Melissa Tuton, The Doula

Hello Everyone! My name is Melissa Tuton. I’m a birth doula located in the Renton Highlands in Washington State, serving families on the Eastside and surrounding areas. I’m a certified Body Ready Method® Birth Pro. I’m a total birth nerd, lover all things birth and babies, and I love collaborating with other doulas and birth workers.  I love helping families learn, plan and welcome their babies feeling safe, prepared and confident from Belly to Blossom!

Melissa's Philosophy

As a seasoned doula, Melissa can approach each pregnancy and birth journey as a unique experience. She meets each person where they are, having a unique set of skills and dreams. This means care will and should look a little bit different from person to person, family to family, yet align with her three guiding principles of compassionate doula care:

1.     Provide the highest quality emotional support

2.     Approach physical support as a dynamic and multi-dimensional system

3.     Seek and share evidence-based education and advocacy through presence and preparation

Melissa's ultimate vision is to design care that empowers you to make informed choices that give you autonomy and presence through a birth you will love to remember. She hopes to navigate this journey together so you can meet the challenges head on and find receptive, open arms to the triumphs and joys of birthing and parenting.

The Three Key Guiding Principles of Compassionate Care In-Dpeth:

1.      Emotional Support: Fear of the unknown quickly moves to fear of the “known” with learning what to expect through the birthing process; be it through other’s birth stories or a comprehensive birth course with loving and experienced educators. When labor starts, we are looking for a familiar voice, in a reassuring tone, that reflects back, what we are going through is perfectly normal and that we are moving through the process safely and well enough. As your doula, Melissa meets you here, right where you are; she knows this space and she sees you. Melissa offers you encouragement and the right presence at the right time, beginning with a light and calm demeanor. 

"We are in this together!" ~ Melissa

2.   Physical Comfort: Birth is a physical event as much as it is emotional and spiritual. Stacking the cards in your favor for more ease and efficiency in labor during your pregnancy allows you to show up fully for your labor and birth days. This means having presence and a sense of calm confidence that allows you to tune into your needs, and move more intuitively. The hormones of birth can bring excitement and anxiety – the two, similarly felt in the body, can ebb and flow and circulate depending on how you're interpreting the sensation. Anxiety leads to tension, tension to pain, pain to fear and back around again. While there is a natural progression of the intensity of the sensations felt in labor, there are ways to stay excitement and curiosity. Melissa can help you sit with them, less afraid, and with more gratitude for the transformation you are going through and the prize on the other side. She teaches breathwork and movement as a means to cope with the sensations as well as provide hands on support to ease sore muscles, tension, and pressure. 

"My hands are an extension of my heart, I am here to serve you." ~ Melissa

3.      Education and Advocacy: There is power in being clear about what to expect and what your options are. Yes, options. And no, choosing one birth plan or place over another, does not mean you are beholden to a particular path. Your path is unwritten. During your prenatal meetings with Melissa, you'll discuss informed consent and the benefits, risks, alternatives, intuition, and power of doing nothing when it comes to assessing what to do at various points in labor. Birth places have protocols, like scaffolding to provide a specific model of care, so you know what you’re getting when you choose a particular facility or care provider. This model of care holds them accountable to a standard of care that keeps you and your baby safe and on track. You'll talk about approaching the standards with curiosity and discernment all while allowing for flexibility through plan changes. You'll feel more prepared and supported along the way. 

"As your experienced companion, I’ll be by your side, observing and empowering you to choose what is most healthy for you and your baby." ~ Melissa 

What People Share About Melissa

"Melissa, aka Wonder Doula, assisted my quick birth at home. I chose her not only because she is also my sister-in-law, but because her presence is uplifting, empowering and joyful. She helped me connect to my own strength and wisdom during my labor, yet intuited what I needed in every moment. She was able to step in and make suggestions when I didn't know what I needed, yet gave me the space to follow my own intuition. She showed my husband (her brother) new ways of being supportive, and meshed really well with my midwife and birth assistant." ~ Marie Metz

Thank you. Two small words for such a big feeling. Your kindess really made a difference... Your thoughtfulness really touched my heart... The gratitude I feel, really can't be put into words. Your help and support meant a lot to us in this wonderful journey. 

~ Divakar, Meera, and Akshandha

Thank you, Melissa, for all the emotional and physical support you gave us during Raunak's arrivala in this world. Your presence and sukpport made our childbirth experience exactly how we would have askedfor. Hiring you was the first best parenting decision we took for Raunak!

~ Shraddha, Gohar, and Ranauk

Thank you Melissa for your guidance as we entered into a new chapter jof our lives! There is so much to say because you provided so much for us. Thank you for mediating in the labor room and making that day more gracefull and less stressful. I appreciated the encouraging words and shoulder rubs to calm me. I think what I appreciate the most is empowering us to be confident! Thank you as you advised Paul with how to coach me. Thank you for everything! Too much to say!

~ Paul, Liz, & Leo

With love and light, Melissa awaits the moment to join you along your journey. Happy planning!