Doulas: More Than Just Birthing Support
Or rather, maybe what I should say is Birthing Support is more than just supporting the physical birthing of the child. There’s so much more to the birthing process. More than just the 10 months of pregnancy, the labor and the delivery.
When I had my child, I was really clueless. I did not do any research and didn’t ask any of my friends who had babies anything about their births because I just assumed that you go to the hospital, you push the baby out and you’re done.
Wroooonggg…yep. That’s wrong. It’s doesn’t need to be so mechanistic and in fact, birthing can be a really beautifully empowering and ecstatic event for mama. This is what I’ve discovered having heard many freebirth and homebirth stories.
The reality is, a good portion of the population is still skeptical about home-births and they feel safer giving birth in a hospital. Nothing wrong with that! Plenty of people have had beautiful hospital birth stories! I personally don’t know of anyone, but that is beside the point.
This conversation that I share with Rebecca Durlin Smith of Birth First Doulas is for those who plan to have their babies in a hospital. Doulas can help advocate for the mother in the hospital setting. Sometimes, things are going so fast and, well, you’re probably in a lot of pain and stress so it’s nice to have someone there that is experienced that can be your ears and voice and ask questions that are important to you that you might’ve forgotten in the moment.
Additionally, doulas can support the partner in the whole birthing process so that they feel connected to the mother, the baby and the experience. Not just physical support but mental support as well!
Here are some ways that I feel a doula could’ve helped me:
Explain to me all the pros and cons of all the medical manipulations in the hospital - from epidurals to pitocin to all the things they want to put onto and into your child at birth
Remind me of my own intuition to feel into what I want my birth story to look like
Remind me of all the things that would support me at home, after the birth and provide some support after birth so I didn’t feel so helpless
Supported me in the hospital when the baby wasn’t dropping. She could’ve advocated for me to move into different positions or other ways
Prepared me mentally for a beautiful and memorable birth experience.
Share this interview with your friends that are choosing a hospital birth. Doulas can be so special for this monumental event that only happens once in your life. (By that I mean, you only give birth to your one unique child, once in your life).