Doula Drops In!

On November 27 I reported that our Doula was not going to be available for the birth. Things have changed in said Doula's life and she will be able to attend the birth. Yesterday we had the Doula over for tea and cookies.

We had a long discussion about what a Doula does, what to expect during the birth, and what our respective roles will be. The Doula emphasized that she had no intention of usurping my role. I told her not to worry about usurping.

We also talked about a birth-plan, which led us to discuss the hypno-birthing classes that Karin is signing us up for. I won't get into the details (since I don't know what they are) but essentially it is a way to side-step the over-medicalization of birth. You're not going to believe this, but 100 (and more) years ago, women were giving birth. Back then, they didn't have ultrasound machines and teams of medical professionals in sterile rooms wearing white official-looking lab coats (and machines that go "ping"). Instead, they had farm houses and caves and rudimentary instruments that "doctors" carried around in scary little black bags (think Marathon Man).

Karin is not planning on giving up the sterile environment or the people running around in lab coats... but she does want to have a bit more control over the process.

This is where the "Birth Plan" comes into play. I had never heard of a birth plan until the meeting with the Doula. It sounds to me sort of like an Advance Healthcare Directive aimed at the birthing process. It's a way to make sure that everyone is on the same page in terms of what kind of care is going to be delivered and what kind of technology (my terminology) is going to be utilized at any given moment.

Karin does have some qualms about doing a birth-plan. Based upon her experience in delivery rooms, she thinks that anyone that shows up at the hospital with a birth-plan in hand immediately raises red flags for the staff - as in, "Watch out for that high-maintenance mama in room 2B, Ethel." I think it's a good idea, though. At least we should have a birth plan available in case there ends up being a difference of opinion at some point. Maybe I'll keep it in my back pocket and reveal its existence if and when it becomes necessary. I'm not being intentionally cryptic about all this but I do want to afford Karin some privacy (with a blog, for example!).

The bottom line is that the Doula will, upon notification of active labor, clear her schedule and then meet us at the hospital. She will then be there for us the entire time, having brought a bag full of things we will have forgotten and having thought of everything we neglected to do in the frantic rush that we will undoubtedly encounter once the event is upon us. I'm all for the Doula.

After all the discussion of pain and dilation and dilation and pain, the doula suggested I read The Birth Partner to prepare me for what is going to be rather an unbelievable event, replete with all kinds of potential surprises for the unwary.