Have you ever felt worried about giving birth? Don’t have any friends or family close? Maybe your husband does a lot of travelling in his work? What if you go into labour and he is in another country? Have you heard a lot of stories about complicated births? Births that end up with a caesarean cut? If that is the case it can be a good reason to have a consultation with a Doula.
The word doula comes from the Greek language and means “with woman” or “servant”.
A doula is a woman that has been trained to give you the support you need to approach your labour and birth with confidence. They usually have experience of births and up-to-date knowledge of issues which might arise. They will know how to comfort both the woman and the man through the different phases of the birth process. Most doulas have trained with an established training organization, for example Nurturing Birth, a well-respected UK doula-training provider or DONA International, the main US doula-training organization.
We at pregnantindubai.com contacted Nicola Philbin, one of the Dubai Doulas, to find out more about how Dubai Doulas are working and what the process is to hire a doula.
The first step is meeting over a cup of tea or coffee to have a general chat to get to know your doula and decide if the chemistry is right. If you click, you will meet two or three more times for antenatalpreparation sessions, to talk about your expectations for the birth, learn about the natural process of labour, and what can help and hinder it, discuss your plans for the birth and help prepare your Birth Plan.
As you know by now a baby will not warn you when it decides it is ready to enter the big world, it will just happen. That is why a doula is on call from weeks 38 to 42 of your pregnancy. This fact limits the doula to only one client per month, so she will always be available for you. When you go into labour, she will support you throughout the labor as you wish, for example helping with back massage and other comfort measures, suggesting different positions for labour, and providing you and your partner with as much encouragement as you need through the different stages of the birth. After the birth she is there to support you when you start to breast-feed your child. After a week or two the doula will come to your house for a postnatal visit to give any further support you need and to talk about your experience of the birth.
So who are the Dubai Doulas’ typical clients? They are couples from all over the world with different reasons for hiring them. For some of the couples it is the first time they are expecting, while others are hoping to improve on the experience that they had during the birth of their first child. In some cases the husband is away for business a lot and they want to ensure that someone they know and trust will be present.
Research has shown that having a doula present at the birth:
- Shortens first-time labor by an average of 2 hours
- Decreases the chance of caesarean section by 50%
- Decreases the need for pain medication
- Helps fathers participate with confidence
- Increases success in breast-feeding.
According to “Mothering the Mother” by Klaus, Kenneli & Klaus, 1993.
If you are interested to find out more about doulas working in Dubai, please take a look at the following websites:
www.dubaidoulas.com
www.uaedesertdoulas.com
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