What is a Doula?
I was recently asked the difference between a doula and a midwife. A midwife is a healthcare provider who is trained similar to an OBGYN in women’s reproductive services. A family may choose a midwife to deliver their baby, and statistics indicate that midwives decrease the incidence of infant and maternal medical issues. See the resources below for additional information.
A doula is a trained professional who provides emotional, physical, and informative support during pregnancy and the postpartum period (birth to one year). A doula tends to the entire family, learning the needs of the family and supporting their goals and family culture. Described as “mothering the mother”, doulas spend much of their time caring for the momma before and during birth and/or after she recovers emotionally and physically from childbirth. A doula is trained in maternal care and infant development. A doula is not a medical professional.
Birth doulas specialize in helping the family prepare for birth and attending the birth to assist the family with their birth plan. She provides soothing techniques, advocacy for the family, and post-birth recovery. Research indicates that women who use a birth doula tend to use less pain medications, feel less stress during labor, have fewer cesareans and shorter labors. A birth doula may work with the family before, during and after birth.
A postpartum doula focuses on providing care to each family member after the birth. Again, she is skilled to offer supports to the mother, as well as the baby. She can provide infant development information, feeding support, maternal recovery care, and provide community resources for any additional services a family may need. Research indicates that postpartum doulas lower maternal anxiety levels, increased maternal confidence, and help the family overall feel successful.
I am a postpartum doula and love every minute of my time with a family who has welcomed a new baby. As a mom of three, I remember in those early weeks and months feeling in need of encouragement, meals, a break to take a shower, sleep, permission to rest, and more encouragement. This is what I aim to provide to families.
The transition home with a new baby is intense! Many moms struggle with the lack of sleep, physical recovery (it’s been compared to running a marathon!), and huge identity shift especially for first time moms. It can be hard to feel so busy and tired as a mom, yet also feel like all you do it feed and hold and change the baby. My goal is to reassure and validate these feelings and also say to moms, “That is a full and important day! Keep it up, you’re doing great, momma!”
So many friends have commended me for becoming a doula, and talk about how important and needed doulas are. Nearly everyone exclaims, “I wish I had one when I was a new mom!” So, let’s encourage more families to take advantage of this support!
This blog post writes beautifully about the art of postpartum care and how beneficial it is to mom and baby when a doula is added to a family’s support team. https://www.villagebirthcollective.com/blog/2018/9/2/mothering-the-mother-the-art-of-postpartum-care
Resources:
https://www.marchofdimes.org/find-support/blog/doulas-can-improve-care-during-and-after-childbirth
