Doula Odessa & Birth Services

09/13/2026

Hello! My name is Odessa Bates, owner of Doula Odessa & Birth Services. I’m based in Western Massachusetts and have been in the health and wellness field for over 25 years. I’m a Certified Birth Doula, Certified Postpartum Doula, Certified Placenta Encapsulation Specialist, Spinning Babies® Aware Practitioner, Evidence Based Birth Professional, Empty Arms Bereavement Professional, VBAC trained, lactation trained, support all types of families, Neuro-Affirming, BIPOC ally, 2SLGBTQIA+ ally, trauma-informed, culturally competent, religion-informed, and a past substance abuse clinician with a master’s degree in Women’s Studies. My goal as your birth doula in this magical time is to support you and your family to have an experience that is uplifting, empowering, and joyful. I travel to MA, NY, VT, and CT within an 1.5-hour radius from my home base in Lee, MA 01238. Fully certified, insured, vaccinated, and boosted. I’m also a MassHealth insurance approved certified doula provider, which means my doula services are 100% covered. For other insurances, you could be reimbursed, as I provide a “Super Bill”. I look forward to working together!

09/05/2026

What an amazing offering at Sanctum above their Sanctum Gallery in Pittsfield!

09/03/2026

Saddened to hear of Gloria Steinem’s passing. What a powerful and righteous human who struck a fire in me during grad school. That led to me gathering two full tour buses funded by Planned Parenthood so that we could participate in, “The March For Women’s Lives”!

The former journalist, feminist, and activist was one of the most prominent voices in the U.S. women’s movement.

08/30/2026

“We had a wonderful experience with Odessa as our doula! Her support was extremely helpful to us during the entirety of our pregnancy, through the delivery process, and afterwards.

Our first meeting with her was very educational as we started to develop our birth plan and outline our preferences. She went over various hospital procedures and one by one, we discussed our comfort levels and how we'd like to navigate the big day. She offered numerous helpful documents and outlines we used to develop our final birth plan for the nurses at our delivery hospital. Thanks to all the prep work, we felt as prepared as we'd ever be on the day of our baby's delivery.

Throughout the entire process, Odessa was communicative and responsive, always with a warm aura that made us feel comfortable and cared for. On the day of our baby's delivery, she was with us for nearly the entire hospital stay, providing much needed assurance and endless emotional support. Her presence was greatly appreciated and we're so glad we got to work with her. We can't recommend her enough!”

www.doulaodessa.com

Certified birth and postpartum doula services by Odessa Bates. Based in western Massachusetts. LGBTQ aware and an ally. Free consultations provided. My goal as your doula in this magical time is to support you and your family to have an experience that is uplifting, empowering, and joyful.

08/23/2026

Yes, yes, and YES! Thank you for sharing this first, Lillian.

“…For most of human history, new mothers had constant hands-on help. In some communities, a baby is held almost nonstop and passed among as many as 10 caregivers, from fathers to grandmothers to older kids…”

Humans are what scientists call cooperative breeders, meaning we evolved to share the work of raising children across a whole community rather than pile it onto one or two people.

That's the argument USC psychologist Darby Saxbe made on the Modern Wisdom podcast, pushing back on the idea that postpartum depression has some built-in evolutionary purpose. She thinks it's closer to a mismatch between how we're wired and how we live.

For most of human history, new mothers had constant hands-on help. In some communities, a baby is held almost nonstop and passed among as many as 10 caregivers, from fathers to grandmothers to older kids.

The modern nuclear family asks one household to do the job dozens of people used to share. Saxbe points to isolation, the devaluing of caregiving, and pressure to return to work before parents feel ready as the forces that leave new moms drained.

She also studies fatherhood, and her research points to something hopeful: when dads get more involved, mothers' mental health tends to improve. Her book Dad Brain came out in June.