Do It All Doulas: www.doitalldoulas.com
For more information on doulas and Dona International: www.dona.org
When Julia Schetky’s birthing plan changed late in her pregnancy, the Salmon Creek woman was caught in a whirlwind.
High blood pressure meant her pregnancy was too high-risk for the Portland birth center where she had been receiving care. She had to find a new medical team, in a new location and was forced into a different birth plan.
When her son, Ethan, finally arrived via cesarean section, Schetky’s husband left the room to see the baby.
“I felt very alone in that moment,” Schetky said. Luckily, Schetky said, a family friend who is a midwife stepped into the room and sat with Schetky, holding her hand and comforting her.
“That was a really monumental moment,” Schetky said. “That’s why I became a doula.”
A doula is a trained professional who provides continuous physical, emotional and informational support to the mother before, during and just after birth, according to Dona International, a nonprofit organization that has trained and certified more than 10,000 doulas. Doulas may also provide emotional and practical support during the postpartum period.
Unlike midwives, doulas are not medical providers. Instead, they provide emotional support to the mother and her partner during pregnancy, labor and delivery, Schetky said.
When Schetky’s son was a couple of years old, she decided to go through the training and certification process to become a birth and postpartum doula. She completed an eight-week workshop, read books, wrote essays and was evaluated by nurses and physicians based on the care she provided to clients while they were giving birth.
Schetky completed the process in January 2014. Since then, she’s been involved in about 70 births, 55 of which were twins; she specializes in multiples and high-risk pregnancies. She also founded Do It All Doulas, a local doula group offering a range of services, from fertility consulting and prenatal support to birth, postpartum, bereavement and lactation support.
When hired as a birth doula, Schetky meets with the client two to three times before birth. They discuss the woman’s wishes for birth, such as how an ideal birth would look, and various birthing options. Then, they develop a birth plan, as well as plans if an induction or C-section is needed.
“My goal is that no one would need to learn something on the fly,” Schetky said.
As the due date approaches, Schetky is on-call. When labor begins, she’s by the woman’s side throughout the delivery.
Her role during delivery varies from birth to birth. She may use techniques to help a woman in an unmedicated delivery to reduce pressure on her lower back. She may help a woman to get questions answered and understand what’s happening when a birth plan suddenly changes. She may give the woman’s partner tips for helping to comfort her during labor. She may also just sit with the woman if her partner needs to step away to get something to eat or take a shower.
“I think one of the myths of the doula is they replace the partner,” Schetky said. “She knows her body. He knows his partner. And I know birth. We make a really good team.”
When Brittany Lawrence of Camas delivered her fourth child, Benjamin, in April she decided to use a doula for the first time.
“We wanted it to look a certain way,” Lawrence said of her fourth, and final, birth. “I wanted to attempt to go through my labor as peaceful as possible.”
The biggest benefit Lawrence said she received from having a doula was the feeling of empowerment.
“With my others, I didn’t know I could advocate for myself,” Lawrence said. “I didn’t know I could say, ‘I need a second to think about this.’ ”
“I didn’t know there was tons of tips and tricks to move through the stages of labor,” she added. “I was very uncertain.”
Tia Weniger of Camas hired Schetky to be her doula when she delivered her twin girls, Maia and Aura, in December 2013. The girls were the first children for Weniger and her husband.
“We didn’t know what to expect,” she said. “I knew anything could happen and when they do, you’re not always in the right state of mind.”
Weniger said she wanted someone to advocate for her, someone who was clearheaded, in case she wasn’t.
Weniger also knew there was a good chance her husband could end up in the neonatal intensive care unit after the first baby was delivered, leaving her alone. That did end up happening, but Weniger said she had Schetky by her side while her husband was gone.
“It’s always great to have an unbiased support person there for you,” she said.
Doulas can also offer support for spouses, Lawrence and Weniger said.
“I think using a doula is extremely helpful, not only for the woman but the significant other, as well,” said Brittany Lawrence, who is also a certified doula. “So often, men want to help the woman through the process but don’t know how or they’re very scared through the process.”
“It’s ensuring he’s going to be supported just as much as his wife or girlfriend,” she added.
