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baby-moon (noun) · baby-moons (plural noun) A relaxing or romantic vacation taken by parents-to-be before their baby is born. “on the eve of my third trimester, we boarded a plane for a week-long babymoon among the quiet canals of Amsterdam” A period of time following the birth of a baby during which the new parents can focus on establishing a bond with their child. “a babymoon is regarded as a crucial time for a family to establish itself”
My goal is to make sure that your pregnancy, birth and postpartum times are filled with amazing memories; and to support and educate you in your transition into parenthood. Using my experience as a mother and as a Doula to empower you, and offer you nonjudgmental, and understanding support.
After assisting with my sister’s pregnancy in 2009, I knew that the role of a Doula was for me. I’m a single mother of two beautiful grown daughters and an Auntie to one amazing nephew all born and raised in Toronto. I’ve worked as a Cardiac Technologist, Phlebotomist, and HR Recruiter and in Health and Safety for the Provincial Government as a Product Launch Specialist.
I currently live in Etobicoke with my partner Robert and our Border Collie rescue Molly.
It’s my honour to support you through your birth and postpartum experience with ease and comfort, whatever that may look like; providing you with resources and evidence based information to guide you and support you.
My Experiences as an Educator and Doula
Certifications and Associations
“I have to tell you, I never imagined that a (Postpartum) Doula could be so helpful! She is very knowledgeable and always has some tips for me which is sooooooo helpful for a new mom! She is also very kind and caring which (our baby) loves! She is just a fun, amazing person to be around! I cannot tell you enough how much difference she made for me as a new mom who has no family here! We just love her!!!!!!!” – AA
“I just wanted to say a very big thank you to Carissa for helping me along my pregnancy journey. I couldn’t have asked for a better Doula. From the minute we met, my husband and I were so comfortable with her presence. She understood exactly what we were looking in terms of support, and followed through all the way post birth. She was very fast at addressing any concerns we had at any time of day, and provided relevant research/information to read up on as well, which was very helpful. We would absolutely recommend her to anyone looking for a Doula, since she made us feel very at ease from day one, as first time parents. Thank you again,” – AC
“It gives me great pleasure to write this letter of recommendation for Carissa of Babymoon Doula Solutions. I met Carissa through the Birth Doula Programme at Markham Stouffville Hospital and my husband and I instantly felt a connection to her. As first time parents, we did not know what to expect with respect to labour and birth and so it was really important to us that we had the support we needed. Choosing to have a Doula, and specifically, choosing to have Carissa as our Doula, was not a decision we made lightly. What played into our choice was her calm demeanour and her willingness to understand and work with our cultural and family values. Also importantly, she demonstrated that she would be able to respectfully help family members participate in helping me get through labour and birth. Even though I ended up having a Caesarean birth due to my baby’s breech position which was diagnosed towards the end of my labour, I do believe that having Carissa by my side helped me get through early and active labour without the help of pain medications or other interventions. She remembered my birth wishes and supported me and my family in the best way possible. For my next child, whenever that time comes, I hope to have a VBAC. Given my health factors, whether I choose an Obstetrician or a Midwife, I certainly will choose to have a Doula by my side. And when that time comes, I sincerely hope that I can have Carissa as my Doula again. All of this is just a roundabout way of saying that – yes, I definitely recommend Carissa and Babymoon Doula Services for their stellar service. Thank you Carissa! Because of your support, I am happy with the birth I got, even though it was not the birth that I envisioned.” – JF
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As first time parents, the virtual childbirth education and support that we received from Carissa was invaluable, her warmth, together with her vast knowledge gave us what we needed in order to feel prepared and to live the last weeks of pregnancy, birth and postpartum with consciousness, confidence and joy.
We really appreciated Carissa’s well educated but undogmatic approach, she is an excellent teacher!
She offered a lot of background and details about birth and becoming a mother.
She gave us options without being too instructive, she anticipated common misconceptions and the sessions had surprising entertaining bits!
We are more than thankful for Carissa’s meaningful guidance and we highly recommend her to any parent to be!
Thank you so much for everything!
Carrisa gave me the encouragement and support I needed throughout the last few weeks of my pregnancy and during my birth. She held me when I needed it, and talked me through the pain when my husband had to look over our little one or when he just didn't know what I needed to hear, which allowed me to have the home birth I always dreamed of. She was always soo easy to get ahold of and has alot of knowledge about all different types of births which I found super helpful. I would highly recommend her to anyone looking for an advocate and unconditional support during their birth and afterwards. She has such a warmth to her which was exactly what I needed during it all, I will forever be grateful to her. 10/10 would reccomend her and will use her again for any future births we may have!
Hiring Carissa was the best decision my husband and I made on our journey to becoming first time parents.
She was everything we wanted and needed her to be and more. Attentive, caring, professional, knowledgeable, intuitive, thoughtful, funny… and the list goes on. From our first meeting to last home visit we felt safe, supported and seen.
There is so much about birth that you can’t control. Baby comes when and where it wants to! While I always had a flexible mindset about how it all might or might not happen, Carissa helped me distill what was really important to me: having my husband at my side the. whole. time. And when the time came, Carissa showed up at the hospital right when we asked her to and took care of both of our needs so that we could stick together. She was there to ease our minds and know what to expect, support us through contractions, grab water, ice and containers for me to throw up in to, encourage us to rest, and just chat with in the quieter moments. She also took some pictures of our daughter and family right after she was born which are such treasured memories. Carissa helped facilitate such a positive birth experience for me. It wouldn’t have been the same without her.
Carissa continued to check in with and encourage us once we were home from the hospital. When we needed a recommendation for a lactation consultant she was quick to get back to us with contact info for consultants in our area. After our last visit with her I looked at my husband and told him that I’d have another baby tomorrow just to have her back! And should we have another baby, the only thing I would do differently is hire her for more dedicated and ongoing postpartum support.
Carissa was worth every penny. She is fantastic. I cannot recommend her highly enough.
Carissa was an invaluable member of our birth team and part of our journey through pregnancy and into parenthood!
Not only did we want a doula for to help with me through what to expect and experience in pregnancy, it was a great way to offset and decrease overall stress on my husband and I's relationship. Carissa was a great teacher and source for my husband to learn and understand how to be supportive during pregnancy and labour.
Carissa's knowledge and support got us through labour and delivery with low stress and realistic expectations. I feel like my labour and delivery was traumatic and dramatic (at the time), but reflecting on it and with how Carissa supported and prepared us, it was a positive experience!
If you are looking for an awesome Doula, someone who will make you laugh during the most painful experience of your life (literally), look no further - call Carissa now!!
I had a rough, long labor but have the fondest memories of the hours, all thanks to the INCREDIBLE support of Carissa. She was emotionally very supportive and kind, attentive to my every need, and never left my side for a minute. I loved her professional yet soft attitude and appreciated that she was so experienced and knew exactly what I needed before I even asked. If it wasn’t for her care, I would have had a terrifying, if not traumatic, birth experience.
Thank you Carissa for everything you did for both AJ and I during the most emotional moments of our life. We are forever grateful for your amazing work, passion, and care. YOU ROCK!!