What is a Doula?
A doula is a professional who provides emotional, physical, and informational support to birthing people and their families during pregnancy, birth, and the early postpartum period.
Offering continuous comfort measures, such as a calm presence, massage, position changes, and encouragement, a doula is trained to best support you through each stage of labor. Doulas are non-clinical and do not make medical decisions.
Evidence Based Benefits
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Evidence shows that having a doula during childbirth decreases your risk of Cesarean by 25%.
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Evidence shows that there is a 38% decrease in the baby’s risk of a low 5-minute APGAR score, when the mother was accompanied by a doula for the duration of her labor and birth.
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Researchers found that with a doula, labors are 41 minutes shorter on average.
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Researchers have found that with a support person, there is a 10% decrease in the use of pain relief medication during labor and childbirth.