In the off-chance that I am unable to attend your birth (an unfortunate doula reality) I choose my back-up doulas carefully. I do guarantee you that I will be there if at all possible. Because of my experience and reputation it is important you are getting a backup doula who is highly skilled and of the highest ethical and professional caliber.

I work with a small team of like-minded women who are highly trained and experienced and match my philosophy and style, most were personally trained by me. I wholeheartedly trust and respect this group of carefully selected and amazing women. You're guaranteed an experienced professional and wonderful doula.

Working Woman Doula Collective

**The next Working Woman doula collective
Meet and Greet
will be held
Wednesday, September 14, 2011**
at which point our regularlary scheduled
meeting times will commence.

All meetings are held the
second Wednesday of the month
5:30 - 6:30pm

All meetings are held in the CPMC Cafeteria,
3700 California St., San Francisco.
If you don't see me - look for a balloon!

Because of the uncertainty of our birthing schedules there is a possibility that either myself or one of the other doulas will not be able to attend, but we still encourage you to come and meet the other doulas and make the connections. If you don't see me, look for a balloon!

Monique Gorski www.thelabordoula.com
is an obstetrical technician in Labor and Delivery at John Muir medical center in Walnut Creek. She comes into the Doula collective with years of birth experience as well as a passion and love for being able to provide women in labor with emotional support and physical comfort. Birth is truly a physical as well as a spiritual achievment. One of her clients said it so well when she wrote, "Thank you so much for teaching me and supporting me through what ended up being a wonderful spiritual journey. You were truly meant to do this and I am so happy we found you." Birth is the ultimate perfection of human love and Monique feels so honored to be a part of this wonderful profession.

Erika Huerta www.erikabirthdoula.com
Erika has been a nanny for several high profile, high demand couples in the Bay Area and through this work realized that she loves supporting women and families during challenging or transitional times - this made her transition into birth very easy and fluid, being personally recruited into the Working Woman Doula Collective. Felicia has stated many times that Erika is a 'natural' in birth. Prior to this shift in her life she was born and educated in Mexico with a Bachelors degree in communication and journalism and a Masters degree in sociology. She moved to the United States in 2001 to start her family and is now the mother of two beautiful children.

Talia Kostick www.taliakostick.com
Talia joins the doula collective with a passion for supporting women during life transitions, a calming presence, and experience working in women's health for the past five years. With a BA in Medical Anthropology, Talia plans to eventually pursue a career in family practice medicine. Her journey to becoming a doula began in 2008 when she shadowed a midwife and had the privilege of participating in multiple births. Her goal in working with laboring mothers and their partners is to provide as much information as possible, enabling them to make empowered choices. As labor and birth are unpredictable, Talia relies on her keen emotional attunement, strong communications skills, and intuitive creativity; she is able to interface and collaborate with medical personnel to maximize the opportunity for a fulfilling birth experience. Fluent in Spanish, Talia volunteers as a doula at SF General Hospital and practices yoga in her spare time.