Why You Should Hire A Doula
So you’ve heard of a doula, but what do they really do?
A doula is a pregnancy and postpartum support person who is educated and trained in birth. A doula’s job is to support both expecting mothers and their partner, offering evidence-based information, emotional support, and physical support during labor.
Recently, someone asked us if a doula was an advocate or a consultant.
Hmm, great question. By definition, a consultant is a person who provides expert advice. Your doula should know statistics, benefits and risks in both common and rare possibilities of gestation, labor, delivery and postpartum. Doulas share expert advice, but we don’t walk this journey with you to tell you what you should be doing. In fact, that would be contradictory to the true role of a doula.
An advocate, on the other hand, publicly supports what they are advocating for. Your doula, like an advocate, will passionately plead for your rights and desires. Yours.
Your doula, regardless of their own preferences, should be a space of unconditional support for you. Ultimately, it’s important to know that all decisions made are made by the birthing person (aka you). So, to answer the question, we’re a little of both!
The greatest success in birth comes from building a relationship with your doula where they understand scope of birth work, boundaries, and encourage open communication. Your doula should always be available to you. You should be free to ask questions and to communicate your feelings at any time.
At Flourish Family Doulas, you meet with your doula 2 to 5 times before your baby’s birth-day. Shortly after establishing doula care, it’s time to get down to business: discussing your birth plan. If you don’t have one, you might let your doula lead you in the right direction. Coming up with a birth plan on your own can be overwhelming! I mean, where do you even start?
Your doula can offer support by educating you with answers to questions you didn’t know to ask. This could be information about the benefits and risks of certain interventions used in labor and delivery. It could be exploration of your comfort measures like hydrotherapy, hypnobirthing, aromatherapy or laboring positions.
Don’t fret if you find yourself passionate about the decisions you choose to make for your birth plan. That’s a GOOD sign! Other information you may like to receive from your doula can be nutritional suggestions, gentle exercise and what you might expect to experience through the entirety of your pregnancy and the different stages of labor. You can expect your doula to be with you for the duration of labor, delivery and the following first hours desired after birth.
But at Flourish Family Doulas, we don’t stop at birth! We know postpartum care is important too. In the first days and weeks of your new life, your doula will continue caring support, guidance and observation of your postpartum experience. We also offer postpartum doula care and support, such as overnight visits, lactation, oral tie evaluations, and more.
So, where do you start?! Looking for a doula is easy. Flourish Family Doulas connects you with a compassionate, educated, and experienced doula you can feel comfortable with and trust. Parents all over the world have found their positive birth experience using a doula. Check out a few of our favorite statistics:
A 25% decrease in the risk of Cesarean; the largest effect was seen with a doula (39% decrease)*
An 8% increase in the likelihood of a spontaneous vaginal birth; the largest effect was seen with a doula (15% increase)*
A 10% decrease in the use of any medications for pain relief; the type of person providing continuous support did not make a difference.
Have shorter labors by 41 minutes on average; there is no data on if the type of person providing continuous support makes a difference.
Have a 38% decrease in the baby’s risk of a low five minute Apgar score; there is no data on if the type of person providing continuous support makes a difference
A 31% decrease in the risk of being dissatisfied with the birth experience; mothers’ risk of being dissatisfied with the birth experience was reduced with continuous support provided by a doula or someone in their social network (family or friend), but not hospital staff”
Basically, the evidence shows the undeniable benefit of hiring a doula!
Comfort, strength, knowledge, passion, support….in a nutshell this is what a doula is made of. Receive peace of mind, know you’re taken care of. Find your doula at Flourish Family Doulas!
