Services
Standard Birth Services
The Standard Services I offer for a birth are:
Free Consultation
Phone and EMail/Texting Support throughout
2 Prenatal Visits
Nonbiased and Professional Information
24/7 On-Call Availability beginning at 38 weeks
Labor and Delivery Support
Baby's First Feeding Support
Post Partum Visit
Community Referrals and Resources
*Placenta Encapsulation upon Request
Home, Hospital, Birth Center
Hospital Birth
Giving Birth in a Hospital can be a joyful, peaceful, empowering and fulfilling experience. As you can see in the “What Is a Doula” section, having a Doula for your hospital birth can really help you have the birth that YOU want. It is a common misconception that all Doulas do is ensure that their clients have as natural a birth as possible. While it is true that many mothers wish to have a doula to help them have a birth that is free of as many interventions as possible, this isn’t all that Doulas are good for. If you, the client, desires a non-medicated, low intervention birth, it will be my pleasure to support you through that experience. I am well versed in different pain-coping and pain-relieving techniques and will provide you with the support and encouragement you need to birth naturally. If however, if this is not your vision for an ideal birth, it would be my pleasure to support you through the birth that you desire – whether that includes medications, interventions, or augmentations. I have been trained in and am knowledgeable about the medical and pharmacological interventions that are available to women in labor and will be able to offer you options, information and support should you choose any of them. In the hospital, it is often common for new mothers to feel that once the baby has been born, it becomes “all about the baby.” Having a Doula present ensures that you, the mother, will receive care and the attention YOU deserve after having just given birth. Remember, this is YOUR birth, not mine! I am a privileged participant in one of the most important days of your life and it will be my goal that you remember it with a smile!
Single Moms, Teen Moms, Deployment Moms, & Trauma
Sometimes a mom may find herself in a situation where she is pregnant without the support of a spouse or partner. This can be stressful and scary. Whether this is because the new mom is a teenager, a single mother, or because her husband is deployed, traveling for work, or not available to give her the support she needs, I believe that all mothers should have someone with them during their labor and delivery to support them and advocate for them. I offer my Doula services for Happy Births to Teen Moms and Singe Moms for a reduced fee ona sliding scale. If that is unreasonable, we can chat and work something out. I also offer Deployment and Dad-Is-Away Doula services for a reduced fee. If you would like to know more about these offers, please use the Contact Link and I will respond to you as soon as possible!
Trauma that was experienced at any time in life can sometimes resurface during pregnancy or delivery. If you are a survivor of trauma, intimate partner violence, sexual assault, or violence, I want you to know that it is OK if the trauma triggers resurface. There are resources and support systems available to you and as your Doula I will be especially sensitive to your experiences and needs. I can also provide you with information and support so that you will be prepared for labor and delivery and ready to meet your baby. Past traumas do not have to overshadow your pregnancy and birth!
Another Service I offer for Teen Moms and Single moms is Motherhood Mentoring. If you’d like to know more about that, see the next column.
Moms on a Tight Budget
I firmly believe that every woman deserves the benefits of having a Doula, should she desire one. Sometimes though, life throws us some unexpected curveballs that deeply impact our ability to afford services we would like. Because I have, myself, been in this position before, I offer my services free of charge to Moms on FoodStamps and receiving Special Assistance. I know that not everyone who truly needs a break is able to qualify for Assistance. So I also offer discounts and free services to moms who are truly unable to afford a Doula. All I ask is that when times aren’t so tough, you make a Love Offering (see the Love Offering Link) so that I am able to offer to other moms the same amount of care and attention that I was able to give to you. It’s our way of “paying it forward.” For more information or to discuss your unique circumstances, please use the Contact Link.
Home Birth
Home births, according to several recent studies, have been shown to be just as safe as hospital births for mothers with low risk, normal pregnancies. Many women opt to have a Doula present for their planned homebirths because we are trained in pain-coping and pain relieving techniques, as well as many other ways to support women in labor and immediately post-partum. Mothers who have Doulas present for their homebirths report a better birth experience, and having more confidence in their body’s ability to birth. It would be my privilege to support you through your home labor and birth. If you would like more information on the Home Birth Packages I offer, please fill out the Contact form and I will be in touch!
Birth Center
Birth Center births are often considered the "happy medium" between Hospital and Home. The Shenandoah Valley has a few outstanding birth centers where you have some of the comforts of a hospital and some of the comforts of home. (And none of the clean up!) If you feel a Birth Center birth is right for you, I would be thrilled to be your Doula and support you as you bring your baby earthside!
Additional Special Services
Motherhood Mentoring
Motherhood is a powerful and beautiful thing. But sometimes new moms finding themselves lacking the support and advice they need.
Using mainly text and email with occasional face to face meetings, I offer support, advice, and a listening ear to moms who are new to navigating the amazing reality of being a mother.
A Century ago women learned how to mother naturally. Family units stayed very close in proximity, sometimes under the same roof, and extended family often lived in the same house as the nuclear family. The challenges, the responsibilities, the nuances of motherhood – and even the understanding of childbearing itself – were passed on to each generation almost seamlessly as generations of women all pitched in to raise the next. Our society today is much different. Many moms have to “go it alone” and try to figure it all out by themselves. They do an amazing job. Motherhood is after all instinctual to every women; but wouldn’t it be nice to have some support? To hear someone say, “You’re doing a great job” or “in that situation this is what worked for me…” That is why I offer Motherhood Mentoring. To affirm and encourage you in your journey as a mother. For more information please contact me!
Love Offerings
A Love Offering is our version of a "Pay if Forward." In order for me to assist and support families who cannot afford to pay for a Doula, and in order for me to offer support free of charge for bereavement births, I rely partly upon the goodwill of those who wish to make an offering of love on behalf of someone who may request my services in the future. FiLumena Birth is an LLC, and not a nonprofit. Therefore your Love Offering is not tax deductable. It is placed in a special fund where it acts like a sponsorship or scholarship for my services. It may be used to pay for gas, supplies, expenses and materials necessary to support a mother who otherwise would not recieve the care and support of a doula.
If you have been especially pleased with my support, if you received services free of charge and are in a better position financially, if you want to give the gift of a doula to someone else; I encourage you to make a Love Offering in the amount of your choice using the PayPal Link or via Check.
On behalf of those whom your Offering of Love will assist, Thank you.
*Placenta Encapsulation
Use the Contact Me link to ask me about Placenta Encapsulation! It is a service I am happy to provide!