When I was pregnant with my first child I really believed that my labor was going to be pain free. I took Bradley Childbirth Classes, read more than your average number of books, planned a home birth and hired a doula. You can imagine my shock when the contractions hurt, and they hurt in a completely different way than I had imagined. The first person I called was my doula.
What is a doula? Essentially a doula is someone who is experienced with birth and offers continuous support throughout the process. Her job during a woman’s labor is to “provide physical, emotional, and informational support to women during labor, birth, and in the immediate postpartum period” (Gruber, Cupito & Dobson, 2013).
Interestingly, studies examining the impact of continuous support by doulas report significant reductions in cesarean births, instrumental vaginal births, need for oxytocin augmentation, and shortened durations of labor (Gruber, Cupito & Dobson, 2013). Studies show different statistics, but one study reported a 28% reduction in c-sections and a 34% decrease in being dissatisfied with the birth experience. Or in the words of Dr. Kennell, “If a doula were a drug, it would be unethical not to use it.” (1998).
So what is Beautiful Birth Choices? It’s a local organization that provides childbirth education, doula services, breastfeeding support, yoga classes, and honestly more than I could list here. To view everything they offer, click here.
Recently they moved to a new space and I had the honor and privilege of capturing their grand opening.
We also had fun with some “I love BBC” signs at a photo booth.
Or if you’re more of a video person, you can view the video of the grand opening below:
A huge congratulations to Julia, Christy and the BBC staff!
