What was the greatest benefit of having a doula for your birth?
Looking back on my 31 hour labor I now realized that I trusted my doula more than anyone in the delivery room. My baby was 8 days late and over 9 pound. My doula’s techniques made it possible for me to have the drug free delivery that i wanted for my baby and me. I had incredible back labor, and my doula knew exactly how to provide the counter pressure that I needed to work through each contraction. She also gently coordinated my husband and my mom in the delivery room so that everyone was purposefully involved and helpful to me. My doula anticipated every stage of labor I would go through and knew exactly what to do at each crucial step. Her confidence in me is what pulled through the most difficult and wondrous event of my life. Trust me you will love your doula.
If you spend money on anything in your life spend it on having a doula with you during the most intense thing you will ever do. your doula will prove to be an irreplaceable and priceless member of your birth team. I’ve met so many other women who would rather forget about their delivery because it was so traumatic or had become everything they hadn’t expected. i am able to remember the birth of my son with fondness largely due to the support my doula provided. I can’t wait to do it all again. Erin
She did a great job, I really felt comfortable with her as much as I probably could with a relative stranger (no offense intended) sharing such an important, intimate event. She was a great addition to this VBAC experience and I will forever be gateful for the confidence it provided me in attemtping the VBAC. Thanks! Mandy
She was so helpful during the prelabor stage in counseling me on whether to go to the hospital or not and just for checking in to provide reassurance. During the birth she was a big support for me and my husband, helped us to communicate frequent updates to our families and took some wonderful photos for us. Ellen
Helping us navigate all of the information the doctors and nurses were giving to us. We didn’t have many questions but knowing she was there with us helped provide the calm atmosphere we wanted for our birth. Lucille
Because of my health issues we were very thankful to have someone who knew the ropes and could help us make good decisions as well as someone to be there for the duration to help monitor the situation. My condition could have changed so quickly, it was important to me to have someone there who could recognize anything that didn’t seem right and then to be able to talk to me, my husband or the staff about the situation. I appreciated everything she did and was so glad to have her there to support me and my husband in every way. Thank you for being so attentive to my every need and so calm and supportive, there were moments when I was really scared and not at all sure that I could do what I needed to do but you gave me courage. Elisa
She was a calming yet strong influence that supported my goals and most importantly helped me to maintain my focus. Gretchen
The guidance and support that she provided was the greatest benefit that she provided. Without her then we would have just felt like we were being shuffled from place to place. It was so reassuring that there was someone consistent there the whole time who was there to support us. I know that my husband was so glad to have her there-it would be unfair for me to depend on him throughout the process when neither of us really knew what to expect next. Jennifer
The pressure was off my husband to remember everything form the birth class. There was someone to talk to and ask advice of that was not a relative. I felt like she was an advocate, a clearheaded one, of what we wanted for our birth. And she brought a hot water bottle for my back labor! Katie
My doula knew exactly how to get me through each contraction and stage of labor. As our baby came 3 weeks early we were not prepared, she helped me with labor while my husband packed our hospital bags and installed the car seat! I felt I was in good hands when I needed advice! Julie and Caesar
Our doulas’ steadiness calmed us. We also really appreciated her sense of humor. And although it may seem strange to say, the way our doula treated my wife made her feel loved, it really was more than just feeling cared for. Jill and Gary
Our doula was fantastic, supportive, reassuring, sensitive, easy to talk to, thoughtful, and incidentally, a GREAT photographer! Her continuous presence during the labor was so comforting it made the whole experience less scary and helped us to actually enjoy the birth of our son. Catherine
I now see first hand the value of a doula. While I knew she would be helpful, her attentiveness to my wife (getting juice and water, hot water packs, massages, etc.) allowed me to focus on keeping my wife relaxed. I am sure I would have felt lost and overwhelmed if I were alone in the task to keep my wife comfortable during our 21 hour labor. I am forever grateful for our doulas’ help. Mike and Sabrina
