doula service with elise tobias
Prepare for one of life’s most important moments, with a highly-trusted doula.
Discover personalised, close contact birth preparation designed to educate, inform, and empower you through pregnancy, labour, and birth.
Trusted by elite
obstetricians
The first and only Doula at
The Portland.
Discreet and
confidential
Caring for
high-profile clients
Over 90
births supported
With consistent
five-star reviews.
Having a baby is exciting; a big moment to celebrate.
But the birth part feels…
...daunting?
You know it’s natural. You know women do this every day. And yet… it still feels like a huge unknown.
...so confusing?
Everyone has advice. Podcasts, books, group chats, Instagram, TikTok...But who to trust?!
...even pretty scary?
People say birth isn’t frightening, but you may be feeling fear for all kinds of reasons that are personal to you.
Actually, you can have all sorts of emotions about birth.
And it’s not for me to tell you how you feel...ever. Your life experience, personality, even the stories you hear will hugely impact this.
So instead, let me share with you this one very important thing:
What matters above everything is how YOU prepare for your
(and your baby’s)
big moment...
Because your birth is an experience that will stay with you for the rest of your life.
It's not just one day, it's a life event that sets the foundation for your baby and for you — as you birth yourself as a mother.
This is something you can prepare for. Birth doesn’t have to be the unknown — and that in itself alleviates a lot of those complex feelings that build.
HI, I’M ELISE TOBIAS
The ULTIMATE Birth Support is my closest, ongoing bespoke
doula experience...
Where I work with you one-to-one through pregnancy in the run up to The Big Day. Getting to know you, your likes, dislikes, worries... everything.
I learn what I need to know so I can help YOU train YOUR brain.
You deserve more than generic advice. You need bespoke, continuous support that’s both emotional and practical.
Someone with deep, lived experience. Someone who knows what’s normal, can reassure you in the moment, and answer your specific questions as they arise.
Because how you feel during pregnancy shapes everything.
It influences your birth, and has a lasting impact on your postnatal experience too.
"Elise, thank you for everything. You helped us so much to be prepared for the best day of our lives, we really appreciate it.”
Everything went so smoothly — Tati did amazingly and it all went so well and a lot is thanks to you Elise"
David Raya, ultimate birth support client
What working with me as your doula looks like...
What We Cover:
↠ Evidence-led birth preparation
A tailored hypnobirthing and birth education programme rooted in science and hands-on experience: realistic, practical, and designed to leave you feeling knowledgeable and confident.
↠ Reducing fear and anxiety
We work through fears and triggers in detail during pregnancy, so on the day you’re able to respond calmly rather than react from stress.
↠ Emotional support throughout
A steady, safe space for you (and your partner) during pregnancy, labour, and birth.
↠ Deep experience & clinical understanding
A clear understanding of how birth works, what’s normal, and how to navigate moments when things shift — helping you gather the right information and make decisions that feel good for you.
↠ Navigation of the maternity system
Experienced in both NHS (birth centre and labour ward) and London’s private hospitals, supporting you to understand your options and move through the system confidently.
↠ Advocacy & informed choice
Supporting you and your partner to communicate your preferences clearly and collaboratively.
↠ Practical comfort measures
Positioning, biomechanics, massage, aromatherapy, rebozo, breathing, visualisation, and mindset support — applied when and where they’re helpful.
↠ Birth partner preparation
Ensuring your partner feels confident, involved, and clear on how to support you...because birth is teamwork.
↠ Close, personalised care
Support that adapts to you — your history, your concerns, your preferences — building trust and continuity over time.
↠ Capturing the moment (if you wish)
Discreet photos and videos, if requested, so you have meaningful memories to look back on.
Preparing for an
elective C-section?
I’m with you. Just let me know when you enquire, and we’ll chat it over during an initial (free) consultation.
HIRE A DOULA: THE DETAILS
Exactly what the Ultimate Birth Support experience includes:
-
![]()
Personalised preparation at The Portland, London or a setting of your choice (online also)
We’ll meet twice monthly for 75-minute sessions, primarily in person at my Central London clinic within The Portland Hospital's Consulting Rooms at 212 Great Portland Street. This is The Wellness Space, a calm and private setting designed for thoughtful, focused preparation.
Each session is entirely bespoke and paced around you, covering:
Complete, tailored hypnobirthing and birth education
Mindset coaching and hypnotherapy where relevant
Releasing fear and anxiety triggers
Practical preparation for labour and decision-making
Partner involvement and confidence-building
Early newborn care and feeding preparation
If you’re local to London, I always recommend in-person sessions at The Portland. It’s a gorgeous, beautifully tranquil space! But of course, a mixture of online and in person sessions often works really well, especially if you're based further afield or internationally.
-
![]()
Continuous support between sessions, "Doula In Your Pocket", & resource library
Between sessions, you’ll have direct WhatsApp access to me for guidance, reassurance, and support navigating any decisions.
Questions don’t need to wait. And wobbles don’t need to build. I’m here...in your pocket!
You’ll also have full access to my hypnobirthing audio library, course materials, aromatherapy blends, and bespoke recordings where helpful. -
![]()
In labour doula support
During labour, I stay available via WhatsApp for real-time guidance — from early labour signs to timing contractions and navigating when to transfer. I truly am there to hold you and your birth partner’s hand, always just a message away. For some expectant parents, this is exactly the level of support they need — and they go on to have an incredible birth.
You also have the exclusive option to request my in-person birth attendance.
If requested and I am available, I will join you at home or hospital, remain throughout your labour and birth, and stay for approximately two hours afterwards to support feeding (whichever route you take!) and those first moments.
In-person doula for birth attendance is available as an exclusive add-on. Please let me know when enquiring if you’d like to talk over this. -
![]()
Postnatal support
For 2–3 weeks following birth, you’ll continue to have access to me via phone and WhatsApp for feeding guidance, newborn care questions, and emotional support. It’s a lot sometimes,
but having someone there to talk things through makes everything so much clearer.
We’ll conclude our time together with a dedicated birth debrief session, giving you space to reflect, process, and move into your new chapter of motherhood.
Choose from 3, 4, 5, or 6 months of 1:1 doula support, throughout pregnancy, in the run up to The Big Day.
I can,t wait to hear from you!
Hi, I,m Elise
Birth coach + trusted doula at The Portland, London.
and Mum too!
Of course, this is where I could swoop in and say,
“No, no! Birth isn’t scary. You’ve got this.”
And while that reassurance can be comforting, I know it’s not what actually changes how birth feels. So let’s get to it:
Just like elite athletes train their minds for peak performance under pressure — and actors spend months (sometimes years) preparing for a defining moment — I help pregnant women train their mind and nervous system for birth, so they feel calm, capable and empowered in pregnancy, and as their birth experience unfolds.
As your doula, I combine deep clinical trust, extensive birth experience, and steady, grounded support you can rely on.
The Ultimate Birth Support is underpinned by my revolutionary approach to birth:
The Captain &
The Crew
When the Captain is calm and informed, the Crew can work efficiently.
When the Captain is overwhelmed or fearful, the Crew feels it.
This is where we train your brain for this incredible life moment.
Birth isn’t something to control — but it's something we can effectively prepare for, and crucially, that we can control our response to.
Your subconscious brain (the part working beneath your awareness) is the Crew.
It knows the job. It’s highly trained. And when conditions are right, it can get on with the work beautifully.
Your conscious brain (the part responsible for logic and decision-making) is the Captain. The Captain’s role isn’t to micromanage every move. It’s to understand what’s happening and stay calm under pressure
Because the Crew — your subconscious brain — is the only part that controls your labour.
When the thinking mind tries to take over, it can interrupt that flow. The skill is learning how to let the Captain step back and delegate, trusting the Crew to do what they’re designed to do.
the only london doula
Endorsed & recommended by Claire Mellon
"I first noticed the difference in women who had prepared with Elise before I even knew exactly what she was teaching. They arrived in labour noticeably calmer, more confident and exceptionally well informed. As an obstetrician, that makes a real difference. Elise’s approach is evidence-based, practical and refreshingly free from the ‘woo’. She prepares women for the realities of birth, whatever path it takes, and I see the benefits of that preparation and the support she provides time and time again”
Why work closely with a doula?
Research consistently shows that continuous, trusted support during pregnancy and birth improves outcomes for both mother and baby.
Women supported 1:1 by a doula are more likely to experience:
Shorter labours
A higher likelihood of spontaneous vaginal birth
Lower rates of induction
Reduced likelihood of assisted delivery
Reduced likelihood of unplanned caesarean birth
Lower use of epidural analgesia
Fewer complications
Increased rates of breastfeeding
Women are significantly more likely to rate their birth experience as positive when they have continuous support from a doula they know and trust.
(Research sources include Byrom & Downe 2019, ASTHO 2024, and findings from the Cochrane Review.)
Across the births I’ve attended as a doula, unplanned Caesarean births have occurred in only around 3% of cases, significantly lower than the current UK average of around 25%.
While every birth is unique and outcomes can never be guaranteed, research shows that continuous support in labour is associated with lower intervention rates and improved birth experiences.
“We can’t imagine having gone through this journey without you. For me, it was your intellect matched with your poise, patience, good humour and subtle confidence. All ingredients tailored to as smooth and loving a birth as we had.”
paul Rabil
“There are no words to describe how special Elise is to us. She made the whole journey - before the birth, during and after - so beautiful. Every woman and couple deserves to have her unparalleled support and guidance - she alone is the village we all need!! We will always be grateful to her for the lifelong gift she gave us. Do not hesitate to work with her.”
vanessa kirby
“You empowered me with such valuable knowledge, and that made all the difference in achieving the birth I had hoped for. Even when we were faced with the unexpected breech presentation, your calm reassurance and the resources you provided helped me navigate that curveball with such grace and trust in my body.”
Dalia Al Zahem
We’ll never have the words to thank you enough for what you did for us. You were there as a steady, constant, loving force – shepherding us through the wildest ride of our lives.
Our little baby is now one – but it feels like yesterday we were all together in that battery operated candle lit room. We couldn’t have done this without you. You gave us the strength, confidence and wisdom to cross over to the other side and we are forever grateful.
SARAH GOLDBERG, Ultimate Birth Support client
Frequently Asked Questions
-
In-person doula for birth attendance is available as an exclusive add-on, subject to availability.
The foundation of Ultimate Birth Support is deep antenatal preparation and continuity of care. Many women find that the preparation and steady access throughout pregnancy is exactly what they need to labour and birth without me physically by their side. However, if guaranteed attendance is your priority, we can talk about upgrading your experience to include this. -
I get it, it’s completely natural to have preferences. My role is to help you prepare thoroughly — while also building the flexibility and steadiness to respond well if things shift. Birth rarely follows a script, and feeling prepared for different paths is often what brings the greatest confidence.
-
Yes. Sessions are focused and structured, and we pace them in a way that builds steadily rather than overwhelming you. You will book in sessions via an online booking platform, selecting convenient session times for you (be they in person, or online). Between sessions, you have direct access to me, so support can flex around your life.
-
Of course. And it’s completely tailored to you, and what you need.
-
Hypnobirthing is one part of preparation. Ultimate Birth Support goes further — offering personalised guidance, nervous system preparation, decision support, and personal 1:1 continuity of care from me as your doula throughout pregnancy. This is not a course; this is ongoing, responsive doula support tailored to you.
-
Ultimate Birth Support is best suited to women who value depth, personalisation, and steady expert presence — and who are willing to engage thoughtfully in their preparation. But before we do anything, we begin with a discovery call or a hello over a coffee at The Portland, to make sure we both feel like it’s a good fit. That’s so important!
Imagine this: a highly-trusted doula by your side
Supporting you 1:1 throughout pregnancy, labour and birth. Do you already feel calmer?