There’s no one way to describe what it’s like to be present when a baby is born. For me, it’s electric. It’s the most bold, most primal work of human existence, happening both all at once and in slow motion: shivery, sweaty, bloody, beautiful. It's the biggest joy and the greatest privilege I've experienced in my life so far, the fact that women choose me to be their witness and support on the day they give birth. When I watch a mother see her baby for the first time, the edges all around me blur and spin, then sharpen, each and every time.I’m a birth doula, so I get to experience this overwhelming honor and privilege fairly frequently. A doula is a non-medical childbirth support person. A labor coach, of sorts, a person (usually female) who provides continuous emotional and physical support to the laboring woman and her family. That support might include massage, suggestions of position changes, distraction, knowledge of hospital or care provider policies, or simply a helpful presence. Doulas have been in existence since the beginning of time, basically (Imagine a woman giving birth before modern obstetrics and the various women who might have helped her—sisters, neighbors, friends) but as a profession, doula-ism (that’s what I call it, at least) has existed for roughly 25 years. The movement was largely spurred by the work of Penny Simkin and DONA International, which is the largest certifying organizations for doulas in the world, founded in 1992.I became a doula because I wanted to support women on one on the most monumental days of their lives. Having a baby is, after all, a really fucking big deal, whether you've done it several times before or whether it's your first birth, whether it’s an accidental pregnancy or a baby you’ve tried for years to conceive. Giving birth is emotionally, mentally, and physically taxing, both before and after you set eyes on the little person who's been dwelling in your uterus for months. It’s surreal while also being profoundly real, and it’s incredibly crazy and it’s just plain incredible.I wanted to be a part of it, not just for myself, but because, as a pro-choice woman, I feel passionately that women should be supported in all of their health care decisions. Women are entitled to bodily autonomy, to bodily integrity, from birth control to giving birth and beyond. My doula work is informed by, is imbued with this; my fierce belief that women must have choice in all aspects of the reproductive process. I was a pro-choice feminist before I was ever a doula and I will be a pro-choice feminist if I ever stop my work as a doula.
