The Doula Decision

I have posted before about the fact that I am using a doula and promised to elaborate on that decision. So here it goes!

I sort of shy away from the whole "birth plan" concept just because I just don't see how it is possible to "plan" anything as complicated as a birth. Plus, I am a huge planner, and if things don't go according to that plan, I tend to be disappointed. So, I'm just going to all this my birth "wish list."

A good friend recommended her doula, Kate, to me. She has used Kate's services twice now. Prior to delivery, my friend's plan was just going to take it as it came. She had not planned to get or not to get an epidural. As it turned out, her first born came very quickly and was born without pain medication. That baby wanted out so badly that they didn't even have time to do administer an epidural. Her second birth, on the other hand, was almost 24 hours in the making. At a certain point she said enough was enough and got the epidural. (Naturally, that stubborn little baby was born like half an hour later.)

I had a lot of thoughts in my mind regarding my birth "wish list," but didn't really have them organized and didn't know a lot of the facts behind them. That's when I met Kate. Along with all of her experience, she made me feel so calm about the natural process that my body will be going through. I can already tell you that my husband will probably be in hysterics and I will be dealing with the process as best I can, but it will be so nice to have her positive energy talking us through all of this.

So... what I told her was...

-In my opinion I have a pretty decent pain tolerance, but pretty sure that I'm going to want the epidural.

-In "heat of the moment" situations, I become insecure and second guess myself and am usually willing to take any advice, whether it be in my best interest or not.

-I like my doctor and have conveyed my "wish list" to her, but I also know that she does her fair share of inductions. (She also does a lot of all natural births. I guess it depends on the wants of the mother.)

-My "nightmare" birth would be to go into the hospital at the first sight of pain or before labor even begins, spend hours at the hospital and get the induction medication/epidural cocktail only to have it not work and end up in the operating room for a C-Section.

I blabbed all of this to Kate and she began to tackle my issues one at a time. A lot of what she said I had read before, but it was nice to hear it in a more cohesive fashion.

She told me that she has plenty of clients that get epidurals, whether they were planning to or not. As long as labor starts naturally and the client is open to an epidural, her goal is to get to 5 cm dilated before administering any pain medication. Babies benefit a lot from the movement of the mother to begin their descent. If your go in and get an epidural right away, you are limited to the bed. She likes to use a birthing ball and different postures and movements to encourage the baby to get down as far as possible. A lot of this process can take place at home. (She'll come to the house once the contractions have a certain rhythm, or as soon as I want her to.)

So lets assume that I get to my 5 centimeters, (at least) am in the hospital and have just gotten the epidural. Then how to I benefit from her presence? Well, personally I think that she has already shown her worth and if I started labor naturally and got to 5 cm. I am already a ways away from the "nightmare birth."

Kate and I are also on the same page regarding episiotomies. (I don't want one.) As I said before, in heat of the moment situations, I get insecure and take any advice. If the doctor said "I think you need an episiotomy," I would probably take her word for it and say OK. It is going to be great to have Kate around to help reinforce my desires.

In the event of a medically necessary induction, Kate has a lot of knowledge about the different drugs they use. Something I know nothing about. I really hope and pray that I don't need an induction. They sound just horrible.

On top of all of this, Kate is a lactation specialist and comes to your home to check in on you a couple times after the birth. It is very important to me to be a successful breast feeder, so I'll take all the help I can get. A doula is also a great resource for questions all throughout the pregnancy. Obviously with big questions and concerns you should call your doctor, but Kate tells me to call with questions that might be considered frivolous.

Whew... That was a novel. I am just happy with the decision I made. It might not be for anyone, and you certainly have to find a doula whose thoughts are aligned with your own, but if it is possible for you to have that positive energy and guidance in the delivery room, well... lets just say that I will take all the help I can get to make it as wonderful of an experience as possible.