Great Lakes Doulas, LLC

"Wow. Where to start? GLDs, simply put, made my dream hospital birth a reality!! The rarest of rare occasions happened to me where i had to call the back-up to the back-up doula. And it was still AMAZING! Emily was the calm voice in a room full of not calm voices. She was exactly what I needed to stay relaxed, trust my body, and birth confidently. My husband felt supported and was able to have a more intimate experience with me. Truly everything we wanted and more. If you’re on the fence about hiring a doula, just do it!!! You won’t regret it."

"I cannot say enough great things about Emily Wilwerding who served as our doula during the birth of our first baby girl. She is everything you would want in a doula: kind, compassionate, encouraging, grounding, calming, intuitive, trusting, and Christ-like. It is evident that God has her right where she was made to be, working as a doula. She assisted and supported me to help facilitate the homebirth experience of my dreams. She came to our house for visits prior to the birth to educate, empower, and prepare us for what was to come. The day prior to the birth, Emily graciously came over to walk me through The Miles Circuit which indeed did the trick and helped get baby in ideal positioning because the next day, baby was coming! The day of the birth, she was ready to help in every way possible. She helped prepare the room, was a calming presence, offered emotional/physical support, and humbly did so much more behind the scenes. Having Emily as a part of our birth team was truly a blessing to our family!"

"My wife and I had the pleasure of working with Emily Wilwerding for the birth of our first child. She has been there for us before, during and after becoming parents and has truly been the greatest blessing during some emotional moments! We definitely plan on having her for our future babies , and are so glad she is a part of our team!"

"Great Lakes Doulas was such a God-send for me and my husband. Specifically, I had Emily Wilwerding as my doula, and it’s coming up on one year since giving birth, and when I look back on my experience, so much of it was made more magical and more stress-free because of having her there with us. She helped us to feel confident and cared for in ways we didn’t even think about before. She was there with us every step of the way: whether it was coming to our home to help us understand birth better and for helping to encourage labor when I was worried about being induced; or whether she was helping me to progress when labor was taking longer, making sure I was breathing and not panicking (I learned so much in this area because of this experience with her!); and then encouraging us both so well when things weren’t going as planned. She made sure I knew that I was doing what was best, and that I was brave—a feeling I haven’t forgotten. Things would have felt more dire and scary, it being my first birth, had Emily not been there. And even afterward, she was there for us when I was learning breastfeeding, and was so helpful and encouraging and supportive. I am so so thankful and I would highly recommend her and this group of to anyone who is pregnant!!"

"Mandi was exactly who I never knew I needed on my birth support team. I had a very speedy home birth this past fall and could not imagine doing it without her. She was so intuitive. She knew exactly what I needed, when I needed it. Her knowledge of Spinning Babies was key to getting my baby in optimal positioning for a super quick and effective labor. She did all the hip squeezes & counter pressure AND she’s dang good at it too (hello sweet relief!). She even braided my hair for me during labor ❤️ She never left my side and encouraged me to follow my instincts. After birth, she made my husband and I food at 4 o’clock in the morning, cleaned up the kitchen, helped with first latch and tucked us into bed before heading home. It was so special to be cared for in such a deep and loving way. I will absolutely be calling Mandi for all my births (God willing!) in the future. She is one of a kind!"