Charley

Meet Charley | Birth and Postpartum Doula & Newborn Care Specialist

Charley was a doula before she knew what a doula was. During her observations while going through nursing school, she was inspired to support families in the L&D ward with coaching through birth and postpartum. She had the desire to be more hands on vs. observing and charting, and knew working with families directly was more for her. While working with families as a nanny, she encountered doulas who offered overnight care while she supported babies during the day, and she thought, “That is what I do too!”

Noting how the doulas offered education, encouragement, and specific support around newborns, she decided to expand her reach into the doula and newborn care specialist world, as nanny life was already rich and wonderful and she wanted to have even more to offer. After taking several trainings in postpartum doula support, Charley has developed a love for supporting both tiny humans and their sweet parents as they both adjust to newborn life.

Charley’s experience includes working with tiny premature infants, little ones with reflux, twins, first time parents and families adding a new sibling. She has especially enjoyed working with families struggling with an infant with reflux, bringing a calm energy in times that were tough for the family and baby. A skill of hers that is called on frequently is helping with infant sleep problem solving, which can make everything more challenging in early parenthood. 

She is also glad to be able to support clients with postpartum depression or anxiety, helping to create a calm and peaceful space for the transition to parenting. She has experience supporting breastfeeding beginnings, including breast pump setup and formula feeding families, and especially nurturing the moms who ask a million questions, as many of her past clients have experienced.

In addition to her experience with tiny ones, she also has completed:

• CAPPA Postpartum Doula Training

• CAPPA Birth Doula Training

• Newborn Care Solutions NCS training

Charley’s philosophy of work is to leave the family in better shape than from when she arrived. While she loves to support newborns and tired parents, she also will make sure the house is picked up so parents have less to manage during the following day. She truly enjoys organizing and making sure the family’s space is functional, which we know can reduce anxiety, especially in the postpartum period.

Growing up in Vancouver, WA, Charley will travel a bit to serve families, but prefers the range of the Vancouver metro area. She loves working with furry family members too, as she has a cat and a dog herself and adores including her client’s pets in the new routine of baby life.

Charley prefers to work overnight, but also offers the sunrise (6-10am) and happy hour (4-8 pm) timing when families need another type of support. She has a fun and outgoing energy, coming from a family with 2 sisters and a close knit and good-humored clan. Her family loves to gather to play games and watch movies—and they are rarely serious. Enjoying a rich relationship with so many in her family has helped her to develop the ability to empathize with new client families, who all have a different take on parenting.

Our clients know that a caregiver who can be trusted to manage things is an asset to a family, especially when they know that she will carry out all their wishes while they rest and recuperate after delivery. Charley is a reliable and caring doula whose passion in life is to be the best care provider for infants and their families. As she often works long hours with a family, she brings her hard working, can-do attitude while always keeping the baby’s safety and comfort top priority. Having her in your home will help insure you have a smoother, more peaceful, and less cluttered postpartum recovery.