About Maartje

After the birth of my two daughters in 2007 and 2011, it became clear that the frequent travel and seasonal peaks in the fashion world were not compatible with a happy family life. Having had two (long and intense) hospital births myself, I wondered what I could do to contribute to a kinder yet empowered birthing culture in the Netherlands. This led me to start my training at JJ Doula in 2013, which I completed the same year. Since 2014, I have been a member of the NBvD, the Dutch Professional Association for Doulas. All doulas affiliated with the NBvD must adhere to certain rules and participate in annual continuing education.

In 2014, I completed a training to become a Birthlight pregnancy yoga instructor. After that, I further trained with ProDoula in New York and have attended numerous additional training sessions, masterclasses, conferences, and courses. I adhere to the principle of being a 'lifelong learner' and never stop continuing my education, even after so many years of experience.

To date, I have assisted in nearly 400 births, both at home and in the hospital, and I thoroughly enjoy collaborating with various midwifery practices and gynaecologists. Especially if your care is or becomes 'medical,' meaning you are directly under Dutch hospital guidance and can't give birth at home or in a birthcenter, I would love to connect with you.

I have extensive experience with births after a previous cesarean section (VBAC), home births where the maternity nurse arrived too late, medical indications and induced labors, breech births, planned (gentle or MAC) and emergency cesarean sections, trauma in the medical history (including sexual abuse), twin births, premature births, water births, and births with or without synthetic pain relief.

In January 2020, I founded the Doula Academy. Together with a large group of instructors, we train both clinical doulas and postpartum doulas. The Doula Academy is the first in the Netherlands to train clinical doulas within the Dutch midwifery birthcare system and is recognized by the NBvD and registered with CRKBO.

Languages

I completed my training in English, and in addition to Dutch, I also speak German, Italian, and French. It is best to guide you in Dutch or English, as that is likely the primary language at your bedside. If you prefer, I can discuss things with you or your partner in another language I speak or translate for you during the birth.

Amsterdam and greater region

Monnickendam is my hometown, located just a 10-minute drive from Amsterdam. I take on clients within a 30-kilometer radius around Amsterdam. I have both a car and a motorcycle at my disposal! At night, I always travel by car.

Back up (and duo) doula Belle

Belle van Zutphen has since long been the primary back up doula (and sometimes duo doula) for Mother Me. Your pregnancy and birth will primarily be guided by Maartje, but if she is on vacation, ill or unavailable for longer than a few hours, Belle will step in. At all times, they are on call together and coordinate their holiday periods and client load with each other.

As a Mother Me client, you always know whether you are embarking on a solo doula journey or when a duo doula period begins and who is on call for the birth at any given time: Maartje or Belle. The prices of the packages do not change: you essentially get 2 doulas for the price of 1! You will meet Belle just as often during the prenatal sessions as Maartje if you embark on a duo doula journey. Whether this is necessary in your case (because of your due date) will be clear immediately after your application.

Belle speaks both Dutch and English fluently. She lives in Amsterdam with her boyfriend Tom, who is a musician. After completing her Birth Doula training at the Doula Academy in 2022, Belle also added in home pregnancy massage to her services. In May 2023, she completed her training as a Postpartum Doula, making her doula care package more than complete. You can find detailed information about her at: www.doulabelleamsterdam.nl