Melany Willis

Credentials/education: DONA trained – 2014
Contact: melany@purplelotusdoulas.com
Services offered: Birth Doula Services, Postpartum Doula Services, and Birth Photography
Service area: Greater St. Louis region

Bio

**Melany Willis was an active PLD member from 2014-2020 and currently provides back-up doula support for our team. She is an honorary member and is not currently accepting doula clients. 

Hi my name is Melany. I never really thought much about birth until I became pregnant for the first time. I am sure I heard some stories good and bad, but I was never one to pay much attention to things that didn’t affect my current situation and having children seemed such a long way off. My passion for childbirth began with my own experiences. I have 3 beautiful children who are now mostly grown and I loved everything about being pregnant and giving birth. It was a very empowering experience for me. I can’t even imagine anything more powerful than bringing a human life into this world.

My first birth was an awesome and beautifully empowering experience, but it was purely by fate because at that time I didn’t know any of the risks or benefits of my choices. I learned prior to my second birth, from a neighbor who happened to be a doula, that there are options and I could decide what was right for my birth. That is when I began to research and learn everything I could and my next 2 births were even more amazing and empowering.

I believe that birth is a rite of passage that has gotten lost in a highly technical world and it is my dream for all woman to be able to fully experience their births in whatever way is most comfortable for them. I believe in the traditions and the lost art of women supporting each other in their transition to motherhood and feel that every woman deserves a great birth team. As a doula I will support you and your partner to ensure a satisfying birth experience by providing evidenced based information about your options, emotional and physical comfort measures, and by supporting your partner in whatever role feels most comfortable for them.

If you are interested in meeting to learn more about me and see if I would be a good fit for your birth team I would be happy to schedule an interview. I look forward to hearing from you.

Testimonials

KP: Our doula, Melany Willis, did a fantastic job for us! In our meetings leading up to birth, we got to know one another and I began to feel very comfortable with her. She asked lots of questions about how I wanted her to support me and what we expected of her. Many of these questions I hadn’t even thought of myself, and I think it helped prepare me better. She helped me get my birth plan together, and calmed the anxiety I had lingering from my previous (somewhat traumatic) birth.

I ended up having a 36+ hour labor. Melany came by my house and helped me during early labor, gave me advice on how to move things along and helped me determine when to head to the birthing center. Once we were there and things were really going, she was an amazing help! She was gentle and encouraging, helping me find calmness and perspective. She put a tremendous amount of physical effort in, squeezing my hips, letting me lean and put my weight on her, and letting me almost break her hand while pushing! She had a lot of knowledge about different labor positions, and seemed to intuitively know when I needed a change. She was most definitely in it for the long haul right along with us, and I have no doubt that we couldn’t have done it without her help. I highly recommend her!

Lauren and Andrew: Melany Willis was a fantastic choice as doula for my family. As first time parents we had many questions and concerns about what to expect from the entire birth process. Melany was more than happy to answer these questions and prepare us for the big day. Little did we know that the “big day” would turn into 39 hours of labor – the first 24 hours being completely unmedicated! Melany stood by our side and helped as I supported my wife from bedside to the hospital shower and bathtub. She showed us excercises to help relieve the pain during contractions. When we made the decision for an epidural we spoke with Melany before moving forward.

I would highly recommend her to anyone looking for a doula. She is also a fantastic photographer and captured all of the special, candid moments between my wife and myself during the birth. Melany Willis was a terrific doula, and we know we made the right choice with her!

Christine: Melany was my doula for birth, my postpartum doula and an exquisite birth photographer- it doesn’t get better than this…. If anyone wants to see my album or talk to me, I can elaborate & vouche for her. She was the sister I never had, an extra comfort for me AND my fiancé. Looking back, HE is like, “I couldn’t have done it without her.” He coulda, but he woulda been WAY more frazzled, making me frazzled. We were all cool as a cucumber and it made for an experience that I still cry tears of joy about. Postpartum care esp for a first time mom…. for me it was a MUST!!