Your doula is familiar to you like a friend but has experience in childbirth and hospital policies that your family and friends do not. In 2012, The Cochrane Collaboration published a study indicating that continuous support in labour had the most benefit when the support person was “provided by a woman who was neither part of the hospital staff nor the woman’s social network.”
(emphasis added)

While your parent, friend or sibling may add unique and important support, it is not the same as that of a doula.

A C-section is a different kind of birth, but it is still a birth in need of emotional and practical preparation. In a cesarean birth, your doula will walk you through what to expect, what you can change about the operating room routines and what you can’t.

If she’s able to come into the OR, she’ll suggest coping practices for the sensations, sounds and emotions that accompany a cesarean birth and will advocate for your preferences where appropriate.

Danielle and Jeff hired a doula for their planned C-section. Here is what Danielle has to say about her doula support:

“When Jeff went over to meet our girl, I was not not left alone wondering what was going on and hoping she was okay–which could have easily led to a panic attack. Instead, as soon as he left my side, [our doula] was holding my hand and narrating what was happening across the room. I felt connected to everything going on the whole time and never felt left out because I was behind a curtain.”

Here more about Daneille and Jeff’s experience of cesarean delivery.

Midwives very much value emotional support and coaching as an important part of a good birth experience. However, as your primary healthcare provider, your midwife has many clinical responsibilities in addition to offering you labour support which that means that, at times, she may not be always be able to be at your side.

Your doula will be available to come to you in early labour for support. Your midwife may not come to you until your contractions are around or under 5 min apart. When she is there, she will absolutely be one of the people offering coaching. However, other tasks like monitoring, charting, setting up equipment and communicating with other health care providers on your team means that she might not be able to provide continuous coaching.

Your doula’s only role is your emotional care. Her responsibilities in birth primarily include helping you to maintain a coping mindset, giving you physical support and helping your partner(s) to feel supported and involved.

We regularly work with midwives and the midwives of the GTA often refer our practice to their clients.