I believe everyone deserves dignified care, unconditional support, access to resources and information, regardless of race, gender, socioeconomic status, religion, or sexual orientation. I believe in helping babies come into this world surrounded by love and support.
Doulas are non-medical, trained professionals that provide continuous physical, emotional, and informational support to people before, during, and after childbirth. Doulas are also utilized in other health related life changing events such as death.
I am here to answer questions, validate your feelings, and support your calling with information and compassion.
This is a great session for families considering adoption, surrogacy, IVF, or pregnancy planning.
This is a simple check-in for any trimester.
One hour phone or video call to see where you are with your birth plan, postpartum plan, prenatal care, etc.
This is a crash course for anyone that will be supporting the birthing person during labor and delivery. Oftentimes this is the partner, parent, or best friend of the birthing person. The goal of this session is to empower the birth support team with knowledge and confidence.
This is a virtual postpartum check-in. I want to stress that you don’t have to be struggling to deserve this support. This session is designed to help parents navigate the challenges, feelings, and questions that pop up once you have a child in the mix.
This session is designed for parents navigating pregnancy loss, abortion, fertility complications, still birth, or termination for medical reasons (TFMR).
My goal is to provide a compassionate and confidential space to support you through your grief and healing process.
It’s important that we have anchors during transformative times in our lives. Our stories help us process our journeys as they unfold. Oftentimes, a birth story can be a whirlwind. I will help you slow down and process your unique birth story regardless of if you want to share it with the world or if it’s just for your own peace.
Doulas are nonmedical trained professionals that provide continuous physical, emotional, and informational support to people before, during, and after childbirth. Doulas are also utilized in other health related life changing events such as death.
A doula is like your own personal birth coach. In the pregnancy stages, a doula can help prepare you for childbirth by assisting with a birth plan, helping you understand what to expect, supporting you with information to normalize any concerns, and empower you with confidence in your own ability to birth.
In the labor/delivery stages, a doula can offer comforting measures such as position suggestions, physical support, calming techniques, partner support, and help understanding phases of labor. A doula also serves as an advocate for the birthing person when they are in their most vulnerable states.
Postpartum doulas allow for a smoother transition to your new normal by providing educational support, newborn information, breastfeeding support, light housework, newborn care, food prep, and ensuring their client is safe and supported emotionally.
A virtual doula provides all the same educational, emotional/informational, and logistical support of an in-person doula. The difference is a virtual doula will always meet with you online. Recent studies have shown that just two meetings with a birth partner in the prenatal period vastly improves the chance of a positive birth outcome. Virtual doulas can work from anywhere and therefore serve more families in need.
In my experience and the way I support birth, the partner benefits from the doula in their own ways because a doula can coach the partner to be a better supporter. It can be overwhelming for partners to experience a sense of helplessness during labor and a doula can provide information to normalize their feelings and offer suggestions for physical touch/other ways to help.
I’m working on it and hope to offer Medicare coverage by 2025 for folks in Tennessee. If cost is an issue, please don’t hesitate to reach out. We will come up with a plan that works for your situation.
A midwife is a healthcare provider who is medically trained to provide obstetric and gynecological services, including primary care, prenatal and obstetric care, and routine gynecological care like annual exams and contraception.
A doula is NOT an alternative to a midwife, OBGYN, or healthcare provider.
Doulas are trained to provide emotional, physical, and informational support during reproductive events and other health related life events.
Colleen Keough is a compassionately curious mom of two human goobers and two feline goobers based in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
She studied art, photography, and media journalism in college and became a birth & postpartum doula after the birth of her kids.
She has been proudly serving families in East Tennessee since 2016.