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I believe in every individual’s right to informed consent through access to accurate information and education about options in our healthcare, including birth and infant feeding. I have been providing education and support to families in Northern New Jersey and NYC for 13 years, as a private practice provider, as the Breastfeeding Coordinator for WIC of Hudson County, and as a former Trustee on the NJ Breastfeeding Coalition. I breastfed my own daughter for two and a half years after a very challenging first three months. During our nursing experience, I learned a lot about the importance of honoring each nursing parent’s path and about the great deal of pressure and stress parents experience in our society, where there is very little support for families. I have trained women’s healthcare professionals in the hospital setting, WIC programs, Nurse Family Partnership, and Community Doula programs. I have provided education and support to hundreds of expectant families and lactating parents and have developed and taught childbirth preparation and wellness programs for corporate organizations like the Discovery Group.

Zina’s personal birthing experience began 26 years ago when she had her first daughter and then she went on to have seven more children. In 2006 she developed a passion for Massage Therapy and Doula work. She found herself on a healing path and decided to study Reiki and then became a Reiki Master. She has earned other certifications in Pre & Postnatal Yoga and Thai Massage. She enjoys being a Massage Therapy Instructor, and hosting workshops for women’s empowerment in New York and New Jersey. Her passion is empowering women to find their inner voice. Helping women to define their personal practice with yoga, meditation, and using tools like essential oils are just a few ways that she supports prenatal and postnatal moms to gather and know their inner power to deliver their babies. She’s passionate about helping women to make informed decisions for themselves and their families. Zina believes there is a physical, emotional and spiritual experience that happens during the birthing journey for woman, and her goal is to help all moms and their babies find their special connection from inside the womb during the pregnancy and beyond

My love for pregnancy, birth, babies and families has been a part of me for as long as I've been me. Growing up in Oregon to Argentinian parents, I was led to believe that pregnancy, birth, and breastfeeding were all normal parts of being a human. I was confused by the more hushed attitudes regarding these things once I moved to the Northeast as a teen, and resolved to go to nursing school in order to work in women’s health care, promoting the normalcy and power of birth and parenthood. After 5 years working as Postpartum RN and IBCLC at New York Presbyterian Hospital-Weill Cornell, I stepped away to devote myself to my own business, Born Knowing. As a doula, birth assistant, and lactation consultant, I am best able to use my clinical RN knowledge without any time limit to provide continuous, uninterrupted support to women and families in labor. Having recently joined forces with Elizabeth Perez, of Expecting Wonder, I am thrilled to expand my community and my offerings as part of a fantastic team of doulas.

I am passionate about breastfeeding and am conscious of the complexities of the breastfeeding relationship. I have three children and had varying experiences with all three of them. I have always loved babies and thrilled to have found a career that is focused on new families.

My first profession was as a Physical Therapist however after 10 years of practicing in all disciplines including Women's Health for many of those years, I came to realize and find my true passion, Lactation Consulting. It was through my sister's struggles trying to nurse premature babies that I initially realized my love for this profession and I wanted to get certified to help as many new and seasoned Moms as I could. It wasn't until I had my own that I came to understand the real commitment it takes, the struggles you have and the desire to do your absolute best for these new little lives you are responsible for. I have been a International Board Certified Lactation Consultant since 2009 and working to empower Moms and helping babies breastfeed since 2007. Together with my husband, I am the proud Momma of exclusively breastfed twin boys and a girl.

Stephanie Heintzeler is a German educated midwife and acupuncturist as well as US-educated doula and Lactation Consultant (IBCLC). She was born in New York City but raised in Germany, where she found her enthusiasm for midwifery already when she was 12 years old- thanks to her brother who was born then. She successfully finished her midwifery-exam in 2000 at the midwifery-school in the Black Forest of Germany. While she was working in Frankfurt she started to get interested in TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) so she continued her education in Acupuncture and acquired her certification in 2003. She moved back to her birth town in 2003. Her book “New Yorker Geschichten” (“New York Stories”) got published and she started her own Doula business after she had certified with DONA in 2006. In 2010 she founded Preggie LLC in Germany that imports Preggie Pops (www.preggiepops.de) from the US. Stephanie cares for women with all kinds of births- whether her clients choose a hospital birth, birthing center or home birth; she wants them to follow their own intuition about which birth place feels best. Stephanie has seen it all- breech births, many successful VBACs (Vaginal Birth after Cesarean), planned and unplanned c-sections, vaginal twin births and LGBTQ-families. With a former midwife-approach her clients feel taken care of from a holistic-medical perspective. She uses breathing techniques and positions to open the pelvis as well as her acupuncture background to make birthing as comfortable as possible. As of 2018 Stephanie has delivered over 2,500 babies and attended over 3,000 births. She is the owner of the New York Baby where she puts expecting parents/mothers in touch with doulas and baby nurses.

Baby Botanica is a wellness space for growing and evolving families. We welcome parents-to-be and new parents for a wide range of therapeutic, educational, recreational, and social offerings offered by highly trained and committed care professionals. In addition to people looking for childbirth and parenting expertise, young people from infants to teenagers can take advantage of our array of services and classes. From childbirth to sleeping habits, breastfeeding to baby yoga, meditation to prenatal fitness, and much more, our space houses excellent practitioners of many different healing modalities who warmly welcome you. Essentially, Baby Botanica is a village and community for families of all shapes and sizes.

I’m Andrea and I’ve been an IBCLC for 20 years. I work with parents who want to simplify one aspect of parenting a baby (feeding). Our practice is baby centered care that is evidence based. My intention is to help you and your baby/babies become more confident and comfortable while breastfeeding. We might work together for a week or during your entire breastfeeding relationship. Either way, I’m here for you no matter where you reside in the world. Every parent deserves to have the support they need on their breastfeeding journey.