FAQS

What are the benefits of having a doula at my birth?

Studies have repeatedly demonstrated tangible benefits from having a doula, including:

  • Improved experience of pregnancy and birth

  • Increase in the likelihood of spontaneous vaginal birth

  • Decrease in the risk of Cesarean

  • Increase in birthing person’s self esteem and resilience

  • Higher birth satisfaction

  • Lesser experience of pain in labor

  • Decrease in the use of any medications for pain relief

  • Shorter labors

  • Fewer medical interventions

  • Decreased birthing person’s fear and anxiety during labor

  • Decrease in the baby’s risk of a low five minute Apgar score

  • Fewer babies in NICU

  • Improved mother-baby interaction

  • Higher likelihood of breastfeeding

"If a doula were a drug, it would be unethical not to use it" - Dr. John Kennell, M.D., Pediatrician

For specific studies and more information, visit:

https://wetheparents.org/doula-science or https://evidencebasedbirth.com/

What does a doula partnership offer that individual doulas cannot?

Choosing Moonfire Doulas means that you choose both Laura and Kelsey to support you throughout your pregnancy, birth, and postpartum journey. You’ll get to meet both of us during the prenatal visits and will have access to both of us for resources and guidance. Double the experience, double the information, double the support! Because we are partners, we’re able to take more time getting to know you and your specific needs during this process. You are guaranteed fresh energy at your prenatal and postpartum visits and for the birth, since we rotate being on-call. You also have the reassurance that one of us will be with you for your birth, rather than having to accept a back-up doula who you might not have met before. When labors go long and everybody is getting tired, we have the opportunity to trade off so that you are getting a doula with fresh energy in the late hours.

Parenting truly takes a village, and Kelsey and Laura deeply value community. Because we are a team, we have more capacity to offer additional support groups like Art Bumps and walks with other pregnant clients to grow your network of support. You have the option of requesting both Laura and Kelsey to attend your birth to have double the support, if that feels right for you and aligns with our schedules. Working as a team also means that Laura and Kelsey get to be supported in our chosen profession - we have a built in friend to bounce ideas off of, lean on during challenging moments, and share our joys with. Modeling healthy community and friendships is key in the vitality of creating a community of parents.

A partnership, to us, means that you get much more out of this experience because you have two intuitive, informed, and passionate people with unique strengths who are available to support you and ensure your needs are being met.

What does a birth doula do?

Doulas support in many ways: physically, emotionally, intellectually, with advocacy, and through companionship. We made this Crozet Rose to show some of the many ways we can support the birthing person and birth partner in labor.

What does a birth doula NOT do?

Doulas are not medical professionals, and the following tasks are not performed by doulas:

  • They do not perform clinical tasks such as vaginal exams or fetal heart monitoring

  • They do not give medical advice or diagnose conditions

  • They do not make decisions for the client, medical or otherwise

  • They do not pressure the birthing person into certain choices just because that’s what they prefer

  • They do not take over the role of the partner

  • They do not catch the baby

Will a doula replace my partner in labor?

Absolutely not! A doula’s role is to join the birth team and work together with the partner, care providers, and other family members or friends to ensure that you feel supported, safe, and cared for during this unpredictable and transformative timer. We will asses the birthing person’s support network to identify areas where we can assist. The support that we provide will look different for each family as it is targeted to their individual needs. We are not there to take over the skills, strengths, and tools that your partner can offer! Doulas are trained in birth, have witnessed many births, and have hands-on experience that we bring to support you in your own unique journey. Partners usually have not gone through labor before, so it can be reassuring to have someone in the room who can say “this is normal”.

We work with each client and their partner to clarify roles so that on the birthing day, you can feel supported to surrender to the birth process. Every relationship is different, and our goal is to fill in the gaps as well as boost up your team to make sure you have a positive experience - whether that be physical comfort measures, emotional support, offering information to normalize the process, or advocating for your family’s birth preferences.

Our goal is to engage the partner at their comfort level, which varies for every relationship. We can maximize and enhance the partner’s participation based on how involved they’d like to be. The partner knows the birthing person, and doulas know birth. Together we can make a great team.

Where do we travel?

Though we are home-based in Crozet, VA, we support people in Crozet, Charlottesville, Batesville, Ivy, Afton, Nellysford, Earlysville, Free Union, Waynesboro, and more. If you’re in Crozet’s surrounding areas, you’re likely in our travel range. We support birthing people in home-births, birth centers, and hospitals. We believe that doulas are for every birth, and we’d love to be on your team.

Why DONA International?

There are many doula certifying organizations that exist and no formal regulation of birth doulas. DONA International is the oldest and largest doula certifying organization in the world, dedicated wholly to certifying birth and postpartum doulas and serving families in more than 50 countries. It was founded by experts in childbirth who recognized the research-based benefits of emotional support for mothers and their partners during and shortly after labor and birth. DONA International’s Founders established a criteria for certification and developed a Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice that is evidence-based and highly respected by the medical community.  DONA International is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, trauma awareness, and antiracism and promotes continuing education for all doulas. We chose to do our training through DONA so that we can intentionally offer you the highest standards of care in our field.

Something else you’re curious about?

More questions? Reach out to us for a free consultation and we can assist you in finding the best support for you. The childbearing years are life-changing, identity-shifting, amazing, and overwhelming - covering the full spectrum of human emotions. We’re here to support you as you navigate your unique journey.

“Birth is an opportunity to transcend. To rise above what we are accustomed to, reach deeper inside ourselves than we are familiar with, and to see not only what we are truly made of, but the strength we can access in and through birth.”

Marcie Macari