So. What IS the point of a doula?
- Charlotte Edun
- Jul 4
- 5 min read
Last week I found myself in conversation with a man with limited experience of maternity care. Having grasped the pronunciation of ‘doula’, and then what my work entails, he looked at me, puzzled, and asked “…but what’s the point of a doula? Isn’t this what midwives do?”
Sadly, it isn’t any longer what midwives are able to do. Unfortunately the way that maternity services are structured in the UK can be described as ‘fragmented’ (and certainly as ‘in crisis’). That means it is highly unlikely that you will know the midwife who attends your labour. You are pretty unlikely to see the same midwife in your scheduled antenatal appointments. Even if you do see the same midwife antenatally, you’re unlikely to have more than 15minutes for each appointment. And in that short 15 minutes she has many assessments and observations of you and your baby that she must complete, so there’s little time left over for chit chat.
What does that mean for you? Well, it means your midwife appointments can feel a bit impersonal and cold. It means a certain frustration about how hard it is to work out what are standardised recommendations and what are specific to you. And it means you may struggle to get the time and attention you want to discuss what’s happening now, and what’s to come… which is where doula’s come in.
Here are 5 things we offer that will help you feel more relaxed, more confident, more reassured and more secure;
1. We offer continuity of care
Pregnancy is a transformation process. It’s whole woman business, whether you choose to be a stay-at-home-mother or to return to work after a defined maternity leave. Pregnancy – like all human experiences – can feel messy and chaotic. The changes you experience won’t just be in your body. You’re attitudes and expectations can change significantly during this time too. And so it matters that you don’t have to repeat yourself at every interaction. Continuity of care usually refers to midwifery care – but frankly there are very few places where you can access this model these days. The time your doula spends with you during your pregnancy matters, because in every conversation we learn something new about you, your circumstances, and your approach. That means that when there is a matter to be discussed, or a decision to be made, we have a head start in supporting you, because we know many of the factors that will be influencing your thinking. It also means it’s easier for you to tell us things that feel highly personal, or maybe even embarrassing. Continuity is a win/win/win and it matters.
2. We provide sign-posting without bias
There are so many sources of information available to pregnant women it is almost counter-productive. Books, podcasts, social media channels, groups, courses (in-person), courses (online), your midwife, an obstetrician…. But they are not all credible, and some of the information is driven by factors that are absolutely nothing to do with you and your personal situation. I can help you sort the wheat from the chaff and gather information that you can rely on. And it’s not only up to you. We can explore it together and discuss your own personal attitudes. This is the sort of informed decision-making that allows you to make confident decisions in the moment, even if they’re hard ones. And it’s very hard to have these sorts of conversations in a 15 minute appointment with a midwife you barely know and won’t see again for another 6 weeks.
3. Our care is holistic
We’re not looking at you as a pregnant woman, but as a woman (first) who is pregnant (second). The time we have with you, and the chance to talk about anything and everything that matters to you, means you can share the whole story of your pregnancy and your situation. This big picture thinking means together – you, your birth partner and I – can be clear about what support you’re likely to want and need. That can be super practical (like a plan for ‘mothering the mother’ during the fourth trimester), or it can be emotional, recognising your anxieties and talking about how to help alleviate them. It means we can identify any factors that vary from the standard NHS presumptions about everyone, whether that’s your dyslexia, or that your partner doesn’t drive, or a big fear of needles.
4. We can help you make peace the tough bits, as well as optimise the joy
The tricksy thing about having a baby is that there are very few absolutes. Pregnancy and birth planning carries a whole tonne of what if’s. There are no absolute rights or wrongs. Which can bring you meaty doses of anxiety… because you’ve spent the rest of your life having a good amount of control, right? My concern here is to allow you to see where your control and responsibility lies, and where it stops. Working with me means you’ll be able to make confident and solid plans that include how you can make peace with any difficult decisions you might need to make – and how your partner can support you.
5. We help you make strong values-based decisions
Attitudes to birth choices can be a bit binary. Induction of labour = bad. Home birth = good. Epidural = bad. Hypnobirthing = good. In reality, after 10yrs of doula’ing and supporting women and families, I know it’s a good deal more complicated and nuanced than that. The decisions you make based on what other people have told you are often the ones that feel most uncertain and hardest for you to understand once your baby is here. Talking about why you believe one thing to be better than another will make it so much easier for you to be flexible and adaptable to whatever circumstances come your way in the last days and hours before your baby is born. These conversations matter.
Each of these factors are about the work you do antenatally. So even if you’re not sure about having a doula in the birth room with you, or think you can’t afford doula support, take a look at Pocket Doula option. You get all the benefit of doula support, with the important additional flexibility.
So. If you’re pregnant and you’re the sort of woman who likes to be well informed before making decisions, and you’re interested in what’s happening to you and your baby, then this doula is for you!
Charlotte Tonkin Edun is a doula, hypnobirthing teacher, MNVP Lead and AIMS volunteer. She has been working in maternity improvement for over 12 years, 121 with private clients, within the NHS and at Coventry University and Canterbury Christ Church University. Her special interest is in birth planning.
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