![](https://doula.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/harriet1.jpg)
-
Postnatal (Mentored)
-
Birth (Mentored)
Lives in: London E5 0
Local info and availability:
I live in Hackney and I cover most areas of London and suburbs - I am willing to travel! I am available for postnatal work (both doula and Ayurveda support) starting immediately.
Languages spoken other than English:
Hindi-Urdu
Other services:
Ayurvedic post natal support,
Ceremonies
How to contact Harriet:
Use the Contact form below or:
https://www.risedoula.co.uk
info@risedoula.co.uk
07928282291
About Me
I’m a Doula, Registered Nurse, and Ayurvedic practitioner. I offer comprehensive pregnancy, birth, and postnatal packages using the ‘Continuum Doula’ model emphasising continuity of care. I also offer restorative Ayurvedic postnatal packages.
Prior to becoming a doula, I had assisted 2 close friends as a birth-partner, and it was these experiences that led me to realise that birth work offered me the opportunity to practice the aspects of nursing most important to me, that a busy hospital career did not – compassion, empathy, and individualised support. I felt myself instinctively adjusting to the role of a doula, before I had even undertaken the training.
After years of working in the health service and supporting women who have given birth within the NHS, I realised that the ‘person centred care’ I was delivering was limited by the structures I worked within. How could it be person centred care if only one model of healthcare is offered?
Having spent a chunk of my life in India (I speak fluent Hindi!), I decided to travel and learn from communities and cultures where healthcare is characterised by natural healing, nurturing, and community support. I spent time in a hospital where they blend western medicine with yoga, Ayurveda, and other traditional forms of healing in order to achieve the best outcomes for their patients; I worked in the 1 acre garden where 135 varieties of healing plants are grown, the medicine making department, and the clinics where patients come for treatment. I stayed in villages and learned about local healing remedies passed down through generations, and I learned from midwives in indigenous communities who continue an ancestral way of practice. I consolidated this learning by studying Ayurvedic Pregnancy Care and Baby Massage at the School of Ayurveda and Panchakarma in Kerala, India.
In my practice as a doula I combine this learning with my western medicinal training and experience to bring my clients the ‘best of both worlds’ – I am passionate about incorporating relevant aspects of traditional healing into modern lifestyles.
My medical training and experience of working with the NHS means that I have a thorough understanding of the physiological processes of pregnancy and birth, I am confident in navigating NHS processes and systems, I am cool, calm, and level-headed in all kinds of clinical environments, and above all I am a fearless advocate for my clients. I will never shy away from ensuring that my clients are receiving all the information about their care and giving full, informed consent for any interventions, and are getting the best possible care at every given moment.
I completed my Doula training with Kaz Woodbury using the ‘Continuum Doula’ model which emphasises the importance of continuity of care, and I offer 6 antenatal sessions plus 6 postnatal sessions. Given that my first experiences with birth work were with friends, right from the outset I felt the importance of knowing my clients well before accompanying in one of the most intimate of experiences – childbirth. I also offer flexible, bespoke packages – contact me for details.
I passionately believe that ancient knowledge and traditions of healing can fill the gaps left by modern western medicine, and offer huge benefits to people on their pregnancy and birth journeys. In many societies around the world, during the postnatal period the mother is nourished and cared for to restore her strength after the intense physical and emotional experience of birth. While we may not all have access to a ‘village’, my Ayurvedic postnatal packages offer some of the restorative, rejuvenating, and nourishing aspects of traditional postnatal care which are practical, relevant, and can be easily integrated into modern life.
Increasingly, modern research is proving that which traditional wisdom has always held true. In the crucial, transformative first weeks of parenthood, let the ancient wisdom of Ayurveda nurture your body, mind, and spirit back to full strength and prepare you for your ongoing journey.