Sakhee

Your friend in the journey to a healthy and fulfilling postpartum.

Together,

we thrive.

Our Mission

Supporting a healthy and fulfilling postpartum experience for all.

Sakhee (SA-Khee) means “friend”

Two women, one with dark brown hair in a white shirt and the other with dark hair in a green shirt, are sitting on a white couch holding a baby. They are smiling and looking at the baby, who is looking back with a curious expression.

Who We Serve

We provide comprehensive postpartum support to those who need it most. Select the option that best describes you:

Healthcare Providers

Mothers & Birthing Parents

A young girl holding a sleeping baby, giving a gentle kiss on the forehead, with two adults nearby assisting.

Our Story

Sakhee was founded by Smitha Gudapakkam, a social entrepreneur and postpartum doula. Her own postpartum journey with isolation and anxiety after childbirth revealed a critical gap in maternal care.

Sakhee’s mission is to fill this gap. We provide comprehensive support. We do this by integrating Smitha's personal experience with over 16 years of professional expertise in healthcare innovation.

Our mission: A healthy and fulfilling postpartum experience for all.

We combine:

  • Personal Experience: A deep empathy for the challenges new mothers and birthing parents face.

  • Professional Expertise: Over 16 years of experience in healthcare innovation, creating and scaling solutions for complex challenges.

  • Holistic Support: A commitment to providing evidence-based, physical, emotional, and informational care that nurtures the whole person.

At Sakhee, we build a robust postpartum ecosystem. We believe every parent deserves to feel supported, confident, and empowered.

Meet Our Team

  • Smitha Gudapakkam, Chief Executive Offer: A woman with shoulder-length dark hair, wearing a white blazer and maroon top, smiling against a gray background.

    Smitha Gudapakkam

    FOUNDER & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

    LinkedIn
  • Soura Bhattacharyya, Chief Technology Officer: A smiling man with dark hair and beard, wearing a white button-up shirt, standing in a modern office setting with wooden shelving in the background.

    Soura Bhattacharyya

    CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER

    LinkedIn
  • Rima Sheehab, Strategic Product Lead: A smiling woman with dark hair, wearing a green and white tropical print blouse, standing outdoors in front of a backdrop of tall green plants.

    Rima Sheehab

    STRATEGIC PRODUCT LEAD

    LinkedIn
  • Dr. Jordan Miller, Postpartum Pelvic Floor Expert: Portrait of a young woman with long, wavy blonde hair, smiling, against a plain light-colored background.

    Dr. Jordan Miller

    POSTPARTUM PELVIC FLOOR EXPERT

    LinkedIn
  • Raahil Ganguly, Business Development Intern: A young man with curly dark hair wearing a blue blazer and white shirt, standing against a plain light-colored background.

    Raahil Ganguly

    BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT INTERN

    LinkedIn

Meet Our Advisors

Affiliations

Accelerated by Babson Women Innovating Now (WIN) Lab

Babson College logo with text about WIN Lab Women Innovating Now program.
A colorful logo with the word 'EforAll' in stylized green and blue letters.

Accelerated by EforAll

Sakhee in the Community

  • Three people in formal attire holding a large ceremonial check for $1,200.00 made out to Sakhee, with a backdrop displaying EforAll logos. Smitha Gudapakkam is in the middle.

    EforAll Greater Worcester Summer 2024 Cohort

    We are thrilled to announce that Sakhee won a cash prize at the EforAll Accelerator Program Venture Showcase as part of the Summer 2024 cohort! The experience provided invaluable targeted classes, business coaching, and mentorship that helped us refine our business model of supporting women during the postpartum period. This recognition validates the critical need for our services in Worcester County and beyond. We're excited to continue building on this foundation and investing the cash prize in accelerating our business goals.

  • A woman speaking into a microphone on a small stage with a green backdrop featuring the text "Babson College" and "Frank & Eileen™ Center for Women's Entrepreneurial Leadership." The stage is inside a room with large windows showing an outdoor scene with trees and a building.

    Babson WIN Lab Venture 2025

    Sakhee was proud to be part of the Babson WIN Lab 2025 Ventures and won a seed grant from the Butler Launch Pad at Babson! The Women Innovating Now (WIN) Lab, created by the Frank & Eileen™ Center for Women's Entrepreneurial Leadership at Babson College, provided an inspiring community and rigorous process to catalyze innovative thinking and enable successful business scaling. This opportunity perfectly aligned with our mission to support women during the postpartum period as we joined a network of female innovators committed to creating meaningful change.

  • A woman standing next to a large informational poster about postpartum support networks at a conference. She is smiling, wearing a teal vest, a name badge, and has dark hair.

    Postpartum Support International Conference in New Orleans

    Sakhee Postpartum Support was honored to present our innovative model as a poster titled "Beyond Baby Gear - Empowering Parents to Build the Ultimate Postpartum Network" at the Postpartum Support International Conference 2025 in New Orleans. Our presentation showcased our comprehensive approach that combines in-person postpartum doula support with care coordination for both physical and mental health during postpartum. This opportunity allowed us to share insights with the broader postpartum support community and learn from other innovators improving maternal wellbeing.

  • Four women in blue scrubs standing in front of a presentation slide titled 'A Day in the Life: Ob/Gyn Edition' in a conference room.

    Day In The Life: OB/GYN Edition

    The Sakhee team volunteered at the UMass Memorial-Worcester led event to expose high school students to career opportunities in maternal health care, introducing them to diverse paths including obstetricians, gynecologists, midwives, nurses, and doulas. This initiative gave young people from underrepresented groups a glimpse into the world of healthcare, allowing them to explore the daily responsibilities of patient care and gain exposure to our health system. By sharing our expertise as postpartum doulas and care coordinators, we inspired the next generation to consider careers supporting women during life's most transformative moments. This work reflects our commitment diversify and strengthen the maternal health ecosystem by building a pipeline of compassionate care providers.

Healthcare worker tending to a baby with a woman holding the baby during a check-up in a bright room, with other children and parents in the background.
A woman sitting on a pink couch, looking at her phone, with a young baby resting on her lap, in a cozy living room with natural light.

Join Us

Are you passionate about supporting mothers and birthing parents during their postpartum journey? We are building a community of dedicated individuals, and we'd love to hear from you.

Email us at info@yoursakhee.com

Contact us

Interested in working together? Fill out some info and we will be in touch shortly. We can’t wait to hear from you!