Honor Nature

Blessings to you and your baby!

I hope I can provide you with this special and unique care you deserve. I am a DONA International Certified Birth Doula and had an honor to train with the amazing Debra Pascali-Bonaro. So far, I have offered my services in the U.S and in Togo, West Africa where I had a chance to volunteer at a birth center. I feel very privileged to be able to be present and to support women during these most important moments in their lives.

As a doula, I support and provide every mother with respectful and compassionate care so that she may experience the birth in the way she desires. I truly believe pregnancy is a special and sacred time in a woman’s life to be nurtured and treasured and that birth is a life-changing experience, not only because of the birth of a child; also, because of the birth of a mother and the birth of a woman! I truly desire to empower women and let them discover their own strength within.

My goal is to help you feel confident and comfortable during your birth and to help your family get off to a good start.

My Basic Birth Doula Package includes

• Two prenatal meetings to discuss your preferences and concerns

• Resource sharing and prenatal referrals

• Generous phone and e-mail support and guidance in the weeks preceding labor and delivery (or months if you choose to work with me from the very beginning)

• Holistic support, including nutrition and exercise

• On-call service two weeks before and after your estimated delivery date

• Continuous presence for the entire labor and delivery

• Support with initial breastfeeding and bonding just after delivery

• One postpartum visit in your home

• Postpartum referrals

• and a lot of love!

Please contact me about packages and pricing.

What do exactly my services include ?

Prenatally

• Assistance in developing your birth preferences and putting them down on paper

• Identifying your strengths and ways you deal with challenges

• Trying out a few comfort measures and techniques to see what you may like or not

• Trying out a few labor and birth positions

• Training and coaching your partner in comfort measures and techniques

• Guiding you through your pregnancy with generous phone and e-mail support

During labor and birth

• Support in early labor via phone if you do not need me to join you immediately

• Joining you as soon as you ask for it

• Comfort measures and techniques, including: massage, relaxation and breathing techniques, positioning, Rebozo techniques, movement, acupressure, affirmations, visualizations, various spot techniques, and more, in addition to implementing any other preferred comfort measures you may have in mind

• Supporting your partner to help him/her to be your best support person

• Protecting your space and helping setting up the ambiance

• Advocacy for your birth wishes and guidance in making decisions during birth

After birth

• Immediate support with breastfeeding after birth

• Continued support with breastfeeding and debriefing the birth experience during our postnatal visit, typically within a week after birth

• Support in baby-wearing, cloth diapering or other parenting choices you may opt for

• Attachment Parenting or RIE insights if you're interested in those philosophies

• Provide you with the necessary resources and services for you and your baby

So who is a doula ? And why are doulas so beneficial ?

Studies of over 5,000 women involving comparisons of outcomes with and without labor support found*:

• 50% drop in cesarean sections

• 25% reduction in length of labor

• 40% less need for labor augmentation with synthetic oxytocin (Syntocinon or Pitocin)

• 30% drop in need for pain medication

• 40% less use of forceps

• 60% fewer requests for epidurals

*Mothering the Mother: How a Doula Can Help You Have a Shorter Easier and Healthier Birth, by Klaus, Kennell, and Klaus (1993)

More about Happy Healthy Child DVD series

Etymology and today's meaning

The word, "Doula," comes from the Greek word for the most important female servant in an ancient Greek household: the woman who assisted the lady of the house through her childbearing.

Today, Doula refers to a woman educated and experienced in childbirth who provides continuous physical, emotional, spiritual, and informational support to the mother AND her partner before, during, and after childbirth. She will unconditionally support a mother and nurture her, provide information when necessary, advocate for her and her partner's birth wishes via-a-vis a medical staff and simply be there for a mother continuously during labor and birth, unlike a doctor and nurses who come and go. A Doula believes in Mothering the Mother enabling a woman to have the most satisfying and empowered time she can through this important journey. This type of support also helps the whole family to relax and enjoy the beautiful experience.