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Hi, I'm Mariah.I know how to be there without taking over.
I’ve spent more than a decade walking into people’s homes and birth spaces during some of the most vulnerable, exhausting, hilarious, uncertain, and extraordinary hours of their lives. After hundreds of births and thousands of hours of postpartum care, I’ve learned that good support usually isn’t about having all the answers. It’s about listening. Paying attention. Knowing when experience is useful and when someone simply needs room to figure out what works for their family. That’s the kind of doula I try to be. |
HOW I GOT HEREI didn’t start out knowing this would become my life.
When I was younger, I knew I wanted to work with families and build connections. For a while, I even imagined becoming a rural midwife.
Then life happened. I fell in love, got married, had two kids, and somewhere between nursing school, raising a family, and building a career, that early dream quietly took a backseat to the practical business of day-to-day life. We moved from Savannah to Albuquerque and eventually to Seattle. I worked everywhere from services for families with special needs and health insurance to a retirement community and, somehow, third-party mortgage underwriting. I do not recommend cross-country moves with small children. There aren't enough rest stops. Eventually, though, I looked around and realized I'd gotten very good at surviving, but I wasn't particularly interested in doing only that anymore. With the encouragement of my family and a wonderful partner, I started asking myself an old question: Did I still want to work with birthing families? So I signed up for a doula training, figuring it was a pretty good way to find out if it still appealed to me. Et voilà. I found my way back to something I hadn't realized I'd been missing. That training became a pivot point in my life, and nearly a decade and a half later, I haven't looked back. In 2015, I co-founded Birth Matters NW to offer the kind of care I believe every family deserves: compassionate, competent support that respects their choices, their family, and their unique story. I continue to learn and grow in this work, and I remain deeply grateful for every family who has trusted me enough to invite me into their lives. |
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Support happens in real homes.
That's where I learned most of what I know.
THERE ARE A FEW THINGS I LEARNED ALONG THE WAY
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THERE ISN’T ONE RIGHT WAY TO PARENT
If there were there would be only one book! Babies are unique individuals and they are learning how to human just like you are learning to parent. My job isn't to decide what you should do. It's to support you getting the rest you need so you are better able to. 
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THERE ISN’T ONE RIGHT WAY TO FEED A BABY
Breastfeeding, chestfeeding, pumping, bottles, formula, donor milk, combination feeding, plans that change along the way. Information matters. So does feeding your baby and protecting your wellbeing. |
SUPPORT SHOULD MAKE YOU FEEL MORE CAPABLE
I don't want to become the person who knows your baby better than you do. My role is to offer experience, perspective, and enough breathing room for you to learn your own baby. 
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YOU ARE STILL A PERSON AFTER YOU BECOME A PARENT
Your sleep matters. Your recovery matters. Your relationships matter. Your comfort matters. Whether you've had a shower lately matters. |
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EXPERIENCE MATTERS
Years of training.
Thousands of hours. Hundreds of families. And I'm still learning. |
10+
years supporting families |
550+
births attended |
5000+
overnight postpartum hours |
50+
postpartum families |
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Training in birth and postpartum doula care, full-spectrum reproductive support, belly binding, placenta encapsulation, newborn care, and more than a decade of continuing education and hands-on experience.
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Training AND CREDENTIALS
Continuing Education
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I continue to support birthing families through Jet City Doulas →
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When I am not in someone else's house at 3 a.m...
I'm usually in my own slightly (ok, very) chaotic house, actively doing or thinking about something I want to grow, move, paint, rearrange, or convince myself I can build. I garden enthusiastically, keep chickens with increasingly ridiculous names, read an unreasonable amount of fantasy and romance, and make things with my hands. I collect hobbies. I like Disneyland. Sometimes with my kids, sometimes without my kids lol. I share a home with the assorted humans and animals who have agreed to tolerate all of the above. I believe houses are supposed to look lived in, coffee is occasionally a food group, Oreos can function as emotional support, and nobody with a newborn should ever apologize to me for laundry. |
A FEW THINGS YOU MAY BE WONDERINGThe things that apply no matter which kind of support brings you here.
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WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A POSTPARTUM DOULA AND A NIGHT NANNY?
There can be quite a bit of overlap between the two, and families sometimes use the terms interchangeably. Generally, a night nanny or newborn care specialist is hired primarily to care for the baby overnight. A postpartum doula is there to support the whole family during the postpartum transition, with newborn care being one part of that support. That means my attention isn't only on whether your baby has been fed, changed, soothed, and settled. I'm also paying attention to how you are doing: your recovery, feeding questions, sleep, confidence, emotional wellbeing, and how everyone in the household is adjusting to life with this new little person. I will absolutely take excellent care of your baby while you sleep. But my job isn't to replace you as their caregiver or become the expert on your baby. My job is to use my experience to support you while you become the expert on your own. WHAT AREAS DO YOU SERVE?
I generally serve families within about 20 miles of Lynnwood, which includes much of North King County, South Snohomish County, and the Eastside. WHAT HAPPENS AFTER I REACH OUT?
Once you submit the inquiry form on the Contact page, I’ll send you a link to schedule a time for us to meet and talk about the kind of support your family is looking for. If we all pass the vibe check, I’ll send you the next steps to reserve your support. CAN I USE CARROT OR OTHER EMPLOYER BENEFITS FOR DOULA SUPPORT?
Yes! I am an approved Carrot provider for both birth and postpartum doula support. Carrot has reviewed my training and professional experience, and families have been able to use their Carrot benefits for my services. Because coverage and reimbursement requirements can vary by employer and individual benefit plan, I recommend confirming your available benefits directly with Carrot before booking. I’m happy to provide the documentation needed for reimbursement. HOW LONG DO YOU WORK WITH FAMILIES AFTER BABY ARRIVES?
My postpartum support is focused on recovery and adjustment during the early weeks to months with a newborn, when everyone is learning each other, feeding is being established, bodies are recovering, and sleep is happening in whatever scraps your new little roommate permits. I’m not a sleep consultant and I don’t provide sleep training. My role is to respond to your newborn’s needs while helping you get more rest, not to teach a brand-new baby to sleep on an adult schedule. The goal is to support your family through those early weeks and then, quite happily, become unnecessary. |
The work is personal.
So is choosing who supports you.
If something you've read here feels like the kind of care you're looking for, I'd love to hear about your family.
So is choosing who supports you.
If something you've read here feels like the kind of care you're looking for, I'd love to hear about your family.
Morning feels different after you've slept.Let's talk about what support could look like for your family.
© Birth Matters NW Birth and Postpartum Services 2026
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Serving North King County, South Snohomish County and the Eastside.