Mary Kate Spiegler
Mary Kate (she/her) is a passionate lifelong learner with a deep commitment to maternal and child health. Originally on the path to a career in medicine, she quickly realized that the difference she hoped to make had more to do with empowering the people she works with than diagnosing and treating them. With the matriarchs in her family setting a clear example of caring for and educating new parents, Mary Kate refocused her energy and pursued her passion by becoming a professional doula.
As a child, Mary Kate told anyone who would listen that she would one day own an adoption agency and an animal shelter, side by side, so that each child could be paired with an animal for love and support. Even then, she understood the power of attunement and continuity. In her work today, she is continually reminded of how powerful it can feel to have the support of someone with whom you feel genuinely connected.
Mary Kate is a trained and experienced birth and postpartum doula with a background in maternal and pediatric medicine, behavioral and mental health, emergency medicine, and bereavement. She has specialized training in multiples, high-risk and medically complicated pregnancies, and complex postpartum care. Her experience also includes childbirth, postpartum, and infant-care education; birth, postpartum, and pregnancy-loss photography; and support for NICU families through transitions, coping, and bonding.
Her doula-related training includes DONA International Birth Doula Training; CAPPA Labor Doula Training; CAPPA Postpartum Doula Training; UVMMC Volunteer Doula Program Training; Childbirth Educator Training with Birth-Media; Bereavement and Loss Education; Mental Health & Substance Abuse Counseling; ProDoula Labor Doula Training; Postpartum Support International's Perinatal Mood Disorders: Components of Care Certificate Program; and training as a NILMDTS Medical Affiliate.
Mary Kate holds a Bachelor of Science in Medical Biology with a minor in Psychology from the University of New England. She is a former Nationally Registered Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), EMT educator, and practical exam facilitator. She is also a Certified Pediatric Clinical Assistant, a trained OB/GYN Medical Assistant, and a Certified Pediatric Behavioral Health Professional in the state of Maine.
Mary Kate is a national conference speaker and has appeared as a guest on Vermont Public Radio. Outside of doula work, she coaches a competitive youth cheerleading team and volunteers with an animal rescue program. She enjoys an active lifestyle just as much as downtime cuddling with her rescued sled dog, Sirius. She and her husband, Jake, met while singing together in the contemporary a cappella group Root7. You’ll know it’s them on the road when the music is blaring and they’re singing along at the top of their lungs!