What’s the Difference Between a Midwife and a Doula?

A midwife is a medical provider. Just like an OB, a midwife oversees your clinical healthcare at your prenatal appointments and during your labor (monitoring the baby’s heart rate, your blood pressure, doing cervical checks, etc.) and ultimately catches your baby! Hospital midwives (just like doctors and nurses) care for multiple people in labor and will come in and out of your room periodically to check on your progress, and possibly suggest/perform interventions. Home birth midwives only support one labor at a time, but they typically arrive much later in your labor than your doula does.

Doulas are not medical professionals — we do not perform any clinical care or make medical decisions. We provide emotional, informational, and physical support prenatally and postpartum, and we provide continuous support throughout your labor — we stay with you the whole time, offer comforting words, help you recognize what’s normal and where you are in your labor, hold your hand, help you understand your contraction pattern and physical sensations, help you decide when to go to the hospital (or call your home birth midwife), provide hands-on and hands-off pain management solutions, tie your hair back, hold a cool cloth to your forehead, rub your feet, suggest effective labor positions, tell you how strong you are, help protect your birth space and preferences, help you know which questions to ask when interventions come up, help slow things down so you have time to make decisions, bring you cool sips of water, help you and your partner advocate for yourselves, and so, so much more. Your doula and midwife serve totally distinct but vital roles in your care — we’re your team, and each of us plays our part in supporting you.

Will My Doula Replace My Partner?

Absolutely not! No one loves you or your baby as much as your partner does, and your doula can never fill that intimate role. What we do is protect your birthing space so you two can labor together in whatever way you envision. We often take the pressure off of partners — the day their child enters the world is deeply emotional for them, even though they’re not the one giving birth. And it can be difficult to remember everything you learned in the books and classes during highly emotional experiences! Many partners have never experienced birth before, and it can be overwhelming to watch the person you love go through something so intense (even when nothing is wrong). Doulas have experience and in-depth knowledge of the process of childbirth, and can reassure you both when you’re not sure what’s normal. We also help you navigate the often-overwhelming hospital systems/policies. We remind partners to take care of themselves so they can take care of you. We may support your partner by gently suggesting (or demonstrating) specific labor positions/coping methods/techniques, stepping in to spell them when they need a break (which they will), or staying with you while they go with your baby, if you and your baby need to be separated for any reason. We work as a team and discuss ahead of time how involved you want us to be. We respect your boundaries. We can be super hands-on, or a reassuring presence from a far corner of the room; we can be a resource of information or crack a mood-lifting joke, or even step out of the room to give you a chance to be fully present together for this experience. This is your labor and your baby — I’m here to help create the best possible experience for both of you.

What If I Want an Epidural?

You do you! Your doula’s job is to help you get the information you need to make informed decisions, and then support your decisions no matter what they are. This is not my labor; I have no agenda for how it should go, other than wanting you to feel respected, heard, and supported the entire time. Plenty of my clients get epidurals! Plenty of my clients don’t get epidurals! We can talk more specifically about how pain medication changes your labor and how we shift our plans and support accordingly, but the bottom line is: you get to decide, and I support you either way.

What If I Have a C-Section?

Your doula can help you prepare for this ahead of time, whether you’re planning one or not, to help you have the best birth possible. Feeling like you’re in the driver’s seat throughout your clinical care is a massive factor in how you’ll feel about your experience later on. I can’t overstate this. If you’re planning a Cesarean birth, your doula can help you find a provider who specializes in approaching the procedure with compassion, gentleness, and collaboration. If you have an unplanned Cesarean (or, in very rare cases, an emergency Cesarean) your doula provides invaluable emotional support. If permitted by the hospital, we come into the O.R. with you and your partner to hold your hand and talk you through the birth, take photos of your beautiful baby to show to you, and support your partner. If your baby needs to go to the NICU for any reason, we can stay with you so your partner can go with your baby without leaving you alone. If we’re not allowed into the O.R., we stay at the hospital (possibly with your family to keep them informed!) and rejoin you once you’re in recovery to admire your baby, help with the first latch (if breastfeeding/chestfeeding is your plan), and answer any questions you have, just like we would for a vaginal birth. We also share tips for recovery, in-home support and follow-up care, and referrals for specialists when appropriate .

What’s the Difference Between a Postpartum Doula and a Baby Nurse?

A baby nurse* provides dedicated infant care, often overnight, to help new parents sleep. A postpartum doula cares for the new family unit or dyad, not just the baby (though infant care is absolutely a component of postpartum doula services). We make sure parents are able to eat, shower, rest/sleep, and have someone understanding to talk to. We’re trained in newborn care (and some of us are trained in lactation support), but we also provide emotional and informational support during the steep learning curve of the newborn period. We teach newborn skills (swaddling, bathing, diapering, umbilical cord care, etc.) while also making sure new parents are getting the support they need to feel confident and emotionally safe during this often-vulnerable time. We provide reassurance on the spectrum of what’s normal (which is very wide!), but we also provide referrals for issues (in you or your baby) that require specialists. We may tidy your home while you nap, show you how to wear your baby, offer healing tips for the birthing parent, do your grocery shopping, run errands, cook you meals, or offer space to talk about the emotional experience of adding a newborn to your life. Essentially, we make sure you are cared for, while you care for your beautiful new baby. *Important Notes: (1) You do NOT need to be a nurse to call yourself a “baby nurse.” This is a misnomer. Baby nurses are not necessarily RNs and may have no medical training. Neither do postpartum doulas! (2) Some PP doulas also offer overnight support — I currently do not but can help you find a doula who does.