It’s hard to sum up appreciation for Mari in a few words. From the moment you meet her, she puts you at ease and makes you feel like you’ve known her for years. This is especially important for an intimate experience like a massage in your home during Covid. We were referred to Mari by my lovely doula at a difficult time for our family. My mother was recovering from acute pancreatitis and a traumatic hospitalization experience. She had been suffering from intense abdomen and back pain. We thought we’d try a session with Mari (desperate attempt to find some pain relief for mom) and were so impressed that we landed up meeting her 6 times in just a week! She not only took care of the physical pain but also helped my mom find some peace and calm after a really rough time. She is the best massage therapist in the whole universe. Period. Since dealing with my mom’s illness, I didn’t really get a chance to focus on postpartum care (gave birth to my son late last year). Mari insisted I use some of the massage time for myself and focus on self care. It was the first time anyone really talked to me about ‘me’ and how I am feeling physically/mentally. She made my rock like stiff body feel so calm and released me of a lot of tension and stress by giving me a soft and amazing massage! This confirms that she most definitely is also a fantastic doula! She also taught us new parents how to massage our baby. Soft and gentle movements (unlike what we had been doing earlier). Our baby enjoys his massages a lot more now! Like I said, it’s hard to summarize appreciation for Mari in a few words. She’s just so many good things much like her multitude of talent, from being a great massage therapist to a doula to a dancer and so many other things! If you want to find physical, mental, and spiritual peace and joy, meet Mari. Now. – Aanchal B. Mountain View, CA
Mari is the best! When looking for a doula, we were looking for someone that could help us achieve a natural childbirth, which in my eyes was someone who could help me with basic birth preparation, position changes during labor, and pain management. After meeting with Mari for the first time, we knew she could offer all of that, plus so much more. Mari really involves the birth partner and she enhanced a deep connection between me, my husband, and the baby throughout pregnancy, birth, and postpartum.
In terms of birth preparation, Mari knows a ton. She is continually adding to her arsenal and shares as much as you want to learn. She introduced me to some excellent resources that really transformed my birth plan, for the better! Her information can be a bit scattered but once you get to know Mari, you love it. She is Spinning Babies certified, knows a lot about positioning and taught my husband how to use the rebozo for birth. She also knows a lot about tantra and offers tantra teaching as a part of a doula package. She helped us remove negative emotions and include positive emotions in our birth vibes. She is also an excellent bodyworker (a massage is a part of the doula package) and I bet she helps a lot during birth.
Where Mari shines is that she cares about making her clients happy-she is a true advocate for you. COVID happened during the beginning of my second trimester and made me re-evaluate my birth plan. She went above and beyond by supporting us via MULTIPLE zoom calls to change from a hospital provider to home birth. She checked in on us continually during the stressful time, helped connect us to midwives, and included us in community events related to COVID/pregnancy.
Unfortunately, I had to go to the hospital to be induced and the hospital did not allow doulas. In the morning, before going to the hospital, she stopped by our house to make sure we had everything we needed, let us borrow some of her doula tools (peanut ball, rebozo, oils, electric candles, snacks, etc.) and gave us some extra TLC. We had planned on using her virtually via zoom (Mari made it very clear she was available in any way that we needed) but when labor hit, it felt like there was no time to video chat. My husband communicated with her often by text, getting advice and resources. Even though it was not the doula support we originally envisioned, she was very supportive and prepared us well.
Mari also helped me with some postpartum support. Mari can help with newborn care, postpartum care, breastfeeding and keeping your house afloat. We got so close with her throughout the birth preparation that having her over postpartum was like having family over, but more helpful! We look forward to having Mari as our doula for our next baby and might buy a tantra package to help us stay connected during this transition 🙂 Mari is such a loving woman! – Chelsey V. Saratoga, CA
Mari is excellent. Mari was our doula for the birth of my daughter – a smooth and wonderful natural birth earlier this month and a quicker recovery than with my other kids. With coronavirus and everything else going on, I want to maximize my chances of having a stress-free birth. I decided to hire a doula even though I didn’t have one for my other kids, and I’m glad I did.
Mari was supportive and helpful, and had a number of good strategies for labor such as using a “rebozo”, basically a the scarf that you used to apply counter pressure during a contraction. It was a godsend I wouldn’t have thought of on my own.
Similarly, I am very grateful to Mari for advocating for the midwives to fill up the water tub for me to have the baby in the water. Labor was moving fast, and I hadn’t really strongly requested it, and Mari remembered that it was in my birth plan and made it happen. Being able to give birth in the tub was priceless. Many thanks to Mari! Also, she did a few prenatal massages for me (she is also an experienced massage therapist), which was wonderful. And postpartum too! Felt so great. Mari is talented and has a gentle way about her which was just what I needed in my last few weeks of pregnancy. Highly recommend!
Only negative is that sometimes I got information overload in the pre-birth meetings. But I mentioned this to her, and she adjusted immediately which I appreciated. The birth went amazing so if you are in the fence go for it! – Ce. R. Sunnyvale, CA
Doula Mari is such a gem! Her immense knowledge set us up really well for the birth of our daughter! During labour, she provided invaluable support with hip presses for pain relief. She made the space calm and eliminated distractions to ensure that my labour would progress well. Would highly recommend her to all expectant couples! – Colleen P. Millbrae, CA
I had my third child with Mari by my side. Prior to labor, we met a few times and communicated often via text and phone about any concerns. I was calm and felt capable. I chose an unmedicated birth at the hospital, and Mari advocated for me and was there from start to finish. I honestly could not have done it without her support. Afterwards, she visited our family at home and made sure we were all settled. Also helped with breastfeeding support, which was important to me. I highly recommend Mari. She is knowledgeable, passionate, attentive, engaged, and gives great massages! – May W. Mountain View, CA
Words are not enough to describe how grateful we were with Mari’s care. She’s the only support we had during labor and delivery and we couldn’t imagine our journey without her.
From the moment we first met her, we felt her sincerity, authenticity and confidence. We met a couple of doulas but only with Mari that we experienced a deep connection and comfort.
Her vast knowledge and experience helped us fulfill our goal for natural delivery. Our labor took more than 24 hrs and there were things in our birth-plan that didn’t materialize. Despite the unexpected changes, we were very happy and satisfied with the outcome. Mari helped me and my husband make the best decisions for our situation. As a first time mom, her affirmation, patience and calm spirit during the toughest moment of my life encouraged me a lot to stay focused and positive. She did well preparing my husband emotionally too. Her guidance prepared us to overcome any challenges along the way. We highly recommend her to be anyone’s childbirth support. Getting her as part of our care team was one of the best decisions we made. – Veronica A. San Bruno, CA
I found Mari through the DONA website since we were in search for a certified doula and we of course read all the stellar reviews for her on Yelp. At first I was unsure if a doula was something we wanted for our pregnancy — but after meeting her, I was certain she’d be an incredible support person to help us through the journey.
I was seeking physical and emotional support during labor and that’s exactly what she provided and more. Â During our pregnancy she provided us with a great amount of resources to inform us of our choices during labor and ways to promote a healthy and safe labor.
The night we went into labor was long and difficult but Mari gave me and my husband comfort — acupressure to help me sleep, cold towels on my forehead to help my fever, essential oils to calm me… She was invaluable.
Even after the birth of our baby boy we had difficulty breastfeeding him. Mari provided so many resources that helped us carry through a really difficult time. I’m grateful for the support she’s provided us during pregnancy, labor and postpartum  We’d recommend her to anyone in search for a caring, resourceful, warm and knowledgeable doula. – Alyson S. San Francisco, CA
My wife and I chose Mari after interviewing three doulas. We had decided that we wanted a natural birth, and wanted someone who would both support us and increase our chances of the delivery going well.
We also chose Mari because she’s a skilled massage therapist, which is something that my wife really responds well to. She received several messages in the months leading up to the birth and was happy with them. We also liked that she doesn’t overbook herself with clients and thus we could be confident that she would be there for our birth.
One reason to choose a doula, from the birth partner’s point of view, is that it decreases the stress and pressure on you as the only support person for the mother as she is in labor. Of course you want to support her, but you haven’t got the experience to be sure you’re saying or doing the right things, and plus labor might last for a long time and if you take a break to nap, your wife is left alone. That sucks. When you have a doula present, she can provide that confidence and coaching, for both the mother and the partner, and also can relieve you so you can have a break. In our case, I was able to sleep for several hours during the night while Mari massaged, relaxed, and reassured my wife. Then when the time came to push, I was pretty well rested and thus able to be fully present and by her side.
I’m glad we chose Mari and I would recommend her to anyone who is having a baby. – D.P. – Irvine, CA
Mari is an amazing doula, provides excellent postpartum care, and she gives wonderful massages. She truly is a jack of all trades!
Mari helped me before and after my c-section delivery of high-risk twins. She was a calming presence in the pre-op room and an incredible help after I brought the babies home. In addition to cooking breakfast for me, she also held the babies and played with my older son. Add two amazing full body massages and you’ve got one happy mama.
I highly recommend Mari to anyone who is considering a birth or postpartum doula or massage therapist. She has a huge heart and the skills to match! – Tina C. Sunnyvale, CA