
Brooke Noli, Portland Doula
Since becoming a certified doula back in 1999, I’ve been honored to support over 600 families on their childbirth journeys and find immense joy in the special connection created in the doula relationship. I’ve worked in all the local hospitals and birth centers, been to dozens of home births, supported a wide range of birth experiences, and trained and mentored new doulas for over a decade. I first began my journey into birth work when I agreed to be the primary labor support for one of my dearest friends from college, that was a life-changing experience for me. Within months, I enrolled in a doula training course and after a year of attending births as a doula, I applied to the midwifery program at Birthingway College and proceeded to complete three years of midwifery training and apprenticeship. As much as I love midwifery, as I neared the end of my training, it became increasingly clear to me that I was missing the unique role of support and connection that only a doula can offer. After much soul searching, I decided to return to my doula practice which felt like a sort of homecoming, like a return to myself, like the place I was always meant to be. I have happily and wholeheartedly supported clients as a doula ever since.
I can say with confidence that birth has been one of the great teachers of my life. It has instructed me on patience, on compassion, on being with the unknown. It has demonstrated over and over again how genuine respect, kind words, and a reassuring touch can make all the difference. Birth has revealed to me the wild force of life inherent in all things. It has taught me that every journey is unique and every story meaningful in ways we might not initially understand. It has shown me the magic that is possible in this world, the strength that is needed to let that magic in, and the love that unfolds in its wake.
In addition to my doula work, I’m also a counselor with a small private practice which specializes in working with people during the childbearing years. I love the balance that these two careers bring to my life: some days I am sitting with folks in meaningful conversations devoted to growth and healing, while other days I’m immersed in the excitement and activity of supporting a family as they birth and transform their lives.
In my down time, I love exploring the beautiful Pacific Northwest with my wonderful wife and dog, scuba diving in warm waters anywhere, reading and writing poetry, and laughing at whatever silliness I can find.
Training
Certified Doula, Birthingway College of Midwifery, 1999
Midwifery training and apprenticeship at Birthingway College of Midwifery, 2000-2003
Postpartum Doula Workshop at Birthingway College of Midwifery, 2004
Certificate in Process Oriented Psychology from the Process Work Institute, 2003-2005
MA degree in Marriage & Family Therapy from Northcentral University, 2005-2008
Instructor, Trauma Informed Care
Instructor, Labor Doula Workshop
Instructor, Perinatal Psychology For Birth Workers
Birth Beyond The Binary, 12 week course with king yaa
Areas Of Specialty
Unmedicated Birth, Out Of Hospital Birth, Water Birth
Virtual/Remote Doula Support
Vaginal Birth After Cesarean (VBAC)
IVF Pregnancy
High Risk Pregnancy/Birth
Twins/Multiples
Medical Induction
LGBTQIA+ Families
Polyamorous Families
Trauma Informed Care
Survivors Of Sexual Abuse
Pregnancy or Infant Loss
Massage & Spinning Babies