"This work is a calling, to serve, educate and support ALL birthing persons in achieving their best birth. I am called to embrace parents with empathy, understanding, encouragement and evidence based information, to support their desires for birth and newborn parenting."
-Rebecca Duncan
As a professionally trained birth and postpartum doula, Rebecca has been serving the greater Bay Area since 2004. She is available for all of Solano, Contra Costa, Napa, and Alameda Counties, as well as San Francisco.
Great pride is taken in supporting ALL birthing persons, through the remarkable journey of birth. YOUR birth, YOUR way!
Experienced with both hospital and home births, Rebecca provides continuous physical, emotional and educational (evidence based) support of YOUR labor and birthing desires. Simply holding space for the birthing person throughout labor, birth and postpartum, encourages an inward journey, tapping into your own innate and intuitive ability.
Rebecca supports parents from all walks of life, in finding their own inner voice and instincts. Learning to trust your intuition will foster parents in creating attachment, harmony and a loving, close bond with their baby.
Rebecca’s background is in women's health as a Reproductive Health Specialist, Comprehensive Perinatal Worker and Accredited La Leche League Leader. She has professional training and experience in both the medical and psychiatric fields, with license and certifications, respectively.
Rebecca's experience as an accredited La Leche League Leader, supplied her with education and training in all aspects of the breastfeeding relationship. Rebecca has served the Bay Area and Eugene and Portland, Oregon area, providing her with an abundance of hands on experience, several years before becoming a professional doula.
Rebecca is also well versed in baby signs, baby wearing, continuum concept and attachment parenting. She has personally experienced both in hospital and at home births with her two daughters.
Workshops, trainings and expertise:
A birth doula is a non-medical person, experienced in childbirth. A birth doula is trained to provide continuous, one-on-one care as well as offering advice, information, emotional support and comfort to the birthing person, before, during and immediately after childbirth.
As a doula, with more than 14 years experience, Rebecca's passion is in supporting families in achieving the birth experience they desire. In providing the best service possible, Rebecca meets with prospective clients, for a FREE consult, to assure that she is the right fit for the family seeking support. Once it is determined that all parties feel comfortable and confident with each other, a deposit is taken to hold space for you on her calendar. (Final payment is invoiced with payment expected on the first in-home, postpartum visit)
The fees for services includes two prenatal meetings, phone/text/email support, evidence based education and guidance in creating a working, user friendly birth plan. Rebecca will make herself exclusively available to you 24/7 on-call, starting at 38 weeks. Support is then provided for the entirety of labor and birth as well as spending one to two hours immediately after birth. This time is ideal for baby's first latch and first attempt at breastfeeding. She will guide you in finding a comfortable and correct latch as well as teaching you about the different breastfeeding positions. All of this new information can be overwhelming. Not to worry, Rebecca will be repeating all these things to you at your first postpartum meeting.
At the first postpartum meeting, evidence based information on how to best care for your newborn is provided as well as addressing any breast or bottle feeding issues and postpartum recovery concerns, from a non-medical standpoint. Rebecca will guide you and demonstrate infant comfort techniques and all aspects of your newborns care, while supporting parent/baby bonding and attachment.
"If a doula were a drug, it would be unethical not to use it." John H. Kennel, MD
*Clients are referred to appropriate professionals when deemed necessary and/or out of Rebecca's scope of practice.
*Sliding scale fees and discounted rates available for teens, LGBTQI folks, marginalized folks, people of color and other extenuating circumstances. It is my goal to provide services to the underprivileged community, whenever possible, regardless of economic status.
"Every baby is born singing their own unique song. With the support of an experienced postpartum doula, you, as a new parent(s), will find the harmony, and all is beautiful!
.......then, your baby will change the song. And it begins all over again"
- Rebecca Duncan
CONGRATULATIONS! You have a new, little being, completely dependent on you to meet all their needs!
Exciting? Yes. Exhilarating? For sure! Most new parents discover there's a learning curve and are eager for guidance and support they can trust. Navigating your way through the “fourth trimester” (first 12 weeks after birth) can be challenging! Daytime and overnight postpartum services are available to support you and your family during this life altering transition. You may find yourself wondering, "What are my baby's needs? How can I best comfort my baby? How do I know what my baby's different cries mean? How can I meet my baby's needs while taking care of myself?" With the professional guidance of an experienced postpartum doula life can go from sleepless nights of feeding, burping, changing and comforting your baby, every two to three hours around the clock, to feeling more rested and more at ease with this new, uncharted territory with your newborn. Many parents are a bit taken back with the energy it takes in caring for a newborn. Breastfeeding can be challenging and uncomfortable at first. Rebecca guides breastfeeding parents in establishing a good latch and proper positioning, greatly improving any discomfort and fostering a beautiful bond in the nursing relationship. You may find yourself doing nothing but cluster feeding for what seems like 24 hours a day in the beginning! In fact its expected and important in supporting the establishment of a good milk supply. Especially in the first weeks of life.
With the reassurance, experience, education, emotional and physical support of a professional, issues can be identified early on and addressed appropriately. Hence, the entire family can better adjust and bond with this new member. Rebecca is honored to be of support and information during this life changing, often stressful period of time.
August 18, 2018
Most of the emphasis of childbirth is on pregnancy and the birth itself — not nearly enough attention is paid to the weeks and months after birth, which are in many respects, the toughest on parents, particularly new moms. Rebecca Duncan was a not uptight Mary poppins/fairy godmother to us during this period. She took care of our baby, and she took care of us (especially me, the mom). What does that mean? It means road tested, pragmatic advice on every topic imaginable, delivered in a non-intrusive and respectful way. Hate your baby carrier? Rebecca knows another brand you’ve never heard of that works for women your size. Exhausted and frustrated in the middle of the night by breastfeeding? Rebecca is encouraging and helpful, helping to align you and your body’s baby so you can work together as a team. Want to start using a bottle so your partner can get up in the middle of the night? Need to use formula because pumping just isn’t working for you? Rebecca will provide you with non-judgemental strategies to accomplish your goals. I’m convinced that our baby is such a great sleeper because Rebecca helped her get off to a great start, gently encouraging and nudging her towards the next step towards longer sleep. If it has been up to us bumbling along I’m sure our daughter would still be up half the night. Hire her! You won’t regret it.
-Dawn
*contact Rebecca for more info
"I can’t imagine the last stage of my pregnancy and labor experience without Rebecca. Rebecca is extremely knowledgeable in all things baby and labor related. She took the time to educate me on any topic I asked about and suggested additional information that she felt was relevant. She supported us with labor pain management techniques, our birth plan, breastfeeding help and so much more. From the moment we met her, we were drawn to her sunny personality, calm & assertive manner and by her warm & empathetic energy. I am extremely grateful Rebecca was in the delivery room with us. She is extremely intuitive & respectful and worked with my husband in teaching him the best way to support me. Not only is she a calming force she is a solid & knowledgeable care professional that had my back. This gave me the confidence to enter my birth experience with a calm mind set and have the calm & beautiful experience I hoped for."
J. Ordonia
"Rebecca was the best doula we could have possibly imagined. Before the birth, she listened to our expectations and made sure we were well-informed to make our birth plan a reality. I really appreciated that when she didn't know the answer to something, she immediately went home and researched it and asked her midwife / doctor colleagues for their professional opinions.
I had a very arduous, three-day birth, and Rebecca was there for us, 120%, for all 72 hours. She did everything from make conversation during the slow times, massage my feet during the uncomfortable times and spray my back with hot water / massage my back during the intense parts. She probably went to the nurses' station 45 times to reheat the lavender heating pad that she brought to make my back pain more bearable.
She was an excellent sounding board when the doctors presented us with difficult decisions and an invaluable resource for pain-management and labor progression options.
I didn't have any major issues postpartum but I know Rebecca would have been there for me via text, phone calls or in-person, should I have needed her.
I am so grateful for Rebecca and her care of me, my husband and newborn during our birth." I. Shields
My husband and I worked with Rebecca for our first born son. Being new parents, we have had (and still do) lots of questions and Rebecca has always been there to help! She helped me get through 4 days of prodromal labor and 40 hours of active labor to bring our bundle of joy into the world! She was my calm during such a trying time :) I highly recommend her for any baby needs!" R. Gust
“I would give Rebecca one million stars if I could. I feel so lucky to have found her when I did - I don't know how I would have made it through this experience of becoming a Mama without her. She is a wealth of experience, knowledge of birth and babies and a never ending source of positivity and encouragement that has been invaluable to me. She's the best!” N. Jackson