Your Questions, Answered

  • A doula is a trained non-medical professional who provides continuous physical, emotional and informational support to a person before, during and after birth. Unlike doctors and midwives, your doula is there just for you. They focus on comforting and supporting you, providing practical information to help you make informed decisions. They may help you advocate for yourself, and signpost to information that could help you during pregnancy and birth. They can also support new mothers to transition into life with their new baby.

  • A good way to understand the different roles of a midwife compared to a doula, is that midwives prepare to catch the baby, while doulas are there to hold you during your pregnancy and birth. Midwives are also employed by the healthcare system, while your doula is employed by you. They are there to provide you with the emotional, physical and practical support you need - you are their sole priority.

  • Some doulas will just provide antenatal and birth support, helping you to prepare for your pregnancy and birth, staying with you either physically or virtually during labour. Some doulas will only provide support during your postnatal period, offering practical and emotional support as you navigate life with your baby earth side. Some doulas do both, some do batch cooking, cleaning, yoga, massage - there really is a doula for everyone!

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    In the past, women and birthing people could expect to have healthcare professionals throughout their birth, in many cases the same person or team. This is called continuous support, and unfortunately it does not always happen in our current NHS system.

    This is where doulas come in. Research has shown that women and birthing people who received continuous labour support may be more likely to give birth 'spontaneously', i.e. give birth vaginally with neither ventouse, forceps nor caesarean. In addition, women may be less likely to use pain medications or to have a caesarean birth, and may be more likely to be satisfied and have shorter labours [1].

    ‍Other research shows that continuous support, like that from a doula, can decrease the likelihood of premature birth and low birth weight, and that doula support is especially effective in reducing health inequities for Black women and birthing people. There have also been no adverse outcomes identified in continuous support [2].

    ‍[1]: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36786720/

    [2]: https://www.cochrane.org/evidence/CD003766_continuous-support-women-during-childbirth

  • Yes! Birth partners are so important throughout the pregnancy, birth and postpartum journey. They provide such crucial support to the birthing person, but often they need some guidance too. While their experience is different, this is a big life change for the whole family unit.  I’ll help them to feel involved and informed through your antenatal sessions, so that they can provide the right support for you during birth and postpartum. This will help you all feel confident and empowered in your roles as your head into parenthood together.

  • Lots of families have never heard of a doula before they set out on their pregnancy journey, and even if they have, they might not really know what they do. My packages are designed to give you the foundation of learning you need to prepare for your birth, and the dedicated support you need to help you feel confident and calm through your labour and into postpartum. But every birth and every family is different. In our discovery call we can discuss your individual needs as well as any previous experiences to really understand what you need from doula support, and put together the support that feels right for you.

  • Yes, I completed my doula training with Developing Doulas, and my Hypnobirthing Facilitators training with Birth Prep In A Box. I am also constantly learning through my role in the pregnancy research space, reading cutting-edge research, speaking to experts in the maternal and fetal health space, and connecting with other doulas.

  • I am based in Esher and am happy to travel up to 45-60 minutes from here. If you are unsure whether you’re in my area, please do drop me a message and I will let you know.

  • You can see the costs of each of my packages on my Birth Support and Postnatal & Night Support pages, but I also recognise that all families have different circumstances. If you would like to engage my services but do not know what you can afford, please do reach out and we can try to find an approach and cost that works for you.