Holistic Therapy & Birth Services with Shelly Varelli
Midwife/Massage Therapist/Educator. Empowering soul-filled people through their childbearing years. Hey all! I was devasted and deeply impacted.
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Allow me to take a minute to offer an introduction for those I have yet to meet in person...
My name is Shelly Varelli. I am a Certified Professional Midwife, Licensed Massage Therapist, Placenta Encapsulator, Childbirth Educator, and Registered Sonographer. My services are available to people in Northwest Ohio and Southeast Michigan. "Within my practice, I provide inclusive pregnancy, birth, and postpartum care that is compassionate, respectful, and culturally appropriate for all clients, parents, babies, and families. I have a personal and professional passion to help people feel empowered, knowledgeable, and confident." My business focuses on coaching and supporting people in and through their childbearing years. I offer holistic approaches to pregnancy, labor, birth, postpartum, and parenting. I have been working in this realm since the year 2000 when I was first introduced to Reiki Healing. I have since become a Reiki Master, and also incorporate Crystalline Consciousness techniques into my healing work. I graduated from The Ann Arbor Institute of Massage in 2001. My studies have been heavily influenced by some of THE BEST practitioners, my work is intuitively guided so that all sessions are unique.
Holistic health is a theme that runs deep within all aspects and intersections of my life... I started on this journey after the loss of my first baby at 21 weeks of pregnancy. I also received the gift of spirit and love in ways I had not been open to before -a window was opened and soon many, many doors. I dove deep into energy work and alternative health practices to support my personal health and well-being. Now, I lovingly share all that I have learned will people that I interact with, be it family, friends, neighbors, and clients. If there is something I know --I will share it without hesitation. If there is something that I don't know ---I will research evidence-based practices to inform my beliefs and knowledge with hyperfocus until I am satisfied! I extend this commitment to you. I teach Childbirth education classes where I keep it real. . We talk about the holistic and clinical stages of labor, comfort measures, birth preferences, birth trends, informed decision making, postpartum health, lactation, newborn care, and preparing for the unexpected. Sessions are offered once a month .
~When not at work, you will find Shelly studying hanging out with family and friends in the Old West End (Toledo, Ohio). To learn more or access services visit www.shellyvarelli.com
11/27/2025
Great class! If you’re due in 2026 this class should be on your list ✅
•Don’t hope that your birth will be fine.
•Don’t wing it.
You’ve got to have a plan and know what YOU want for the experience.
Join me for 5 weeks of committed birth preparation. I will show you the things you absolutely need for a calm and confident birth.
Be ready to work and discover the way you want to birth. But trust me, we will have fun while doing it. You will come out the other side looking forward to your experience rather than fearing it.
Purchase for yourself or share with a friend/loved one.
11/25/2025
Q&A from Midwife Shelly Varelli when offering her massage therapy services—- I am often asked: “Can you put me into labor?” 🙏
My answer, “Speaking from experience, there's absolutely NO WAY I can put someone into labor if their body is not already moving in that direction.” There are lots of natural and not so natural ways to help you encourage labor.. none of those things are within scope of practice for a massage therapist. Wanna talk about those options from a Midwifery perspective? We can, but that's a midwife to client conversation.
🌟So what can I do as a massage therapist (for a non-Midwifery client)?
🌟Here are the TOP THREE THINGS I DO AS A PREGNANCY MASSAGE SPECIALIST:
#1. I can help get you in a better headspace to reset your nervous sytem, to relax muscle tension, and release hormones that facilitate onset of physiological labor and natural progression labor. This is hugely beneficial!
#2. I help assess and treat musculoskeletal misalignment in pregnancy to ease maternal discomforts and ensure that baby has plenty of room to be in an optimal position for an efficient, dare I say “faster” more efficient labor and birth.
#3. I can support a labor that is active but stalling or appears to “stop and start” by using acupressure, relaxation tools, massaging specific areas, apply essential oils, and integrate Spinning Babies and Rebozo techniques.
Q: Do I need to see a massage therapist that is “certified” in prenatal massage?
A: I don't believe a therapist has to be “certified” in prenatal massage to perform it but I think they need to be acutely aware of all the factors related to a pregnant persons health, any existing medical conditions, knowledge of the lymphatic system, cardiovascular system, etc, and proper positioning/ stretching techniques —some therapists are better suited for working with pregnant bodies than others. I recommend someone, like myself, who has had specific training, who confidently understand the benefits and the risks, and sees this as their specialty. “You’ll just get a lot more out of the overall experience.“
Shelly has worked closely with hundreds of pregnant people over the last 25 years. This is my dream job, and I’m fortunate to continue being in service to support pregnant amd postpartum people as a midwife and massage therapist.
To schedule an appointment (or purchase a gift card for someone you know) visit these links:
Shelly Varelli provides homebirth midwifery services in Toledo, Ohio. Additional birth-related services include Pregnancy and Postpartum Massage, Energy Healing, Childbirth Education, Pregnancy Counseling (without midwifery service), Placenta Encapsulation, and more
11/18/2025
Today’s Placenta art!
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11/13/2025
Today is beautiful Placenta Print!!! Love me some repeat customers too 💕💕💕
11/10/2025
Educate yo’selves! Check out this training today Nov 10th.
Informed consent is one of the most essential foundations of respectful and ethical care. It means that every birthing person has the right to understand all their options, ask questions, and make choices about their own body and birth with clarity and confidence.
As doulas, we know that true support goes beyond comfort measures… it’s about protecting autonomy and ensuring our clients feel seen, heard, and respected in every decision they make.
Join us live on ✨November 10th at 12:00 PM ET✨ as Bianca dives into what informed consent really means in birthwork, how to navigate it within different care systems, and how doulas can continue to advocate for empowered, choice-centered births.
11/10/2025
I bought my business a birthday present!!! 25 years and going strong 💕 Michele DeMeo LM, CPM, RCS, LMT
DBA: Shelly Varelli
Shelly is a Licensed, Certified Professional Midwife and Massage Therapist serving Northwest Ohio and Southeast Michigan.
10/30/2025
Herbal tea is so good for you and has so many health benefits. Not sure how to make an infusion? Let me show you how.
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People within the LGBTQIA spectrum find it difficult to find pregnancy and birth care that is inclusive and accepting. Many LGBTQIA people have experienced stigma and discrimination throughout their lives within the healthcare system and specifically around the ideologies of childbirth and parenting.
It is important for healthcare and birth providers to understand the various pathways to parenthood for all people, to honor the lived experience and needs of this community, and be more inclusive in their practice. Unfortunately, to date, most healthcare providers have only been taught to recognize the heteronormative mainstream definitions of s*x and gender and the direction that leads in regard to birth and parenting. There is a lack of cultural competency which fails to include LGBTQIA people with respect and dignity in the birth world. Identifiable obstacles are lack of access to unbiased, fair and equitable care, inadequate insurance/healthcare coverage, anti-LGBTQIA violence, and systemic discrimination to name a few.
The National Transgender Discrimination Survey of 2011 reports, “ In the US, 1 in 3 trans people is a parent”. A 2013 Pew Research national survey found that "51% of LGBT adults would like to have children in the future." As more and more LGBTQIA individuals and couples seek to have children, many will turn to their health care providers for resources and guidance on what to do. Are we getting any better as providers? I want to think so... There are many, many resources available for those willing to educate themselves.
What can I do within my own community? I am becoming a midwife. The Midwives Model of Care™ holds the position that midwives care for people of all genders who are pregnant and will give birth. I feel it is important to start conversations with other midwives and birth workers about what it means to support transgender, gender q***r and inters*x people. As a birth worker, I will continue to educate myself and others to better understand the difference between s*x and gender, communicate my knowledge and understanding of the needs, identities, and barriers to care that many LGBTQIA people experience so that this community receives the most equitable care possible. It is our duty to openly acknowledge the disproportionate effects of racial disparities and trans phobia on those with other marginalized identities (people of color, low-income, or disabled), and to politely address if or when oversights or mistakes are made by people who lack an understanding of how to interact with LGBTQIA people.. This can also look like bringing awareness to the visual representation of information and images presently displayed in public spaces and recommending a change that would affirm and communicate acceptance and equality.
Within my practice, we provide LGBTQIA inclusive pregnancy and birth care that is compassionate, respectful, culturally appropriate all clients, parents, babies, and families. We aim to educate ourselves by asking questions about our client’s individual needs, explain the intention is to provide safe, responsive, affirming care. Ask “what pronouns do you use?” and make note of their responses. We use language that is inclusive of all experiences and identities. For example, using the terms “expectant”, laboring”, “birthing”, or “gestational parent” to describe and name the person who is pregnant and giving birth. Use the inclusive term “partner” or “birth partner” to describe the person supporting the birthing parent through pregnancy and birth. Use neutral terms such as “lactation” or “baby feeding” rather than breastfeeding for those who don’t identify with the term breastfeeding. Always ask permission before touching their body, honoring body autonomy. Recognize and honor that many LGBTQIA people may have traumatic experiences of harassment, body shaming, and history of assault.
Offering several types of holistic therapies to help you find and maintain balance in your emotional, spiritual and physical body. View the website to learn more: https://www.kneadingtimeholistictherapy.com/
