If I were only allowed one thing…

…If I were only allowed to take one item with me to the hospital when I was in labor, it would be Lisa Gould Rubin’s cell phone number.

…If I were only allowed one phone call postpartum at 2am with a screaming newborn, I’d make the call to Lisa.

…If there was one investment my husband and I made to help us navigate pregnancy, prepare for our birth and find our way through the newborn daze, that we valued above all the others, it was working with Lisa.
 
Completely devoid of dogma or judgment, Lisa has helped me find my own answers each step of the way, and by doing so, has given me the most essential gift, that is confidence in myself to parent – to make decisions at every turn, correct course when necessary, hold tight through storms, and learn to let go little by little as my children set sail on their own.
 
Lisa would become our closest companion on a journey like no other.  During that very first conversation and during the many to follow, Lisa helped us navigate a plethora of prenatal and postpartum decisions and a sea of emotions from the most trying to the most joyous.

If pregnancy and parenthood involve anything other than the most honest and heartfelt love, they also involve the most tremendous sea tides of change, sense of responsibility, and questions without hard and fast answers. Lisa always had an uncanny way of sensing where our “heads were at” in all this at any given time, and she’d hold up a mirror for us, reflecting back what we would share with her in a clearer way to reveal to us what we already knew, our own best intuition as parents.  Other times, she’d share valuable advice, spun from wisdom and her thirty years of hands-on experience as both a parent and doula (after all, she has been a doula since before the term itself came into vogue). Lisa also possesses an unquenchable thirst for lifelong learning that means she keeps abreast of the latest in the art and science of women’s health and childbirth, lending know-how that is as much current as tried-and-true.  My husband and I would invariably leave phone conversations with Lisa having moved from a sense of being at a loss to that wonderfully reassuring feeling of having a plan in hand.
 
It’s true that hiring someone to provide the service of support can feel quite intangible in advance.  But in practice, everything about Lisa’s pregnancy and newborn parent coaching support is tangible, practical, hands-on, and invaluable.  If you’re like me and your sanity starts to go three weeks into 4am feedings, Lisa will help you find it and bring it back to you.

I have never written a recommendation in which I feel more personally invested.  I welcome speaking with anyone considering working with Lisa.   Some of the best advice my husband and I have given ourselves through the years has been, “Let’s call Lisa and figure it out.”

Lisa is a lifeline, a voice of reason when you feel like you have none left.  She is also one of the most genuine, compassionate, warm, down-to-earth, and funny people I know.  Lisa is the real deal.  The families who work with her — and come to know and love her — are lucky beyond compare.

— Jen ZB

You are an amazing force of nature, who reminded us to listen to our instincts and to be guided by them.

— Lori G

Lisa was fabulous.  We felt that it was really personalized, and got a lot of tips specific to our experience, which I expect you don’t get in most classes.  She’s a great teacher because she’s totally non-judgmental. It was amazing to have a private session with her.  

— Kris B

Thank you for the gift you give to all of us through the work that you do. You are a rare and courageous light in all of our lives.

— Rebekah J F

I think I’m driven a lot by fear. Thank you for creating such a warm and safe place for me- it isn’t easy.



— Melissa K

I’ve been thinking of you and all of the amazing help and advice you provided when our twins were born. A and W turned 1 on March 29th and have been doing so well.  It’s been a crazy, fun and emotional first year with the boys!  I often think back on our strategy sessions and when faced with a new issue, think, “What would Lisa recommend?”  

Thank you again for all of your guidance and patience – I will remember it always!

— Kristin M