How Do Doulas Make a Difference?

Congratulations to our 2022 World Doula Week Essay Contest Scholarship winner Ella Mink, who won $500 to go toward the doula training of her choice.

By Ella Mink

The number one thing I would recommend to any expectant parent is a doula. I am not being biased because I am a doula myself, actually the opposite.

I became a doula myself because of how important and impactful my doula was to me. Prenatally my doula motivated me to look at birth with love. This love struck me hard, so hard that birth work is now my life’s passion.

While not everyone will be drawn to birth work, everyone can benefit from a doula.

Pregnancy, birth and the postpartum period are times that any birth-giving parent can tell you about. These are times in a person’s life that will directly impact the rest of their life. And while every human comes from birth there are still so many conflicting and stress-inducing opinions and recommendations. This is my number one reason for recommending a doula: a doula can calm down the chaos and directly connect with a parent to respect, support and assist them and their wishes.

 What is your ideal birth? What do you hope your postpartum period looks like? Which advice should be taken and which should be thrown out the window? A doula will not answer these questions for you, but a doula WILL guide you so that you can get the most direct and respectful advice on how to carry forward in the way you see best for your family.

January Harshe, creator of Birth Without Fear, beautifully quoted:

"I don't care what kind of birth you have...a home birth, scheduled cesarean, an epidural hospital birth or if you give birth alone in the woods next to a baby deer. I care that you had options, that you were supported in your choices and that you were respected”. 

While you can look at the statistics that tell you having a birth doula decreases the cesarean rate by 50%, length of labor by 25%, request for epidural by 60% and that 96% of doula-using parents would recommend one I believe that having a doula is a much more personal/ uplifting experience then one you can calculate with numbers. Meaning that even if you did end up having an unexpected birth outcome/ postpartum experience- having your doula to support and guide you through challenging times can be equally beneficial.

And doulas aren’t just for the birth-giver! This is a big one.

While it may seem that the comfort measures, breathing techniques, counter pressure, feeding positions, sleep tips etc are only considering the one parent; doulas can make a difference in the entire family. Before and during birth, doulas help by building confidence, reassuring and helping partners to understand the situation and support in any way they are comfortable with. A doula isn’t a partner replacement.

A doula is a guide for the entire family into the transition of welcoming its newest member. A doula will also help said newest member and any other impacted family members/ siblings. By helping parents gain optimism, rest, and even tranquility during tense, complicated, and emotionally draining times doulas help smoothen the postpartum period in a way that will benefit everyone. 

Whether you are considering a doula for birth, postpartum or any other reason; having an experienced and professional member of your village WILL make a positive difference in your entire family's experience. So that one day when a newly expecting parent comes to ask you for loads of advice you can tell them the one thing that I always recommend “ A DOULA!”.