A doula is a trained professional who provides emotional, physical, and informational support to individuals during pregnancy, birth, and postpartum. Doulas assist with comfort measures, offer encouragement, and help families navigate the birthing and postpartum recovery process.
It is important to note, that doulas do not replace medical providers such as midwives, OBGYNs, nurses, and pediatricians. Doulas do not provide medical care, rather their role is to support their client through pregnancy, birth and postpartum advocating for the parent's choices. Doulas can also help with postpartum recovery, including breastfeeding support and newborn care guidance.
Understanding the Role of a Doula
The role of a doula is to be a supporter and protector of the birth space, birthing person, and the family unit. This will look different from birth to birth as everyone has different goals, desires, and outcomes during their labor and delivery. However, doulas offer four standard pillars of support: physical support, emotional support, informational support, and advocacy.
Our role is to create a space where the family feels safe, empowered, and supported in their choices for their birth. Using evidence-based information, trauma-informed care, and hands-on support-- doulas hold space for the family in this sacred time. The same principals apply to postpartum care within the home.
Support During Pregnancy
Emotional Support: During pregnancy, your birth doula near you will provide emotional reassurance, encouragement, and process any fears/concerns going into the birth space. Across prenatal visits as well as virtual support, your doula will help you prepare mentally for the journey into childbirth. Birth is just as much about mindset as it is about physical movements/changes.
Educational Resources: In prenatal meetings, doulas share evidence-based information and education on childbirth. This not only includes education on the actual process of childbirth but also pain management techniques, medical procedures and interventions, and anything the client needs to prepare for labor, delivery, and postpartum.
Birth Planning: Birth doulas assist in creating a personalized birth plan that aligns with the mother’s preferences. Birth plans are meant to prepare everyone going into the birth space for the ideal desires for the birth but with built in back-up game plans and flexibility.
Preparing Physically: Doulas also provide information on exercises, stretches, and physical preparation clients can take prior to labor and delivery. These methods such as Spinning Babies, the Body Ready Method, etc. can help prepare families for more optimal fetal positioning. Furthermore, they help mothers become familiar with birth positions before entering the birth space. I always practice hands-on support with my clients during our second prenatal meeting.
Labor and Birth Doula Support Near You
Continuous Labor Support: Doulas provide uninterrupted physical and emotional support throughout labor. As a Michiana area birth doula, I offer in-person, continuous labor support from the time you call me in. However, labor support often starts in early labor before you need hands-on support. When you need me, I am there.
Comfort Techniques: Comfort measures are a major aspect of doula support. Comfort techniques such as massage, counter pressures, help with birth positioning, using a Rebozo, TENS unit, and hydrotherapy are all physical comfort methods. However, breathing exercises, affirmations, calming words of encouragement, and information support are all comforting aspects of doula support proven to help in the birth space.
Advocacy: This is a BIG one. Doulas help facilitate communication between the mother, and medical staff, ensuring her wishes are honored, respected and heard. We don't speak directly for our clients, rather, we help educate, inform, and support our client to speak up for themselves. We love the acronym B.R.A.I.N for this, which I'm going to dive into in a longer post soon! Stay Tuned!
Postpartum Support
Emotional Adjustment: Navigating the postpartum period can feel overwhelming and challenging to new parents. Doulas help new parents adjust to this transitory time in their lives, processing their birth experience as well as new developments in the postpartum period. They can also help individuals get connected with licensed mental health experts in their area if they are experiencing deeper emotional/mental health challenges postpartum.
Physical Support: The physical support continues with postpartum follow-ups and postpartum doula services. Doulas check on mother's overall physical well-being (not-medically) and help offer resources if more critical care is needed such as chiropractic care or pelvic floor therapy.
Practical Support: Offering help with light household tasks, meal preparation, and sibling care during the postpartum period.
Benefits of Hiring a Birth Doula Near You
Positive Birth Experiences: Research shows that continuous support from a doula can lead to more satisfying birth experiences. This was true even when those labors did not go as planned.
Reduced Intervention Rates: Doulas are linked to lower cesarean rates (by 39%) and reduced need for pain relief measures (by 10%).
Improved Mental Health: Studies indicate that postpartum support from doulas can decrease the risk of postpartum mood and anxiety disorders (PMADS).
Finding Your Birth Support
Doulas play an essential role in supporting families throughout pregnancy, labor, and the postpartum period. Using informational, emotional, and physical support as well as advocacy, doulas help empower, honor, protect, and respect the knowledge and inner beauty of each birthing person.
I serve the Michiana area (Southwest Michigan/Northern Indiana) with both birth and postpartum doula care. If you want to build your birth team, let's connect. I would love to support you during this sacred and transformative journey into parenthood.
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