Hello, I’m Helena, a Christian Doula and Hypnobirthing Teacher

A doula chooses to show up and be present, walking with you on the pregnancy and birthing journey, whatever that may entail. This can be at any point in the process - before conception, in miscarriage, in early pregnancy, in labour and into the newborn phase. A doula is someone who serves and engages with an ancient practice of being available and present to those who are on their unique journey of pregnancy and birth.

NOT included in Doula support (taken from https://evidencebasedbirth.com/the-evidence-for-doulas/)

Doulas are not medical professionals, and the following tasks are not performed by doulas:

• 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 (although some doulas may call in a back-up after 12-24 hours)

It’s your choice entirely! Doulas aim to support parents to prepare and equip themselves for what’s ahead. In the time we have together before the birth, we talk about the roles we think will have in the team, and how to best support each other in that. As a doula I have been at homebirths where there has been last minute pool set up by the birth partner, while I have been with Mum in another room, breathing through surges. Other times I have been more practical while the partner has been close to her. Labour can go on a long time, so a birth partner being able to catch some rest during that time, knowing their partner has someone by their side can be really beneficial. The more sleep a birth partner has had, the more helpful they might be once baby has arrived!

In hospital, it can be common for midwives to be overstretched and with shift changes there cannot always be continuous support from the same people, and very often you haven’t met at all previously. So, having someone you both know and trust to walk with you through it all, and be there to debrief afterwards, can be extremely beneficial!

“Research has shown that the most positive birth experiences for fathers were ones where they had continuous support by a doula or a midwife. In the McGrath and Kennell study, the women and their partners who had a doula overwhelmingly rated the support of their doula as positive—with 93% rating their experience with the doula as very positive, and 7% as positive. In other studies, fathers have said that when they had labor support from a midwife or doula, things were explained to them, their questions were answered, their labor support efforts were guided and effective, and they could take breaks from the emotional intensity of the labor without abandoning their laboring partner (Johansson,https://evidencebasedbirth.com/the-evidence-for-doulas/ 2015).” https://evidencebasedbirth.com/the-evidence-for-doulas/