Raychel Franzen (she/her) became a doula because of her firm belief in every person’s right to make decisions regarding their own body and birth experience. She offers her clients physical and emotional support as well as relevant information so they can feel safe and confident in their decisions throughout their pregnancy, birth, and beyond. She grew up the oldest in a large family so she’s been around birth and babies her whole life, and her own experience as a birth mother in an open adoption taught her about the power and transformative nature of birth. Raychel knows that every family and every birth is unique so she is passionate about listening and meeting people where they are to give the right support for the moment.

Raychel is a DONA Certified Birth Doula, an ALPP Certified Lactation Counselor, and a Lamaze Certified Childbirth Educator. She has completed complementary trainings on many topics including comforting touch, acupressure, perinatal mental health, Spinning Babies®, cloth diapering, VBAC, and pelvic floor health. She is NRP certified and occasionally fills in as a birth assistant to a local home birth midwife.

In her free time, Raychel enjoys fantasy novels, word puzzles, board games, and theatre. She lives with her husband and a tank full of fish in Brooklyn.