Kari Marie Manyak

Birth & Postpartum Doula

Aloha, my name is Kari. I'm a doula providing gentle birth and postpartum support here on the beautiful island of Kauai.Welcoming a baby into the world is nothing short of a miracle. I'd be honored to stand by your side and support you as you make this profound journey into motherhood.

What is a Doula?

A doula provides continuous physical, emotional, and informational support throughout labor and birth. Midwives and doulas have different roles in the birth setting, yet both are valuable assets during pregnancy and childbirth. Unlike midwives, doulas do not provide medical care such as taking fetal heart tones, checking dilation, or catching the baby. Here are just some of the things doulas do:

  • Provide prenatal support, answer any questions you have about your birth options, and different testing

  • Education on birth and the postpartum time

  • Providing physical, emotional, and advocacy support throughout labor

  • Support women in homes, hospitals, birth centers, or even under a beautiful tree.

  • Address any fears going into birth

  • Help you create a birth plan

  • Stand by your side and help advocate for you no matter the setting

  • Take timeless photos

  • Support your partner and children in their huge transition as well

  • Help you decipher all the nuances of your journey

Doulas Improve Birth Outcomes

It is so important to feel safe and supported as you open, expand, and surrender to the currents of labor. Having a loving, compassionate doula by your side has been shown to positively affect mothers' experiences of birth. Here are some of the ways doulas improve birth outcomes:

  • Significantly lower the use of interventions, synthetic oxytocin, and pain medications, and may even shorten labor

  • Lowers the chance of cesarean

  • Higher satisfaction with birth experience

  • The arrival time at the hospital may be postponed, as doulas are able to offer pain management techniques and comfort in the client's home during the early stages

Individualized Support for Unique Women

As your doula, I stand by your side. I am there for you. For support, for comfort, to whisper words of encouragement, and to hold a protected space of prayer. I am sensitive and highly attuned to listen to your cues.You are beautifully unique, and I honor the path you walk that serves you and your family best. What your needs are may look very different then other birthing persons. In our prenatal visits, I will get to know you and your desires from your support system and tailor my services to you. Here are a few ways my care can look:

  • Education on childbirth, postpartum, and breastfeeding

  • Setting birth intentions

  • Reviewing past births

  • Recommendations for local resources

  • Unpacking fears or concerns that may arise surrounding prgnancy and birth

  • Preparing your partner and/or children for their personal journey

  • Listening to your body and your instincts

  • Pain coping techniques

  • Massage and counter pressure to help ease the intensity of labor

  • Simply bearing witness to a miracle unfolding

Essential Birth Package

$1400

All you need to feel fully supported with your empowered birth experience. Here is what's included:

  • Initial consultation

  • 24/7 Phone & text support up until 3 weeks postpartum

  • On-call for your birth starting at 37 weeks

  • Two prenatal visits

  • Create a birth plan

  • Continuous labor support

  • Photographs and videos if desired

  • Keepsake Certificate of Birth

  • One postpartum visit

  • Access to my lending library

Rebirth Doula Package

$1700

Be taken care of fully, mind, body, and soul, in your pregnancy and postpartum journey. This package honors the huge transformation of spirit that is taking place.

  • Initial consultation

  • 24/7 Phone & text support up until 3 weeks postpartum

  • On-call for your birth starting at 37 weeks

  • 3 prenatal visits

  • Create a birth plan

  • Continuous labor support

  • Photographs and videos if desired

  • Keepsake Certificate of Birth

  • 2 postpartum visits

  • Support in honoring the placenta

  • Postpartum healing and closing ritual around 40 days

  • Access to my lending library

Postpartum Doula Services

$50/ HR

Postpartum is a sacred and tender time. A time to bond with your baby, rest, replenish, and heal. As a postpartum doula, I care for you as you care for your little one. My support may include warming meals, support with breastfeeding, tidying, and caring for your baby as you take that well-earned shower and nap. Traditions around the world acknowledge the importance of this delicate time and weave postpartum care into all new mothers recovery.Here is what my offering looks like:

  • 3-4 hour shifts

  • My postpartum hours are from 10 am to 5 PM

  • I am not a night doula and do not provide overnight support

A Bit About Me

Aloha, my name is Kari Marie. I currently serve the island of Kauai as a birth and postpartum doula. I have been a birth assistant for 4 years. Welcoming life is one of the most profound choices we can make, and it has been a truly blessed calling of mine to support mothers and families during this precious time. I currently assist two amazing midwives and am in the process of becoming a midwife myself.I am compassionate, honest, and so grateful to walk this path. I strive to support women's autonomy with informed decision-making at the core. I value respect, diversity, and the natural rhythms of life, which all play key roles in the support I provide. I have a strong spiritual practice and relationship to prayer. I love supporting families incorporateing their unique beliefs and traditions into birth.

Guardian of Birth

There is an opening between the worlds that takes place at every birth, where a beautiful dance of spirit and science plays out. As a mother journeys to receive and call her child into being, the energy of the birth space is fierce and must remain protected. As a guardian of birth, I am not only responsible for my own energy, but also for the environment. I tune myself into all the subtleties and help maintain a calm undisturbed space.

My Training

  • DONA Birth Doula Training

  • DONA Postpartum Doula Training

  • Breastfeeding and Childbirth Education

  • In the Light of Midwifery Immersion

  • Ancient Art of Midwifery Skill Lab

  • Reiki I & II

Let's connect

I'd love to hear from you and meet for a cup of tea! It is important to me that we have a good connection and that we "click." Choosing your birth team is extremely personal, and I encourage you to do so with the utmost confidence. For this reason, consultation visits are complimentary and have a no-pressure vibe. I look forward to hearing from you!