A: We affect three things - your mind, your body and your support person. For your mind, we encourage, we educate, and we empower you. For your body we provide massage, relaxation, counterpressure, and position suggestions. For your support person, we provide information, suggestions to help them support you, and relief when they need something. We also can be the person to runs out of the room for more water, ice or juice when you need it so that your loved one can stay with you.

A: We do not do anything clinical or medical. So we do not do cervical checks, give medical advice, check your blood pressure, administer medication, or catch the baby. Everything we do is outside the medical or clinical purview. We also do not speak for you - we are there to help you feel empowered to speak for yourself.

A: First of all - I am so glad you have a wonderful partner! That is the first step in a great birth. There are many reasons a doula might enhance your birth experience. First, as much as your partner knows, and as much as you guys practice, in the thros of active labor sometimes mom's forget and sometimes partners get flustered in the face of the intensity of labor. The doula is there to help the partner and the mom stay on track. Or sometimes you guys would be in such sync that for partner to go get more ice chips or a new blanket would bring mom a lot of discomfort. A doula could go fetch those things for the laboring family. More than that, the partner is emotionally involved in the birth process and it sometimes makes it harder for the partner to process information and make objective decisions. The doula is not there to make decisions for you, but is there to help you understand your options, and help you to keep your birth as close to your ideal birth (or birth plan) as possible.

Your partner loves you. And your partner, in most situations, will never have seen you experiencing something as intense at the labor and birth of the baby. The doula is there to be the one to tell you that it is a good thing that your contractions are getting stronger, longer and more intense. The doula is there to tell your partner that what you are going through is normal, and that every contraction is a good sign and that it means her body is doing what it is supposed to do.

A: Actually, in my experience, even in situations where the mom and partner wanted only each other at the birth of their baby, as their doula I was also included. I believe this is because, despite any prior relationship, when we are there as your doula, we are there as your birth professional. Just as your miwife or OB is your birth professional. Or your nurse of Midwifery student is a birth professional. I have found that as friendly and as warmly as I interact with a family, I am still viewed as a part of the labor team - and the comfort level is that of the same as with the labor nurse, or the midwife or doctor. The laboring families recognize that we have a job to do and accept us as a part of their whole team. I can tell you that even after grandmothers, sisters, and favorite aunts have left the room, the doula remains to do the work that needs to be done, just as the nurse and the midwife or doctor stay.

A: Most of the births I have attended have actually been medicated births. Also, as a part of the DONA training, we are trained in how to assist families through medicated and surgical births.  I personally believe that a doula can be useful in any kind of birth - from the parking lot epidural, to the planned cesarean to the all natural unmedicated birth.

A few things to remember - typically a family has to get to a certain point (typically active labor) to get an epidural. A doula can help them through that period, as well as the 20-30 minutes it takes to get the epidural in and functioning. Also, it is not uncommon for the epidural to not work, or only work on one side, or have other unexpected physical responses. A doula can help a family cope with that as well. When it comes time to push baby out, its hard work for the family, and the doula can help with that also.

A surgical birth can be frightening event for a family. The procedure itself is a mystery to most families, but the doula is trained to help a family by explaining the processes as they are happening, by explaining the sounds, smells and sights of the procedure. Also, usually only one family member is allowed to go with the laboring mom, and usually that family member is going to follow the baby after the birth. That leaves the mom without any support. Each member of the nursing staff has a very specific job to do during a surgical birth and is not able to do a lot of emotional support. The doula is there to be with the mom, to tell her what is going on, to tell her what is going on with the baby, with her body. She is also there in the hours after the cesarean to help the mom with breastfeeding and working with her body and baby to find ways to be comfortable while caring for her baby.

A: Absolutely not. Our passion is in helping parents make well advised, educated decisions for their labor and birth. Our biggest desire is that you go away from your birth feeling like it was on your terms as much as possible. We will support you according to your wishes - so if you want an unmedicated birth we will certainly encourage you and help you through it. But if your desire is to have a medicated birth you are no less deserving of support and caring during your labor and birth process. Do many of us believe that unmedicated or natural birth is wonderful? Sure! I won't hide that part of me. But that has no place in the birthing area of a woman who believes her birth will be best with an epidural. The important thing is that the family has empowerment and information to make educated decisions.