A Christian doula
serving the Dayton, Ohio area
What is a doula?
A doula is a professional support person for a birthing family. Doulas provide physical and emotional support during labor and delivery plus the early postpartum period. The role of a doula is non-clinical. They do not provide medical care. Doulas attend all types of births. They provide physical and emotional support during birth. They also provide resources, education, and options to their clients. Doulas don’t make health care decisions for the client. They do not advocate for their client's decisions. They seek to empower their clients to make educated decisions on what is best for them. Above all, a doula is there to support the client in their birth without judgment. A doula is a seasoned guide to partner with while you walk the path of your birth journey. Many doulas also offer other maternity care related services such as being a lactation professional or childbirth educator.
Why hire a doula?
Studies have shown significantly better outcomes in births where the woman had a supportive partner AND a doula in comparison to women who did not.
The American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology reported in March 2014, “Published data indicate one of the most effective tools to improve labor and delivery outcomes is the continuous presence of a support personnel, such as a doula. Given that there are no associated measurable harms, this resource is probably underutilized.”
Read more about doula benefits here
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10643833/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23857334/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23409910/
- https://evidencebasedbirth.com/the-evidence-for-doulas/
Who needs a doula? Anybody who wants one. Whether single or married, you can benefit from a doula. Whether planning a natural, vaginal delivery or a planned c-section or anything in between, a doula can assist you. You may especially benefit from a doula if you are nervous about birth, don’t want to be left alone during labor, don’t have a supportive partner, live away from family, are a military wife with a deployed husband, struggle with depression or anxiety, or suffer from addiction and need support to have a birth without pain medication.
Services offered
- Support from point-of-hire in pregnancy through 3 months postpartum
- I am available for hire any time after pregnancy is confirmed.
- Prenatal education: After hire, I am always available to answer questions and provide resources upon request.
- Birth preparation: During our 2-4 prenatal appointments, we will prepare for the birth as well as the postpartum period and early days of bringing home a little one. If desired, I can assist with making a birth plan.
- Birth support: I support birth in any form. I support vaginal births, c-sections, un-medicated or medicated, epidurals, water births, hospital births or birthing centers, obstetricians and midwives, etc… It’s your birth; do it your way. I also offer birth support to families whose babies are born sleeping (stillbirth or miscarriage).
- Breastfeeding support
- Postpartum appointments will consist of checking on the family, answering questions, assessing breastfeeding, checking up on their recovery, assessing mental wellness and discussing any concerns over postpartum depression or anxiety (or just stress), providing emotional support, offering any requested resources, and closure of services.
- I support all types of families. Single, dating, married, divorced, LGBT, surrogate, adoptive, etc... are all welcome in my circle. I walk with people of all backgrounds.
- I do my best to customize services to fit what the family needs. Some people may want more hands-on physical support. Others may primarily be interested in having a doula so they aren’t alone. Let’s have open communication and work together to create the best birth experience possible.
What do I do during a birth?
- I provide physical support to the mother during labor and delivery. There are a variety of ways physical support can be provided. We will discuss different options during your prenatal appointments and customize your support plan to include methods you’d like to try.
- I assist the dad in learning how to provide physical support to his partner.
- I offer emotional support to the couple.
- As a Christian, I am happy to pray over the family and read scriptures or devotionals if the client would like.
- For mothers that choose to breastfeed, I provide lactation support as a certified breastfeeding specialist.
- I provide a safe place to confidentially talk about whatever a client needs to talk about.
What I do NOT do
- I do not replace the dad. He is very much a priority in the birthing process. Bringing a child into the world is the birth of a family. While I will work with single mothers and in circumstances where the father is not present, I will never “push a dad aside”. I’m there to support the birthing couple.
- I do not provide medical care. A doula is different than a midwife. I do not diagnose or treat health problems. I will not prescribe anything including supplements or herbal treatments. I will not be taking vitals or fetal heart tones. While my degree is in health sciences and I am trained in basic clinical skills, I do not feel it is appropriate for doulas to take vitals without having a primary provider to report to or having access to their chart to see their history.
- I also do not intervene with medical care or advise anyone to go against their doctor's recommendations. I'm always happy to provide information. Medical decisions are rightfully made by the patient. I encourage people to advocate for their rights and decisions. Advocacy is the responsibility of the person receiving medical care. It is commonly thought doulas advocate for people in a manner that involves telling hospital staff what they can and can't do or reminding them of the birth plan. I don't find that appropriate. That causes a lot of tension in the birth team. It's up to the birthing woman to communicate her decisions.
- I do not judge the medical choices you make surrounding your birth. I support epidurals and c-sections just as equally as I support un-medicated births and vaginal deliveries. Your health decisions are rightfully yours to make and should be respected.
- Some doulas also attend abortions. To be straightforward, that is not something I support. I do not support abortion in any way, shape, or form. I am a Christian and 100% pro-life. There is a doula style out there for everyone. Some are looking for a full spectrum doula or abortion doula. Others refuse to hire anyone who attends abortions. I’m pretty transparent on this. I will not treat anyone differently if they’ve had an abortion. However, I will not be providing doula services for abortions.
- While I do post-birth checkups, I do not provide postpartum support including housekeeping, errand running, meal prep, or nannying.
Packages to choose from
Emerald package
- Phone and email support in pregnancy from time of hire
- Access to all of my educational materials
- Birth support
- Lactation support
- Phone and email support postpartum until one month after birth
- Investment: $750
Amethyst package
- Everything in the Emerald package
- 2 prenatal appointments in your home
- 1 postpartum appointment within a month of giving birth
- Investment: $1,000
Ruby package
- Everything in the Emerald package
- 4 prenatal appointments (in your home) which include a complete childbirth education course one-on-one customized to your needs
- 2 postpartum appointments within a month of giving birth
- Investment: $1,400
Fees
- Fees are non-negotiable. Please do not contact me inquiring about free services or working below my listed prices.
- A consultation appointment is free.
- 50% of the fee is due at the time of hire. The rest is due by 36 weeks or before the birth. Payment must be received in full before birth services.
- I accept cash, checks, or payment via Paypal (you can use your debit or credit card). You can also pay for a doula out of your HSA. Your insurance company may be willing to reimburse you for doula services.
- There is a contract. An invoice of payment due is emailed. Receipt of pay is also emailed. If you prefer paper, I'd be happy to also print a copy for you.
Service areas of southwest Ohio
I live in southwest Ohio. I serve the following counties and hospitals.
Montgomery County
Residents: east of 75 + West Carollton and Miamisburg
Hospitals: Kettering, Southview, Miami Valley (Note: This hospital has a birthing center), MV South
Miami County
Residents: southern half of county, Troy and south of Troy
Hospitals: Upper Valley
Clark County
Residents: entire county
Hospitals: Mercy Health – Springfield Regional
Greene County
Residents: entire county
Hospitals: Soin (by the Fairfield Commons Mall)
Clinton County
Residents: northwest area of county, Wilmington and north of 22
Hospitals: Clinton Memorial
Warren County
Residents: northern half of county, Lebanon and above 63
Hospitals: Atrium (Note: This hospital has a birthing center)
Montgomery County
Residents: east of 75 + West Carollton and Miamisburg
Hospitals: Kettering, Southview, Miami Valley (Note: This hospital has a birthing center), MV South
Miami County
Residents: southern half of county, Troy and south of Troy
Hospitals: Upper Valley
Clark County
Residents: entire county
Hospitals: Mercy Health – Springfield Regional
Greene County
Residents: entire county
Hospitals: Soin (by the Fairfield Commons Mall)
Clinton County
Residents: northwest area of county, Wilmington and north of 22
Hospitals: Clinton Memorial
Warren County
Residents: northern half of county, Lebanon and above 63
Hospitals: Atrium (Note: This hospital has a birthing center)
Confidentiality
- I follow the same patient privacy and HIPAA guidelines as medical professionals.
- I also follow the same professional boundaries as other health professionals.
- I will not release any information to a client’s family and friends unless the client requests I do so.
- I do not share who my clients are or any of their personal details including health history, medical decisions, how their birth went, or the names of anyone in the family.
- I do not announce a birth before the parents. With parental consent, I may post (without identifying information) on my Facebook business page a welcome baby announcement or a little bit about the work that I do. Clients are welcome to post pictures including me on their social media. If a client posts a photo tagging my page, I may ask permission to share photos of me working as a doula.
- I will not post on social media who my clients are or any information about their birth without written consent. If a family is fine with having their photo and first names on my website or Facebook with a review, I would be happy to post an approved photo with consent to share about my work as a doula.
About me as a doula
I don’t think there was ever a moment where I suddenly decided to become a birth worker. I think I was born with the purpose of educating and supporting birthing families. I’ve always been drawn to this field of health care. When I was 16 I heard the word “midwife” and wanted to know what kind of wife that was. As I learned more about what midwives do, I fell in love with the idea of becoming a midwife. When I was 20 I did my doula training. During that workshop I realized most of the things I love about midwifery I could be doing in the roles of a doula and a childbirth educator. Being a doula didn’t work out the first time around due to difficulty being on call when I had a regular job to attend. I continued my studies and learning everything I could about the medical side and non-medical side of birth work. In 2013 I decided to pursue nurse-midwifery and the path to become an IBCLC. In 2014 I did my lactation training through Lactation Education Resources earning certification as a breastfeeding specialist. At the same time, I started college as a nursing major. I later switched to health sciences after much time reflecting on what I felt my path was. I have a lot of love for nurses, but I always knew that wasn’t quite the right niche for me. I always knew I was made to teach. My passion is evidence based practices in maternal-infant care + improving outcomes in maternal-infant public health. In 2018 I graduated with a degree in health sciences. Upon graduation, I became available to be on-call for births. Thus began my walk back into the doula world. In the near future, I will begin teaching classes online via my website. I will teach general childbirth education classes, but I don’t want to limit myself to just birth. I want to teach on the vastness of women’s health care including reproductive health, maternity care, infant care, and family wellness. I believe one of the best ways to improve America’s maternal-infant public health is by educating each family on best practices and ensuring providers are carrying out the latest evidence based clinical care.
My philosophy on birth is that families should receive evidence based care with informed consent and respected refusal. I do not advocate for natural birth or a certain birth experience for everyone. I do not think women should be pressured to deliver in any way other than what they want. If that means an elective induction and an epidural, I will support them. If they want an un-medicated water birth in a birthing center, I will support them. Birth is highly unique. Each and every birth is different just as every family is. My goal is to support families to have the closest experience they can to their ideal birth. In addition to that, I offer emotional support when things did not go as planned or when unexpected complications arise. Through education and support, I work as a member of the birth team to passionately empower families to have the best outcomes possible.
For more general information about me, visit my about me page here.
My philosophy on birth is that families should receive evidence based care with informed consent and respected refusal. I do not advocate for natural birth or a certain birth experience for everyone. I do not think women should be pressured to deliver in any way other than what they want. If that means an elective induction and an epidural, I will support them. If they want an un-medicated water birth in a birthing center, I will support them. Birth is highly unique. Each and every birth is different just as every family is. My goal is to support families to have the closest experience they can to their ideal birth. In addition to that, I offer emotional support when things did not go as planned or when unexpected complications arise. Through education and support, I work as a member of the birth team to passionately empower families to have the best outcomes possible.
For more general information about me, visit my about me page here.
Contact me for a consultation
Please click on the consult page via the menu at the top.
Note: I am unable to provide services in homes with a cat. They are very adorable creatures, but I am very allergic (which is forever sad because they're so cute). For cat owners, I am able to provide the emerald package of birth support once the client arrives at the hospital or birthing center. If arrangements can be made to do prenatal & postpartum appointments in a location without cats, I am happy to provide the amethyst or ruby package.
Note: I am unable to provide services in homes with a cat. They are very adorable creatures, but I am very allergic (which is forever sad because they're so cute). For cat owners, I am able to provide the emerald package of birth support once the client arrives at the hospital or birthing center. If arrangements can be made to do prenatal & postpartum appointments in a location without cats, I am happy to provide the amethyst or ruby package.
