I hear this question often. Do I need a doula if I have a midwife?

Yes. For most women, the answer is yes. ESPECIALLY for first-time parents or those wanting to birth without pharmaceutical pain medication (or those wanting to avoid unnecessary interventions).

I get this question often when I tell people I’m a doula. The person I am speaking with either knows what a doula is or they often mistake me for some kind of midwife.

So what exactly is a doula? What is a midwife? How are they different?

About a year into my marriage, I started thinking about having kids.

I’m a planner and even though I wasn’t ready right then, I knew that I wanted to be a mama. I also knew that I was scared to death to give birth and I DIDN’T want a birth like I had seen or heard from so many. Ya know, those Hollywood screaming while cursing the father births. In my mind, God created birth. He designed the female body to carry a baby to term and to deliver that baby into the world.

It was 11:30 am as I walked into the Principal’s office. I was teaching first grade at the time and was ten days past my due date.

My feet were a bit swollen and I wasn’t feeling fantastic. I had been having Braxton Hicks contractions for over a week off and on but this felt a bit different. But how was I supposed to really know? This was my first baby and I was still unsure.