WESTERN MA DOULAS

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Owner and Newborn Care Specialist, Karen Kurtigian, grew up with a large family – she was raised in a family of fourteen children in Western MA. Now, as a mom of four little ones, it is safe to say that she knows just about all there is to know about birth, babies, and parenting! Karen has always had an intense desire to nurture and care for other people. Whether her own siblings, or caring for the children of others, Karen’s passion for support and care has been a driving force in her life. Karen began supporting families in Greenfield MA as a doula in 2012. With nearly 13 years experience supporting families, she is a fixture in the local birth and parenting community. She is experienced in supporting all different types of birth, as well as all different parenting philosophies.

At Western Ma Doulas we believe that deep family support and community care should be at the center of all major life transitions. There is no greater of a transition than expanding your family and we aim to provide care throughout your parenting journey.

Reliabiltiy when you need it most. We are committed to ensuring that your needs are met when you need deep family support. Our scheduled time with your family, is for you to focus on self care.

It takes a certain level of trust to welcome in help. You recognize this is a need that you can’t afford to ignore. Our work together will leave you feeling rested, confident, and human. 

YOU HAVE A NEW BABY, this is no easy journey and what better way to start than having a Newborn Care Specialist hand-in-hand with your parenting journey. 

Think of it as a Baby Whisper (A client called me this the first morning they woke up after hiring me.) Or your personal Baby Ninja (Dad was amazed at how effective my “upset baby” strategy was.) 

While you focus on healing and bonding with your baby, we focus on:

Family wellness

Effective sleep help

Feeding support

Weekly milestones

Common Q&A

Can we establish a schedule with a newborn?

Yes! We begin with gentle sleep guidance straight away in combination with Your baby’s feeding cues.

When can I expect my baby to sleep longer during the night?

That depends on the method we use. Typically we start to get longer night sleep by 4 weeks. By 12 weeks I have baby’s sleeping all night (unless baby needs 1x feed)

Can we chest/breast feed as well as bottle feed?

Mixed feeding becomes easier when the bottle is introduced simultaneously with chest/breast feeding. 

How long do families hire help for? 

Three days or nights a week for four weeks is ideal and recommended. We like to get in and help ASAP as being a new parent is challenging those first few weeks. Most clients hire for 12 weeks- 3x nights a week.