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birth doula care in boulder county

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Julie Harris Photography

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“If a doula were a drug, it would be unethical not to use it.” –Dr. John H. Kennell

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Sanctuary Doulas offer families either birth doula care or postpartum doula care or (even better) the continuity of both! Sanctuary Birth Doula Care helps you create a sanctuary to labor and give birth at your home, a birthing center and/or a hospital. At your birth, we anticipate and respond to you and your family’s changing needs throughout labor, birth and “the golden hour” immediately after birth. We provide suggestions and assistance to integrate an array of comfort measures focused on your physical and emotional well being. With our loving guidance, we invite family members to participate with more confidence to nurture the mother’s work and bond the new family.

We serve you and your birth journey with care, respect, compassion and non-judgment.
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Julie Harris Photography

 

Research on birth doula care confirms what families tell us in their reviews. When a birth doula is present during and after childbirth, mamas…

  • enjoy greater satisfaction with their birth experience
  • tend to have shorter labors and spontaneous vaginal births
  • use less pain medication
  • tend to not need instrument delivery (forceps or vacuum extraction)
  • are less likely to birth a baby with a low Apgar score or have a Cesarean birth

In 2014, the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology as well as the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine also weighed in that “published data indicate that one of the most effective tools to improve labor and delivery outcomes is the continuous presence of support personnel, such as a doula.”

Birth is a delicate yet powerful place where the maiden crosses a threshold into motherhood. In most kin-based cultures around the world, a woman preparing for her birth knows that other experienced women will be there to guide, assist and encourage her and remind her that she IS powerful. Whether you wish for a vaginal birth with or without medication, plan medical intervention, are having a planned or unplanned Cesarean birth or a vaginal birth after Cesarean (VBAC), we can support your unique journey. 

We work with a diversity of families including those who plan to birth vaginally and by Cesarean, are experiencing easy or complicated journeys along the way, those families welcoming multiples (we love twins & triplets!), traditional families, single parents and LGBTQ families, as well as those families adopting a baby or experiencing newborn loss.

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Kyla Berry Photography

 birth doulas…

  • help create a positive, caring environment where you feel safe and can labor with more ease
  • offer verbal encouragement to you and family members
  • suggest and assisting with positions that enhance your labor progress, conserve your energy and optimize your baby’s position
  • recommend relaxation and pain reduction techniques
  • assist with a variety of comfort measures including breathing, guided imagery, music, touch and massage, acupressure, labor TENS unit (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation), hydrotherapy (bath, shower, warm and cold compresses) and more
  • offer your partner, spouse and other family members helpful ideas to be involved in the birth and encourage them to participate in meaningful ways for them
  • ensure that your and your partner, spouse and family members are well nourished for the work of labor and birth
  • work in a positive spirit of interdisciplinary teamwork with your nurses, midwives and physicians
  • facilitate communication and informed decision making between you, your partner, spouse, family members and your medical care team
  • provide optional prenatal home visits in the 3rd trimester and before 37 weeks to prepare for your birth, discuss your birth choices and preferences, your spouse/partner’s supportive role, labor comfort measures and your postpartum time
  • provide an optional postpartum home visit scheduled after the birth to reflect on the birth and support your postpartum transition

 

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common questions about birth doula care

We are fully committed to families birthing through October 2018 and are accepting new birth doula clients beginning mid-November 2018. If you are a returning client, please contact Michele. We still have availability for postpartum doula care in 2018.

common questions about birth doula care

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“Doula” is a funny word!? What does in mean?

“Doula” is an ancient Greek word meaning “a woman who serves.” Learn more about the fascinating history of doulas.

What are my birth doula care options and the fees?

You may choose from 4 Sanctuary Birth Doula Care packages.

#1 Sanctuary Birth Doula Care with 3 home visits – 2 prenatal & 1 postpartum
(recommended for first births and new clients)
$1,500

#2 Sanctuary Birth Doula Care with 2 home visits – 1 prenatal & 1 postpartum
(recommended for repeat clients or families having their 2nd or more baby)
$1,400

#3 Sanctuary Birth Doula Care with 1 home visit – prenatal or postpartum
(recommended for repeat clients or families having their 2nd or more baby)
$1,300

#4 Sanctuary Birth Doula Care with no home visits
(only for repeat clients)
$1,200

Half is payable as a retainer fee at time of hire and signed Birth Doula Care Agreement. The balance is due at 34 weeks of pregnancy or prenatal home visit. You may pay with cash, check, credit card or gift cards. You can easily enjoy the generosity of family and friends by directing them to easy online gift cards and adding doula care on your registry or wish list.

What accounts for the difference in birth doulas' fees?

Birth doulas in and near Boulder County charge $500-$1,500+. Our fees are reflective of our 25+ years of experience, training and credentials as DONA International Certified Birth & Postpartum Doula, Certified Lactation Counselor®, Licensed Massage Therapist, Certified Educator of Infant Massage with the back up support of some of Boulder County’s most experienced birth doulas at Birth Assistants of Boulder.

I live outside Boulder County, but may I hire Sanctuary Birth Doulas?

Sanctuary Doulas’ primary service area is within the 20-mile drive of Sanctuary Healing Arts LLC office at the Joy Collective, 2800 Folsom Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80304. A $25 Travel Fee applies for each home visit within our secondary service area of a 20-30 mile drive of the Sanctuary Healing Arts LLC office. Before contacting us, please put our address 2800 Folsom Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80304 and your home address into your favorite app to determine if you live in our service area. If you live outside our service area, visit our Resources for a referral to other postpartum doulas in your local area.

If I’m open to and/or want pain medication in my labor, how can a doula help me?

Pain is a perception that informs us how to respond and move. It’s valuable information that supports labor process and physiologic birth as Mother Nature intended. When a woman is fearful, her perception of pain is greater. Your birth doula helps you identify your fears prenatally then guides you to strategies that “cage those tigers.” Your birth doula also knows time honored comfort measures that help sooth discomfort and invite your body’s endorphins kick in even more. (Also see What is a Labor TENS Unit? below.) Mother and baby may just need one of the best interventions – patience! If and when labor is long and/or a mother’s pain moves from pain into suffering, pain medication is a very humane intervention to help the mother continue her labor and birth. With an epidural or other pain medication, the mother can continue to enjoy a doula’s presence, comfort measures and guidance. Birth doulas care for all mamas with compassion and non-judgment. It’s your birth!

If I’m having a planned or unplanned Cesarean birth, how can a doula help me?

It’s still a birthday party and calls for the same hands-on physical and emotional comfort measures! Whether your having a planned or unplanned Cesarean birth, your birth doula joins you at the hospital to help create a relaxing environment in your hospital room while you prepare with your medical care team. Massage, acupressure and aromatherapy are favorite comfort measures. Depending on your hospital’s operating room policy as well as your anesthesiologist and obstetrician’s preferences, your birth doula may or may not be permitted into the operating room and/or post-anesthesia recovery room to continue offering comfort measures and taking any keepsake photos you may want. Ask your physician about your hospital’s policy and ask for the support you want at your Cesarean birth. Learn and share more about Family Centered Cesarean Birth. A birth doula can also help spouses/partners with attending to the entire new family especially if mama and baby are not together immediately after the birth. A birth doula can be invaluable with the extra hands and hearts needed when multiples are welcomed into the world.

Who are your back up doulas?
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Birth Assistants of Boulder doulas
Kyla Berry Photography

We are honored to work with the amazing, trusted doula back up support of the birth divas at Birth Assistants of Boulder. Calling upon a back up doula is rarely needed, but very important when it is needed! The doulas of Birth Assistants of Boulder are some of the most experienced birth professionals in Boulder County who know how to create that magic trust and rapport with families when called to “laborland.”

What is the difference between a birth doula and a midwife?

A birth doula focuses on the physical and emotional comfort and well being of mothers. This professional care is based on evidence-based practice and information that fosters mothers’ maximum self determination. Doulas provide continuous labor comfort measures in addition to other birth doula care, but no medical care. We love working alongside Certified Professional Midwifes/Registered Midwives and Certified Nurse Midwives. Doulas do not perform medical assessments such as blood pressure, temperature, pelvic examinations, fetal heart rate, or postpartum medical care that are lovingly provided by wonderful midwives.

Does insurance cover birth doula services?

Sometimes. Ask your insurance company if birth doula care is a covered benefit in your policy. We can provide a receipt to submit to your insurance or Flexible Spending Account. You may also pay for your doula care with a Health Savings Account credit card or check.

What is acupressure?

Acupressure is a Traditional Chinese Medicine technique base on the same theories as acupuncture. Acupressure uses the pressure of fingers, thumbs, hands and/or other taped seeds on specific points along interconnected channels that circulate the body’s vital energy or “chi.” Specific acupressure points may be stimulated in labor for a desired therapeutic effect – relaxation, strength, nausea reduction, fetal descent, etc.

What is a labor TENS unit?

TENS is an acronym for Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation, and there are TENS units designed for effective pain relief in labor. By using this handheld battery-operated device, mild electrical impulses are transmitted through the skin to stimulate nerve fibers. TENS is a safe, non-pharmacological method of pain control in labor and especially back pain. I have completed DONA International’s TENS Training course and am approved to assist mothers in using Labor TENS units. For more information on labor TENS units, go the Labor TENS Consent Form.

I'm really interested in Sanctuary Birth Doula Care! What's my next step?

We recommend a phone and/or in-person interview as a next step to confirm that we’re the best birth doulas for you. Imagine that we’re going on a labor and birth vacation together and will be together in close quarters! It’s best to know us before you pack us in your suitcase for this wonderful labor and birth trip! Schedule a doula interview.

What's included in the Sanctuary Birth Doula Care Agreement?

Our Sanctuary Birth Doula Care Agreement is completed online and outlines our services, scope of practice, online resources, communication, confidentiality, fees, payments, home visit scheduling, cancellation policy, duration of agreement, limitation of liability and termination. Upon completion, you receive an emailed copy for your records.

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logo by Sugar Design / website made with love by Pink Elephant

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