About Me

Denise Martin
CD (DONA), CLE (CAPPA), LLLC Leader, Certified Breastfeeding Councillor,
Postnatal Doula Childbirth Educator and Reiki Practitioner and Hypnobirthing® Practitioner

Denise Martin has been serving families in York Region and the GTA as a doula and educator/facilitator since 2000.

As a birth doula she has attended over 350 births.  Denise has supported over 150 families in the postnatal period with singleton babies and 60 families of twins.  With additional training and experience in multiples, and mood disorders Denise is able to support moms from all backgrounds including same sex couples, those whom have experienced fertility issues (including egg donor), surrogates and women with birth goals including vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC), and medicated and unmedicated vaginal births, cesarean births and home births.  She is able to support, guide and connect women and their families on community practitioners and services/agencies to support their goals and philosophy of care.


Denise is active in the community by facilitating lectures and discussions on topics of prenatal health, breastfeeding, parenting and more at York Central Hospital, Prenatal Plus Centre, Organic Baby World in Vaughan, Serenity Birth Studio in Barrie, and Ontario Early Years Centres throughout York Region, Life With A Baby and to York Region Healthy Babies Healthy Children Staff.

Denise is dedicated to women's reproductive health as she sits on 2 boards within the Region of York including the Reproductive Health Committee of York Region and being co-chair of the Breastfeeding Coalition of York Region.  Because of her dedication to women she was awarded the 2010 recipient of the Soroptimist International Ruby Award for York Region.  This annual award recognizes a special woman in our community who has made a significant contribution to the lives of women or girls.  Making a difference for women - Soroptimist International honours women who use their personal or professional influence to improve the lives of other women.

As  a La Leche League Leader in York Region, Denise supports woman in the community with breastfeeding help, support and questions as a volunteer.

Denise also offers Reiki, a Japanese technique for stress reduction and relaxation that also promotes healing. It is administered by "laying on hands" and is based on the idea that an unseen "life force energy" flows through us and is what causes us to be alive. If one's "life force energy" is low, then we are more likely to get sick or feel stress, and if it is high, we are more capable of being happy and healthy. Reiki is an excellent tool in the preparation for labour, during labour and in the postnatal period.  It can also be administered to infants who may have had a stressful or traumatic entrance into the world.

Another service available through Denise is HypnoBirthing® - The Mongan Method – which is a unique method of relaxed, natural childbirth education, enhanced by self-hypnosis techniques. HypnoBirthing® provides the missing link that allows women to use their natural instincts to bring about a safer, easier, more comfortable birthing. Emphasis is placed on pregnancy and childbirth, as well as on pre-birth parenting and the consciousness of the pre-born baby. As a birthing method, HypnoBirthing® is as new as tomorrow and as old as ancient times. It is presented in a series of five, 2 1/2-hour classes.