Types of Doulas

Antepartum Doulas

Antepartum specifically means "before birth." Antepartum Doulas offer professional, compassionate doula support to families that are experiencing a difficult pregnancy, an otherwise healthy pregnancy with overwhelming variables, or one that comes with medically-directed limitations. An antepartum doula provides informational, emotional, physical, and practical support to individuals with high-risk pregnancies (i.e. those on bedrest) as well as teen mothers, single women, rape victims who are pregnant, women with severe morning sickness or any other person who needs extra support during pregnancy. 

Doula support, at your request, can include assistance with daily household tasks, help caring for your other children, meal planning & meal preparation, and assistance organizing and planning the nursery. 

Labor / Birth Doulas

Labor/birth doulas are labor support persons who attend to the emotional and physical comfort needs of individuals who are in labor. Birth doulas do not perform clinical tasks such as heart rate monitoring or vaginal exams but rather use massage, position changes and visualization to help labor to progress as comfortably as possible. A labor/birth doula joins a laboring person either at home, at the birth center, or hospital and remains with them until a few hours after the birth of her baby. Some doulas offer several prenatal visits, phone support, and postpartum meetings. The terms of a labor/birth doula’s responsibilities are decided between the doula and the family.

Following is a list of services provided in our Standard Birth Doula Package. Packages can be custom made, based on a family’s needs and desires.

• Available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, for phone support and consultation.

• On-call services 2 weeks before your due date until the time you give birth.

• Two prenatal visits, at least one hour in length, to discuss and plan for your birth. This typically includes a discussion of your hopes and expectations of your birthing experience, assistance with creating your birth plan, a baby care class, and a review of common challenges during postpartum. We will structure this time to meet your needs.

• Birth support beginning whenever you need it: in your home, at the hospital, or birth center.

• Continuous informational, emotional, and physical support from the time your labor begins until your baby is born. We can incorporate yoga, massage, aromatherapy, visualization, and expertise in movement during your labor.

• One to two hours of immediate postpartum support to assist with the initial transition and breastfeeding.

• Suggestions for helpful resources locally, on line, and at the library or book store, to aid you in making informed choices surrounding your pregnancy, birth, and parenting. This includes online and real life support groups and playgroups.

• One postpartum visit within four weeks of the birth in your home or in our offices.

In addition to emotional, physical and informational support, doulas typically act as advocates of their client’s wishes and may assist in communicating with medical staff to obtain information for the client to make informed decisions regarding medical procedures.