Testimonials About Vicky York

"I can't say enough good things about Vicky. My husband and I had a terrible hospital experience, we were denied a lactation specialist, given terrible advice, and our baby was maimed by a careless nurse in the hospital that culminated with us leaving the hospital a day early and our new daughter needing 3 stitches. Our Doula suggested that we call Vicky to assist us with post partum care. When I called her at my wits end, I was in tears. Unable to nurse, feeling completely useless, I had no idea how I was going to take care of my new baby. Vicky arrived at our house within the hour. Yes, she does housecalls!

Vicky listened intently to our story of our experience at the hospital, showed immense empathy, and immediately set about to gently and kindly offer us the tools to nurture our new daughter. We went from suffering scabby nipples and no milk to feeding formula in a bottle to using SNS tubing to using a nipple shield to finally latching and nursing with just mommy and baby. Vicky gave gentle, sensible advice. She never preached or scolded, just gently reassuring us that with consistency, education, and patience, we would have a great nursing experience. I dont know what I would have done without Vicky. I truly believe that without her, my baby would be drinking formula from a bottle. I literally cried through every attempted feeding before Vicky came to the rescue, feeling like I was scarring my child for life, now I look forward to nursing time to bond with our little girl. I now know that this experience is not insurmountable and it is well worth the hard work. I would have given up without Vicky. I and my daughter owe her the greatest thanks for gently encouraging the bond that is growing between us. When I'm nursing now and my baby looks up at me and spits out my nipple and smiles mischeviously and I relatch her and smile back, I cant help but to think a little silent thank you to Vicky. I would very highly reccomend that anyone having a baby make sure to hire a post partum Doula, especially Vicky York. She's absolutely a lifesaver."

"Vicky York was a nurse at the time of my daughter Julie's birth, at Vancouver Memorial Hospital in Vancouver Washington. After Julie was born, in the nursery at the hospital, she was choking and turning colors. Julie's father was admiring her through the nursery window when this started to happen. Luckily Vicky was close by and came to Julie's aid. Vicky gently aspirated Julie and her choking stopped and her color came back. Because Julie was born C-section she still had mucus in her throat that was causing her distress. Vicky helping Julie was paramount because two years earlier we had lost our first daughter at the time of her delivery, caused by placenta previa, so to watch Julie turning colors and choking was too much to bear. We will always be grateful to Vicky for taking care of our beautiful little baby girl. Later on Vicky did some daycare for us and she was exceptional. We have been friends ever since Julie's birth, 34 years ago. I recommend Vicky for any and all infant care."

"Vicky York is a superb doula and my husband and I give her the highest recommendation to anyone considering this invaluable service for new parents. If anyone asks a soon-to-be first time mother what she would want as a shower gift, I would recommend the doula services of Vicky York. For the very important time of breastfeeding twin newborns, teaching us new parents about newborn care at home, and helping resolve the situation of small gestational weight for our twins, she was there to help with these issues for us. She was active in taking care of our newborns from their first arrival home and allowed us to enjoy moments during this intense time.

Her lasting gifts to us from her services were 1) alleviating apprehension of newborn care when the babies came home as she was there to help and guide us, 2) teaching me and the twin babies the art of breastfeeding to the point where I could feed both at once and get to the point that they were relying solely on breast milk, 3) getting our twins to the point where they were “above average” according to our pediatrician with respect to weight gain at their one and two week stage solely through breastfeeding and well on their way for weight gain, 4) helping me heal from childbirth, understand the changes that were going on with my body, and giving me knowledge of how to take care of myself, 5) filling a void between what we learned in the various infant care, childbirth, etc classes and actually translating the information on how to take care of two little girls in our home setting, 6) being a objective third party when differing opinions on how to handle sensitive communication issues came about regarding this transition time to being parents, and 7) a sensitive and knowledgeable sounding board through her previous nursing background when health issues came about for myself.

Her work ethic, sense of fairness, and generosity in her knowledge and resources made us feel this was one of the best investments we could ever make for our daughters as her impact was directly on the well being on our little daughters. Vicky also possesses a genuine love of babies that gives us as a family a wonderful feeling as soon as she walks into the house - she really cares. As my little girls grow, I can see Vicky being there for their developmental milestones. We have faith in her and for her to call on all the resources and knowledge she possesses. Her desire to make us more confident of our parenting skills shows that she is a wonderful teacher, very giving and sharing with her knowledge. This truly is a lasting gift!"

"I can't think of a kinder gift to give to anyone, including oneself, than a doula and this woman Vicky York in particular. One needs tact, empathy galore, and a richness of knowledge to help moms through that most wonderful and sometimes most terrifying period of the first few weeks of matrescence, that time 'when a Woman becomes a Mother.'

I never thought when I invented the concept and the practice of The Doula that I had hit upon one of the most important behavioral periods in a mother (and father’s) life. What The Doula offers is not only an assurance that breastfeeding will go well and become a joy but a whole series of supportive behavior that makes for happy and creative mothering. I am so pleased to rave about this woman, Vicky York because I know what a gift I am offering young mothers. And, you deserve her."

"Where to begin? As a woman executive I had expected parenthood to be another one of those challenges to tackle, and handle with grace. Was I surprised! Had it not been for Vicky, a true Godsend mind you, I know that I would not be the mother and woman I am today. Vicky was a constant source of comfort, support, reassurance, wisdom and love – love for me and my new daughter. Three of the greatest rewards which resulted from Vicky’s services are: 1) Learning how to breastfeed. It’s not natural for most moms. It needs to be taught and unfortunately modern medicine doesn’t provide the kind of support women need to get through those first few weeks. Vicky does. I am still breastfeeding after 6 months. 2) Trusting my instincts as a mother. 3) Benefiting from a woman who has endless experience and wisdom and is willing, no eager to share them with you in a non-threatening, nonjudgmental way.

Vicky York exemplifies all that is good in motherhood. She mothered me, my husband and my daughter Sophie. From making me sandwiches to make sure I ate, to bringing me water before and after breastfeeding, to burping Sophie so I could just stay in bed and get the needed rest, to putting together my breastpump (those manuals are dozens of pages long. Trust me, after giving birth and not getting sleep those first weeks, it can be a daunting task) and showing me how to use it, to teaching me various positions to breastfeed to optimize my comfort and sleep, to just listening and being there when we had questions. Oh, and did we have questions! How do we give this beautiful little girl a bath when she’s so fragile? Vicky showed us. How do we massage her to calm her down when she is fussy? Vicky showed us. How do we burp her when the way they showed us at the hospital and mommy baby visit doesn’t work? Vicky showed us. And now, at 6 months of age, how do we introduce solid foods to minimize allergic reactions, ensure ease of digestion and optimize nutrition? Vicky didn’t just tell us, she sent us several white papers from experts in the field.

Vicky is a member of our family now. She evolved from being a doula into a doula slash baby care giver. Sophie adores her. The only negative thing I have to say about Vicky is that she moved away and we miss her terribly. Fortunately for us, her nature is such that we can still go to her with questions/concerns and know that we will be provided with the help we need, and then some. One last comment, besides Vicky’s extensive personal knowledge and wonderful bedside manner, she knows just about every resource out there when it comes to parenting, child birth, pregnancy. So, even if you have a question that may not be Vicky’s area of specialty, she knows how to connect you to the person or group that does. Vicky York exemplifies what a doula should be, but I believe many are not. She is a friend, mother and grandmother to new mom’s, and their babes."

"As a nurse-midwife and recent mother of my fourth child, I knew I wanted what I recommend to all my clients -- a wonderful postpartum doula. But how was I to find the right person? Luckily for all of us, we found Vicky York. Vicky immediately put me at ease with her incredible knowledge from handling hundreds and hundreds of newborns in her career, and taught us so many things I wondered how I'd gotten to my fourth child without knowing. From sleep to feeding to breastmilk; from handling clogged ducts to thrush to sleep deprived parents, Vicky stepped in with humor, help and heart. She was passionate from the first moment we called her to this day, when we still ask her to visit to spell us and -- honestly -- just because we love having her around. Any new mother, old mother, or in between is blessed to open the door and welcome Vicky York into their family. To us, she is the quintessential cross between "The Queen of all Doulas," and a perfect Mary Poppins. Thank you, Vicky!"

"As our doula, Vicky York helped us provide the best possible beginning for our baby. She began by rearranging travel plans for the day before Thanksgiving so she could meet us in the recovery room after the birth. Her warm, skilled, and confident presence was exactly what we needed at that crucial time. She was an excellent buffer to an insensitive nurse and treated our baby with gentleness and respect. Vicky continued to provide indispensable care for us at home, and even our dog felt the positive difference when she was there. When I was unable to provide enough milk for our baby, Vicky gave us expert advice and also quickly lined up extra breast milk for us so we would not have to resort to formula. Since this was our third baby we were surprised by how much we learned about infant care from Vicky. She anticipated our needs whenever she was with us and was extremely generous with all of her knowledge and skill. We got so much more than we ever expected from this amazing woman. She is truly a superb doula."