ABOUT

---

I am an architect, doula, lactation counselor, design consultant, and educator.  My focus is the intersection of design and birth and the impact that environment has on experiences, outcomes, disparities, and mortality, during the entire perinatal period.

Prior to founding Doula x Design, I was a Founder and the Managing Principal at SHoP, an internationally renowned architecture firm based in NYC, for over 20 years, and was the William Henry Bishop Visiting Professor of Architectural Design at Yale University for the 2023-2024 academic year, teaching a graduate level studio on spaces of birth.    

I am DONA (Doulas of North America) trained, a BDP Certified Advanced Birth Doula (CABD), and an ALPP Certified Lactation Counselor (CLC). I am fluent in Spinning Babies®  labor comfort and progress techniques and a Professional Member of Evidence Based Birth® receiving frequent continuing education on the best practices in the field.  I am a member of the AABC (American Association of Birth Centers), NYSCBA (New York State Birth Center Association), as well as the MMHC (Mobilize Maternal Health Coalition).

 I am a registered architect (RA) in the State of New York, with licensure pending in the State of Maine, and a member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA). I have participated in architectural juries at several universities including Columbia, Cornell, Harvard, Yale, Art Institute of Chicago, Berkeley, and University of Maine.  In addition, I serve on the Advisory Board of Madame Architect, an online magazine celebrating the extraordinary women who shape our world, as well as the AIA Maine Program Committee, and the Architalx Board. 

Beyond my passion for birth and design, I enjoy my lifelong engagement in ballet and photography. I am a mother of two daughters, birthed in New York City with the unwavering support of my midwife and doula. 

My goal is to create awareness of how environment, at the scale of the individual and the scale of the structure, profoundly impacts birth and postpartum experience, outcome, disparity and mortality, and to reframe childbirth as a societal topic, rather than a women's issue. 

Childbirth is a universal experience. We are all born and have all  been impacted by the design of birth spaces, whether we realize it or not. Childbirth is one of the most physiological and healthy of all human experiences, albeit not without risk. However, over time, birth has been medicalized, and even pathologized, and is now viewed as a condition to be managed, rather than as a normal life event.  

As such, the design of many contemporary labor and delivery spaces is often a mismatch for childbirth, and designed for the benefit of the practitioner, rather than for the birthing person.  Ideally, one's birth environment should create a sense of safety and privacy, foster one's sense of agency, allow freedom of movement and change of position, and reduce stress and fear.  The majority of current birth spaces remain modeled on acute hospital care, and are the antithesis of these qualities. 

How can we modify and redesign  these spaces of women's health for the benefit of mothers, babies, and families?

Become the boss of your own birth to help make it a positive one. Empower yourself by being informed about every decision regarding your body, your baby, and your environment. 

Evidence shows that when doula is part of your team, labors are shorter with fewer complications, less pain, reduced stress and fewer unnecessary interventions, like forceps and C-sections. Babies are born healthier and breastfeed more easily. The transition that comes with the arrival of a baby and the birth of a mother is made easier and the risk of postpartum depression is reduced. I can help you get there with knowledge, support and confidence.

A doula was integral to my two pregnancies and births. The power and inspiration of those experiences led me to make a major career shift, after 25 years in design, to supporting pregnant people and families like you.

  While childbirth is challenging and complications can occur, your body is designed to give birth. I will help you understand your anatomy, physiology and the strength of the mind-body connection in a way that is easy to understand.  We will envision and create a safe emotional and physical environment that allows your body to do its thing. If a laboring mother does not have a sense of privacy, safety and dignity, her fight or flight hormones will kick in interfering with the process of labor, thus inviting unnecessary intervention. Knowledge is power, especially in birth.

  You are busy. It is time consuming and can be overwhelming to wade through perinatal information - books, websites, class listings.   I will streamline resources for you. I will provide unbiased evidence based data, answers to your questions and resources that will be most relevant to you and your birth partner before, during and after the arrival of your baby.

 Not sure if you and your care provider are a good match? Let’s talk about why or why not.  Have no idea which classes to take? I can provide options that work with your schedule and budget. Wondering what you can do to prepare your body for labor and birth? I can provide information tailored to your learning style. Want to learn and practice coping techniques for labor? We can do that over Zoom. Aren’t sure if you are in early labor? Call me and we can talk it through. Struggling with breastfeeding?  We can do a FaceTime consult to assess baby's latch.

In addition,  as a virtual doula, I am able to be present for you in whatever way feels right in the moment during your labor, regardless of hospital in-person support restrictions.

When one thinks of the benefits of hiring a doula, images of a support person beside a laboring parent may come to mind. But the beauty of doula care is that it exists to do more than help to physically bring your baby into the world. The care that a parent receives during the entire perinatal period is just as important as the medical outcome of birth. A virtual doula is a compassionate, constant presence during pregnancy, labor, birth and the postpartum period, providing guidance, resources and emotional support that are a text, call, or video chat away, whenever you  need it. A virtual doula will point you to reliable sources of information, share tips and tools, impart clarity during moments of decision making and provide a wealth of unbiased, evidence-based knowledge so that you and your partner can make your own decisions with confidence.