Interviewing a doula
DONA International recommends asking the following questions to help you decide if a particular doula is right for you. I've included my answers.
What training have you had?
My initial training and continuing education are listed on the "Training/Continuining Education" page.
Do you have one or more backup doulas for times when you are not available? May we meet her/them?
I will always arrange a backup in case I am unavailable. This typically would only happen if I am attending another birth. If I plan to be out of town near your due date, I would disclose that before you signed a contract with me. I can arrange for you to meet the backup doula.
What is your fee, what does it include and what are your refund policies?
This information is listed on the "Birth Doula Services" page.
Tell me about your experience as a birth doula.
As of August 13, 2010, I have attended 7 births.
I believe that women have the ability to birth naturally, and that it can be one of the most empowering experiences of a woman's life. Unfortunately, our society has instilled much fear and disillusion into the process of birth, resulting in a plethora of unnecessary interventions. With that said, I believe that every woman has the right and responsibility to determine the type of birth she desires, and I support her decision 100%. I've seen some instances where getting an epidural was the perfect solution for a woman. Birth has the power to bring a couple together in a completely intimate and vulnerable space, to share emotions and strengths they may never see in each other at any other time in their lives. My role is to support the woman and her partner and to ensure that their needs are met; to be an advocate and a role model; to provide gentle reminders and guidance to the mother and her partner, but not to usurp the role of the partner.
May we meet to discuss our birth plan and the role you will play in supporting me through birth?
Absolutely! I'm happy to do a "meet and greet", and once we have signed a contract, we will meet a couple of times before the birth to go into even more detail about your birth plan.
May we call you with questions or concerns before and after the birth?
Any time. If I can't answer your questions, I will point you to appropriate resources.
When do you try to join women in labor? Do you come to our home or meet us at the place of birth?
I will meet you whenever you decide you want my presence, either at your home or at the place of birth. I like my clients to call when they believe that labor has started, even if they aren't ready for me to join them, so that I can rearrange other commitments. Once you ask me to join you, it typically takes between 1-2 hours, depending of course on the amount of notice, time of day, distance, traffic, etc.
Do you meet with us after the birth to review the labor and answer questions?
My fee includes 2 postpartum visits. I take notes throughout the birth, and will share these notes with you during one of these visits if you'd like.
What training have you had?
My initial training and continuing education are listed on the "Training/Continuining Education" page.
Do you have one or more backup doulas for times when you are not available? May we meet her/them?
I will always arrange a backup in case I am unavailable. This typically would only happen if I am attending another birth. If I plan to be out of town near your due date, I would disclose that before you signed a contract with me. I can arrange for you to meet the backup doula.
What is your fee, what does it include and what are your refund policies?
This information is listed on the "Birth Doula Services" page.
Tell me about your experience as a birth doula.
As of August 13, 2010, I have attended 7 births.
- 31-year-old from Ethiopia, with no other support person present. Birthed at UW Medical Center with a midwife at 41 weeks. From start of labor to delivery, ~8.5 hours. This client knew she wanted an epidural, and got one soon after arriving at the hospital.
- 28-year-old, with her mother and sister as support. Induced at 41 weeks, birthed at UW Medical Center with an obstetrician. From beginning of induction to delivery, ~12.5 hours. This client also had an epidural, but received it late in the first stage of labor.
- 15-year-old from Mexico, with support from her 14-year-old sister, her mother (until ~ 1 hour prior to birth), and a family friend. Birthed at Swedish First Hill, completely natural, after ~24 hours. While she speaks both English and Spanish, she reverted completely to Spanish during the later stages of labor, and her sister translated for everyone.
- 31-year-old from China, with support of her mother and mother-in-law. Birthed at UW Medical Center with an obstetrician. Went into labor when her water broke at 6 am, and gave birth to a baby boy at 2:40 pm the following day (32.5 hours). I was volunteering this day and had never met this woman prior to joining her in labor, when she was already dilated to 9 cm (at 10 am the day of the birth). She had an epidural and was very tired and low on energy when I got there. We connected right away, and I was able to keep her comfortable, but more importantly I encouraged her when she didn't feel she could go on. I know having a doula made a big difference for her, in addition to the wonderful nurses working that day.
- 21-year-old with her husband present, birthed at Evergreen Hospital. Her water broke spontaneously and her contractions started on their own. She was 2 cm dilated when I met them at the hospital. Because her water broke as a trickle, she wasn't certain what time it occurred. She was given a very small amount of Pitocin to get labor going, and after several hours of that with no progress in dilation, she was frustrated and anxious and decided to get an epidural. She slept for 2 hours and woke up fully dilated. She pushed for 2.25 hours.
- 18-year-old, with no support. Her boyfriend was in the room later (but uninvolved). Birthed at UW Medical Center with an obstetrician. I was a volunteer that day, so had not met her previously. Her water broke at 6 am, she was admitted at 9 am, received an epidural at 12 pm (prior to my arrival), and at 5 pm, when she had not made any progress since she was admitted and the baby had been experiencing decelerations during contractions all afternoon, they decided to perform a c-section. Her boyfriend didn't want to go into the operating room, so I accompanied her there and provided reassurance throughout the procedure.
- 44-year-old with her husband present, birthed at Swedish First Hill with an obstetrician. This birth was complicated because they had been pregnant with fraternal twins and lost one of the babies at 19 weeks, but the baby was still in utero, which meant they would be delivering both babies. They had attended hypnobirthing childbirth classes and did very well with it through early labor. After making good progress early on, her labor stalled, and after many, many hours, she decided to get an epidural. The baby never moved into a good position, and there was a lot of meconium in the amniotic fluid. After trying unsuccessfully with the vacuum through several contractions, they ended up doing a c-section.
I believe that women have the ability to birth naturally, and that it can be one of the most empowering experiences of a woman's life. Unfortunately, our society has instilled much fear and disillusion into the process of birth, resulting in a plethora of unnecessary interventions. With that said, I believe that every woman has the right and responsibility to determine the type of birth she desires, and I support her decision 100%. I've seen some instances where getting an epidural was the perfect solution for a woman. Birth has the power to bring a couple together in a completely intimate and vulnerable space, to share emotions and strengths they may never see in each other at any other time in their lives. My role is to support the woman and her partner and to ensure that their needs are met; to be an advocate and a role model; to provide gentle reminders and guidance to the mother and her partner, but not to usurp the role of the partner.
May we meet to discuss our birth plan and the role you will play in supporting me through birth?
Absolutely! I'm happy to do a "meet and greet", and once we have signed a contract, we will meet a couple of times before the birth to go into even more detail about your birth plan.
May we call you with questions or concerns before and after the birth?
Any time. If I can't answer your questions, I will point you to appropriate resources.
When do you try to join women in labor? Do you come to our home or meet us at the place of birth?
I will meet you whenever you decide you want my presence, either at your home or at the place of birth. I like my clients to call when they believe that labor has started, even if they aren't ready for me to join them, so that I can rearrange other commitments. Once you ask me to join you, it typically takes between 1-2 hours, depending of course on the amount of notice, time of day, distance, traffic, etc.
Do you meet with us after the birth to review the labor and answer questions?
My fee includes 2 postpartum visits. I take notes throughout the birth, and will share these notes with you during one of these visits if you'd like.