What a Doula is?
A DOULA IS…
The word “doula” comes from the ancient Greek meaning “a woman who serves” and is now used to refer to a trained and experienced professional who provides continuous physical, emotional and informational support to the mother before, during and just after birth; she never interferes in the diagnosis, criteria or medical intervention. Her role is to take care of the mum and her baby.
The doula must support the mother being respectful and neutral; encouraging her to take her own decisions, gaining confidence. She is not sanitary personnel, therefore she doesn’t offer any healthcare. Also she does not replace any relative (partner nor others).
Numerous clinical studies have found that a doula’s presence at birth.
- Tends to result in shorter labors with fewer complications
- Reduces negative feelings about one’s childbirth experience
- Reduces the need for pitocin (a labor-inducing drug), forceps or vacuum
- Extraction and cesareans
- Reduces the mother’s request for pain medication and/or epidurals
- Research shows parents who receive support can:
- Feel more secure and cared for
- Are more successful in adapting to new family dynamics
- Have greater success with breastfeeding
- Have greater self-confidence
- Have less postpartum depression
WHY HAVING A DOULA?
Women have complex needs during childbirth and the weeks that follow. In addition to medical care and the love and companionship provided by their partners, women need consistent, continuous reassurance, comfort, encouragement and respect. They need individualized care based on their circumstances and preferences. The members of the family often live far away so they are not available to help. The doula offers continuity. She creates a familiar relationship of complicity and intimacy, woman to woman, so she provides the mother with an environment where she feels secure at all times. In fact, today in Spain…
- It is rare to meet the midwife who will be present at the birth.
- It is uncommon to be assisted by the same midwife throughout the whole birth process.
- Usually the doctor arrives right on the last moment of the birth.
- The days following the birth the mother meets many highly qualified professionals but she does not know them.
The birth often entails a crisis in a woman’s life. Fatigue, hormones, insecurities, on top of physical recovery leave the new mother in a state of fragility.
As a person who provides support, a doula is extremely necessary to live the birth of your baby in a positive way.