the value of a virtual doula
I know we are in the midst of a very strange time. Business are closed, takeout is the only option, being around strangers doesn’t feel normal or safe, and we are confined to our homes for the majority of the day. Through all this turmoil, if you’re feeling uneasy, angry, lonely, or stressed those feelings are completely valid, and I see you. Please, please reach out to me via email (no matter if you’re a pregnant mom or not). One of my main passions in life is helping people emotionally. I’m not a trained professional, but if you just need someone to vent to or process with, I’m here for you: sarahmdoula@gmail.com.
Now to the nitty gritty. I know I’m pretty biased, but most any woman who had professional doula care will tell you how invaluable it was to her labor experience and mental/emotional well-being. And during this confusing, isolating, and ever-changing time, doulas are more valuable than ever. Here are a few reasons why I believe I am still valuable to you as a virtual doula:
1) My number one priority is your mental wellbeing as you enter parenthood. More than anything, I want you to be emotionally satisfied as you and your partner become parents. It’s a huge deal and it’s still going to happen, COVID or not. Just like you, I can’t control when your baby comes into this world. However, I can help you determine how you will bring your little one into the world, what that can look like, and guide you to the best resources possible for your situation. All of that can be done virtually.
2) My goal is to help you feel safe, mentally prepared and emotionally healthy for whatever may happen in your pregnancy, labor, or postpartum. My services as a doula are far beyond helping you breathe properly through a contraction. I want to inform, guide and support you in every aspect of parenthood, beginning with pregnancy and seeing it through past the birth of your child. My services are valuable every step of the way, not just during labor.
3) Education and empowerment are more important than ever. If you plan on having a hospital birth, there’s a good chance I won’t be able to be there physically to support you. But do not fret. Since you elected to be in the hospital you have the right and power to insist that I will be propped up on a phone to support you whenever you need me. I can coach you through your breathing techniques, give tips to your partner on how to massage you in just the right way, and encourage you when you’re feeling unmotivated or weak. Bottom line is I can still be there to support you through every moment, even if I can’t be there physically. Knowing your rights is invaluable and is now more than ever crucial to the quality of your birth experience. Empowerment and education are always part of my job, and I love teaching my clients their rights and how to stand up for themselves while being respectful but also firm.
4) I can help protect you and your partner from things you don’t need to know. Especially during the last weeks of your pregnancy, I will encourage you to turn off the news and turn inward. This turning inward will allow you to block out the noise of the world and only focus on the safe arrival of you baby. We can make a decision together on what you do or do not need to know regarding hospital policy or other birth related matters, and you can trust me to relay those to you as appropriate.
5) Postpartum care is actually the aspect of my doula services that seems most relevant right now. Postpartum is often a time when mothers and their families experience loneliness and isolation, and that even more of a reality now with social distancing and stay at home orders. As you doula I can help you assess your mental and emotional wellbeing during postpartum and can help guide you to the resources you need from a group of moms to work out with virtually, to a postpartum doula, or a perinatal mental health professional. By that point, we will have gone through a lot together and can work together as a team to help make postpartum as smooth of a transition as possible during this time.
I’ll be really frank (though this information is on my website) and say I ask $550 for my services, and that is a bargain for doula care. At this point, my prices are remaining the same, but I am always willing to work with you and your family to make doula services a reality if $550 is still too much to ask. Everyone deserves doula services. Please reach out if you would like know more information.
Again, pregnant mom or not, I’m here for you if you need me. Please reach out. I’m here, and in the meantime, be safe and stay healthy!