Faqs

  • Q: My husband wants to be my labor coach. He is a afraid that hiring a doula will keep him from participating fully in our birth. Is this true?

    A:
    A doula is as much a support to the father as the she is to the mother. A doula can help the father support the mother by offering ideas for comfort measures and by making sure they have both eaten. When important decisions need to be made, a doula can inform both the mother and father of the pros and cons of their options. A doula forms a bubble of security and peace around the laboring couple. Thus, having a doula present, enables the father to focus completely on supporting the mother.
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  • Q: Does a doula take the place of my nurse? What can a doula do that a nurse cannot?

    A:
    A doula does not perform any clinical skills. Nurses are very busy, and usually cannot stay with you throughout your labor to offer the kind of support they would like to. Nurses will often have shift changes during the course of your labor as well. In contrast, you have the ability to develop a relationship with a doula weeks or months before you give birth so that a doula knows what you want for your birth. A doula stays with you, at your side throughout the duration of your labor and birth as well as post partum.
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  • Q: Do I need a doula if I have a midwife and/or a home birth?

    A:
    Yes! Midwives are also very busy with the clinical aspects of labor, and although they provide wonderful emotional support, they often have other women to support and either cannot come until active labor or later, or they may have to leave intermittently throughout your labor. A doula can come whenever you feel that you need support, even if it is early labor. A doula can help you settle into your contractions, make sure you are well nourished and comfortable, and talk with you about any fears, concerns, or reassure you if you and your partner are just unsure of what you are feeling.
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  • Q: Do I need a doula if I plan on having an epidural?

    A:
    A doula is still very beneficial if you get an epidural. Besides continuous emotional support, you may still have discomfort that a doula can help relieve since not all epidurals work completely. You may need to prepare for how to push the baby out if you cannot feel the sensation of your contractions, or if you do not get the urge to push. Preparing for such things with your doula you can help prevent more interventions such as episiotomy, vacuum or forceps extraction, or a cesarean.
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  • Q: My husband is going to be with me…do I still need a doula?

    A:
    I believe that dads and doulas together provide total support to a laboring woman. Your husband can experience the birth in his own terms, without feeling like he has to have every book on childbirth memorized.
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  • Q: What happens if I need a Caesarean birth?

    A:
    A doula provides a warm, calming, and informative presence throughout your whole birth experience. In most hospitals, I can accompany you and your husband into the birth, help both you and your husband relax, explain what is happening, take photographs, and keep the focus on your baby's Birth Day.
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  • Q: May I speak with some of your previous clients?

    A:
    Absolutely! References are available by telephone or e-mail.
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  • Q: Do you take my blood pressure and check other vital signs?

    A:
    No, I do not perform medical tasks. My services include emotional, physical, and psychological support.
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  • Q: What if you are with another woman when I go into labor?

    A:
    I work with other highly trained, qualified, and certified doulas to provide continuous and seamless support for my clients before, during, and after your birth. You will be given contact information for your back-up doula so that you may speak with her prenatally, and reach her at any time after.
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