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Benefits of Doula Support

Numerous clinical studies have found that a doula providing birth support tends to

1. The Length of Labour 25% shorter with fewer complications
2. Reduces negative feelings about one's childbirth experience
3. Promotes empowerment as a doula aids in being an advocate for you and your birth wishes
4. Reduces the need for pitocin (a labor-inducing drug) by 40%, as well as a need for forceps or vacuum extraction intervention
5. Decreases cesarean rate by 50%
6. Reduces the mother's request for pain medication and/or epidurals as we use many comfort techniques and positions to ease discomfort

Research shows parents who receive a birth doula's support can

1. Feel more secure and cared for
2. Are more successful in adapting to new family dynamics
3. Have greater success with breastfeeding
4. Have greater self-confidence to make informed decisions
5. Have less postpartum depression

Doulas and Your Birth Partner - Is it Necessary for Both?

Some partners who don't fully understand the doula's role, feel skeptical at first, and think, that we are a weird kind of hippie folk, lol, or that they will be "replaced" in the delivery room. No one can replace the vital role that the partner (who may be the baby's father or another loved one) plays in providing 
support for the laboring woman. In all reality, a doula makes your birth partner look good. :)
​A doula cannot make some of the unique contributions that the partner makes, such as intimate knowledge of the woman and love for her and her child. At the same time, a doula's experience and reassurance of what's is happening during labour and birth can be especially comforting for both moms and partners.
Royal Inland Hospital allows you to have 2 support people AND a certified doula at your birth. :)

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