What You Can Expect From Your Doula
Your doula team is committed to your personal satisfaction in your birth experience. I will work closely with you to ease your fears and lessen your concerns. I will help you identify your birth values so you can prepare more confidently for the type of birth experience that feels just right for you. I will assist you in fully understanding your options and engage in discussions with you on the benefits, risks, tradeoffs and alternatives of those options, so that you can make informed and confident decisions. I will assist you in planning your birth and communicating with your care providers. I will respect your goals and desires, without bias or judgment. I will provide resources and referrals, as needed and requested. I will provide continuous emotional, informational and physical support throughout the entirety of your birth experience. I will keep your confidences and protect your privacy, with respect to both ordinary and sensitive matters. Your doula team is committed to fully supporting you throughout your pregnancy, birth and early postpartum period.
What Your Doulas Expect of You
First and foremost, your doula team expects that you will be honest with, and true to, yourself. In other words, acknowledge and respect who you are and what appeals to you and plan a birth experience that will satisfy you and not one that is based solely on cultural ideals. I expect that you will share your values and goals with me, as well as your special needs or individual circumstances and allow me to help you design the type of support you need to achieve your goals. I encourage you to face your fears and concerns and approach them directly, with my guidance and support, if it would be helpful to you. I hope you will not be shy about asking for my assistance and allowing me to be a shoulder to lean on and a resource for you.
What doulas don't do
They do not perform clinical tasks such as vaginal exams or fetal heart monitoring. They do not give medical advice or diagnose conditions. They do not make decisions for the client (medical or otherwise) They do not pressure the birthing person into certain choices just because that’s what they prefer. They do not take over the role of the partner. They do not catch the baby. They do not change shifts.
What is the evidence on Doulas?
There have been 26 randomized trials that tested the effects of continuous labour support on more than 15,000 people giving birth. Overall, people who receive continuous support are more likely to have a normal vaginal birth and less likely to have pain medication, negative feelings about childbirth, and caesareans. In addition, their labors are shorter and their babies are less likely to have complications at birth or be admitted to a NICU. In these studies, the best results occurred when the continuous support was provided by a trained doula.
Staying in Touch
Communicating on a regular basis will give you and your doula team the opportunity to become even more familiar and comfortable with one another. A good rule of thumb is to at least check in with your primary doula after each prenatal obstetrical appointment. If you don’t, she will be checking in with you!
You can let your doulas know your preferred method of communication prenatally, be it phone calls, text messages or emails, keeping in mind that each form of communication has its advantages and limitations. For example, for more in-depth questions, a phone call or even an email is preferable to a text message.
Phone calls about non-urgent matters are welcomed between 8am and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and until noon on Saturday. For urgent matters, such as a critical situation or during labor, call anytime, day or night. Emails will be responded to within 24 to 48 hours.