Choosing a Birth Doula in Greenwich CT

The day you bring your child into the world ranks as one of the most memorable days of your life. An important factor in having a positive birth experience is having a supportive team by your side. As you likely already know, you are able to choose some members of your birth team and others you are not. Communication is key in making sure that all members of your chosen birth team are supportive of your birth preferences. One member of your birth team who you are able to choose is your doula. It is important to take your time when choosing a birth doula in Greenwich CT to support you as you prepare to welcome your child.

Rebecca and Janet are two of our doulas. They love speaking with families who are in the process of choosing a birth doula in Greenwich CT.

Here are some points that we consider important when you are choosing a birth doula in Greenwich CT.

Choose a doula who has back up

Like labor, life is unpredictable. While your doula is looking forward to working with you when you go into labor, things come up. However, your doula should be able to tell you who will be attending your birth in the event that she is unavailable. This should be one specific person; not a list that you are expected to go down until someone answers their phone.

Blissful Birthing has taken “back up” one step further by providing each of our clients a team of two doulas who share a call schedule. Both of your doulas will be present at your birth planning session. You can be confident whichever doula is on call when you go into labor knows how to best support you to help you reach your goals. We don’t want our clients wondering who might be attending their birth, so you will be provided with an on-call schedule for the weeks surrounding your due date.

Find a doula who supports all delivery scenarios

Birth can be unpredictable, you want a doula who is capable of supporting your birth, even if everything does not go “according to plan”. As we’ve said, birth is unpredictable. You should not feel judged by anyone when you are in labor – especially your doula. Our doulas are truly supportive of all births.. Sometimes you want or need an epidural/labor augmentation/cesarenan delivery. Our doulas are well versed in all of that and can support you through those situations (whether part of your original plan or not).

Ask your doula about her birth philosophy

If I had to sum up our birth philosophies, it would be that we don’t have one – we have many. Your birth philosophy becomes our birth philosophy when we are supporting you. Our doulas do not bring any personal baggage or agendas into your birthing space. The goal of our professional doulas is to support you in a way that is meaningful and helpful to you. For some of our clients that means helping them birth their baby without the use of an epidural. For other women it means helping them change position after receiving an epidural to help labor continue to progress. We can also support you during a planned induction or cesarean birth. We are honored to be part of such a variety of births!

During your prenatal birth planning session, your doulas will get a better understanding of your hopes and goals so they know how to best support you (and your partner). One of our doulas, Janet, perfectly explains our role with relation to your primary support person:

Our presence at your birth will allow your primary support person to participate at their comfort level.

It is our firm belief that our doulas cannot (and do not) take the place of your partner or other support people. We work with them to afford you the most supportive experience possible.

Choose a doula who offers other services

As parents ourselves, we understand the challenge of inviting someone into your space and asking for their help with your new baby. So we felt it was important to offer a range of services so you – a one-stop shop, if you will. You can expect the same high level of care from all our providers. Our team is in constant contact with each other, ensuring a seamless standard of care.

Choose a doula who is honest about her capabilities

Doula are non-medical birth professionals. Because of that, there are a some things doulas cannot do, including:

flip your breach or transverse baby.
monitor fetal heart tones.
take the place of your OB or midwife.
prevent a cesarean birth or enable a VBAC.
- This is such an important point. Your doctor or midwife is responsible for the medical aspect of your care; your doula helps with the physical and emotional aspects. At the end of the day, your medical provider is the one who makes these decisions. We wrote this blog on VBACs to help explain this point better.

So what can your doula do? She can support you during pregnancy, labor and delivery, and after your baby is born. This can be accomplished by:

providing resources regarding different options your care team may present you with, if you wish.
helping you develop a fluid birthing plan and understand possible interventions so you are prepared for as many outcomes as possible.
being a constant, expected presence during labor, delivery, and in the postpartum period.
encouraging you and your partner to reach your goals.

Where We Work

Our doulas attend births at Greenwich Hospital, as well as at the following hospitals:

Other Blogs for Families who are Choosing a Birth Doula in Greenwich CT

Remember Your Nurses!
Hospital “Go” Bag – What do I need to Bring to the Hospital?
Baby Basics

This list reflects the beliefs of Blissful Birthing and it’s affiliates. The contents of this article are not medical advice.