FAQ

Having a doula complements most births, whether at home, in a birth center, or in a hospital- and whether attended by a doctor or a midwife. I regularly provide labor support in all three settings. The roles of the doula and the care provider are not the same. (You would not say to a bride, “You already have a preacher there, do you still need a maid of honor?”) A doula does not perform any clinical duties or provide any medical care; this is the job of the midwife or doctor.

Many midwives do provide some emotional and physical support during labor, when they are not performing their clinical duties- but their first priority must be centered on safeguarding the health of the mother and the baby. The doula’s only focus and priority is providing continuity of care with emotional, physical and informational support of the pregnant couple. Most midwives welcome the contribution of the doula to the birth team. Studies show women’s satisfaction with their birth experience to be greatly increased by a doula’s presence, among other benefits such as lower rates of interventions, medication and cesareans.

What I actually do to support you depends on what you need in labor, what you and your husband wants his role to be, and the circumstances of your birth. In one birth, the mother might need constant support from her husband, in which case, I might be focused primarily on supporting the husband so that he can continue to support her. In long labors, the father and I might take turns providing emotional and physical support to the laboring mother, so neither becomes exhausted and mom is always being served by someone “fresh”. The dad might provide all of the emotional support while I provide the physical support, or vice versa. Sometimes I work more closely with the staff, helping with continuity of care as the care providers change work shifts, updating the new shift’s nurses on the couple’s wishes, if mom is too far into labor to want to discuss these preferences. I provide ideas, information about procedures under consideration, emotional support, encouragement, affirmation and prayer, physical comforts like massage, counter-pressure, hot and cold compresses, etc. I am easily able to step in to whichever role the birthing couple needs at any given moment.

I usually schedule travel plans ten months in advance, so my clients know before they decide to hire me if there are going to be any days in their four week “due date window” when I will be unavailable. If I am scheduled to be teaching childbirth class when a client goes into labor, I reschedule my class. In my world- babies nearly always win out over all other scheduled events!

In the unlikely event of two clients going into labor at the same time, I send my experienced, qualified backup doula to the second client. I provide my clients with my cell phone number, my daily schedule, and multiple ways to reach me at any time of the day or night when I am on call for them. I am strongly committed to attending all my clients’ births, and use backup only 1-2% of the time.

The word doula comes from the Greek word for the most important female servant in an ancient Greek household, the woman who probably helped the lady of the house through her childbearing. The word has come to refer to “a woman experienced in childbirth who provides continuous physical, emotional, and informational support to the mother before, during and just after childbirth.” (Klaus, Kennell and Klaus, Mothering the Mother) The complete focus of a doula is the continuous emotional, physical and informational support of the pregnant couple. Here is more specific information on the role of a doula, and the organization with which I am certified.