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Benefits of A Placenta University Graduate

4/29/2015

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Working in Chicago helping women through labor, birth, and their postpartum transition has allowed me a great view of one other industry close to doulas: Placenta Encapsulation.  Until now, I have not offered this service myself, and have instead tried to find placenta specialists in Chicago that were both safe, and reliable in their methods of processing and business. 

Just like doulas do not need a license or  training to practice as a profession, placenta specialists are not required to have a license or training either.

There HAVE been sporadic trainings available, and many placenta specialists have been taught by someone they view as reliable. 

However, it has not been until this week that an organization has taken a stand on how, where, and in what manner a placenta should be handled, transported, and processed for human consumption. 

This week, Placenta Prep* has had its inaugural training, and the placenta industry now has a new standard of excellence.  I am proud and honored to say that I was invited to attend this training and am moving forward to help raise the standard and safety of placenta consumption.  

Not all women will choose to use this aid for their postpartum recovery, however, those that do should be offered a method and option to do so in such a way that reduces possible risks. 

As a graduate of Placenta Prep* I agree to the following standards of practice for my business:


I will never transport a placenta for another person
This has nothing to do with convenience, and everything to do with doubt, uncertainty, and trust. 

I want there to be absolutely zero doubt in a client's mind that the placenta I process is the placenta that came out of her body.  To ensure that everyone involved agrees that the placenta is indeed the property of my client, I will never transport her placenta, even if it is directly from the hospital to her home. 

I am not licensed to transport a human organ, and to protect my business and your trust, I will supply you with the necessary materials and information to safely transport your placenta to your home after the birth.


I will service a placenta in the home of the person who will consume it
We live in a world full of bacteria.  Good bacteria and bad bacteria are everywhere.  When a woman gives birth, she and (especially) her baby are in a delicate healing period where her immune system may be compromised or fragile. 

To reduce any negative side effects of bad bacteria consumption, I will only process a woman's placenta in an environment her body is used to. 

By processing a placenta in the client's space, I am able to ensure that the placenta is hers, that the space is free of debris from other processed placentas, and is free from any potentially harmful bacteria that may reside in my home.  As safe as my bacteria is to me, it may be harmful to the delicate system of a newly delivered mother and her infant. 

The only way to ensure that there is as few harmful bacteria present, the client's home is the safest location for this service to take place. 


I will stay current on my Blood Borne Pathogens certification
This industry does not require a license, and does not require Blood Borne Pathogens Certification. 

However, to reduce the risk to clients and to myself, I will follow guidelines outlined in this training to ensure every placenta, regardless of origin, will be treated with the respect and care that it deserves.  To do this, I will always have a current Blood Borne Pathogens certificate while processing placentas.   


Benefits of a Postpartum Placenta Specialist
As a Postpartum Placenta Specialist,
a great concern is that I am able to be present and available to my clients while they are transitioning from pregnancy to postpartum. 

By offering my services in this way, and by abiding by these guidelines, I also make myself available to my clients to offer support IN PERSON!  I am trained and certified as a Postpartum Doula, and if you engage in my placenta services, you are able to reap the full benefit of my knowledge, care, and attention during my time in your home. 

You can benefit from having your placenta processed in the safest possible way, with as many risks reduced along the way, AND benefit from time with a professional postpartum doula. 

I look forward to elevating the profession of placenta specialists in the Chicago area! 

Authored by: A Swift Doula
*Edited to update name




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World Doula Week - The invaluable side Of Doula Care

3/23/2015

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Yesterday, I shared that before becoming a doula, I had a wonderful, stable job working for Barnes & Noble.  I had insurance!  I had vacation days!  I had access to interesting people with interesting things to say and I was helping my community through literacy!  It was (how many more exclamation points do you need.....) ah-mazing!!!

And I made the choice to leave it. 

I then made the choice to become a doula.  A year and a half after starting my career as a doula, I became a ProDoula. 

When I was introduced to ProDoula through a woman named Randy Patterson, a few things happened:
  1.  I stopped feeling guilty for needing to make a living
  2.  I realized my attraction to this work was not just as a woman doing women's work, but it was a deep seeded need in me to be WITH women.   
For me, finding ProDoula was the key to a very large pad lock that opened feelings and memories that I had pushed away.  Why?  Because they didn't make me feel good!  Because of judgement, disappointment, or guilt.  And women are criticized for our feelings, aren't we?  So I put them away. 

And Randy Patterson and the other women I have been doing this work WITH, crawled in that deep dark space with me while sitting on Debbie Aglietti's basement floor.  And they showed me what it was like to really be with Women's Women.   Women who love other women.  Women who want big, inspiring things.  Women who understand that we will all do those big inspiring things in our own creative ways. 

I was a good doula before I became a ProDoula.  I knew all the right questions, I pushed on all the rights spots, I had the right information.  But after ProDoula, I finally really understood the need, and power of women showing empathy. 

Real support.  Non-judgmental support.  Being in the dark cave, together. 

And as I unlocked all of the pain, guilt, and disappointment, I started to let other things go too.  I started to let my "character flaws" out and stretch their sore limbs. 

Turns out, what I thought was flippancy was the ability to adapt.  Turns out what I thought was being bossy, was in fact my ability to be a decisive doer. 

I came back from an amazing experience and I started to try out this new self, with all my feelings and memories and baggage out for any who took a minute to see it.  And I started believing that my voice was powerful. 

And I now with this found voice, I learned to be much better listener.  I see and hear women trying to navigate through a world where pregnancy has made their own emotions a little closer to the top - those emotions are a little easier to access. 

Those emotions and fears are valuable.  They are valid.  They are good.

I walk into a woman's living room, and her emotions get all over her face, and she feels bad.  She feels wrong.  And I get so sit with her, and look at her emotions on her face, and nose and hands and tissues, and be with her.  And say that those emotions sound really hard and I am so glad she shared those really hard emotions with me. 

It isn't a space many people are willing to go.  My work lets me go there.  I get to go there!  I get to be a real women with other real women. 

And this is only a small part of the work that I do. 

But this is the invaluable part.  This is the part that gets hard to explain in a fee.


I talk about my on-call schedule.  I talk about being available on the phone.  I talk about specific hours of time and things like how many times we will meet, because in our society, these are the things that can be measured and checked off a list.  (And they are important too!)

But today, during World Doula Week, I wanted to talk a bit about what else the fee covers.  Non-judgmental support.  Being WITH you in labor.  Having a person in the room who is comfortable with all the ugly baggage and still looks you in the face and says, hey I see you over there.  Don't worry, I see you. 

Authored by A Swift Doula


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Other amazing writers are getting the word out about World Doula Week. Visit the World Doula Week Blog Challenge Blog Hop. 
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The Revolution Will Not be Supervised

2/25/2015

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One of my biggest fears moving to Chicago - I have no idea how to raise a child here. 

Why?  Because I grew up in almost the exact opposite of this city. 

My childhood seems like something out of a time warp.  My siblings and I played unsupervised for large periods of time.  We were given permission, and even encouraged, to make trips to the nearest city, 3 miles away, on our bicycles for the sake of exploring.  We were in charge of chopping wood, building a fire in winter, and preparing meals, all at ages that are considered abuse by some these days.

Part of what I loved about my childhood is how much time I spent BY MYSELF.

I had to be responsible for myself.  Sometimes that meant getting myself from one place to another.  Sometimes that mean I had to get myself down from a tree.  Knowing I had no support in executing these tasks made me both aware of how far into trouble I was going, and then proud of my ability to get out of it.

So, I want to be able to give my daughter freedom to learn without me near by.  But now, I am in a city and culture that thinks my child can’t to things has to be protected at all costs. 

An article in the Atlantic gave some insight into how we got here.  This has been gaining momentum since the 80's.  The ruling of a case involving a family from Chicago became the impetus for
the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission publishing the first Handbook for Public Playground Safety in 1981, a short set of general guidelines to govern the equipment.

In Chicago, with it's 580 parks, there are many opportunities for play.  It is wonderful.  However, there has also been studies that these safer playgrounds aren't being used because they pose little challenge to those using them. 

But with all of the regulations and changes to playground safety, it has been shown that there has not been a reduction of children's visits to emergency rooms.  I am no researcher, but the risky behavior seems to have moved from the playground to...elsewhere - where ever the child can find an opportunity to make choices for himself, to explore organically, and live the thrill. 

So back to my original worries about parenting in a city - where can she spend time by herself that won't get me arrested, and will let her have an authentic thrilling experience?

There is no answer for this right now.  As parents, we will have to wade through as we go. 

What I think is important right now is that I know I want my daughter to have these opportunities to explore by herself. 

Perhaps it will start with going down to our building's lobby to get the mail by herself.  Perhaps at some point it will mean me giving her a shopping list and waiting at the front of the store for her to gather some items.  At some point, she will ride the CTA by herself. 

Will I be concerned and anticipate her return?  Absolutely!  But one of my parenting goals is to have a well adjusted, independent daughter who knows she can come to me with anything.  I see that she won't be able to come TO me if she isn't APART from me at some point. 

If I want her to know how to always come home, she needs to know where home is.  So to get ready for this, we'll work on basics for a three year old: 
What is mommy's name? 
What is mommy's phone number? 
Where do you live? 

How do you set safe boundaries with your children?  If you live in a large city, how do you navigate this?

Authored by A Swift Doula

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All in a day's Work

2/19/2015

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"What do you mean I'm not on the account?" 
"I'm sorry ma'am.  You're not on the account.  You are not L----, correct?" 
"Look, I tell you what.  I will sign up for an account right now, on the phone, pay what ever fee you need me to pay, but can you please dispatch someone out to help me NOW.  A pregnant lady is having a baby today!  I'm supposed to meet her.  Please?!"
"Well, no ma'am...well...(pause)...yeah.  Ok.  Yeah.  Where is the vehicle?"


This was how my day started.  Well, not really.  My "day" started last night when I went to work for a super-fab family with twins.  This conversation happened at 6:10a, after I had realized I had locked my car, with it running, with my phone, contact numbers, and computer inside. 

I was on my way to meet a client that was having her baby today. 

The barista's at the Starbucks on the corner, (who have come to know me from my morning coffee stop...well sorta know me.   *ok not really...  But they know me now!) let me use their phone to call AAA.  And sit in their warm cafe.  And one of them tried to get my car open.  And they commiserated.  And eventually cheered me on when the two AAA workmen arrived. 

The AAA operator was quick and helpful, and in 35 minutes, a truck was there, helping me get on the road to where I had a client waiting. 

And it all ended ok. 

I had contingency plans running through my head. 

Do I just leave my car and take a cab? 
Would my car get towed?
Do I ask to use someone's smart phone to call the hospital? 
Do I...  it kept going on. 


Today was one big lesson.  HUGE lessons for me.  Somethings were easy like, carry a spare key in my wallet.  Others were organizational structures for my business.  The one that stands out is that people can be really awesome. 

People can get pretty down right now.  Winter, temperatures, politics...

But after being bolstered up by some baristas and AAA, I got to work for a wonderful family that welcomed their wonderful son into the world.  I got to meet a wonderful nurse who said openly and boldly, "Oh I love working with doulas!  So glad you are here!"

I am usually a person that others lean on.
  I am usually the person people come to when they need to get pumped up.  It is rare that I find myself in such a vulnerable place, needing help from complete strangers. 

The weird thing...

It felt good.  It felt good to let these people help me. 

Yes, I bought coffee while I waited.  Yes I purchased a service plan.  Yes, it's easy for a nurse to say a line in front of a couple who obviously wanted me to be there. 

But it was all good.  I valued their care, and they showed me kindness. 

I never thought I would have said this at 6:10a this morning, but...

What an awesome day!

Authored by A Swift Doula


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I have a Husband, He will Be my Doula...right?

1/26/2015

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I'm sorry to say, but No. (This is the short answer.)  Your husband will not be your doula.

Going into your delivery, your role is very clear - you get to give birth to your baby.  The role of your husband and the role of your doula are also very important, but different.  Let me explain...

*Your Husband/Partner In Labor
Your husband/partner is the person that is emotionally invested in you and your child.  This person will know your fears and history throughout your journey to this point, and they will have all of your feelings, cares, and expectations at the forefront of their minds. 

This person will be someone you will be comfortable being around, and will provide calm and resolve the way only an intimate partner can.  This is the person you have decided to do this with, this parenting thing - this is your together-in-this-beautiful-crazy-adventure person. 

Your husband/partner will be able to connect with you on an emotional level that no other person can, as you created this baby together, and (for many) are entering into parenthood side-by-side, heart-to-heart, with great joy and great excitement.


*The Doula in Labor
The doula is present in your pregnancy to educate, and then support, the decisions you decide are best for you and your baby.  Resources are provided, and referrals can be made with the healthy relationships she has cultivated in the community. 

Once at the birth, the doula is there to provide assurance and support.  The education that was provided prenatally will be ever ready should you or your partner have questions.  The doula will be trained to push on exactly the right spot when you need it, and will be able to suggest ways to help ease pain. 

But what is hard to convey until in the moment is when you are feeling contractions, and your doula is right there, eye to eye, showing you that YOU are normal, and what you are feeling is normal.  In those moments, a doula's worth is more than information, but in connection to where you are. 

There is great power in birth: physically, emotionally, and mentally.  As your doula, it is a heady time when your needs and my intuition sync in such a way that I can't help but feel connected to you as each contraction moves through the room, just like the contractions moved through countless women before you.   Your partner is there giving you comfort, I am there giving you a calm presence and a mirror to see your own strength with.     

When you have that lovely combination of medical care from a provider you trust, emotional support from your partner, and physical support from your doula, you will be supported by an incredible birth team!
 

Did you have a doula at your birth?  What were your partner's reflections on having a doula after the fact?  I'd love to know!


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Now You Get to Be The Guide

1/21/2015

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We receive all sorts of guidance in life.  Tour guides, guidance counselors, instructors...

A guide is (so says Mr. Webster)
  • a person who leads or directs other people on a journey
  • a person who shows and explains the interesting things in a place
  • a person who helps to direct another person's behavior, life, career, etc. 
Now compared to the definition of a parent:
  • a person who is a father or mother : a person who has a child
  • an animal or plant that produces a young animal or plant
  •  something out of which another thing has developed
Do you see how you are the first, and possibly, the greatest guide for your young child in this life?

There is a great post on Just Wanderlust about characteristics of a great tour guide.  If you have been reading my blog, you may remember I have a fond appreciation for tours.  I believe all of the points can be related to parenting but some favorites are:

From the section on time management - 

"
A great tour guide is aware of the start and end time but is flexible with the time and will tailor the day based on your interests and your time constraints.  Great tour guides never rush you as they are on your schedule."

Children don't know about clocks or time.  They don't know what being patient means.  They don't know that you have a tight schedule, or even what a schedule is.  As parents, keeping kids going in the direction we need them to and at a pace we need them to is difficult.  But sometimes it is possible to literally, stop and smell the roses.  And look at the color.  And talk about thorns and bugs, and dirt, and rain, and oh look!  That flower is pretty too!  ...and you are now enjoying the whole garden. 

Another great section is on color commentary -

"A great tour guide is a gifted story teller who is passionate about the attraction he’s showing you.  His historical accounts will take you back in time.  He’ll weave in personal anecdotes about what it’s like to live there including the good, the bad, and the ugly… and you’ll even laugh.  He’ll not only tell you about the culture, he’ll incorporate some cultural experiences into the tour (e.g., stopping for mint tea in Morocco or sampling putrefied shark in Iceland). He’ll talk to you like you are long-time friend in town for a visit."

Kids love stories.  In fact, research shows that children who are read to are more likely to remain life long learners, not because of vocabulary or content of the story, but because an emotional bond was established with a parent at an early age when being read to. 

But stories don't just come from books.  They can come from our minds and our lives.  Tell your child a story.  Any kind will do.  They will benefit regardless of the topic.

And the last bit I'll share from this great post, is about the initial introduction to a group.

"
The best guides spend the tour getting to know the guests on the tour that day and not in an intrusive way but in a way that shows genuine interest.  It could be during the car ride, over lunch/drinks, or as you walk from site to site."
Your child is someone you are getting to know.  They will change, like new things, learn new things, and change.  As parents, it is important to know who your child is right now.  What does you child like right now, not yesterday.  This comes from asking questions, and then listening to what they say.  No, not just listening, but really hearing them. 

With babies, it can be difficult, as language is not a skill they are able to master until later.  But they speak through smiles, they speak through curiosity, they speak through (yes, this too) showing displeasure.  So, are you hearing your child? 

One of my favorite times in my day is the drive to daycare in the morning, and the drive home when daycare is done.  It is a short few moments, where my daughter is sharing exciting things that are in her head.  Every morning, we have our rituals:  we round a bend and see the Chicago Skyline and shout, "Good morning Chicago!" and off we go, talking about the color of Lake Michigan that day, if the birds are napping in the harbor or if the fishermen have caught anything.  We talk about what she would like to do when I pick her up, and we sing silly songs. 

She and I don't have a meeting at the table with pencil and paper to discuss these things, but they happen, in real time.  I know that these little snippets will make harder conversations later in life come a bit easier.  And then, I will be a guide in a different way - talking and listening about bullies in school, talking and listening about persistence, and talking and listening about about her goals.

The crazy thing about this whole guide/guided journey, is she is my guide also.  It is not just give give give.  And it isn't just take take take.  We get to help each other, guide each other through this parent/child relationship.  For her and I, it started even before she was born- her telling me through position and discomfort how to move my body so she could best travel into the world.  It won't end until, hopefully, a very long time has passed. 

I am so excited for this adventure!

Authored by A Swift Doula
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Gifts Of Security

1/3/2015

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Growing up at the end of a dirt road in Eastern Washington State gave me strong memories of security.  We never locked the doors.  We all (4 kids in my family) knew how to cook, wash clothes, and light the fire at an age that may be considered barbaric to some today. 

We learned to drive a car long before we could reach the pedels, as mom would sit us on her lap and let us steer.  (And because my mom had a tendency to lock her keys in the car, we all knew how to Jimmy the door.) 

And long before cell phones, we all knew how to make a collect phone call, a skill my mother probably regretted teaching when on summer vacation with our father, we called her everyday from a pay phone at Yellowstone National Park. (To our credit, during the time when the operator allowed the caller to announce whom was speaking, we would race a message to mom then she would deny the charges!  Himommissyouloveyou!) 

Besides the fact that there are no longer payphones to use, or that cell phones have made calling collect a thing of the past, I no longer live at the end of a dirt road in rural eastern Washington State.  I live in Chicago.

But the type of security that adults think about and the type of things that make children feel secure, are totally different things.  Or so I thought until I found this story. 

Malik is a 7th grader living in Chicago's Englewood neighborhood, and all he wanted for Christmas this last year was to be safe.  It just breaks my heart. 

“I barely can’t even go outside anymore, can’t ride my bike, can’t play ball, can’t go play with my cousins, because you have to watch your back every 30 seconds,” Malik says. 

There is very little I can do or Malik's parents can do to improve crime in Chicago
.  But what can I do?  How can I help my child feel safe in a city where there were 408 reported homicides in 2014.

The National Center for PTSD say the best thing for children who have witnessed community violence is...a caring adult. 

And that is something my daughter will always have.  I will listen to her.  I will spend time with her.  And she will have a network of other caring adults she can talk with should something happen to me. 

And really, when I think back to my mom teaching me how to make a collect call, that is what she was doing.  She was always available to talk.  She was always there to listen. 

So even if my daughter doesn't witness community violence (nd I hope it is a very long time before she has to worry about such things) I know I'm earning her trust.  When she gets older and we have the struggles that will come from her wanting independence and separation from her parents, I hope she knows she'll always be able to call me and ask for help or share sad news. 

Authored by A Swift Doula





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Leaping Babies

12/2/2014

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This blog has been moved to our main site, www.DoulasofChicago.com
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All Rights Reserved *

11/30/2014

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Something is in the air.  Thanksgiving is over and instead of comfy pants, a whole slew of people have put on their judgy pants. 

Let me digress a moment...

I have had the pleasure of serving as a Postpartum Doula for a lovely family this past week.  I put my daughter to bed, I drive to their house, I spend the next 10 hours there, and I come home to my daughter eating breakfast.  She rushes toward me when I come in the door and gives me a huge hug.  "Mommy's home!" 


This week, I was even able to witness my best friend become a mother and have her whole life change by that love.  Birth doula and Postpartum doula.   That's me. 

Both of the mothers I've been with are strong and capable women, and they have already had to make decisions that impacted their babies.  Induction?  Epidural?  Supplement with formula?  Pacifiers? Feed every 2 hours?  Every 3?  Every 4? 

Parents make decisions.  Most try to make the best ones they can.  And it's their right to do so. 

This year, I have been growing a new baby
- my business in a new city.  It is a slow process.  Every day comes with decisions on how to best encourage its growth and how to best serve my clients.  See, just like I try to instill self-esteem in my daughter, one of my jobs is to ensure that I'm instilling good self esteem in my business. 

But just like my decisions as a parent have sometimes come under ridicule, recently, I've received comments questioning some of my business decisions.  Not because they are bad, but because they are different and not in line with what has come in the past. 

So let me take some time to tell you about me. 



I am a business woman.  I am a mother that is providing for her family.  I am a mother that talks about birth, work, responsibility, and loving yourself, and walks that talk.   

The work I do happens to be in a field where there is a tremendous amount of emotion, close bonds and instant connection, and a level of intimacy that is uncommon between non-medical persons. 

I am extremely dedicated to my clients and my business.  I am committed to providing superb service.  One of the reasons I am able to do this is that I have learned and understand that I cannot be emotionally attached to an outcome in birth, and I cannot impart my opinion on your parenting style. 

I've written before about offering non-judgmental support.  I cannot be both supportive and opinionated.  For the service I provide and the support you receive, I in turn receive payment.  Just like the care provider receives payment for catching your baby. 


The *BONUS* is that this is incredibly rewarding work.  I get to be present for women becoming mothers.  There is nothing like it!  But I know you understand that I can't pay my bills with warm, fuzzy feelings. 

I have come to understand this and I make no apologies for being upfront about how unemotional I am with a mother's decisions at her birth. 

I am emotional, don't get me wrong.  I am right there with you in contractions, with the pain, and with the joy.  My heart lifts when your eyes light up with your first view of your baby.  My eyes tear up when something that has been wanted for so long is really happening.  I am attuned to your experience. 

But being unemotional about your choices allows me to provide the quality, non-judmental, support that doulas are hired to provide. 

Because after I leave a birth or leave a family after hard over-night feedings with twins, I have to go home.  My little girl is waiting for me and wants to give me a big hug.  I want to play blocks, and ballerina, and bookstore with her and not be emotionally attached to a birth that was not my birth.  I had my birth. 

You deserve to have yours with no strings attached. 

I reserve the right to have good self esteem, both personally and for my business, and so does every woman in Chicago. 



Authored by A Swift Doula


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Doula For Sleep

11/23/2014

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I was at a housewarming parting talking about the loads of wonderful food joints in Chicago that I can't wait to try.  As I was hearing about these great treats, my doula ears pricked up.  The parents of Sam, a  2 month old baby girl who was sitting in her dad's arms, were recounting some of the trials of having a 2 month old baby girl. 

"Yeah, it's been so long since we've had to do this.  I totally forgot how HARD it is to keep getting up." 
"She seems to sleep all the time, but then it seems like she won't sleep when we want her to." 
"If there was just someone I could call so at 1am I could go to bed and they would be up with her." 
"I go to work and they all think I'm joking about needing coffee.  I need that coffee.  This isn't college and I can't pull all-nighters like I used to." 


I had to stop talking about donuts and join this conversation.  It's not like I saw a doula-bat-signal being flashed over the refreshment table but, well, ok.  It sorta felt like that...

So I shared that I am a birth and postpartum doula, and just the night before, I was that person for a family with twins.  The dad's eyes got huge.  "You mean, I really could call you at 1am for help?" 

I laughed, Yes!  You could!

A postpartum doula can be hired whenever you need the help. I can come during the day to help with schedules, feedings, laundry, siblings, dishes, and grocery shopping.  OR, I can come during the night, to help with schedules, feedings, laundry, siblings, dishes, but... probably not grocery shopping.  If you have me at night, you probably want to sleep.

Is this you?  At night, you get settled, you turn the lights off.  Your little one is tucked into her bassinette with eyes closed.  You lay your head on the pillow and start to drift.

Whawww! 

You jump out of bed and rush over to your baby, ready to pick her up...but she is still sleeping. 

You go back to bed, start to drift and hear sucks and creeks in the bed and soft wimpers.  Then louder wimpers.  You get out of bed, walk to the crib, but baby is still asleep.  You go back to bed. 

You just can't seem to turn your mind off, or your mind is hypersensitive to each little sound.  A few more ups and downs, and then 2.5 hours have gone by and it's time to actually get up, change and feed the baby, and start the whole process over again. 

This is the challenge for parents of a new baby.  This is where the nights are long and the days get longer.  And this is where I can help. 

Call the Doula!
Postpartum doula care at night means you have the comfort of knowing that all of your needs and baby's needs are being met.  You can have peace of mind in between feedings so you can actually sleep.

The doula is the person who checks on the wimpers and the squaks, and looks in after every little sound and rustle.  The doula changes the diapers, rocks the baby to sleep again, and when it's time, will bring baby to you to feed, or warm up the milk that was pumped earlier. 

Moms and dads are capable of handling some tremendous balancing acts in life.  As a doula I know you all need to be at your best when get up and step out the door.  Getting the rest you need means you can be at your best when you need to be. 

Doulas aren't just for daytime, and we aren't just for birth. 

As your doula, your family may need you to be rested, so if the night time is when need me, I'll be there. 

PS - The food recommendations from the housewarming party: 

Johnny Casserole, so good.  And I got a few more recommendations for desserts - Hoosier Mama Pie Company and Doughnut Vault...drool....


Authored by A Swift Doula


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