Meet the Founder Behind Metta Baby, the Infant Wellness and Development Studio

Today we are speaking with Rachel Harangody, Former NICU RN, Mom and founder of metta baby. Rachel generously took the time out of her very busy day to answer our many curiosities about metta baby and how her business may be especially helpful to new mothers entering their motherhood journey. 

Tell us a bit about yourself and your journey to creating metta baby?

I spent the majority of my career as a NICU Nurse in the hospital setting throughout Chicago, New York & California. After working in the hospital I transitioned into a clinic setting working in a Pediatricians office. I also spent 5 years simultaneously working in the home setting with families – often caring for their newborns right when they came home from the hospital! I have been fortunate enough to live throughout Europe with my husband and work for families in multiple countries. These experiences broadened my knowledge of infant wellness in many different cultures and was what led me to open metta baby!

While working in home with families I noticed a lack of postpartum support for parents and lack of activities available for babies in the early postpartum stages. I wanted to offer and create a space where both caregiver and baby could be supported physically, mentally and emotionally in the earliest of stages. 

My husband and I live in the city with our son Brooks,  who is a little over a year old!  We also are expecting twin boys in September.

Share a bit more about the experiences you offer and the age range you serve?

We are currently offering water movement, massage instruction, music class, CPR, lactation support and baby sign language!  In the future we will be adding in events, parent meet ups, a newborn education class and more! We look forward to adding in more events and classes in the future once we can safely move forward to larger group classes. We are currently keeping our classes small to ensure the safety and comfortability of all guests. Right now our services are best suitable for babies 2 weeks through pre walking (depending on the class) but we hope to expand our age range in the future! We also offer gift certificates for our services which are perfect for giving the gift of an experience to a new or expectant parent?

How are your experiences beneficial to developing babies?

Each of our classes have their individual benefits for parent and baby! Our most popular class is our water movement + massage instruction session. Widely practiced throughout Europe, Asia, Canada & many other parts of the world - Our water movement experience is an interactive sensory and soothing time for your baby. With the support from our special float, babies can move freely and near weightlessly due to the buoyancy of the water. They are able to move with purposeful movements in the water like they cannot do on the ground at this age.  With the gentle resistance of the water it is a unique way to activate their muscles & increase strength, great for circulation & a form of hydrotherapy for baby. They can utilize their motor skills and it is a different type of sensory experience for them. Baby massage is an ancient practice that has been taught and used throughout cultures and families globally for decades. Some benefits include – promoting relaxation, sleep, digestion, circulation and enhanced bonding for caregiver and baby!

What can parents expect during a session?

We want you to feel at home in our space : ) Expect a calm, clean, relaxed and unbiased environment. Although we don’t promise it, sleep is definitely something we hear quite often after your session is over. Babies will also be a little hungrier the rest of the day due to the exercise and stimulation they are getting from the water movement. You can expect an offering of unique classes that are taught by Nurses/Doulas/Newborn Specialists – specifically designed to meet the needs of new babies and new parents. We are here to support you in any way that we can!

Is there anything else you’d like to share about metta baby?

We are a one of a kind space in the US and could not be more grateful for the support we have received from our families, partners and community the last few years! Opening our space right before Covid limited the services we had originally planned for. But we are extremely motivated for the future plans we have – including expanding our services and potentially bringing on partners to expand locations : ) To stay in the loop make sure to sign up for our newsletter and check out our website mettababy.com. We look forward to meeting your family!

The Chicago New Moms Group is very excited to announce our exclusive partnership with Metta Baby Infant Wellness Studio! metta baby is Chicago's premier infant wellness studio - dedicated to promoting early developmental activities that support motor, sensory and cognitive skills - while nurturing secure attachment between infants and their parents. They offer early water stimulation, baby massage instruction, developmental activities, private playgroups & education beginning at two weeks old. Their team of specialists are here to provide a solid socialization and support system for infants and their caregivers in the earliest of stages!