A doula can be an amazing ally in your journey through pregnancy and birth. Time and again, research shows that doulas can increase a woman’s chance for having a spontaneous vaginal delivery (ie, without vacuum extraction, forceps or cesarean surgery), shorten her time in labor and facilitate a more positive childbirth experience. For my most recent, third birth, I hired a doula for the first time and I will say that I loved having a doula. Even though my actual birth experience was super-fast and allowed very little time for anyone to provide hands-on labor support, my doula provided amazing emotional and informational support and guidance throughout my pregnancy and postpartum — and perhaps the most vital benefit for me, was the confidence I gained by knowing that she would be there for me in labor to help me achieve the epidural-free birth that I wanted.
Now that I have the contrasting birth experiences — two without a doula and one with — I want to yell from the rooftops, “Every woman deserves a doula!” Instead, I thought it would be better to hold a blog carnival on doula support to share with expectant moms and families. We’re looking for stories (and photos!) from moms and dads about your experience with a doula. If you hired a doula for any of your births and had a positive experience, we want to know about it! Think about answering questions like, how did your doula help you in labor — both directly and indirectly; what did your doula do for you in pregnancy and/or postpartum; and, how did the support from a doula affect your birth experience?
Participation in the “What Did Your Doula Do for You” Blog Carnival is easy:
1. If you have a blog, write a blog post on the carnival theme. Post it on your blog by Wednesday, October 5. Make sure the post links back to this blog post. You may also submit a previously written post, as long as the information is still current.
2. Send an email with a link to your post to cterreri [at] lamaze [dot] org.
3. If you do not have a blog but would like to participate, you may submit a story for consideration by emailing it to me.
4. I will compile and post the Blog Carnival here at Giving Birth with Confidence on Friday, October 14.
Happy doula blogging! I can’t wait to read your submissions!
About Cara Terreri
My Douala was the best thing that could have helped me during my delivery of my child. My husband was deployed and I was going through dilating very early, along with having to deal with a toddler and a husband overseas. She was the one thing that made me feel that I could make it through it. She not only supported me, but she also understood everything I was going through because she has dealt with things similar. I will always keep her close to my heart, and close to my family. I have my family, and the love we have because of her. My thankfulness and gratefulness will never amount to what we feel. So, THANK YOU AMY <3
Sorry my Microsoft auto-corrected things that should not have been corrected. Please read my post as if it should have been read, and not the way it was “fixed”. Thanks .
Great blog carnival idea, Cara! I can’t wait to submit my story…I also experienced doula care third time around and sure wished I’d opted into this from the beginning with birth #1!
WOW! Where to begin?! One of my best friends talked me into hiring a doula for my first (and so far only) birth and I’m so glad I did! I’d never even heard of a doula before my friend had one. I really just wanted to have some extra support to take some of the pressure off my husband during the big event since we don’t have family nearby. My doula became a great friend and holds such a special place in our family and we still keep in touch. The funny thing is that my doula is also a massage therapist so I thought it would be great to have a massage while in labor – turns out I didn’t want to be touched at all! That’s the beauty of doulas – they’re flexible and know that plans change. (And I did get a fabu post-partum massage!) I’m sold on doulas – I tell every pg I meet that they should at least consider a doula…
Every mom (and dad) deserves a doula! My doula, Tequita Williamson, helped guide me through the slew of decisions leading up to my birth by answering my million and a half questions and providing me resources to help me achieve the unmedicated birth I wished. She supported through my potential obstacles of gestational diabetes and testing positive for Strep B. She and my midwife, Tanya Bailey, teamed up to give me the best opportunity to make it happen my preferred way. When the big day finally arrived, Tequita provided emotional support, information, and physical support to help ease the discomfort. My husband and I were newbies. She helped us know what was typical and expected (very helpful). My labor seemed to surge in intensity and then level off for several hours. At each surge, I thought it couldn’t possibly get any more painful; after all, I already had lightning flying out of my butt every few minutes – I was wrong about the more painful part, but Tequita helped me stay focused and assured me I could do it – and I did. My husband was totally involved and supportive – he was holding me, doing double-hip-presses, getting me drinks and snacks, and mopping the sweat off my brow. I had 22 hours of labor and my husband really appreciated having someone to share the support role with. My birth went great and while my husband was off seeing to our daughter in the nursery, Tequita came to our room with me. I really appreciated the added touches. She took photos (with our permission) at various points throughout the labor and birth. She also made the bed in our room for my husband – I gave birth after midnight – and stayed with me until he returned. I recommend hiring a doula to every pregnant woman I know.