The word "doula" actually means
"servant" and describes a
woman who provides emotional and / or practical support
to childbearing women. Doulas, unlike midwives, do not provide
professional clinical support; they do not 'catch' babies,
or perform other clinical tasks. They may provide support
in pregnancy, labour and / or the postnatal period.
The nature and degree of this support varies from
woman to woman: some women have a doula as their main
companion in labour, some just use them for postnatal support.
A doula can train in and focus on one of these areas of
expertise, or she may be able to perform a number of different roles.
Some
of the roles which might be undertaken by a doula include:
meeting the woman / couple in the antenatal period
providing physical and emotional support in labour
providing support and advice on comfort measures in labour
offering tools such as massage or other therapies
providing a continuous supportive presence in labour
assisting the woman's partner
helping out with the home and children in the postnatal period
providing breastfeeding support
providing support with baby care
It is generally recognised
that having a doula leads to
a reduction in the amount of pain relieve used by
labouring women and means a woman is less likely to
experience interventions such as drugs to speed up labour,
forceps and caesarean section.
coming soon ...
|
information |
| find a doula |
| doula training courses |
We are planning a whole package of information about
doulas,
both for women seeking a doula and for doulas seeking training.
In the meantime, if you would like
to find out more,
please email us.