NYC
Sophos Doulas Birth Services in New York City.
Welcome to Sophos Doulas! My name is Sophie, and I am a DONA-trained Birth and Full-Spectrum doula based in NYC. I specialize in childbirth support in hospitals, birth centers, or at home. It would be an honor to serve you during your childbirth experience.
I believe that birth can be safe, fun and empowering! Facing the process with intention and support, partners can get stronger...and closer. As a doula I am passionate about bringing a sense of warmth and creativity to my prenatal visits and a lot of patience and love for a laboring person into each birth I attend.
I've always had a reverence for, and degree of comfort around birth. Growing up in Santa Cruz, CA, I was the child of an unmedicated home-birth (I can picture the dogwood tree under which my placenta was buried!), and was present for the home-birth of my younger sister. Hearing the positive stories and sheer joy around these births, a fantasy secret seed had been planted to one day become a midwife. After receiving my DONA International training, I began to support private clients and volunteer as a full-spectrum doula with the NY Doula Project.
In addition to being a birth worker, I'm a visual artist. I have a BA from the University of California in Santa Barbara and an MFA from Hunter College. As a painter, I'm often in my studio laboring. In other moments, I'm teaching art at different universities and museums in the city. I live in Lower Manhattan with my partner and our two babies.
It’s actually hard for us to put into words how fabulous Sophie was, and how vital she was to our birth experience. We couldn’t have done it without her. Sophie was a calming and reassuring presence who internalized our personalities from our initial visits, and knew just what to do and say to each of us to be the most helpful. Having Sophie next to me as I labored, encouraging me and reminding me that the contractions I felt were “good pain” and that my body loved this pain, helped me relax into the experience, allowing my body to do the work it knew how to do. But Sophie was at least as helpful to my partner, who felt infinitely more confident in her ability to make decisions and support me once Sophie arrived on the scene.
Sophie made us both feel like no matter what was happening or how unsure we were, everything was going to be okay. Our fear melted away as Sophie seemed to remember everything we forgot – positions to try, imagery to focus on, pictures to take, sustenance, breathing strategies. And when things didn’t go exactly according to plan, Sophie didn’t miss a beat. It felt like we were under the watchful eye of a guardian angel – Sophie was ever-present but unobtrusive; able to lead but willing to follow; she was the MVP of our team. —Christin and Sarah
We are so happy we chose Sophie Grant to be our doula for the birth of our first child. She’s a natural! She was supportive when we needed support, and a leader when we felt overwhelmed. To call her an advocate is just the beginning. Not only was Sophie open-minded and accepting, but she was also so empowering!
I gave birth without an epidural and it is the single most empowering act of my life. Sophie was undoubtedly an integral part of the birth of our first child. Beforehand, she helped us prepare by recommending a great birthing class and meeting with us to discuss our birth plan. She really understood us and our desire to have a natural birth; we immediately felt that she was onboard and part of the team.
I’ll never forget hearing the sheer excitement in both Sophie’s and Brian’s voices as the birth neared the end. I will always remember hearing Sophie say “You’re doing it… you’re doing it!” I have no doubt that hearing those words gave me what I needed to find that little bit of extra strength when I thought I had none left. Our daughter was born! —Akemi
Sophie was truly an amazing doula. She stayed with me from the very beginning to the bitter end, never once considering leaving and coming back later when I was in active labor. It was a long labor and she was a dedicated doula who felt more like a best friend throughout. She stepped back when my husband needed to step in—she knew when to let us be alone and when to be involved. She let us take the initiative with steps and tips we had learned in our birthing class, and provided educated support for us when we needed it. She brought along essentials which, to my surprise, proved invaluable: aloe water, a hand held fan, and other items which I would never have thought of. She was amazing with my family, and with my midwife—never overstepping complicated boundaries, and being my advocate and supporter the entire time. Sophie is a smart, studied, dedicated doula who I trust beyond words. I cannot recommend her highly enough! —Mckendree
The birth of our son was magical and powerful and thanks to Sophie—beautiful and natural. We had actually never even thought of having a doula involved in our birth experience. A few months before our son was born, we were talking to some friends, who asked about working with a doula and that they knew a great one. We talked about it and said why not meet her. When we did meet her it was like meeting an old friend. She was open and receptive to all our expectations involving our birth experience. She helped us immediately feel more relaxed with the whole process. She understood how important a natural birth was to us and encouraged and supported us to be as intuitive as possible every step of the way.
Like us, Sophie is an artist, and we were thrilled to discover how closely we shared the idea of “awe and wonder" surrounding the birth process. She is a person filled with compassion and trust in this process, and it was an incredible gift for us to meet her and share this journey with her. We are so grateful to how she so generously gave us strength and wisdom throughout the whole experience.
During the birth, in many ways it felt like Sophie was there and not there at the same time. She helped to create the space we needed as a family to be fully present and open. She was amazing at empowering us to be ourselves and fall in love with what was happening. —Nadja and Jomar
If you have any questions about our services or would like to book a free consult, please reach out!