Why Would I Want A Doula?
… What Benefits Do They Bring?
So we’ve explored what a doula actually is…
(and if you missed it check out the blog post ‘What The Fudge Is A Doula?’ )
I’d like to show you how having a doula can make a HUGE difference to the way your birth plays out.
Infographic showing proven benefits of Doula care during pregnancy & labour, including increased chances of having a shorter, more positive, spontaneous vaginal birth, better signs of health for mother & baby, and lower chances of caesarean birth, postnatal depression & low birth weight babies. (From Bohren et al, 2017).
That’s some serious impact right there! Are you wondering how?
First I’m gonna show you what's been going on in maternity units lately… (Heads up - it ain’t pretty!!)
I’ll be covering this in way more detail in another blog piece, but in case you’re not aware, this is what birth in NHS hospitals looks like these days…
🔔 40 - 50% caesarean rates
🔔 >30% induction rates
🔔 >12% instrumental birth rates (that’s forceps or ventouse)
🔔 80 - 90% of births happening on consultant-led units
🔔 a small minority of births starting spontaneously
🔔 <1% homebirth rates
🔔 midwife-led units closed or rarely used
🔔 >60% epidural rates
🔔 high rates of birth trauma & mental health struggles in the postnatal period
🔔 rising rates of NICU (neonatal intensive care unit) admissions and maternal mortality
(All info taken from the most recent NHS Maternity Dashboard stats and the 2023 MMBRACE Report)
NOW I DON’T SAY ANY OF THIS TO FRIGHTEN YOU, please don’t think that, but seriously, what the hell is going on? When did we lose the ability to give birth naturally??!!
(In case you’re wondering, we didn’t. Next month I’m spilling the tea on the sabotage of ‘natural’ birth, so keep your eyes peeled for that blog post!)
⚠️⚠️ Just FYI, all that above is not because we’re all older, fatter, less fit, diabetic, overdue or any other bullshit reason. Anyone who tries telling you that is either a) clueless, or b) part of the problem. And I say all this with full appreciation that the service is stretched. There are not enough midwives, and the ones we have are overworked, under-resourced, underpaid and under pressure. But that is not your problem. That is not a reason for you to not get the standard of care that you and your baby deserve ⚠️⚠️
To really understand the value of Doula care, we need to take a look at WHAT MAKES BIRTH WORK…
What does a mother’s incredible birthing body need for it to do its thing?
💞 SAFETY
💞 FAMILIARITY
💞 CALM
💞 QUIET
💞 LOW LIGHT LEVELS
💞 PRIVACY
💞 TO BE UNOBSERVED
💞 TO BE UNINTERRUPTED
💞 TO FEEL NO TIME PRESSURE
💞 LOVE
💞 CONNECTION
💞 UNCONDITIONAL SUPPORT
💞 ENCOURAGEMENT
💞 TRUST
Birthing in an environment that supports all these things will enable the parasympathetic nervous system to dominate, and for all the beautiful birthy hormones that help labour to progress to be produced in abundance.
Black & white photo of a mother labouring at home, in a beautifully curated environment, receiving lower back massage from her birth partner. They both look calm and focused.
Compare this to how a hospital labour ward or delivery suite, where most births take place, looks & feels…
💣 UNFAMILIAR
💣 CLINICAL
💣 NOISY
💣 BRIGHT
💣 PUBLIC
💣 CONSTANT INTERRUPTIONS
💣 CONSTANT OBSERVATION
💣 FREQUENT ASSESSMENTS
💣 UNDERCURRENT OF FEAR
💣 TIME PRESSURE
💣 FULL OF STRANGERS
💣 LACK OF INDIVIDUALISATION
💣 NO CONTINUITY OF CARE
💣 TIMELINES TO CHART PROGRESS
💣 FREQUENT SUGGESTIONS OF INTERVENTION
💣 LACK OF TRUST IN PHYSIOLOGICAL BIRTH
💣 HIERARCHICAL STRUCTURE
💣 CULTURE OF COERCION
Photo of a woman birthing in a delivery suite. It is bright, clinical, busy & filled with medical equipment. She is lying semi reclined with her legs in stirrups, & the baby is being placed on her chest. Her birth partner is at the head end wearing scrubs.
IS IT ANY WONDER WE’RE SEEING THE BIRTH OUTCOMES AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE? 🤔🤔🤔
So if that shitshow is the norm, and that’s not what you want for your birth, how can a doula help?
Relationship, relationship, relationship.
Your Doula (that’s me!), by the time your birth rolls around, will have spent many many hours with you. Getting to know you, your needs, your values, your preferences for your birth, how you respond to stress, what soothes you when you feel stressed, your triggers, your conditioning, what you’re happy with and what’s a hard “No”, what are your birth partner’s strengths and where are their blind spots, and a million other golden nuggets of info that a midwife who’s only just met you won’t have a hope of understanding.
Not only do I know you and how you tick, I can help you get your body in an optimal state for birth with bodywork and emotional release, bringing you to a place where you can trust your body and listen to what it needs during labour. And I bring all these practical tools and techniques into your birth space, gently soothing and encouraging you as you move through your labour . My presence in your sacred birth space brings trust. In you and in the process.
A Doula is your advocate - there to be your voice when you don’t have one, or are not able to use it.
Finding and using your voice in the maternity system is HARD.
Think about how you’ve felt after any of your antenatal appointments, or any Drs appointment for that matter.
Heard? Listened to? Understood? Given time to explain? Had your preferences respected, even when they don’t align with policy? Centred in your care?
No, me neither.
(If you have, brilliant. Keep hold of that. But also be aware it’s not the norm.)
If you and your care team are aligned then great, but huge numbers of expectant parents don’t want the outcomes listed above, don’t want to be shunted onto the conveyor belt of care and funnelled through a cascade of intervention.
And if it feels hard to advocate for yourself antenatally, it’s 100 times harder during birth.
A woman in labour is at her most emotionally vulnerable.
Most are underprepared for the experience.
Experiencing overwhelming, whole-body sensations that she cannot control.
In an unfamiliar, clinical environment.
Leaking fluids.
Partly dressed or naked.
Hypersensitive to the feelings of the people around her.
So invested in the outcome.
When someone in a uniform comes at you with their fear, it's hard not to be swayed by it.
[Care provider fear is a complex subject but there’s no denying it impacts the care given to labouring mothers. Fear of the medical hierarchy, fear of going against policy, an institutional fear of litigation, fear of sticking your neck out when services are already stretched, vicarious trauma, lack of experience in true physiological birth… In a system that is built on minimising inherent risk through intervention, regardless of the new risks that intervention brings, taking a hands-off approach will almost always induce fear.]
HERE’S WHAT PEOPLE WHO’VE HAD A DOULA HAVE TO SAY ABOUT IT…
Does this level of support appeal to you?
When I am invited into someone’s sacred birth space…
✨ I meet you where you’re at.
✨ I get to know you, like REALLY get to know you, and help you dive into your conditioning, your mindset, your fears, hopes and dreams.
✨ We work together at YOUR pace, on YOUR terms, to learn and prep and plan for your upcoming birth.
✨ By the time labour rolls around you have reached a place of readiness, of confidence, and of self trust.
✨ I accompany you through your birth. I hold space for you, care for you, encourage and nurture you.
✨ I mother you through your postpartum. Nourishing, nurturing, holding. Supporting you as you recover from birth & find your feet in this new version of your life.
Have a look at my next level Doula Support packages here:
And if you’d like to book a free Discovery Call to chat it all through, click here:
Big love,
Debra xx
