:: orientation within ::
resilient. spiritual. dynamic. grounded. creative. vulnerable.
:: orientation outward ::
compassion. justice. liberation. balance. advocacy. curiosity.
:: Pronouns ::
She/Her & They/Them
Every point of light is a sacred opening and a potent ingredient to your strongest expression of self. Transitionary experiences have cracked me open time and time again, bearing a thunder in my heart so loud it became impossible to ignore: "Be vulnerable. Let go. Fail and try again. Always center authenticity." Standing witness to birth many times over since age nine, grieving and losing friends since age thirteen, and having a near death experience at ten-months-old have all shaped how I walk with resilience in this world. By design, powerful experiences such as these are intend to open us up emotionally and serve as rights of passage that take us by storm, rock us to our core, and shake loose the very foundation from which we have come to know and rely on for months, years or sometimes decades. My own evolving theology reveres intentional spirituality as a robust tool that has been capable of grounding me in and moving me through these experiences that ripple infinitely across my life and shaped the way I choose to walk, show up, and serve in this world.
Birth is a right of passage. I've worked in many different birth settings including home, birth center, as well as hospital, and have had the opportunity to serve families from many different communities and backgrounds including those navigating substance use disorder, POC, LGBTQIA2+, folks who have access to a lot of privilege, and folks who everyday live with the fallout of stress, trauma, anxiety, and/or depression. Work in these communities combined with my own life experiences have opened a window for me to better understand what my clients truly seek, what inward and outward barriers stand in their way, and what strategies can be implemented on the way to meeting their new little one.
In general, humans need meaningful experiences to authentically expand, grow, and shift into something healthful and new. This is exceedingly true for any person walking up to birth's doorstep. Simultaneously the ask of our modern world is "go-go-go", making it increasingly tricky to find alighment and balance with our longings. Stress, anxiety, trauma, and our individual world views impact the meaning we create. In my own life, even when I had learned how to cope, stress pulled at my nervous system and heart strings, making it challenging for me to show up with compassion and gratitude. My most challenging task among the noise, was to tap into my own inner knowing and discipline so that I could banish fear and channel my own core desires. Fear taught me many things, and in the dance of letting go, when I could engage these openings as opportunities to ground-in, shift perspective, transform wholly, and connect to the greater "what is" of this precious thing we call life, I could then tune-in to the undercurrent of what was actually there, which time and time again opened the possibility to facilitate transformative rerooting. I promise you there is gold in that place, and whatever it is you find residing there will open possibility to facilitate transformative rerooting.
The canvas of my life is an ever evolving painting in process. As with most of us, who we are right now is certainly different from who we were three years ago, and who we will be in another three years. Outside my professional life, you might encounter me singing, running, backpacking, reading, writing, hydrating (yes, always hydrating!), movin' ma body, closing my eyes to see and feel the color of music, watching comedy (giving holy thanks for Hannah Gadsby and Hasan Minaj), lifting my face to the sun for a few warming moments, leaning into the big feels that bring up all the tears, actively engaging to center invisiblized and stigamatized voices, shining bright my wierdo light, and recommitting my relationship with joy and all the possibilities that come with it over and over again, even in the face of great mountains. I am profoundly informed by honoring, healing, and serving through my gender queer identity, androgeny, history of trauma, neurodiversity, and an ever expanding dedication to resilience and spirituality each and every day. Everyday I connect with source and do my best to show up in my authetic resonance while also remembering that my presence is one of interdependence with all that is in this precious thing we call life. These practices are medicine that have encouraged me to become resilient to stress, lean-in to joy, and honor "imperfection" by shining a light on something new I had no idea was even possible.
What I know for sure: I am my best guide, and you are yours. When we commit to working together, I promise to meet you at the center of your experience. My cup is overflowing with gratitude to be invited on this voyage with you.
:: testimonials ::
Having had a difficult birth with my first child, I knew I wanted an experienced, compassionate and as service doula for my second birth. Luna Lea is all those things and more. Our family feels truly blessed to have had Luna's incredible support before, during, and after the birth of our baby Moses. She helped us figure out our birth preferences--including helping us realize we could incorporate our spiritual practice even in the hospital setting. During the 24+ hours of labor, Luna was a grounding and encouraging presence--I honestly wouldn't have been able to make it as far as I did without her gentle reminders and suggestions. And during the early postpartum period--she was there with validation and witnessing--she even saved me from an awful plugged duct by suggesting resources. It makes me so happy to know Luna is providing doula support in our community.
--Mara Z
Luna was wonderful to work with. This was our third baby and our first time using a doula. Luna helped me to process through our previous birth experiences and really helped me to hone in on and actualize my desires for this birth. She is warm as well as knowledgeable, and had a wealth of resources for anything I sought extra support for. I have seen several of the practitioners Luna suggested and have been impressed with all of them. In my prenatal meetings with Luna, I mentioned feeling nervous about changing from a labor to a postpartum room after the birth. We strategized together, and when the time came, Luna committed to staying with us through the transition and helped to make our postpartum room a sanctuary. This effort helped me to feel cared for and comfortable in our space so that I could focus on resting and bonding as a family across the first couple of postpartum days in the hospital before going home. I appreciated Luna's expertises, insight, and gentle, caring nature throughout our prenatal, labortime, and postpartum visits. We would recommend Luna to any family looking for support in their childbirth journey.
--Maurie S
I wholeheartedly recommend all pregnant families, and especially first-time moms, to consider hiring a seasoned doula! Luna's knowledge and vast experience uniquely position her to partner with an support any family during pregnancy and delivery.
After finding out we were pregnant, my husband and I chose a midwife because we wanted a natural approach to prenatal care and hoped for an unmedicated labor and delivery. Throughout the pregnancy we found our values and ideals were not as aligned with those of our provider as we had initially hoped for.
Towards the end of our pregnancy, we hired Luna. She came alongside my husband and myself and 1) helped us understand ALL of the options while also 2) encouraging us to advocate for ourselves. Luna was an incredible partner and especially helpful in providing information and clarifying options when we had to navigate more difficult decisions. Our only wish is to have started our relationship with Luna sooner, and we will not consider another pregnancy without her.
--Laura M
Grounded, Trauma Informed & Somewhat Magic Birth Support!
Prepare, Ground In & Connect with Your Changing Landscape
Abundant love means that each time I think my heart can not contain any more love or any more sorrow, I have to stretch it wider. Abundance thinking recognizes that I can do this. Abundance thinking is not naive, nor is it idealistic or utopic. It can be awful because it means I often feel so vulnerable.
- Autumn Brown from 'Scarcity and Abundance'