Monday, January 28, 2013

Long Day at the Office

Today I attended my 7th birth. My client was courageously attempting a VBAC. After many hours of labor, every intervention imaginable, and one false move, she was whisked away for an emergency (a real emergency) c-section.

As doulas we will, inevitably, replay events of a birth we attended over and over again in our minds. Most have outstanding outcomes and we can pat ourselves on the back for helping to make a women's birth experience satisfying. But we also have to wrestle with those births that didn't end with an empowering vaginal birth or didn't go as planned. But I honestly feel that you take the good with the not-so-good and you learn from it and do better. There is no sense is feeling pride or despair. The true role of a doula is as a humble servant, which means not thinking too highly of yourself or too lowly and being willing to learn and move forward.

It also helps to get perspective on your experience. Talk to someone who has been there before. Don't hold it inside. Learn from your experience and take solid advice.

Those are the two lessons from my 7th birth...

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