthing and nursing my babies. On the other hand, my scientific mindset can really help in collecting and discussing information about birth and all things-birth that can help my clients make informed decisions about, during and after the birth of a baby.
I first came to know about doulas in 2007 when expecting my first child and I thought doulas could be a great support for parents. As an Italian living abroad, I always missed the support of an extended family around me and as a doula I hope to provide that kind of familiar and positive support one could get from close family. A woman's wishes, feelings and intuition are my priority.
I have attended births since October 2014, working as a doula on a part-time basis, and supported women during home births, births in MLUs, c-sections, VBACs, inductions and women with breech babies and twins. Some of my clients have specific health and personal circumstances and they believed in having a doula as an additional support person they were familiar with and comfortable around. I help my clients achieve what is best for them and their babies.
Additional stand-alone services that I provide are:
3 Step Rewind process to help overcome any trauma or distressing feeling related to previous experiences (birth but not only!).
Virtual doula (for those wanting personalised, one-to-one support to prepare for the birth but are too far away to do so in person).
Last-minute doula, if you really need a birth partner at the last moment.
Spinning Babies techniques to support optimal baby's positioning and comfort to mum.
Areas covered include the Northern, Belfast and Western HSC Trusts (Altnagelvin, Causeway, Antrim, Mater, Royal Victoria, and Ulster hospitals; and home births).
2016 - Spinning Babies training.
2016 - "The Rebozo Element" workshop.
2017 - Mindful rebozo online course.
2017 – Microbirth online webinar
2017-2018 - Infant Loss Training
2018 - Association of Breastfeeding Mothers "Team Baby" course.
2019 - 3 Step Rewind Practitioner training.
"From the start, Sara was reassuring and knowledgeable. Through many conversations she encouraged and guided us to ensure we arrived at decisions that were right for us. She also made us think about what we would do if things didn’t go as planned. I say us because I think it was also vital that my partner was involved and supported as he was my rock getting through labour!
Through all the preparations, she always was careful to not give her opinion but to bring out what we wanted through discussion of options in our conversations. It was also great to talk about how things were going at ante-natal appointments.
I truly believe this preparation enabled us to have a positive experience, empower and equip us with knowledge, and manage our expectations. We decided on a midwife-led unit and an active labour and water birth but I know Sara would have been supportive of any type of birth, anywhere."
"Following a very traumatic first birth and post-natal experience I fell pregnant again quite quickly and had not had time to fully process the trauma I had experienced or the emotions that were attached to it. As I was going through the second pregnancy and preparing for birth again I really struggled to detach from my first experience with birth. This meant that I would struggle to talk about and plan for the second birth at antenatal appointments without getting emotional and being reminded of my first experience.
I went to Sara for Rewind Therapy to help me process what I had been through during my first birth – I found this experience extremely useful in helping me to identify how I felt about key moments during my first birth experience and ultimately let go of these emotions and accept what has happened.
After this I have been able to talk more easily about my first birth experience during antenatal appointments, address my main concerns and plan for my second birth. I am now able to look forward to my second birth with excitement and can separate it fully from my first experience."