I opened an email to see that "giving birth is more risky than skydiving". This email also goes on to state that "it's one of the most dangerous things our patients will ever experience." I realize the sender is trying to get me to sign up for a class on obstetric emergencies, but really?!!

Let's put this in perspective. Women have been giving birth for a heck of a lot longer than humans have been skydiving. So, just from a risk over time consideration, there isn't a correlation. The percentage of the US population who has done at least one skydive is significantly lower than the percentage of the US population who has given birth at least once. Why would someone compare birth with skydiving? That's like telling you not to eat broccoli because you might be in a car accident.

There is an element of risk to pregnancy. There is risk when you walk outside your front door. There is risk every time you get behind the steering wheel of a car. Risks can be reduced but not eliminated entirely. If you are a human being, risk of part of the package. If birth is so "dangerous" then why have humans proliferated so successfully?  

For the majority of women, birth is not an emergency. Yes, there can be truly serious situations that can be an emergency but they are not the majority of births. Playing on fears of the minority of cases that are emergencies to get my money for a training course doesn't impress me and it actually ticks me off. As a midwfe, I truly believe pregnancy and birth are not medical conditions to be managed. I feel birth works best when we trust the process and do not try to manipulate or manage it.  

Using dramatic, scary wording does not impress me. It actually makes me wonder what kind of care is being provided that would make birth more risky than skydiving. Needless to say, I will continue to educate myself so I am prepared for the times when birth needs help.  I will not add drama or fear to birth, especially in the times it does need help.

There seems to be a myth floating around that if you have hired a midwife and are going to have a home birth, you don't need a doula. As a home birth midwife, I strongly disagree. I think hiring a doula when you are planning a homebirth is just as important as when you are planning to have a hospital birth. A lot of the reasons are the same, but I have a few more reasons when someone is planning a home birth.

​Reasons I recommend a doula include:

• You have not done this before so it is helpful to have someone familiar with labor and birth right by your side once it starts getting big enough you can't ignore it.
• Doulas have skills and tools to help you navigate the challenges of labor well. These include comfort techniques, positions to help baby navigate the pelvis and so on
• Dads like to fix things, but labor isn't something they can fix. It can be challenging to see Mom in pain and not be able to take it away. A doula can support Dad as he supports you, and can show him ways to support you if he's unsure of what he can do that will be helpful.
• If labor is long, a doula can spell Dad so he can get some rest and then come back rested and ready to support you.
• A doula is a calm, reassuring presence. Having that presence can help Moms navigate labor with less stress, which can lead labor to progress faster and more efficiently.
• A doula is there just to support you and Dad, they are there for you in the moment without being distracted by needing to make clinical assessments, listen to baby, set up for the birth and other things.

If the concern or hesitation about hiring a doula is that the doula is going to take the place of Dad, or keep Dad from supporting Mom, I think this video by David Arrell explains how doulas can actually help Dad step up even better than without a doula to support Mom.

Being a doula is hard work. It is physically and emotionally demanding. If I have to doula a client, I am afraid it will be at the expense of my midwifery skills. I want to bring my A game to the moments of birth when it is vital, but if I've had to do the work of a doula as well as a midwife up to birth, I'm going to be tired, and not as fresh as I want to be to be my best.  ​

To paraphrase Forrest Gump Labor and birth is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get!  You can have a great understanding of the process, but until you are in it, you truly don't know what it will be like for you. Having someone who will come alongside you and support you will help you navigate labor easier. Labor can be compared to hiking the Grand Canyon. If you want to hike to the bottom and  back up, doing it by yourself is way more challenging than having a trail guide to lead you. A doula is very much a trail guide for labor and birth.

In my years doing birth work as a doula, as a midwife's assistant, as a midwifery apprentice and now as a midwife, I have never once heard someone say they regret hiring a doula. I HAVE heard plenty of people say how much they wish they had hired a doula.