Birth Doula
Congratulations. It is an exciting and amazingly happy moment when you and your partner find out that you are pregnant. You will have many thoughts and questions. Our experienced Birth Doulas can help clarify your questions, guide you to develop a pregnancy plan, be with you during labour & early postpartum and put your mind at ease.
Recommended Start date
Contact us soon after you discover that you are pregnant to discuss how we can support you.
Confirm your Birth Doula booking at least 5 weeks before your Estimated due date.
Our birth doula support Includes:
Complimentary “Meet and Greet” session to learn about how our Birth Doula can support you
Two Prenatal meetings of an hour each
On-call 24 hours a day for 3 weeks before your Estimated due date up to 2 weeks after
Birth support at the hospital during labour and for the first latch
Two Postpartum visits of an hour each at your hospital or home
A doula is a caring, experienced person who accompanies the birthing couple throughout labor and childbirth with continuous mental, spiritual, and physical support.
Having continuous support during labour and birth has many benefits for the labouring mother! It decreases the risk of an unplanned caesarean, an instrumental vaginal birth and the use of analgesics like an epidural. It increases your chances of having a spontaneous vaginal birth, and women have reported to be more satisfied about their birth experience when having a doula present!
A doula won’t take over the role of your partner, but is an additional support person with a calming, reassuring presence. She offers help and advice, decreasing the pressure on your partner.
Even though our in-house doula may be a midwife, a doula is not allowed to perform as a medically trained person, and will not perform any examinations or make diagnoses. She is also not there to speak on your behalf, but rather to encourage and empower you in finding your own voice. This will help you achieve a more natural, relaxed and supported birth experience!
Our birth doula provides comprehensive support personalised for you
Prenatal
Our birth doula will meet with you twice prenatally for one hour each, at mutually agreeable times. During these visits, we can discuss any questions you might have, and review your birth plan, which will help organize your thoughts about what is important to you and help communicate your wishes to your medical caregivers.
Birth plan
We recommend that you complete a written birth plan, discuss it in detail with the medical practitioner scheduled to attend your birth and tour your proposed birth facility before the birth. Our birth doula can provide information on options for your birth plan. However, you will be responsible for deciding on a birth plan that is best suited to your individual needs and preferences and for discussing the terms with your doctor.
At the hospital
Our birth doula will remain with you as long as possible from the time you request her to be with you at the hospital once labor has begun, until one to two hours after your baby is born. Our birth doula can help you to utilize non-medical support techniques for labor and birth, such as breathing techniques, massage, heat packs, bath or shower and positioning. Our birth doula will maintain a birth log, as circumstances allow, of the events that occur during labor and birth. Our birth doula will create a birth journal based on these notes within two weeks of the birth of your baby. All records remain confidential. Our birth doula will not share these records with any person, except where disclosure is required by law.
Breastfeeding
Our birth doula will help you initiate breastfeeding if that is what you choose to do and will help you with the first latch.
Postpartum
After the birth, our birth doula will make two postpartum visits of one hour each which can be the day after the birth, the day you return home from the hospital, or any other day you prefer. At these visits, our birth doula will support you in newborn care as well as feeding support.