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If you’re pregnant and craving a gentler way to prepare - a space to slow down, feel held, and reconnect with yourself - start here.
This short video will give you a sense of what it’s like to be supported by me.
Doula Support for Pregnancy, Birth & Postpartum
in the North East, Tees Valley & North Yorkshire
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Every birth, every journey, deserves to be held with care.
As your doula, I walk beside you. Not to lead or instruct, but to hold, nurture, and make space for your intuition to rise.
To support you to hear your voice over everyone else’s.
Every birth is unique, and so is the support you need.
My doula care is about more than being there for your birth - it’s about building a relationship of trust, helping you feel confident, informed, and held from pregnancy through to postpartum.
Pregnancy, birth, and postpartum are big thresholds and yet, so often, families are left to navigate them feeling isolated, unsure, or unseen. My work is about changing that for you, making sure you feel seen and heard throughout.
As your doula, I offer compassionate support that’s both practical and deeply emotional. Together we’ll prepare for birth in a way that feels grounded and intuitive to you, that feels right for you.
I will hold you steady through birth and I will tend to your recovery afterwards, with care. Making space for your story and your body to be honoured at every stage.
Want to know more??
Curious about doula support? Let’s have a relaxed, no-pressure chat -
over the phone or in your home - birth partner & birth team are welcome too.
A chance to ask questions, share what matters to you, and start getting excited about your pregnancy, birth and beyond.
Let’s pop the kettle on and talk about how I can support you.
Click below to book your free consultation.
About me...
Hi, I’m Zoe ~ mother, space-holder, researcher, baker, creator, and full-spectrum doula supporting women and families across the North East, Tees Valley, and North Yorkshire.
I’m the founder of Postpartum Matters CIC, a trauma-informed community organisation dedicated to reducing women’s health inequalities and ensuring no woman in our region goes without the care she deserves. My work centers compassion, choice, and dignity, because women and birthing people up here are too often overlooked, rushed, or dismissed. You deserve better, and you deserve it close to home.
I’ve birthed two children myself, each experience its own mix of challenge, power, and deep transformation. Those journeys shaped how I show up for others: calm, steady, rooted in evidence and intuition, and with a firm belief that birth is not just a medical event, but a rite of passage.
As your doula, I walk alongside you. I support you through the moments that matter - the appointments, the decisions, the planning, the emotions, the “is this normal?” questions, the anticipation, the tenderness, and the wild power of birth itself.
My approach blends emotional support, physical comfort techniques, information sharing, and clear advocacy when you need it. You lead, I support. You know your body and your baby more than any professional ever will.
My role is to help you feel held, informed, confident, and connected as you move through pregnancy, birth, and those early postpartum weeks. As a family, you don’t need to do this alone. I’m here to make sure you feel supported every step of the way.
✨ Being Held - What My Support Looks Like in Practice
Every family I’ve supported has needed something a little different, but what runs through it all is a sense of being held.
Held emotionally, physically, and practically, through the choices, transitions, and tender moments that shape your experience of pregnancy, birth, and beyond.
💫 During Pregnancy and Planning
For some, that holding has looked like making home birth possible - navigating NHS systems, writing letters, and having the hard conversations to ensure their right to birth at home is upheld. For others, it’s been about building trust and confidence in their decision to freebirth or birth unassisted. We explore evidence and fears, and create space for everyone - partners, families, birth teams - to share their feelings so you can feel deeply supported in your choices.
🕊️ During Birth
Birth isn’t about control; it’s about feeling safe, informed, and powerful, whatever unfolds. In birth I hold space for the whole team. For you I can provide deep holding with practical, hands-on massage, biomechanics support and gentle reminders of your strength. If advocacy is needed I will be an anchor for you and your birth team. I am a calm, grounding presence, someone you have built a relationship with, who can hold you and your team fully through labour and all it might bring.
🌿 When Birth Doesn’t Go to Plan
When there’s been trauma, poor care, or time in NICU, that holding continues.
It might look like helping to write complaints, connecting families to support, or simply showing up with a meal and space to talk.
🌸 Postnatal Holding
After birth, my focus shifts to physical and emotional nourishment. Helping you reconnect with your body and find your footing again. That might include:
✨ Gentle massage, rebozo, and bodywork to support your pelvis, stomach, and help you yo bring back balance to your body
✨ Emotional support through deep listening and holding space for all that unfolds
✨ Practical care such as breastfeeding support, newborn guidance, or holding your baby so you can rest or simply be
✨ Simple housework and nourishing food to help your home and everyone in it to feel calm and cared for
At its heart, my work is about being held. Held in your power, your choices, and your healing.
Through every stage of pregnancy, birth, and postpartum, I’m here to hold space for you to feel safe, supported, and whole.
Wondering what doula support could look like for you?
Let’s talk it through. We can chat over the phone or in your home, and your partner or birth team are welcome to join.
This is your space to explore options, ask anything, and feel into what support feels right.
Click below to book your free consultation.
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*Nurtured, Together is a shared care offering
You will be supported by both myself and the wonderful Clare from Mamatoto Doula.
Clare is a home-birth mum of two grown-up children, a sourdough baker, pregnancy yoga teacher, and an experienced doula who will support you in trusting your body, tuning into your instincts and birthing in a way that feels right for you.
After two calm, powerful homebirths of her own, Clare brings a grounded, nurturing presence and a deep belief in physiological birth. Her approach is gentle, calm, and centered on helping you feel safe, undisturbed, and confident as you move through pregnancy, labour, and the early postpartum.
With Clare, you’ll have emotional support, birth preparation rooted in evidence and intuition, pregnancy yoga to build strength and ease, and someone who will advocate for your choices without hesitation. She supports you as the expert in your own body and helps you stay connected to the wisdom you already carry.
We overlap in our values and approach - calm, empowering, woman-centered support - and complement one another beautifully in the work we do.
You don’t just get “extra hands”.
You get double the holding, double the knowledge, and double the calm so you feel safe, supported, and genuinely cared for at every step.
Both Nurtured packages also offer fully personalised postpartum care — with specialist support built in, just for you 🩷
Every persons postpartum needs are different — so within these support packages, you have the option to swap one of your postpartum sessions for a specialist visit, tailored to what will support you most in early motherhood.
After booking, you’ll be able to choose from:
Breastfeeding Support with Pippa
You will receive a 90-minute home visit from Pippa, a qualified breastfeeding counsellor who specialises in gentle, trauma-informed infant feeding support.
Pippa offers calm, reassuring guidance to help you feed your baby in a way that feels right for you. She can support you with exclusive breastfeeding, pumping, bottle feeding and combo-feeding. Meeting you where you are at, always.
You can find out more about Pippa’s support here.
Mummy MOT® with Lindsey Graham
A full postnatal physiotherapy assessment from Lindsey, a women's health specialist offering Mummy MOTs in Sunderland.
This includes pelvic floor support, abdominal assessment, and personalised guidance to help you recover well, move confidently, and rebuild strength safely after birth.
Find out more about the Mummy MOT® here & about Lyndsey here.
Why this matters
Postnatal care shouldn’t be one-size-fits-all.
This option gives you flexibility to build the support that truly meets your needs — whether that's nurturing feeding support, body-based recovery care, or staying with doula sessions.
Feeling like I could support you?
Let’s start with a calm, friendly conversation — no pressure, no expectations. Just space to connect and talk about what you want for your pregnancy, birth, and beyond.
We can chat on the phone or in person, and your partner is welcome too.
Click below to book your free connection call.
My Training & Continuing Development...
⭐Core Doula & Postnatal Training:
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Doula Training – Red Tent Doula Collective
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Postnatal Doula Training – The Fourth Trimester CIC
These programmes grounded me in holistic, person-centered doula support, blending emotional, physical and informational care.
⭐Advanced Specialist Training
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Birth Biomechanics – with Shellie Poulter
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Pregnancy Massage – with Coast Holistic
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Postnatal Massage & Closing the Bones Ceremony – with Sophie Messager
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Physiological Breech Birth – with Deb Rhodes
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Trauma-Informed Perinatal Support – with Make Birth Better
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LGBTQIA+ Inclusive Birth Work – with The Queer Birth Club
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Supporting Trans and Non-Binary People Postpartum – focused, in-depth training in affirming, inclusive postnatal care
⭐Ongoing CPD & Memberships
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Monthly continuing professional development with Dr Rachel Reed’s Reclaiming Childbirth Collective, exploring topics such as physiology, autonomy, and evidence-based practice
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Active member of networks supporting inclusive, ethical and decolonised birthwork
Whether you're searching for a trauma-informed doula in North Yorkshire, inclusive postpartum support in the Tees Valley, or simply someone who brings deep care and ongoing learning into every interaction —
I’d love to support you.
Frequently Asked Questions
1 / What does a doula actually do?
A doula offers emotional, practical, and information support during pregnancy, birth, and the postnatal period. I’m not a medical professional — my role is to help you feel informed, confident, and supported, and to help create a calm, safe environment where you can make the choices that feel right for you.
2 / Why book a doula instead of just relying on my midwife or partner?
Midwives focus on clinical care; doulas focus on you. Your partner deserves support too — and when everyone feels steady and resourced, the whole birth space becomes calmer. My presence means you’re never alone in navigating decisions or emotions, and your partner can be fully present without carrying it all.
4/ When are sessions available?
I currently offer antenatal and postnatal sessions on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays between 9:30am and 2:30pm. This antenatal care can be recommended by your midwife as part of your antenatal support, meaning your employer will be required to allow time off.
5/ Do you cover my area?
I’m based in Durham and support births across the North East - Northumberland, Newcastle, Sunderland, County Durham and across to the Tees Valley and North Yorkshire.
6/ What if I go into labour early or late?
I’ll be on call for your birth from 38 weeks until 42 weeks. If you give birth outside those dates, I’ll still do everything possible to be there.
7/ How do I book?
Start with a free, no-pressure chat so we can get to know each other and see what kind of support feels right for you. From there, you can choose a package and secure your place with your preferred payment plan.
Ready to explore doula support?
Curious about doula support? Let’s have a relaxed, no-pressure chat —
over the phone or in your home - birth partner & birth team are welcome too.
A chance to ask questions, share what matters to you, and start getting excited about your pregnancy, birth and beyond.
Let’s pop the kettle on and talk about how I can support you.
Click below to book your free consultation.