Areas I Serve

Seattle to Stanwood! Including... Everett, Marysville, Arlington, Snohomish, Lake Stevens, Granite Falls, Lynnwood, Mukilteo, Mill Creek, Shoreline, Kirkland, Edmonds, Monroe, Bothell, Woodinville, Mountlake Terrace, Kenmore, Mount Vernon, Snohomish County, King County, Puget Sound, Washington

Meet the Doula - Emily Fontes

I am currently on hiatus from teaching Hypnobabies classes while attending massage therapy school. Please check out my DOULA SERVICES and PRENATAL SPA (to open June 2010).

I am a childbirth educator, birth doula and breastfeeding mentor in Snohomish County. I am so blessed to to work with pregnant women; helping them understand how their babies develop in the womb, what to expect during birth and how to survive the first couple months of mommyhood. This is my true passion in life!

• Location: live in Marysville, WA and my classroom is in Lynnwood, WA
• Training: Labor Support Course (Seattle Midwifery School) - July 2004, Childbirth Educator Training (Seattle Midwifery School) - September 2005, Breastfeeding Educator Training (Seattle Midwifery School) - June 2006, Perinatal Fitness Educator Workshop (ICEA Conference) - September 2007, Hypnobabies Instructor Training - July 2008, Bringing Baby Home Training - October 2008
• Certifications: Certified Birth Doula - DONA (2006), Certified Childbirth Educator - ICEA (2006), ICEA Approved Trainer (2007), Certified Hypnobabies Instructor (2008), Gottman Certified Educator (2008)
• Experience: As a doula I attended my first birth in 2004 and have been attending 2-5 births per month since then (with the exception of two pregnancy hiatuses). I have worked with moms giving birth at Providence Hospital in Everett, Evergreen Hospital, Overlake Hospital, Steven's Hospital, Group Health Central, Swedish First Hill, Monroe Valley General Hospital, Cascade Birth Center in Everett, Puget Sound Birth Center in Kirkland and in private homes. During those births I have gained experience working with mother's with no pain medications, epidurals, IV narcotics, moms using hypnosis, water births, inductions, pre-eclampsia, premature birth, precipitous birth, posterior babies/back pain, cesareans, first time moms, moms with previous births, teenagers, single moms and married moms. I would describe my doula style as creative, patient, calm and reassuring. As a childbirth educator I began teaching childbirth classes in January of 2006 and I currently have over 450 hours of teaching experience and have prepared 500+ families for birth! In 2007 I was fortunate to spend 6 weeks apprenticing with a very busy and experienced midwife.
• My Son's Birth Story: Ethan was born in 2005 after a mostly noneventful pregnancy. I was cared for by a team of fantastic licensed midwives. At eight days past my due date I helped labor along with acupuncture and got to experience the "real thing" for the first time. I labored at the Puget Sound Birth Center in Kirkland. My doula and husband helped me through quite a bit of pain, especially in my back. After about 10 hours I found out I was 7cm dilated but during the check a large amount of meconium came out in the amniotic fluid. We decided that it would be safer to transfer care to Evergreen Hospital so we made the quick trip up the hill. On arrival I was so disenchanted with the entire experience that I asked to have some IV narcotics which did help me relax but really took away alot of my awareness. Less than two hours later I was complete and in about 45 minutes I pushed my healthy 9lb 6oz baby boy out! They whisked him away for extra suctioning and brought him back after a minute or two. I describe Ethan's birth as the most challenging and overwhelming thing I have ever done. I have grieved over the loss of the "ideal" birth center birth I wanted and over having so much intial distruption of our bonding. Overall, though, it was such a powerful experience and was the catalyst for becoming a childbirth educator.
• My Two Angels: In November of 2006 and April of 2007 I miscarried. Both were fairly early losses (9 and 7 weeks respectively). I feel like I grew alot as a mother, a wife and a woman from my experiences. Fortunately, I was able to birth them naturally at home without any complication. Many women I meet have had pregnancy losses and although I grieve for my two precious ones, I am so blessed to be able to serve even more women with compassion and true understanding.
• My Daughter's Birth Story: Elyse was born in 2008 after a absolutely fantastic pregnancy. This time I was cared for by one local christian midwife with a plan for a homebirth right from the start. By this time I had been a doula for four years and a childbirth educator for three. I knew more and felt totally confident in myself. I had also discovered and learned Hypnobabies using the home study course. To be honest, I was not the perfect Hypnobabies student. I also continued to teach "mainstream" childbirth classes... filling my mind constantly with the concept of pain in labor. This time my birthing began on it's own three days after my due date (on Easter Sunday night!). I immediately put my Hypnobabies techniques to use and worked with my pressure waves quite easily on my own for three hours before I even woke my husband up. The midwife arrived and we, along with our doula, got in our birthing groove. I loved being in my own element at home during my birthing time! About eight hours in I started to feel overwhelmed and knew things were going to be going faster. This is the point where I began to feel some discomfort but, through it all, I felt like I was in complete control and it never "got the best" of me. In the end I went from 5cm dilated to baby-in-arms in 45 minutes flat! Beautiful 8lb 10oz Elyse was born right into daddy's hands with brother looking on after about twelve hours of teamwork. I describe Elyse's birth as the best day of my life (even better than the wedding!). Giving birth at home is the most amazingly gratifying experience I have ever had and it brought our family together in a way it has never been before. If I ever give birth again I believe without a doubt that I will be able to easily achieve a painless birth with Hypnobabies.
• On a Personal Note: I have been married for over seven years, which has been full of challenges and joys. I love to read and sew and design websites but I spend most of my time playing referee between a rascally preschooler and curious toddler. My favorite color is usually pink, sometimes blue. I love old classic movies like Gone With the Wind & The Sound of Music. My faith in Jesus Christ is the center of everything I am and everything I do.