Your motherhood journey- whether it's your first time or your tenth- deserves to be nurtured and reinforced in every way. As a birth doula, I am by your side each step, to give you nonjudgmental, comforting support before, during, and after labor, physically and emotionally. You are embarking on a path to care wholeheartedly for another being. Allow a doula to care for YOU with the utmost compassion during this remarkable voyage of creation.
What can a doula DO for you?
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Offer evidence-based information
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Aid you in writing a birth plan/preference
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Support you in choices you make throughout pregnancy and beyond
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Be a sounding board for you to work out any concern or idea you have
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Listen without judgment or bias
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Help you learn ways to manage intense sensations during labor
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Offer physical touch to ease discomfort in labor
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Offer emotional support throughout pregnancy, labor and beyond
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Help you make informed decisions and advocate for yourself
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Prepare for postpartum
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Help you meet long-term, personalized feeding goals for you and your baby
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Support your birthing partner
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Assist partner in being more involved
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Allow partner to be less directly involved and take breaks
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BE your birthing partner
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Bridge the gap of communication between you and your medical provider
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Begin your breastfeeding or bottle-feeding journey
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Help you learn ways to cope with discomfort in labor
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Encourage you to know your rights and use your voice!
How does a doula support partners?
Doulas do not replace spouses, family, or partners.
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Guide partner in implementing practices learned in childbirth classes and applying them to the less predictable labor and birth scene
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Relieve partners so they can replenish their eating, sleeping, and bathroom needs
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Help partner become a more confident, active participant in keeping laboring person comfortable
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Reassure partners when unexpected circumstances arise
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Help partner communicate effectively with laboring person and medical providers
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Help partner understand and feel at ease about signs of progress, and interpret the normal reactions of laboring person
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Guide partner to be in tune with the emotional and physical needs of laboring person
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Create an intimate setting for you and your partner to bond and connect
What a doula does NOT DO:
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Give vaginal examinations to check dilation
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Diagnose or offer treatment for conditions
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Perform medical procedures
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"Deliver" or "catch" baby
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Make decisions for you
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Tell you what to do
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Displace birthing partner
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Judge you or your choices in any way
Did you know...?
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Reduce likelihood to use pain relief medications (if that is the mother's goal)
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Reduce likelihood of having a Cesarean birth *planned Cesareans deserve support too, of course!*
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Decrease likelihood of receiving artificial oxytocin (inducing labor)
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Result in laboring person being more satisfied overall with their birthing experience
Reference: Having a Doula: Their Benefits and Purpose. (2017, July 22). Retrieved from http://americanpregnancy.org/labor-and-birth/having-a-doula/
WHAT PEOPLE SAY about MELISSA
"Her worth to us was beyond measure...When I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes, her calm demeanor in the face of my uncertainty and the possibility of risking out of the birth experience I so desperately wanted, was unprecedented. She was as much a foundational element in my pregnancy as in my actual labor"
— Stephanie C.
Choose an option to learn what to expect when you invest in your birth...
"Matriarch" Doula Bundle
For those seeking the full spectrum of continuous support throughout pregnancy, labor, birth, and postpartum
"Just the Bread" Bundle
For those who do not want in-person labor support, but still desire prenatal support and labor preparation for themselves & partner
Storytelling
Continuous Photography of Labor & Birth