Our Story

Breastfeeding Doulas(TM) was founded by sisters Carol-Anne Brockington and Shaughna Sheets. They believe strongly that Breastfeeding Doulas(TM) have an unparalleled commitment to customer satisfaction. It’s this standard of excellence that has provided the impetus for us to grow into the business we are today. Please explore our website for more information about the products and services we provide.

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Breastfeeding Doulas founder Carol-Anne Brockington first discovered the need for this new role while working with Dr. Jack Newman at the North York Hospital Breastfeeding clinic. During a regular visit she was introduced to a family who had been having difficulty getting their daughter to consistently latch on and have a good feeding. Carol-Anne taught the same techniques we use consistently at Breastfeeding Doulas(TM) to this family, got the baby to latch on, witnessed a good feeding and wished them well. Within hours the family had found her on the internet and contacted her for support.

 

Unfortunately this family lived several hours away so she offered to give them a referral for someone in their area. At this point they revealed that they had already seen six lactation consultants before coming to the clinic and that Carol-Anne was the first to make it seem so easy and natural. They were adamant that they must work with Carol-Anne Brockington and The Birth Den (her previous business). They decided to rent a hotel room close to  Carol-Anne's home.

 

In an effort to maximize the help she could offer as quickly as possible (since they were paying for a room) Carol-Anne suggested coming to every feeding until they were comfortable things were resolved. By providing this intensive support Carol-Anne observed that she was able to resolve non-latching issues generally within 24-48 hours (in the absence of any medical issues, which was 80-90% of the time). Carol-Anne worked with several other clients in providing this intensive support, achieving the same success with each. This is in comparison to the many families she worked with at the clinic where they would come in week after week, with the support person being able to get the baby to latch on but with parents expressing frustration that they could not accomplish the same when home without support.

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"My wife Patty and I had our first child named Caroline this past August. We thought we had everything prepared. The one thing we thought would be easy turned out to be the most difficult with our newborn baby. I am talking about breastfeeding. By week four into our baby's life we had seen 6 "Lactation Consultants". The knowledge became more conflicting with each new consultant and the end result were feelings of failure, and frustration at our inability to master breastfeeding. We were not about to cave in to the temptations of formula feeding, and continued to seek help elsewhere. Carol-Anne and The Birth Den were to us the equivalent of a lottery win! Carol-Anne's expertise and good nature had instant results for both mother and baby. It just seemed so natural with the help of Carol-Anne. We now have an extremely happy and healthy baby, and would recommend The Birth Den to any new parent. Thanks again Carol-Anne!!"

~Mike and Patty Kelly, Waterloo, Ontario

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"When I was almost at my whit's end, after seeing two lactation consultants, going to the Newman breastfeeding clinic and the hospital's breastfeeding clinic, Carol-Anne was a blessing in disguise. She came to my house and taught me and my infant how to breastfeed. Having someone who could spend the time teaching and helping allowed me as a mom to feel relaxed and comfortable. The time together allowed for repetition and both mom and baby picked up the technique in time. I can't recommend Carol-Anne enough. She is an angel and my baby is breastfeeding like a champ after 36 hours together."

~Nikki Holland, Toronto, Ontario

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