Labor Support
Women helping women have babies, a practice as old as childbirth...
The Mothering Way Birth Doulas provide support, information, and encouragement for expectant parents before, during, and immediately following birth. We want to help you create your ideal birth experience whether this is in a hospital, birth center, or your home.
Every woman can benefit from labor support.
According to a review of fifteen trials involving 12,791 women, “Continuous labor support is a remarkable element of maternity care that offers well-established benefits and has no known downsides.” (1)
Before the Birth of Your Baby
Your Birth Doula meets with you. She gets to know you and your partner while you discuss any questions, concerns, or fears that you have regarding your upcoming birth. She finds out what is important to you and your partner. After those matters are addressed, she discusses your birth options with you. She helps you write up a Birth Preference Sheet that you can then share with your doctor or midwife.
During Birth
The presence of a Birth Doula changes everyone’s experience of the birth.
Giving birth is one of the best kept secrets of womanhood. You hear all about it, but it doesn't really sink in until you're going through it. ...My doula knew exactly how to read my labor signs and also knew many different techniques to help me be more comfortable during and between contractions.
— Sarah, a first time mother
Research demonstrates that in controlled trials involving over 1000 women that the presence of a Doula results in:
- 50% decrease in cesarean sections
- 25% decrease in the length of labor
- 30% decrease in the use of forceps
- 40% decrease in the use of Pitocin
- 60% decrease in the use of epidurals
- 30% decrease in the use of pain medication (narcotics)
Studies also show that babies born with doulas present have shorter hospital stays with fewer admissions to special care nurseries, breastfeed more easily, and have more affectionate mothers in the postpartum period. (2)
Your Doula will be with you continuously during your labor. She will:
- Provide Information
- Offer Encouragement
- Make suggestions to enhance your comfort and the effectiveness of your labor
- Provide support, both emotional and physical, for both parents, through comfort measures discussed prior to labor
Your Birth Doula is also there to facilitate communication between you and the medical staff. She helps you and your partner understand your medical options regarding interventions and their associated risks or benefits.*
[The Doula] also navigated very sensitively the interface between the medical personnel, my husband, and me. The nurses come and go, the doctors are not there at all, the husband doesn’t really know what's happening and he may be just as exhausted as the mom, so that leaves the doula as the main support person. Altogether, we believe the birth would have been a much more stressful and taxing experience on everyone without our Doula’s help.
— Anna, first time mom of twins
The presence of a doula changes the mother’s experience of birth. Long term benefits of labor support include:
- Improved Breastfeeding
- Decreased Postpartum Depression
- Greater Maternal Satisfaction with Partner and Baby
- Better Mother-Infant Interaction (2)
* Your Doula is not a medical practitioner.
Citations
(1) Hodnett ED, Gates S, Hofmeyr G J, Sakala C. “Continuous support for women during childbirth.” Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2003, Issue 3. Art. No.: CD003766. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD003766.
(2) Klaus M., Kennell J, Klaus P. Mothering the Mother, Addison Wesley Publishing Company, 1993.
All content and material © 2001-2008
Ryka George, unless otherwise noted.
This page was last updated September 18, 2007
