Our Story

Founder Carly Buxton gave birth to her first child in Boston in 2017, far from the support of family and close friends. As an overwhelmed new parent, Carly spent countless hours online, trying to research her way out of all of the problems she was having feeding and caring for a new baby—and for her own postpartum body. As a user researcher, she couldn’t believe there wasn’t a better way for parents to get the tailored perinatal guidance they needed online, free of judgmental trolls, well-meaning but outdated advice, and sponsored posts.
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Carly was determined to build a solution. She founded Parentswarm in 2019, earned her certifications as a postpartum doula and lactation counselor, and started supporting families in person and online. Since then, she has partnered with a dynamic technical co-founder, Michelle Cunningham who, as a fellow mother, is deeply motivated to improve the lives of parents through user-friendly technology. Supported by a team of mission-driven strategists, marketers, and designers, Parentswarm is helping new and expectant parents to get the immediate support they need online from qualified perinatal experts.

Meet The Team

Carly Buxton, PhD - Co-Founder and CEO - Carly is a postpartum doula and Certified Lactation Consultant (CLC) based in the West End of Richmond, Virginia.
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Also a historian, user experience researcher, and writer, her mission is to promote empathy in everyday action: in our communities, in research, in education, and in business.
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After many years of living away from home (in Chicago, Boston, China, and Japan), Carly has returned to her hometown of Richmond, Virginia, where she lives with her husband and their two children.

Michelle Cunningham - Co-Founder and CTO - is an engineering leader, full-stack web developer and startup veteran with a passion for creating technology that changes lives. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and 2 children.

Our values

Always Learning

Rooted in research, our approach is open, flexible, and ever-evolving as we learn from science and from our customers

Genuine Connection

We’re dedicated to building authentic, trusting relationships–whether online or in-person.

Compassion

We know that health and wellbeing blossom when caregivers listen with empathy