Toronto Family Doulas

Toronto Family Doulas Our professionally trained and certified doulas provide unbiased, judgment-free, luxury support to n

06/08/2026

Put the expensive product down and walk away.

You don’t need it. Your baby doesn’t need it. It won’t change how your baby feels, learns, or grows, and it won’t change how you parent (other than making you more anxious!).

This time around it’s a wearable thermometer. Honestly, this is just a gadget DESIGNED to freak out parents. Even if it’s accurate (which I suspect it isn’t), the best guide to fever response is your baby’s behaviour and age.

Under three months of age, any fever should be checked out by a doctor, unless it is post-vaccination. That’s because in immature immune systems, infections can turn serious, quickly. After that, you treat the baby not the fever. That means you treat symptoms like crankiness, lethargy, or other changes with age appropriate medications and hydration (milk or formula), but if your baby is their normal self you let the fever run its course.

Your baby isn’t a high tech piece of machinery where something can go disastrously wrong if they aren’t monitored in every possible way at all times. We don’t need to digitalize every single moment of parenthood.

06/05/2026

Play is a language all its own.

Kids learn so much from playing. They learn language and social cues, patterning, gross motor movements, body language, and more. While it might feel a little silly to get down on the ground for a round of peek-a-boo during yummy time, you are actually helping your little one develop important cognitive skills!

What is your favourite game to play with your little one?

06/04/2026

Growing a baby from scratch is hard work!

The first trimester can bring some of the most intense pregnancy symptoms, from nausea to vivid dreams, cravings and aversions, and that bone deep exhaustion like you could sleep for a week and still be tired. While maybe not the most enjoyable part of pregnancy, it is completely normal!

During the first trimester, a number of things are happening in your body. Everyone knows your hormones start surging, which definitely contributes to your need for a nap. But your body is also working hard to produce more blood and grow a placenta. More blood means your heart pumps faster and works harder. And all of those changes likely have you longing for your bed.

The good news is that this feeling usually goes away in the second trimester. By 14-16 weeks, most pregnant people feel like they have their energy back.

How did that first trimester exhaustion impact you?

06/02/2026

I am so over the fear mongering.

As a doula, our role is to educate and support. No where in that is there room for fear mongering or disrupting the doctor patient relationship. We should want there to be trust between the people we support and the medical care team around them! Making insinuations that turn something completely benign, like a scrub cap, into a warning is not only not okay, it’s dangerous.

Doctors are people too. They may not always get it right. And there are a lot of people who have had negative interactions with the healthcare system (myself included!). And as doulas, we are often there to help ease the way in an uncomfortable environment during a vulnerable moment.

But doulas need to stop making doctors some kind of enemy. They aren’t. And doulas who pull that nonsense, and put it all over social media for the engagement, are crappy doulas.

I said what I said.

05/28/2026

Those weeks and months before a second baby arrives are special.

No matter the age of your older child, this time is filled with both excitement and anxiety. How will your first baby adjust? How will you manage it all? How will you meet everyone’s needs? What if the relationship changes?

So many questions and only time can answer them. But we do have tips on easing the transition and making this time special.

Establish a routine with your oldest that you can commit to following once the baby is here. Maybe that’s bedtime stories or a Saturday morning hot chocolate date. Whatever it is, keep it up once baby arrives so that your oldest always knows they have special time with you.

Involve them in preparing for their new sibling. Let them pick a going home outfit for baby, or choose between two paint colours for the nursery.

Take family pictures before baby arrives. This is the last time they won’t have a younger sibling, so do something fun to make wonderful memories!

Don’t make everything about the new baby. It can be easy to fall into the idea that you are preparing them for the changes (and that’s important too), but if it’s all you talk about, they can feel like they are left out.

What did you do to make that time before bringing a new baby home special?

05/27/2026

Hormones are doing more than making you weepy

They may actually be contributing to you getting a sunburn. Both estrogen and progesterone are elevated during pregnancy and postpartum and this can result in photosensitivity - which means your skin is more prone to burning. Not only will you burn faster, but any burn you get is likely to be more severe.

So what can you do?

🧴Sunscreen is a must. I’ve been looking at because I’m still trying to stick to Canadian made products!

🩱UV clothing is another option, especially if you’re swimming.

👚If you don’t like the feel of UV fabric (I’m with you!) try loose linen or cotton gauze shirts and pants.

👒Wear a hat with a wide brim that shades both your face and the back of your neck.

☀️Avoid sun exposure during the hottest parts of the day.

We love that the summer weather is here but it’s important to stay safe!

From our family to yours.
05/27/2026

From our family to yours.

05/25/2026

DON’T DO THAT! 😅

Have you ever heard the expression “a watched pot never boils”? Early labour can be a lot like that. Feeling watched can increase cortisol levels, which can actually slow down or even stop your contractions.

Instead of timing those contractions continuously, try timing 3-5 contractions in a row so that you get a feel for the pattern, then put the timer away. Then, instead of focusing on the data, you can shift your focus to caring for yourself during this stage.

Early labour can be super quick or it can last a long time. Wearing yourself out with constant monitoring early on can leave you depleted and exhausted later, when active labour begins.

Trust your body and trust the process.

05/22/2026

Mental health matters.

You matter.

Your experience matters.

Your voice matters.

And you aren’t alone.

05/21/2026

Sometimes you just gotta vent

And we are here to listen 😉

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