Meet Amy & Liz
Amy Thomson
When I gave birth in 1997, I was young, single, and far away from any kind of family or support network. While I was excited to become a mother, I was also terrified. After all, what did I know about keeping a tiny human alive? Turns out that fierce love and solid instincts swiftly took once I met my daughter all those years ago, and I managed to raise her up to be the beautiful, strong, intelligent, talented person she is today. We got through it; the breastfeeding challenges, the sleepless nights, the worries and concerns, and each amazing milestone. But, blurry and amazing as it all was it was really, really hard.
It was during those early days that I learned about postpartum doulas: kind humans that were specifically dedicated to helping frazzled mamas (like me) navigate all of this stuff. I was instantly pulled towards making it my mission to become the person that makes those early months of parenthood a little easier for new parents. No one should have to muddle through this stuff alone, partnered or otherwise.
I completed both the Birth and Postpartum Doula training at the Seattle Midwifery School and have been serving postpartum families since 2002. It is my greatest joy to help families find their own way as new parents so that they can approach the first few weeks and months postpartum with confidence. There is not a one-size-fits-all strategy to supporting families. My role as a doula is to contribute without interference, offer support, guidance, information, and to provide individualized care for each unique family as they embark into parenthood. I love to troubleshoot and normalize areas of uncertainty and help parents get off to a great start.
I have extensive experience working with preemies, singletons, multiples, surrogacy, adoption, maternal postpartum mood disorders, lactation support, parent (infant) education, medically fragile/special needs babies, and infant sleep independence training. I am certified in Infant and Child CPR and First Aid and am committed to ongoing education in maternity and postpartum care.
Liz Azulay Gardner
I decided to become a doula as soon as I realized I could actually nurture people for a living. After many years in retail management and sales, I realized that the only parts of my job I truly loved were the parts that involved supporting my staff and being kind to people, so I decided to rather abruptly quit my job and begin doula training at Bastyr University. Since then I have never looked back! Although I trained as both a birth doula and a postpartum doula (and love both), I have decided that postpartum work is precisely the right fit for me.
I am now honored to have a career in which I am able to help new families adjust to parenthood. I am the mom of two very grown-up and wonderful boys, Gabriel and Milo, and my own postpartum journeys as their mother taught me how important it is to have loving, nonjudgmental, informed support. And how hard that can be to come by.
I grew up on a farm outside of Boston, Massachusetts, and in my free time, I am likely either doing a crossword puzzle, knitting or reading some riveting non-fiction while drinking tea.
In 2019 I took a 6-month sabbatical to travel the world; Transylvania, Marrakesh, and Sarajevo were among the highlights. While abroad I became The Roving Doula and wrote about it here.