Preparing for birth and parenting can feel like an impossible task at times, especially when there are so many options AND opinions out there. This is where doulas come in! Although doulas are a relatively new profession in Malta, around the world doulas are widely used, highly respected, and well researched birth workers who continue to improve outcomes for people who are pregnant, birthing or in their postpartum.
If you haven't heard about what a doula is and what we do you can learn more - here (insert link to Chiara's article)- Not everyone will choose to or be able to have a doula attend them during birth, but there are many ways a doula can help you prepare during pregnancy to ensure a gentle and confident transition for you and your family. Here is my list of 20 ways a doula can help you.
1. Help you define your needs, wants and goals.
Doulas are great at coaching you to really dig deep into finding out what is important for you and how you can make this happen. Every situation is unique, every birthing person is unique and every baby is unique, so what your friend, neighbour or family member did may not be right for you and your situation. A doula can help you figure out your path.
2. Help your partner feel confident in their changing and evolving role.
Partners can often feel lost and alone which can influence their self-esteem, relationships, bonding and how they parent. Doulas are a great support for partners, giving them easy to understand and practical advice on how they can support you, themselves and your baby as you all grow and evolve as a family.
3. Help you sift through all of the information to find content relevant to you.
There is so much information out there, it can be really overwhelming trying to sift through it all yourself. A doula will be able to point you in the right direction based on your situation and your needs. Doulas spend a lot of time continuously educating themselves so you can rest assured information provided is up to date.
4. Connect you with other health professionals.
Doulas are great at networking and forging relationships with other health professionals! If you are experiencing something outside of a doulas scope of practice, they will likely know a great provider who can help you. If not, they will know exactly who to ask to find the provider you need, saving you time and energy!
5. Provide you with current, evidence based information for making informed choices.
Informed choice has to be central to modern maternity care. If you haven't been given correct, evidence based information, with both the pros and cons, you cannot make an informed choice. Doulas are a great sounding board to help ensure you have been given the information you need to make decisions or providing you with some helpful questions you can ask to help get the information you are looking for.
6. Teach you/your partner techniques for balancing your pelvis and preparing your body.
Helping your baby into a great position is an amazing tool for facilitating ease and comfort during birth for both you and your baby! Simple, yet effective techniques can help prepare your body and make space for your baby. Doulas can often teach you and your partner how to balance your pelvis and physically prepare your body for childbirth.
7. Helping you create birth and postpartum plans.
All of the preparations you have been doing to prepare for birth and your postpartum can easily be put into a two documents which can be shared with your team, medical care providers or other support people. This is a powerful tool for organising your thoughts and letting others know what is important to you. Doulas can help you formulate these plans and make suggestions if there are areas you may have overlooked. It is often the process of creating the plan which has most value, allowing you to be more knowledgeable and flexible if a change of plans is necessary.
8. Teach you different techniques for pain management.
Even if you are planning to use medicinal pain relief, it is very beneficial to learn other techniques for coping with birthing pains! Doulas know a lot of tricks for making birth more comfortable and can teach you and your partner the best ones!
9. Show you different positions for labouring and birthing.
Moving around and dancing during the opening phase of your birth is not only great for your own comfort, but it also helps facilitate the whole birth process. Doulas love movement and practicing different positions for different stages ahead of time can make them more easily accessible to you during your birth. It can also help your partner feel confident in guiding you and suggesting different positions when you may not want to focus on anything but breathing!