Simone worked for my wife Sol and I as our doula for the birth of our first child Kamran. Prior to meeting Simone, I can honestly say that I had no idea what a doula even was no less much about the birthing process. A friend of ours recommended that we consider a doula because I travel extensively for work and we wanted to be sure that we had some help and support on the home front. My wife and I interviewed a few doulas and we found Simone to be warm, friendly, helpful and knowledgeable. We clicked with her right away and felt comfortable that she was the right fit for us. She was always on time to appointments so we felt that she was responsible and trustworthy. She answered all of our questions thoroughly and helped us network with other professionals who have since given us help and support after the birth of our son.
When my wife went into labor at 2am, Simone did not disappoint. She kept us calm and confident until her arrival at our home. She was there every step of the way through the birth process. For 23 hours straight she worked with my wife and I and side by side. Given that my wife labored through Mother's Day and Simone has a child of her own at home, it never discouraged her. We were also complimented by the midwives at Beth Israel about Simone being a top-notch doula!
When our son was born she followed up shortly thereafter and continued to provide expertise and interest in our collective well-being. Simone is a genuine and caring person, hard working, and professional. I would strongly recommend her as a doula.
Drew Kevorkian and Solmaz Rashidi
My husband and I are first-time parents and had a lot going on around our due date (besides working, we were in the process of buying a new home and moving). Simone came in and took care of our biggest concern – getting prepared to go to the hospital and wondering what to do at which point. She had a calming presence about her that made us feel completely taken care of – she knew when to step back and let us be and when to step in and help us out. She was respectful of our wishes and made sure we were comfortable at every point. It was great to not have to worry about the hospital experience, knowing she had our backs – whether it was calling for a nurse, double-checking on any symptoms or making me comfortable with massage. My labor went on much longer than we thought it would and we were thankful to have her with us throughout it all. We never had to worry about what we had to do next. She either knew or would find out for us. We were able to just concentrate on the arrival or our baby! She has followed up with us to make sure we’re doing okay and genuinely cares about the wellbeing of our new family. We highly recommend her services!
Preethi Mahadeviah
I had a wonderful postpartum experience with Simone. Over the course of my first 2 weeks at home, she made 5 visits and got me set up successfully with breastfeeding, pumping, bottle feeding, dry sponge baths, newborn care and baby carrier techniques. Every visit, I had new questions and she would patiently answer them and if possible show me how it's done. Having a great postpartum doula like Simone really boosted my confidence and helped get set up for success. Simone was very flexible and accommodating with her schedule. She was also very practical and didn't try and force any ways of parenting on me. She listened to what I needed and advised accordingly. Simone was also easy to be around and while I was feeding my baby, would keep busy by tidying up the kitchen or helping fold clothes. Basically, she would support me any way that was needed. I would highly recommend her for any new mom that needs a bit of extra help getting set up.
Polly B.
Simone was very helpful to us. As a new mother of 6 1/2 week old twins, I realized I needed some help but really wanted to be the caregiver, the mom. I did not want someone to "show me how it's done", or direct my children's care or be a third parent. Simone was very respectful of that and very supportive. It was very important to us what kind of person we had around our new children. Simone was caring and loving, and also very sensitive to being there as help and gave us space to be a family. In addition to her professional training, Simone had the personal experience of being a mother to a young (at that time) toddler. I appreciated that she had both training and personal experience, and trusted her opinions. She was willing to share her opinion and knowledge when asked, but really hung back and let me care for my children as I wanted. I REALLY valued her help with nursing our twins, and her knowledge as a CLC was truly such a help to me as I made my way through not always easy nursing journey. We have stayed in touch, and she has still been willing to answer a nursing question now and then. When she checks in, I still feel her care for our family, and I was very touched that she sent our kids cards on their first birthday with beautiful poems.
Melissa D, exclusive breastfeeding moms of twins.
When pregnant with my second child I knew I wanted to try for a vaginal birth after my c-section with my first. I was expecting a long labor and felt my chances of having a successful vbac would be higher with more support. I'm lucky to have an amazing husband, but I knew that he could probably use some help during the labor as could I. I decided very late in my pregnancy to look for a doula, did some quick research and interviews and chose Simone. I thought she seemed kind, easy to talk to and very experienced. Simone made the process easy for me which I was grateful for given the limited time we had before my due date. In the weeks before the delivery, Simone provided useful information and gave me much needed confidence. As expected, I had a long back labor. Simone spent about 16 hours at the hospital with us helping me through contractions, trying different positions and offering guidance as I was making decisions. Simone was crucial, as she and my husband took turns rubbing my lower back through each contraction for 15 hours straight. She was also invaluable in the very end when I was doubting myself. She talked us through everything. We succeeded and delivered a healthy baby boy. I'm very happy that such a good soul was there and part of our birth story.
Amber Smith, VBAC mom
Simone was an invaluable source of postpartum help and support, when we nervously came home with our preemie baby.
Full of friendly advice and tips, from breastfeeding to general baby care - she really made those first few weeks a much less scary experience. Simone has a great can do attitude and always went above and beyond -proactively suggesting ways to assist us, as we got to grips with our new baby.
Highly recommend.
Gemma B.
Simone Toomer was our postpartum doula and a wonderful help to my husband and me for the 2 weeks after our son was born. Having her there really put us at ease as first time parents. When we arrived home from the hospital, she was at our place shortly after and made our first day home a lot less scary. Her help over the 2 weeks ranged from showing us how to use the breast pump and baby carriers to lactation advice to just giving my husband and I time to sleep. She was a calming presence and a great source of information. I would definitely recommend Simone to anyone needing help as first time parents.
Catherine Casalino
Simone Toomer is an incredibly compassionate, sweet and caring woman. She blends her vast knowledge of women's health with a very down to earth, friendly approach. Her visits felt more like a loving friend coming to check in on me than a distant professional. Simone is very personal and never seems to be in a rush, which is such a welcome delight in New York City! The night of my labor I held off calling her over for hours, not knowing how the transition would go from my husband and I being a team to incorporating another person into my labor. She arrived and immediately started to rub my back to help during my contractions. Her touch was very confident and calming. Simone and my husband were a very supportive team during my long and arduous labor, and having the additional support of a doula seemed completely necessary to our staying afloat. After the birth she has remained in contact, through visits and texts, steadily. Simone is a wise and wonderful person- I feel lucky to have her generous support, even still, 6 weeks after my son's birth.
Lauren Luloff
Though I knew that my birth experience would not be anything like I could imagine, I never thought an epic blizzard would be part of the story. Having Simone to help us through labor at home and getting to the hospital was a huge help to me and my husband. We would have been so panicked and scared without her calming presence. Her attention to our needs before, during, and after the birth of our daughter was amazing. Having my daughter was an amazing yet overwhelming experience. I really would have been lost many times without her support
Reena Patel
"As a first-time Dad, I was very nervous about the process of childbirth. Having somebody to ask questions -- sometimes, the same questions over & over again was helpful. And then, to make things even more exciting, our daughter decided to come during the blizzard of Jan 2016. With Simone's help, we labored at home as much as possible, still keeping in mind that we had to leave for the hospital when it was snowing heavily outside, and then her support through a rough cab ride to the hospital was something that I can't put a value on. Let me put it another way -- hire her, if you are considering a Doula.
Mukund Ramachandran
