“Birth is not only about making babies. Birth is about making mothers – strong, competent, capable mothers who trust themselves and know their inner strength.” ~ Barbara Katz Rothmans
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; or who provides emotional and practical support during the postpartum period.
Studies have shown that when doulas attend birth, labors are shorter with fewer complications, babies are healthier and they breastfeed more easily. Read more from Dona and CAPPA, the two agencies where I completed my birth and postpartum doula trainings, respectively. World Doula Week is celebrated, every year from March 22-28. The purpose of World Doula Week ("WDW") is to empower doulas all over the world to improve the physiological, social, emotional, and psychological health of women, newborns and families in birth and in the postpartum period. The World Doula Week events take place all over the world during the same week, stating the benefits of the presence of doulas in birth and in the postpartum period:
* Reduces the incidence of c-sections
* May shorten the length of labor
* Reduces epidural and analgesic requests
* Increases breastfeeding initiation and continuation
* Increases mother’s satisfaction of birth experience
* Can reduce the incidence of postpartum mood disorders
* Increases new parents’ confidence in the care of their newborn
Celebrate with me! I Love What I Doula!
Celebrate with me! I Love What I Doula!
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| Breathtaking Birth Photos That Celebrate Doulas |
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| Day 1: Doula Selfie |
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| Day 2: Favorite Quote Pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, child rearing... this applies to all. |
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| Day 3: Favorite Tool My Heart and My Hands Since I am also a nutritionist and massage therapist, I find that I do my best work with my hands, using my heart as a guide. |
| Day 4: Client Testimonial Humbled |
Mothering The Mother |
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| Day 5: Your Doula Bag I try to keep the amount of items that I take into the home to a minimum. I do use teas, coconut and essential oils for mom. In an effort to Go Green, I use my iPad quite a bit to show videos, share resources, and entertain older children. |
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| Day 6: Doula Mentor I work within a small community of birth and postpartum doulas, but I am influenced by birth workers from all over the world. |
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| Day 7: Where You Work I live and work in Memphis, the city where my husband and my child were born. We are at the top of every bad list and at the bottom of every good list... so there is lots of room for improvement and lots of work for doulas to do! |
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