At Gold Coast Doulas, we offer a full spectrum of doula support including birth doulas, postpartum doulas, sleep consultants, and a variety of classes taught by doulas. Whether you need support during pregnancy, labor, the postpartum period, or while establishing healthy infant sleep habits, our expert team is here to guide you every step of the way.

A birth doula provides physical, emotional, and informational support during labor and delivery. A postpartum doula focuses on your recovery and adjustment at home with your newborn. Postpartum doulas assist with infant care, feeding support, light household tasks, family support, and emotional well-being so you can rest and bond with your baby.

A nanny cares for children of all ages and works primarily during the day time or over vacations. There is no specific training and they are usually hired long-term to help with the children while both parents work, sometimes for several years.

A Postpartum Doula is trained specifically to help support the mother and baby (or babies) right after delivery and into the first year of life. At Gold Coast, our doulas are required to be trained and certified or working toward certification. Doulas are not meant to be hired long-term, but instead as highly specialized care givers that help parents transition into their new roles with confidence, helping with newborn care, breastfeeding, physical and emotional support, systems, and scheduling.

A night nanny provides overnight service only under the guidance and supervision of the parents. An overnight doula has a plan and offers guidance and support to the parents.

Night nannies usually do not have specific newborn or sleep methodology training. A night nanny will come into a home and follow the instructions the parents give them.
An overnight doula will offer advice, scheduling and feeding suggestions, as well as physical and emotional support.

Yes! We offer both in-person and virtual doula support to meet your family’s needs and comfort level. Whether you’re local to West Michigan & Norther Michigan or living elsewhere, our virtual services—including birth prep, birth coaching, and sleep consultations—ensure expert care is always within reach.

We do! Our experienced doulas and newborn care specialists are trained to care for multiples. We provide compassionate, expert support to help you manage feeding schedules, sleep routines, and daily care for your babies, giving you peace of mind and much-needed rest.

We also offer a 90-minute multiples class to help you prepare for what you can expect.

Yes, our postpartum support is completely customizable. You can mix daytime and overnight shifts based on your family’s needs. Whether you want help during the day while your partner works or overnight support so you can sleep, we’ll create a schedule that works for you.

Greater Grand Rapids, Saugatuck, South Haven, Holland, Zeeland, Grand Haven, Muskegon, Fremont, Hastings, St. Joseph, Three Rivers, Niles, Benton Harbor, Ludington, Pentwater, Manistee. Also in Northern Michigan: Traverse City, Petoskey, Charlevoix, Suttons Bay, Harbor Springs and Bay Harbor.

At Gold Coast we offer Sleep consultations from a Certified Postpartum Doula, Newborn Care Specialist, and Certified Infant & Child Sleep Consultant. This means our sleep consultant listens to the needs of your family and creates a sleep solution that works for everyone. Plans are based on your family values and goals, not anyone else’s.

The newborn care specialist is focused more on caring for the newborn where the postpartum doula cares for the entire family. An NCS may often work around the clock and they tend to specialize in overnight support. Many newborn care specialists travel with families.

Our travel newborn care specialist support services provide expert care for your baby while you’re away from home—whether you’re on vacation, staying at a family cottage, or traveling for work. A certified newborn care specialist from Gold Coast Doulas can accompany your family to offer overnight or round-the-clock infant care, ensuring peace of mind and restful sleep during your travels.

This premium service includes newborn feeding support, sleep guidance, and expert care customized to your baby’s needs, all in the comfort of your travel destination. Availability is limited and travel fees apply.

We recommend booking as early as possible, especially if you have a specific doula or due date in mind. Many clients secure their birth or postpartum doula by the second trimester to ensure availability. However, we do our best to accommodate last-minute requests whenever possible.

While many families book early, we also support parents who reach out after their baby arrives. Our postpartum doulas and newborn care specialists can jump in to help you navigate those early weeks with confidence—day or night.

Gold Coast Doulas support any feeding decision you choose. If you’re breastfeeding, we can support you by bringing baby to you, helping with different feeding positions, and giving latching advice. Once baby is done feeding, we put them back down to sleep. Newborns eat 8 to 12 times a day–feeding is a huge part of a new parent’s routine, and having extra support like this is invaluable. You can find an entire chapter on feeding tips in Supported: Your Guide to Birth and Baby.

If you’re bottle feeding, you shouldn’t need to wake at all. Your night doula can feed baby throughout the night while you get a good night’s rest.

Safe sleep means placing your baby on their back, on a flat and firm sleep surface—such as a crib, bassinet, or portable play yard—with no loose bedding or soft objects. This means no blankets, pillows, stuffed animals, bumpers, or toys in the sleep area. The mattress should be covered with a fitted sheet only.

Following these guidelines, recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), helps reduce the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and promotes safer sleep for your newborn. At Gold Coast Doulas, we educate families on safe sleep practices from day one—because your baby’s safety is our priority.

When you choose Gold Coast Doulas, securing your support is simple and stress-free. Once you sign the service contract and submit either a deposit or full payment, your doula—or a dedicated team of doulas—is officially reserved for your estimated due date. This ensures your spot on our calendar and guarantees personalized, on-call support when you need it most.

Our contracts outline all services provided, payment details, and terms of support so you can feel confident and prepared. Booking early is recommended, especially for popular due dates and specialized services.

Yes, we proudly support military families with a $50 discount on our birth or postpartum doula services. It’s our way of saying thank you for your service and sacrifice. While we do not currently accept Tricare insurance, our team is happy to work with you to find the right support options for your family’s needs.

Yes! Gold Coast Doula clients can enjoy a nice discount on doula service hours when bought in bulk in advance.

For reference, an average of 500 hrs are booked per client – whether they purchase upfront at a discount or add on hours later (not a discounted rate). By locking in bulk hours, you are also able to lock in your favorite personal doula.

Also, a 3% discount is offered for day or overnight postpartum doula contracts that are paid in full 60 days or more in advance. This does not apply to payment plans.   

Yes, Gold Coast Doulas offers free consultations to families looking for their perfect doula match. If you have a co-parent, don’t forget to include them in your consultation, too.  

Everyone should feel certain and positive about their choice. If you need more help, Kristin explains more about how to assemble your dream team of postpartum support in her book Supported: Your Guide to Birth and Baby.

Being able to sit down with a doula to gauge a sense of trust is vital. This is your precious baby we’re talking about–trust is huge. Connecting personally with your doula is the ultimate goal. That way, you can feel confident about your choice.

Every single team member at Gold Coast Doulas is trained on these safe sleep guidelines and uses them for each service. A night doula’s job is centered around baby sleep. It only makes sense for your doula to be trained on current American Academy of Pediatrics safe sleep practices.

This practice alone helps prevent Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), which is the leading cause of injury loss in infancy. If there are any changes to the AAP’s guideline recommendations, our team is trained and immediately puts them into practice.

Yes, all Gold Coast Doulas have gone through a rigorous onboarding program, which includes a background check. Nothing entirely removes the uneasiness of someone new watching your baby while you sleep. Background checks can help make that feeling a bit better. Please don’t feel pushy for asking about one.

Background checks can tell us about a night doula’s identity, criminal history, employment history, education, credit history, and driving record. Doula services that dig into important insights like these really help parents feel better and add an additional layer of trust. This is a big deal and should be treated as such!

Our Gold Coast Doulas team meets the qualifications for most employer-offered doula benefits. We accept Carrot Fertility, Maven, and Progyny benefits. If you have these benefits through your employer, contact us now to schedule a doula to help you during birth and up to 6 weeks after baby arrives. You can use these benefits for birth doula support or day and overnight postpartum doula support. No tasks.

Also, don’t forget to use your HSA or FSA if you have one. You can find more advice on how to pay for doula support, including different programs to look into, inside Kristin’s new book.