Ovum Doula Care
Pregnancy, Birth, Postpartum, and Menstrual Cycle Support
About
Hi, I’m Cali! I am a Certified Birth and Postpartum Doula and Midwife Assistant in training currently located in Philadelphia, PA. My passion for birth stems from the belief that birth is a physiological experience that deserves education, respect, and support. The pillars of my practice are bodily autonomy, body literacy, and educated consent within the birth space.
I became a trained Birth Doula through Bini Birth in 2018 and hold a certification through PALs Doulas in Seattle WA. I also hold a postpartum doula certification through ProDoula. Additionally I am trained in the Fertility Awareness Method of fertility tracking and have a 200 hour yoga teacher certification allowing me to support families with healthy movement during pregnancy. With a background in childcare, I see myself as a nurturer and enjoy inspiring empowerment in families through providing information, continuity of care, and support of their individual desires around their birth and parenting experience.
I am thrilled to be a part of your pregnancy and birth journey.
Mission
It is proven that people give birth the best when they feel safe. Whether this means a hospital birth, pain relieving drugs, a home birth, a natural birth, birth center etc, I am here to support you towards obtaining the birth that you envision, adapt to the unpredictable nature of childbirth and feel as safe as possible.
As a birth and postpartum doula, my mission is to walk alongside the birthing person throughout the entire process of pregnancy, labor, and new life with an infant providing physical, emotional and educational support every step of the way. I believe that birth is a normal physiological event that deserves consent, continuous support, and respect.
As I engage with your individual hopes and fears surrounding your birth experience, I will keep my personal views on birth aside and aid to create an environment of educated consent about the options for delivery and parenting. I vow to consistently educate myself on social justice issues related to birth and to continue to question how I can serve birthing people better.
When you enter the postpartum period, I will be there to meet your family's needs and provide educational support on the ins and outs of newborn care, breastfeeding, physical recovery and more.
I intend to grow my business and community, creating a network of support for my clients. I vow to hold the process of birth and postpartum with respect for the vulnerable, intimate event that it is with confidentiality and communication.
Services
Birth Packages
During your pregnancy it will be my top priority to provide the information, comfort, and resources you may need. All birth packages include unlimited phone and text support, prenatal visit(s), in person birth support, and a postpartum visit. I also offer photographs with all packages.
The areas covered in the prenatal visit(s) include the stages of labor, advocacy and intervention, postpartum healing, comfort measures, feeding, and pelvic dynamics among other topics. While supporting your birth in person, I will be focusing on encouraging your birth preferences, your comfort, advocating in each birth setting, birth positions, and explaining what may to expect. I will also be focused on supporting your partner so that they can be more present during the birth. After the baby is born, I will stay to help with the first latch or the first feed. The postpartum visit is a space to discuss the birth, ask any questions about infant care or feeding, and provide further resources.
Base Package
The base package includes unlimited text and phone support, one prenatal visit, on-call birth support, and a postpartum visit.
Standard Package
The standard package includes unlimited text and phone support, two prenatal visits, on-call birth support, and a postpartum visit. This package also includes an herbal sitz bath, herbal steam, and perineum/nipple/belly salve for postpartum healing. Additionally, this package includes an eBook on birth physiology, intervention and advocacy, feeding basics, and perinatal mental health written by Cali Machen CD and Maggie Saltiel LSW.
Advanced Package
The advanced package includes unlimited text and phone support, three prenatal visits, on-call support, and two postpartum visits. This package also includes an herbal sitz bath, herbal steam, and perineum/nipple/belly salve for postpartum healing. Additionally, this package includes an eBook on birth physiology, intervention and advocacy, feeding basics, and perinatal mental health written by Cali Machen CD, and Maggie Saltiel LSW.
Build Your Birth Plan Package
This package includes a 3 hour session either in person or via zoom to discuss and create your birth and postpartum plan.
*This package does not include on-call birth support
Add-ons
These services can be added to any birth package.
Belly Binding
Belly binding is a traditional practice in many areas of the world. The type I use is called Bengkung Belly binding which is a traditional Malaysian practice. It is done with a long piece of fabric and can help with postpartum physical abdominal support for the first 40 days after birth
Placenta Prints
One way to honor the placenta is to make a print of it on the canvas either with blood or with ink. This print shows the unique “tree of life” pattern of each placenta and is a sweet way to recognize the organ that nourished your baby for many months without keeping the organ itself.
Contact
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