[ANGWife]

So I realize there are other boards on JM to get this info. But I love you girls and would rather discuss this with you

Even a yr later, I think about my birthing experience all the time. And I think that maybe more things would have gone "my way" if I truly had more support. DH is a wonderful guy but even after I tried to educate him on what the heck was going to happen, he was really only there to hold my hand, if you KWIM. My mom and MIL were also a big help emotionally, but they never really agreed with my choices. I wish I had had someone to speak for me and know when it's truly necessary to derive from my plan. I love love LOVE my OB, but she wouldn't deny me drugs if I asked. It's kind of her job to do what I say, right? Even if it IS in the heat of the moment.

THE biggest complaint I had from my labor/delivery was how the pit. was not monitored as closely as it should have been. They kept raising the dose and leaving me for long periods. Then at one point, I had an excruciating burning contraction that seemed to last forever and caused me to get the epi. My MIL (who is a nurse), had to scream down the hallway for the nurses to get the hell in there. At my 6 week PP appt., my OB explained that the dose of pit. was too high/too fast (without waiting for my OB to okay to raise the dose) and my uterus was near bursting! I contacted the patient advocate, but that's another long story.

ANYWAYS, I want to make sure this "mistake" doesn't happen again. I want someone to look out for me at the hospital.

What's the different between a doula and a midwife?

Where do you go about finding one?

If you have had one, did your insurance cover the expenses?

[Mod-LadyCoconut]

Doulas are non-medical support. You hire them independently (I don't think any insurance covers this) and meet with them prior to the birth. They come when you need them during your birthing time and offer you all kinds of support. They know pressure relivers and massage that can help and will help you find different positions to make laboring more comfortable. They've attended lots of births so they are aware of what the different interventions can mean for your experience. They can take pictures and a lot usually write up their version of your birth story for you for later.

Midwives are like doctors, they do all of the prenatal care and attend the birth of your baby. They just don't do surgeries. They generally are less intervening than OBs. Insurance usually covers midwives.

Someone else could probably sum this all up better, but that's the jist of it. It sounds to be like your birth with Henry would have benefited from having either (or both!)of these.

[Oriyan]

The other good thing with midwives is if you do need pit, they watch you on it like a hawk. I was never just uped for the sake of speeding along labor. My high dose was 12. I was on 8 for like 8 hours of my labor until my contractions got spacey, my MW uped me to 10. Then we broke my water (at 7cm's) and i got my epi cause i felt like dying, they left me on 12 and I went from 7-10 in 5 hours. My SIL was induced for high BP at 37 weeks, and had an OB and was maxed at 42. She told me they just kept uping her because she was not progressing "fast enough" (they broke her water at 2cm's) See the difference? Midwives usually dont use pit unless there are other medical issues or you are inducing.

[ANGWife]

Well from your descriptions it seems I would need a doula? I like my OB and want her to deliver future babies.

Originally Posted by LadyCoconut

Insurance usually covers midwives.

I wonder if they would cover both a midwife AND an OB? Anyone have both?

[*krista*]

I don't really have much to add other than my experience with insurance. I called my insurance to inquire about coverage for midwives. We have what I consider really good insurance. It even covers infertility treatments and mental health, which many plans don't. So I thought it would cover midwives no problem, but if I remember correctly it only covers certified nurse midwives and I *think* they have to work at a hospital. From what I have read, midwives who work at hospitals are under a lot of pressure from doctors and might give care similar to that of a doctor, but I'm sure it is a case by case basis.

[A*LOT*OF*HOPE]

Originally Posted by ANGWife

Well from your descriptions it seems I would need a doula? I like my OB and want her to deliver future babies.




I wonder if they would cover both a midwife AND an OB? Anyone have both?

My insurance covers one or the other, not both!!! Not all insurances are the same though, it would be worth checking it out!!

[Mod-LadyCoconut]

Originally Posted by ANGWife

Well from your descriptions it seems I would need a doula? I like my OB and want her to deliver future babies.




I wonder if they would cover both a midwife AND an OB? Anyone have both?

Yeah a doula would have the experience to explain to you and your DH in the moment that if you have x intervention (pit, ROM, etc) then it has these pros and cons... and if you're looking to have a pain med free birth then your best option would be to ____. So then there's someone there to explain things to you maybe more than your nurse or OB would when its actually happening, so you have some support to resist if that isn't what you want. For example, during my birthing time I knew I wanted to avoid pitocin. When my pressure waves diminished from the mag, the nurse came in and casually was just like 'ok we're going to start you on pit' like it was no big deal and I had to be really adament that they lower the mag and let me try to get my labor started back up. So if someone didn't know about the pros/cons of those drugs but had a doula there and originially wanted a NCB, then the doula would be able to help them. I hope that makes sense. Like if you had a doula she could have told you 'that's a really high dose of pit, maybe tell the OBs you want it turned down' or something.

and a midwife does all the same things as an OB... you'd have the same prenatal appointments and everything else, they just wouldn't be as likely to push for inductions and other interventions that are for convienence. IF you NEEDED to be induced or have interventions of course they would do that. The only difference (that I'm aware of) is that OBs are surgeons, whereas midwives are not.

[szczepanski]

I go to a midwife group. It's 8 or 9 midwives with one OB that "oversees" the practice. So I could see either a midwife OR an OB and my insurance covered it.

If you love your OB, you could get a doula also. One thing with doula's is they are not going to really fight your OB FOR you, but they will tell you the good and bad sides of things and encourage you to stick to whatever birth plan you decide on. They are basically your cheerleader and are there to keep you comfortable during labor.

I wanted to get a doula but we were tight on money....in hindsight I'm glad I didn't because my active labor was only 4 hours long, haha.

[Mod-LadyCoconut]

Originally Posted by szczepanski

. One thing with doula's is they are not going to really fight your OB FOR you, but they will tell you the good and bad sides of things and encourage you to stick to whatever birth plan you decide on. They are basically your cheerleader and are there to keep you comfortable during labor.

yes! this is what I've been trying to say. Thanks for putting it into words better than I could. haha.

Originally Posted by szczepanski

.
I wanted to get a doula but we were tight on money....in hindsight I'm glad I didn't because my active labor was only 4 hours long, haha.

I also considered a doula but didn't b/c I didn't want to spend the money and the few I found in our area didn't really look like a good match. (They were all about praying through labor to get through the pain.) In hindsight I'm also glad that I didn't because I didn't want to talk to anyone or be touched during labor, and I felt I was pretty educated on the interventions going in to know what I wanted or didn't want. I also wasn't in labor that long, and I had to stay on my left side the whole time so their knowledge of positions and stuff would have gone to waste on me. I wouldn't have minded having them there to photograph everything though!

[szczepanski]

I took a birthing class taught by 2 doulas....and apparently my DH absorbed EVERY bit of information because he rubbed my back, talked me through my contractions...just like a doula would.

When I was pushing, he even stood back and photographed the entire thing (without EVER having used my camera before....) and I have amazing pictures of Nolan entering this world.

So that is always another option...your husband could always be your support & advocate while you are in labor. I feel like my DH and I are SO much closer after going through that together with him as my #1 support system.

[~*sierra*~]

wow i never heard of insurance covering doulas! i will have to see if mine does too....

[ShannonMVT]

FYI I got a doula in training (she hadn't done the required number of births yet to get her certification). She was a lifesaver for me. And she was cheaper than a certified doula.
She could not give me medical advice (like she would not tell me what to do or tell my OB what I did or did not want) but she could advise me in general if that makes sense.
She told me the cons of going to the hospital right after my water broke but said it was up to me what I felt comfortable with. When I was in transition and told her I couldn't do it anymore she encouraged and said I could. When I said I wanted an epi she said it was my choice but that it would likely take an hour before I actually got it (I guess that was enough to convince me not to get it). When I felt like I wasn't getting enough air she asked the nurses to get me some oxygen. When my OB asked if I wanted a shot of pitocin (after the birth) or to go through my hep lock she advised me that I would have to have a bag of fluids if I had it through my IV so I chose the shot. So she didn't tell me what to do, but rather would tell me the pros/cons of something, was there for emotional support as well as making sure I had what I needed physically.

I belive you have to have either a midwife or an OB. I would like to have a midwife next time but will have to see if any are covered by my insurance.

[fromGirltoMommy]

Like Shannon, I had a doula in training. I actually went to highschool with her and was friends with her! So I knew her pretty well before, anywhoooo I LOVED her. She helped me so much. I definitely recommend a doula!

[Oriyan]

I saw an OB and a Midwife. Same practice though. I stopped seeing the OB after awhile but had to see her at the end because of my heart issues.