THE DOULAS
This is your Journey. And we believe in you.
Birth and postpartum can often be filled with uncertainty. There are so many opinions and endless streams of conflicting information. One thing is certain: You deserve support! Radiant Joy Doulas are passionate about coming alongside of your in your journey, offering informational, hands-on and emotional guidance, encouragement and support so you can enter motherhood with confidence and joy!
LABOR SUPPORT
Providing support throughout your pregnancy and delivery, helping you feel confident and empowered!
POSTPARTUM SUPPORT
Providing support in your new role as a parent, helping you feel joy and fulfillment in the early days!
To Schedule a No-Cost Consultation:
LABOR SUPPORT
We believe all women, no matter when, where or with whom they choose to birth, deserve support during pregnancy and labor. A Labor Doula provides informational, emotional and physical support for families. With a Radiant Joy Doula, you will be supported and encouraged throughout the entire process! The presence of a Doula at birth has many benefits, including:
Decreased need for pain medication
Decreased cesarean rates
Decreased length of labor
More satisfaction with their experience of birth
INFORMATIONAL SUPPORT
Your doula knows and understands pregnancy and birth. She can help you understand your options so you are empowered to make the choices that are best for you.
EMOTIONAL SUPPORT
Your doula is here for you during all of the ups and downs and emotions you may encounter during pregnancy, labor and birth.
PHYSICAL SUPPORT
Your doula is trained to provide comfort measures - techniques that she can provide (or guide your partner to provide): counter pressure, breathing, position changes, and more!
-
• 2 Prenatal Visits (including the creation of a birth plan)
• Labor Support (Including immediate postpartum support)
• 1 Postpartum Visit
• Access to Radiant Joy Community Groups
1• 0% discount on Childbirth Education Classes
• 10% discount on Childbirth Education Class
• $15 discount on Nutrition for Two Class
• 10% discount on in-office Lactation Consultation Intake Appointment with Milk and Honey Lactation Services
-
A Doula is a trained professional who provides continuous, hands-on, informational, emotional and physical support before, during and immediately after childbirth. Doulas are not medical providers, but they can provide comforting touch, counter pressure, help with breathing techniques, and position suggestions to help a woman manage discomforts of labor.
Doulas help families by offering non-judgmental support and encouragement. Their presence helps not only the mother, but the support team (partner and/or family members) in their involvement in the birthing process. Doulas are also trained to connect families with evidence-based research and resources so they can exercise true informed consent and advocate for themselves and their needs. (1)
-
Many scientific studies have demonstrated that the presence of a doula has an amazing physical and psychological impact on outcomes for birthing families. The use of a Doula has been shown to decrease labor length, the need for labor augmentation, and requests for epidurals. Overall, they decrease the amount of stress and anxiety experienced during labor and delivery. (2)
-
No matter how great your partner is, it can be very difficult to know how to support a woman in labor. A Doula is not only a great support to the laboring woman, but she is also an encouragement to the birth partner as well. This can look like offering suggestions and guiding the birth partner on how to best provide support to their laboring loved one.
-
No matter your birthing choice, a Doula can provide the support and comfort needed during the experience. The role of a Doula allows a mother to have a safe and pleasant birth, but Doulas don’t make choices for birthing mothers.
If you are planning an epidural or a cesarean section, Doulas can still help with comfort measures, informational support regarding the process, or side effects of medication, and can be a voice of encouragement and support through the whole process.
-
Before deciding to hire a Radiant Joy Doula, we offer complimentary consultations in our office. Consultations are scheduled for 60 minutes and offer an opportunity to ask all of your questions and see if you have a connection with the Doula.
-
The beauty of hiring a Radiant Joy Doula is that there will always be a trained and compassionate Doula available as backup if your Doula happens to be at another birth. Some Radiant Joy Doulas work in teams of two; so you get to know both of them, with the understanding that one of them will be available to come to you in labor.
BIRTH DOULA FAQS
To Schedule a No-Cost Consultation:
POSTPARTUM SUPPORT
Bringing home a new baby is a mix of pure joy and unconditional love. But throw in exhaustion, a little bit of overwhelm and some uncertainty, and most families find they could use extra support during this transitional time in their family’s journey. A Radiant Joy postpartum doula provides time and space for you to meet your own needs by tailoring support to meet your unique situation and challenges.
Snuggle your little one while your doula folds laundry. Take a relaxing bath while your doula tends to the baby’s needs. Maximize sleep while your doula changes diapers and helps with nighttime feeds.
POSTPARTUM DOULA FAQS
-
The main job of the postpartum doula is to “mother the mother and nurture the family. They provide non-medical support that is emotional, physical and informational in nature. They help with infant feeding, soothing and care. They also tend to mom as she recovers, helps facilitate bonding and makes the adjustment to life with baby easier.
-
Radiant Joy doulas help with light housekeeping only. They may fold baby laundry, sanitize bottles or pump parts, wiping down counters or emptying the dishwasher, etc.
-
No. Doulas don’t stay home alone with your baby. Rather, postpartum doulas are there to provide you with time you need to bond with your baby, have self care or offer guidance through informational, emotional or hands-on support.. So, feel free to leave baby with the doula while you nap, take a bath/shower or read a book to your toddler.
-
While a la carte support is available, we suggest booking packages in advance so that we can meet your scheduling preferences. Packages come in increments of 50 hours.
-
Yes. We ask for a deposit to hold your spot on our calendar.
-
Daytime shifts are a minimum of 4 hours. Overnights a minimum of 8 hours. Most families utilize this service for the fourth trimester, or first 3 months of the baby’s life. Some families find the help so valuable that they keep their doula for longer.
-
In order to ensure availability that works for your family, it is best to interview and hire your postpartum doula during your pregnancy, usually in the third trimester. Some families don’t realize that they need a postpartum doula until after the birth of their baby. We encourage you to reach out as soon as you know you would like to hire a postpartum doula.
To Schedule a No-Cost Consultation:
MEET OUR DOULA TEAM
FAITH L.
Doula Agency Director
After the birth of her two children and a background working in healthcare Faith started working as a doula in 2015. After a decade of pouring her heart into birthwork, Faith’s life went through some major changes that required her to step away from working on call. Faith always enjoyed her work as a doula and would often say that she believed that God put this deep passion in her heart: to help and support women as they become mothers, no matter if it is their first birth or tenth! So when God arranged for her to step into the role of Radiant Joy's Doula Agency Director, it was a clear extension of that calling. Faith is thrilled to be able to continue doing what she loves and support women by connecting them not just to any doula but “the right doula” for them. Additionally, she is passionate about guiding and uplifting doulas through mentorship, education, and ongoing support, helping them thrive both personally and professionally. Faith sees this role as a chance not only to serve families, but to help grow and strengthen the doula community as a whole.
Faith's passions in life revolve around her faith in Jesus, her kids, and her Jiu Jitsu. When she isn't homeschooling her 2 kids, you can usually find her at the gym where she trains with her husband and kids. Faith also enjoys being out in nature and especially loves spending time near the water. Faith is a self-proclaimed introvert but she can talk about childbirth, homeschooling or Jiu jitsu with anyone.
EM B.
Birth Doula
Em is a Birth Arts trained and certified doula and has been working for over a dozen years. Her passion for birth began at age 5 when she decided she wanted to be a labor and delivery nurse. The Lord had other plans, however, and she was first introduced to a doula in 2012. After attending her first birth, she was hooked and knew she had found her calling. She has been attending births ever since in hospitals, birth centers and at home.
When she is not attending births, Em is a full time wife, mother and runner. She lives in Akron with her husband and son and enjoys reading, the beach, running half marathons and going out with friends. Em’s biggest passion, though, is her relationship with the Lord and she desires nothing more than to continuously grow close to Him and allow Him to be seen and made known through her work, both in the birth field and outside of it.
ANGIE H.
Birth and Postpartum Doula
As a wife and mother of five, Angie feels like she’s been training for this job her whole life! Having experienced postpartum depression with each pregnancy, she also understands the importance of having support during these most important and beautiful moments of life. She believes that the opportunity to serve as a doula is a way God is redeeming the difficult times she experienced - reclaiming them for good. To her, doula work is truly being the hands and feet of Jesus. After homeschooling and raising a family for the past 25+ years, this is her dream-come-true job. Angie is enjoying being a grandma to a sweet baby boy, teaching art classes, doing pottery, crocheting and kayaking in her *spare* time.
LEAH P.
Birth Doula
Leah has been a faith and physiology-first, Certified Doula, who revere’s God’s design and aims to protect and support both physiology and faith at every turn in pregnancy through birth since 2021.
Having given birth herself in hospital and at home with midwives, as well as at home unassisted, Leah is prepared to join a variety of birth teams no matter their makeup, birthing location, or goals. She is also the mom of a little one in Heaven and knows intimately the experience of pregnancy after loss, which can be of such value for the right mama.
Leah believes that birth is transformative no matter how it goes, which is why she values autonomy, communication, transparency, honesty, and respect. When these values are honored, even a birth that doesn’t go as hoped can transform and empower a woman into exactly the mom she was meant to be for such a time as this
LIZZY H.
Birth Doula
I am 21 years old and a senior at the University of Mount Union, working to get my degree in psychology. I have my birth doula certification and working towards becoming a mid wife. I have always had an interest in this field because I think the whole birthing process and experience is an amazing and beautiful thing. I can’t wait to start this journey of becoming a doula and be able to be of comfort and support.
AMBER R.
Postpartum Doula
Amber is a Pastor's wife, homeschooling mother of 8, entrepreneur, Doula, Certified Natural Health Professional, Certified Health Specialist, Nanny and Early Childhood Educator who specializes in infant and toddler development.
She first found a love for babies and their families as a young child herself, often taking care of younger family members' babies or toddlers. Raised in a natural household and Jesus believing family, Amber would often eat a salad for a dessert instead of a sweet. (:
Amber has an empathetic, compassionate, peaceful and loving heart towards infants and their Mothers.
It wasn't until much later in life, in 2018, with her own home birth postpartum struggles that she knew she was called to birthwork. In 2020, she began her journey on becoming a Doula and midwife assistant. She has been a Doula since then and has helped many women in the home birth setting as well as some in a hospital setting too. She believes that the postpartum period should be a sacred time for healing, slow living, bonding between mother, baby and family not only physically but mentally, emotionally and spiritually. Amber loves to learn, is passionate about teaching her children and ministry work with her beloved husband. She enjoys spending time with family and friends, singing worship music, praying for others, natural health living, and drinking tea. It would be her honor and her joy to walk alongside you and your family to create a joyful, peaceful and loved postpartum journey.
Maddi J.
Birth and Postpartum Doula
Maddi is a passionate Doula, Licensed Practical Nurse, and Midwifery student committed to providing compassionate, faith-led support to women and families throughout their reproductive journey.
Her calling to birth work began after the home birth of her first baby in 2021. Although it wasn’t the right season to dive in at that time, everything shifted in 2023 when the Lord led her into the field of Nursing. Halfway through school, during prayer, she was given a beautiful vision of her daughter’s birth—only this time, she was the midwife. She asked the Lord if it was finally her time, and since then He has guided her steps so clearly and purposefully.
She is now training under the very Midwife who supported her during my daughter’s birth, and it has been an incredible journey of learning and growth. While continuing her midwifery training, she felt called to begin serving families as a Doula—and she has loved every moment of it. She is truly grateful for the opportunity to walk alongside families during one of the most sacred seasons of their lives, and thankful for the calling the Lord has placed on her heart.
Holli P.
Birth and Postpartum Doula
Holli is a certified birth and postpartum doula and daughter of the King! She feels birth work is her life’s calling, and she thanks God everyday for leading her to it. She even hopes to become a midwife someday.
There is nothing she loves more than witnessing, nurturing, and empowering a woman on her journey from conception to postpartum. Over the years, she’s worked closely with midwives as mentors and has been part of doula collectives, which have deepened her knowledge and her ability to hold safe, grounded space for families.
Her care is mother-centered, and when working together, she’ll help you prepare holistically – mentally, emotionally, physically, and remind you that God is always with you through this sacred season in your life. She’s here to help you release fear, trust your intuition, and feel confident as you walk on this journey. It is all possible when God is on your side.
Holli combines evidence-based knowledge with deep intuition, offering herself as a steady guide who helps parents feel confident and capable in their choices throughout their pregnancy and postpartum seasons. She loves weaving ancient practices into care like the use of herbs, teas, movements, rest and nourishing foods.
Outside of the birth room, Holli is an earthy, Jesus loving gal that loves herbal teas, a good latte, hiking, backpacking, cycling, reading, gardening, and spending time outdoors with her partner and pups.
Julie L.
Birth Doula
Julie has had the honor of serving expecting families for the last 7 years. Her journey began with the deeply transformational, unplanned pregnancy and subsequent birth of her daughter. As a single Mother, she felt the need to gain as much knowledge as possible to prepare for birth and motherhood. During her studies, she realized her passion for understanding birth and encouraging other women. Walking the path of single motherhood drew her back to her roots of faith in Christ. Through the process of healing and growth, God prepared her for her now husband. When her daughter was a toddler, she married Brad. He was a widower with two precious children. Since their marriage they have adopted each other's children and added two more to their crew. Julie considers it a gift to be able to support families walking their own transformative journey of growth.
For many years Julie served as a birth and postpartum doula, as well as childbirth educator. She is dedicated to walking alongside families as they are empowered with knowledge surrounding birth and parenthood. In her spare time, she utilizes her passion for learning to home educate her five children, as well as planning fun trips and adventures. She enjoys spending time in deep conversations and belly laughs with friends and family.
To Schedule a No-Cost Consultation: