Caroline was my doula at the birth of my son, in June 2005. I had my first baby by elective caesarian and decided that I wanted a vaginal birth with my second. The more I examined the issues, the more I realised that not only did I want a vaginal birth, I wanted a home birth. The more research I did, the more I realised that I needed a doula if I wanted to have any control over my labour. I met Caroline in a chatroom about VBACs – and then had her recommended to me by my ante-natal teacher. We met and both me and my husband got on really well with her so I booked her. It is strange, having to involve a stranger in your labour and birth – but I would recommend it to EVERYONE. Having booked Caroline, I felt doubly supported and was able to stand up to my critics ( midwives, consultants, parents) and really started to look forward to labour.
I went into labour 11 days late – so poor Caroline was getting constant texts from me – and was so supportive about the overdue baby when the consultants were getting their knickers in a twist and sharpening the scapels. On the day I went into labour she came over at about 5pm ( my waters had broken at about midday). It felt like a really exciting occasion which everyone was gathering for – not something scary at all. She constantly threw homeopathic remedies down my throat. But she was unintrusive and kept in the background when I just wanted to be with my husband. When the hospital said they didn’t have a midwife to send me Caroline gave me the confidence to wait a bit longer – which I would never have done if I was alone with DH. I never had to have any pain relief and that was due to Caroline helping me with my breathing. She made me breathe slowly and gently instead of huffing and puffing. She held me when I was pushing – suggested positions I could get into etc. She and the midwife and DH seemed to be very peaceful and getting on just fine. She noticed me starting to push before the midwife did, now that I think about it and was quite active in getting me into the bath to rest me, and helping me through the pushing – which took nearly three hours. She
also took photos of the birth, which I’m so grateful she did!!!!
All in all, Caroline was a mental and physical support, someone who took any panic or urgency away from the experience and made it as special as it was. If I’d had to go into hospital, she would have been even more invaluable. All in all, I think every woman should have a doula – provided by the NHS.
But hey, that’s just me.