The Impact of Birth Doula Support: Real Stories from Orange County

Continuing with our birth stories series, we wanted to share another incredible journey with you! Pregnancy is a transformative journey filled with excitement, anticipation, and often, a fair amount of uncertainty. For many women, having the support of a doula can make a world of difference. Thank you Laila for sharing your amazing story and trusting Labor of Love.

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From the first meeting with my doula from Labor of Love, I felt at ease. My doulas listened attentively to my birth plan, fears, and hopes, taking the time to understand how I felt. She was always available when I needed to talk or had a questions. She supported me during pregnancy in ways I didn't know I needed.

As my due date approached, my doula helped me stay confident in what was going to happen. Since you never really know when labor will start, I was very anxious and nervous. The waiting was harder than I thought. My doula helped me relax and gave me the support to let it all unfold as it should . I was grateful for her guidance and expertise at this time. I didn't realize how nerve racking waiting to go into labor would be...

Unexpectedly, I went 7 days past my due date and was so scared. I didn't know what to expect but my doula kept reassuring me that this was completely normal. It was difficult to know what to pay attention to because I had a lot of Braxton hick contractions all the time. My doula kept telling me that I will know when I am truly in labor and not just having Braxton Hicks.

When the day finally arrived, I woke up to pretty intense back pain. I was very uncomfortable and felt a little sick to my stomach. Luckily, I was able to call my doula and she told me to take a warm shower and try to rest. However, once I was in the shower I started to feel a lot of cramping and started to think that I may be in labor. I was able to have my husband call our doula and she instruct us that everything was fine and I was right where I needed to be. I stayed in the shower for awhile, which helped a lot that morning.

As my contractions grew stronger, my doula came over to the house. She began to help immediately, massaging my back and guiding me through positions to relieve the discomfort. She knew that I wanted an epidural, and so we decided to head to the hospital shortly after she arrived. Upon arriving at the hospital, I get really scared and overwhelming. I was so grateful for my doula who walked us both into the hospital, she knew exactly was to expect and told me where to go, what to stay and how to manage my labor all the same time. It was such a relief. She took such great care of me.

It took several hours to get into my room and finally have my epidural. I felt like I was waiting forever. Having my doula there during this time to distract me and keep me calm made everything so much easier. Once I got my epidural, I was able to rest and go to sleep for several hours. As the night went on I felt excited to meet my baby and was grateful that my doula was there as we had many nurses come and go who I didn't know. Having my doula there grounded me and made me feel safe.

Once the morning came, I was told I could finally start pushing. I wasn't expecting this part to be so intense. While I had an epidural, there was still a lot of pressure and it was uncomfortable. I kept looking at my doula to ensure that I was doing it right and she made me feel very empowered through it all.

I can't say enough about how my doula changed my experience. I was scared and she make me feel so safe the entire time. I am forever grateful to her!

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If you live in Orange County and are considering hiring birth doula we would love to connect!