Professional postpartum doula & newborn care specialist
The hardest part of the first month isn't not knowing how — it's having no one to take over for a while. I take the night feeds, the baths, the settling and the daily rhythm; you get someone to talk to and reliable answers when you need them. You sleep, and you heal.
Night feeds, burping and settling are mine. I wake at the first sound — in one mother's words, “the slightest sound from the baby and she noticed first.”
Tummy time, passive exercises and infant massage by day, with singing and talking throughout. Every feed, sleep and diaper goes in an app the whole family can see. By the time I leave, babies are usually on a settled routine and sleeping longer stretches at night.
The weeks after birth are unsteady, and you shouldn't ride them out alone. One mother wrote that it was “exactly this emotional companionship every day that helped me get through that postpartum month steadily.” I don't judge your choices, and I keep an eye on how you're doing — if I think you need it, I'll suggest you see your doctor.
About me
I began in infant care and early childhood education — I was an assistant teacher at a Montessori children's house in Zhengzhou, caring for many children from newborn to three. I then moved into confinement and postpartum care, which I have now done for ten years, in Zhengzhou, Beijing and the United States. I trained formally in maternal and newborn care in Beijing and worked in a high-end confinement centre and in private homes.
Since coming to the United States I have kept studying. I am on Carrot's list of qualified caregivers, and I am currently completing my professional DONA International postpartum doula certification — the 27-hour approved workshop and the Lactation for Doulas course are both done. I am 49, and I still work on my English every day, because I want to understand what each mother is actually telling me.
The way I work is concrete. I log every feed, sleep and nappy in an app so the whole family can see the day at a glance. Daytime means infant massage, passive exercises and tummy time, with singing and talking all the way through. At night I wake at the first sound. For you, I help with early breastfeeding and breast care, put together something simple to eat, and keep you company through the long feeding hours. I believe this work is done alongside parents, not over them — your habits and your choices are yours.
What I do
Most families aren't sure how a doula differs from a confinement nanny. A nanny does the work for you; a doula supports you, teaches you and stands beside you. Day, night, or both — we can decide together what you need.
A calm, steady presence through your daytime hours: someone to talk to, reliable answers when you need them, and an extra pair of hands so you can shower or go back to sleep. I'll also put together something simple for you to eat, so you actually eat.
Rest while the night feeds, burping, nappies and settling are mine. I wake at the first sound — in one mother's words, “the slightest sound from the baby and she noticed first.” If you're breastfeeding, I'll wake you on your own schedule and settle the baby after.
Breast, bottle or mixed — whatever you choose. Help with early breastfeeding, engorgement, blocked ducts and latch, and reading the baby's nappies to judge whether they're getting enough. Anything beyond a doula's scope, I'll point you to a lactation consultant. I've completed the Lactation for Doulas course taught by Ann Grauer, IBCLC, RLC.
Gently helping the baby tell day from night, and building a rhythm that holds. Tummy time, passive exercises and infant massage by day, with singing and talking throughout; every feed, sleep and nappy logged in an app the whole family can see. I teach all of it to you and your partner, so when I leave you can carry it on.
Your month with a doula
Every line below is something a family I worked for wrote in their own review.
Professional doula packages
My next opening starts 1 September 2026, and confinement bookings usually need a few months' notice. Tell me your due date, your city and how many days you need, and I'll come back with a clear quote. The first conversation is free.
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Get in touchIn their words
Verbatim from verified employers on NannyFYI.
★★★★★We had the pleasure of working with Caiyun during the first several weeks after our son was born. As first time parents, she was an incredible source of support, helping us both care for our newborn and with postpartum recovery. Caiyun was very knowledgeable, explaining our baby's development and what she was doing, which helped us feel at ease. Caiyun was always patient, positive, and caring with our baby, and her vibrant energy and warmth was a welcome addition to our home. Caiyun also made wonderful, nourishing meals and helped us with many breastfeeding challenges along the way.
★★★★★Even more valuable than her professional knowledge was that I could feel Sister Caiyun genuinely loved our child from the bottom of her heart, so none of it felt like just a job to make a living — she put her own responsibility and feeling into it. Beyond the baby's basic eating and sleeping, when the baby was awake she would sing her many songs, keep talking to her, do exercises and massage with her, or take her outside. With her helping, my husband and I were truly much more relaxed and our sleep was much more protected. By the time she left, the baby already had a very regular routine and could sleep for longer stretches at night.
★★★★★Our baby arrived three weeks earlier than expected, and our whole family felt completely unprepared. Even before she officially started working with us, Caiyun provided remote guidance, helping us adjust our feeding approach based on the baby's diaper output. She also kindly adjusted her schedule and came earlier than planned to help us during those stressful first days. With Caiyun in our home, everything quickly became well organized. She carefully records the baby's feeding, sleeping, and activity times in an app every day, and she also helps the baby distinguish between day and night. Caiyun also takes wonderful care of me during my postpartum recovery, both physically and emotionally.
★★★★★Sister Xu stayed with us for a month and a half after our baby was born. She has a solid grounding in childcare theory and a great deal of practical experience, and she is genuinely professional with newborns. Whether it was daily feeding, watching the baby's routine, or handling common problems like eczema and reflux, she always had helpful advice drawn from experience, and she cared for him patiently. At night, the slightest sound from the baby and she noticed first, settling and caring for him straight away. It was enormously reassuring.
★★★★★Caiyun is that rare caregiver who is fully present on all three counts — heart, responsibility and professionalism. She looked after the baby with complete attention, kept the routine remarkably regular, anticipated what the baby needed, and never cut a corner. Every day she sang to the baby, did exercises with her and played her music; babies she has cared for smile early and cry very little. When my second granddaughter was born, we chose her again without a moment's hesitation.
★★★★★Having Sister Xu with us through that unforgettable first month felt like real luck. She took us from the chaos of bringing the baby home to a household that runs in order, and our whole family grew very fond of her. She is sunny and full of energy, and endlessly patient and attentive with the baby. She was just as thoughtful with me and my family — she fitted into the household easily, cooked me many delicious meals, and gave me, a first-time mother, a great deal of gentle advice.
★★★★★Our baby came early and threw all our plans out, but we were lucky to have Sister Xu. In the week before she arrived we were completely at sea as new parents, and she guided us patiently over WeChat, answering everything and calming me down. The moment she arrived she was straight to work — the heat lamp, foot soaks, reminding me to rest. Bathing, nappies, settling the baby, watching the jaundice and the cord: all of it done professionally and with real care.
★★★★★We relied on Caiyun for 4 months as a Chinese postpartum (confinement) and newborn care specialist, and we cannot express enough how grateful we are for her presence during this important chapter of our lives. From day one, it felt like she became part of our family and treated us like family, too. Our son arrived weeks early, and Caiyun responded immediately with warmth, care, and action. Her newborn care knowledge is outstanding: from diapering, bathing, and feeding to recognizing early signs of eczema and diaper rash and recommending effective remedies.
★★★★★Sister Xu has enormous energy — attentive right through the day and the night. She is remarkably patient with the baby and thoroughly professional. During the gassy weeks in particular, her handling brought it down to almost nothing; we barely heard the baby cry, because his needs were always met the moment they appeared. I was very weak just after the birth, and thanks to her I could rest properly without worrying about the baby at all.
★★★★★Caiyun has comprehensive professional knowledge and a great deal of practical experience — evidence-informed newborn care, and full postpartum support for my wife. Feeding, burping, nappies, daily cleaning, infant massage and sleep guidance: every detail handled in good order.
Professional credentials
The certificates are below. Click any one to enlarge it and read the issuer, the date and the certificate number, so you can verify them yourself. My DONA certification is still in progress, so I don't call myself a DONA Certified Doula — I don't claim what I don't hold.
Completed alongside the American Red Cross Babysitting Basics course.
Safety and first aid 100, infant illness care 100, daily care 100, communication 100, childcare English 92, child development 90.
Tdap and flu vaccinations up to date, hepatitis A and B antibodies, and an annual health check. This work needs my own health to be dependable.
No photo or video of your family goes on this website, on social media or anywhere else without your explicit permission.
I am listed among Carrot's qualified caregivers.
Questions you may have
In short: a confinement nanny does the work for you; a doula supports you, teaches you and stands beside you. The doula side is about you — how you're coping, how your recovery is going, whether you have reliable information to lean on — and about teaching you and your partner so your confidence grows. I work as a doula and can also live in. A few hours a day, nights only, or 24-hour live-in — we can talk through any of them.
Not at all — the opposite. A doula's work is to make you more confident as a mother, not to replace you. When you want to hold, feed and settle the baby yourself, I support you while you do it. When you're exhausted, I take over. You decide when I step in and when I step back.
My next opening starts 1 September 2026. Confinement bookings usually need a few months' notice, so the sooner you tell me your due date the better. Babies arriving early is something I have handled more than once: if you are already booked, we start over WeChat straight away, and I move my start date up whenever my schedule allows.
I'm based in Mill Valley in the San Francisco Bay Area and work mainly in California, but I do travel. Families I've worked with have been in San Francisco, San Jose, Napa, Belmont and West Covina, and in Arizona, Nevada, Washington and New Jersey. Travel and accommodation are quoted up front.
Live-in is a 24-hour arrangement. At night I take the feeds, the burping and the settling so you get real stretches of sleep. Days are the baby's bath, massage, exercises and tummy time, plus something simple prepared for you to eat. Feeds, sleep and nappies all go into an app the family can see. I do need one day off a week — we can work out which day together.
Not at all — a lot of the families I've worked with were first-timers. One mother wrote that “as first time parents, she was an incredible source of support”; another said they went from “the chaos of bringing the baby home to a household that runs in order.” I explain what I'm doing as I go, so that by the time I leave you can carry it on yourselves.
Yes, and I'd prefer it. The first conversation is free. One mother said she'd interviewed several candidates and decided after about ten minutes with me — but that was her call to make, and you should talk to me before making yours.
It depends on the number of days, live-in versus daytime, your city and what you actually need, which is why I do not post a fixed rate. Tell me your due date, your city and how long you need, and I will come back with a clear quote. The first conversation is free, and a video call first is very welcome.
I make simple meals for you — something warm and ready in the gaps between caring for the baby, not a full confinement-meal service. Tell me about any allergies or foods you avoid. If you want full confinement catering, I can help you find someone who specialises in it.
Mandarin is my first language and my English is good enough for day-to-day work — I scored 92 (Advanced) on NannyFYI's childcare English assessment, and I still study every day. I have worked with both Chinese-speaking and English-speaking families.
Everything connected to the baby and to you: baby laundry, sterilising bottles, keeping the nursery in order, and cleaning up the kitchen after I've cooked for you. Deep-cleaning the whole house isn't part of my work — that's better arranged separately.
I am a confinement nanny and postpartum doula, not a nurse or a doctor. I do not diagnose, prescribe or carry out medical procedures. If I notice something that needs attention — a change in jaundice, weight, a wound, or how you are doing emotionally — I will tell you promptly and suggest you contact your doctor or midwife. Decisions about treatment stay with you and your medical team.
No. Nothing from your home — no photo, no video of your baby — goes on this website, on social media or anywhere else without your explicit permission. Every photo on this site is of me.
Book a doula consultation
Welcoming a new baby is a beautiful experience, but it can also be overwhelming, and you don't have to figure everything out alone. Tell me your due date, your city, how many days you need and whether this is your first baby, and I'll come back with my availability and a quote. The first conversation is free, and I'd rather we had a video call first — it's easier for both of us to know whether it's a good fit once we've actually talked.
