POSTPARTUM DOULA

POSTPARTUM DOULA

Now that You have Your BABY there are so many changes in Your life and so many questions.

What do I need to do to care for my newborn? How do I properly feed my baby? How should the nursery be arranged? How do I create a sleep

schedule for the whole family? How can I provide the best care for myself and my newborn? Postpartum care is essential.

Our postpartum services can help you navigate all of these new and difficult questions by providing non-judgmental support to new parents.

You may be overwhelmed by all of the different parenting styles and choices and may be wondering which style is right for me and my family? Our

philosophy is different from many other. We will work with you and help you figure out which parenting style will be the best fit for you and your baby. We

offer 24/7 online support of Your own Postpartum Coach and will help You create Your own PARENTING STYLE that will be a perfect fit for Your family and

Your BABY!

We are HERE for You!

We are here to EMPOWER YOU!

To hold your hand and guide you through this exciting journey!

✓ Newborn baby care
✓ Newborn baby sleep and family sleep schedule
✓ Breastfeeding & bottle feeding support
✓ Soothing techniques for crying baby

✓ Postpartum care for the new mother after giving birth

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If You have specific questions about Your postpartum period, online consultation might be a great option for you.

ONLINE Consultation 1 hour- $90

ONLINE Consultation1,5 hour- $120

Consultation in-person 2 hours -$190

A postpartum doula plays an essential role in caring for the mother, the newborn baby and the whole family after labor. Many women prepare for birth, but sometimes it is really difficult to prepare yourself for what is after that. Since it is very difficult to prepare for what we do not know. This is why it is so important to get the professional postpartum doula help.

Parents of newborn babies face a lot of issues and, as much as you can try to prepare yourself, your house, your nursery room and everyone in your family for the new life to begin, these are still a lot of surprises waiting for the new parents.

First of all, the mother is often tired after giving birth. As much happiness as we may feel by becoming a parent, our bodies might be really exhausted after going through the process of birth. Labor can have many different scenarios that create additional physical difficulty for the mother, such as unmedicated vaginal birth or emergency C-section. And then you are sent home with a little baby who is taking up lots of everyone’s attention in the household. But what about the mother? Who will help her? The postpartum doula is a highly trained professional who knows what you may experience after giving birth. There are different ways of care for the mother depending on her birthing experience: starting from good rest, caring for your body with sitz bath or making sure your do not lift up anything heavy to let your scar heal after caesarean birth. Doula is there to help you recover physically.

But we should not forget that going through pregnancy and birth and being a mom of newborn is also very emotionally challenging process. Women can be very, very sensitive to lots of different things after labor. Our emotions and our hormones go up when we see our baby right after birth. And some mothers experience lack of sleep even due to those great positive emotions and excitement of finally holding this little person in your arms. But as we know, even positive emotions and excitement can still cause some stress. As postpartum care specialists, we recognize your emotions. And while it is very important to be able to share your happiness with someone else, some mothers face the other side of childbirth process - which is postpartum depression or another mood disorder. Most of the time this is caused by a drop of hormones in your body after giving birth. But it is very important to recognize when it ca be a more serious issue and refer you to the right specialist to avoid long term depression. Your doula is someone who you can talk to and share your emotional journey. Postpartum doula is there to help your recognize a more serious problem and suggest good coping resources for you.

Many families find it very important to have a specialist help with arranging the nursery and household when the parents come home with the new baby. Even though a lot of families read books about baby care, your might still find yourself having lots of questions in your head - how to hold a baby, what is the safe way of sleep for the baby, what is the best way to arrange the baby room, how to swaddle the baby, what are the essential things to have in the house when the baby is born. The postpartum doula in DMV is there to help answer some of these questions so that you can more easily adjust to the new life in a more easy and enjoyable manner. The postpartum doula can also do some simple things for you, like preparing light meals and performing some errands around the house, so that the new mother has more time to sleep, recover after birth and spend time with the baby.

Postpartum doulas are there to provide the guidance on how to create a better atmosphere in the family, how to transition well into life with newborn. Doula models and demonstrates effective techniques and behaviors to parents and siblings and help them grow their coping skills with the new baby(Kelleher, 2002)

Presence of postpartum doula truly makes a difference in smooth transition into new life with a new baby.

Certified Postpartum Doula follows DONA’s Code of Ethics, which helps parent to feel secure with the qualification of their doula. For many of our clients it is important to know that information is kept strictly confidential. Also doula is there to help with necessary referrals in case they become necessary. We can’t state enough how important it is to follow up with the new mother and father. Leaving hospital after giving birth they might feel all alone with lots of questions regarding the newborn feeding and care. And we know that proper support during this postpartum period helps parents to establish successful breastfeeding and develop healthy sleep habits. This will have great impact of the family life in the first year after birth and on health of the baby for years to come.

Our independent culture puts a lot of pressure on new mothers to be able to cope by themselves. But this is also the most difficult part. While friends and family might think that you are doing fine and do not need their support, or they might want to be there while it is not necessary, postpartum doula is there when you need her. This is especially important if you have no family around or live in a new place. Postpartum Doula will provide you with necessary contact to feel less lonely and will become a great support system for you.

Parent who hire postpartum doula, feel happier and more satisfied with their experience, they have fewer mood disorders, show higher rates of successful breastfeeding, greater self-confidence, they are less stressed and have fewer cases of postpartum depression (DONA, 2002). Postpartum doulas also provide higher level of support by partners. Studies show that great partner’s support (preparing meals, offering emotional support to the partner or physical support) results in a higher success rates of breastfeeding (Giugliani, 1994).

If you are breastfeeding your baby, sometimes encouragement and care can bring you peace of mind and strong belief in yourself by knowing that you can do it! New parents can get lost in their desire to give the best possible care to their tiny baby. And feeding can be essential. If your goal is to breastfeed, you may need a lot of support, especially when you are just starting. The postpartum doula can help you find a comfortable and effective position to make breastfeeding work best for you and your baby. In addition, if you are experiencing any difficulties breastfeeding your baby, the postpartum doula can always refer you to the lactation specialist of healthcare provider for more help. If you decide not to breastfeed, you can expect your doula to support your choice and will help you with pumping, cleaning the bottles or preparing formula for your baby.

Doulas can be of a great help if you are expecting twins or triplets in your family. Having an additional set of hands can be essential. Since postpartum doula is a professional in childcare, families of multiples can benefit from many suggestions you doula can make to create an easier process of care for your babies by helping you to arrange the best feeding and sleeping schedule.

Many families hire a doula when they also have older kids in the house. Having a newborn and older child can be physically and emotionally challenging, as you not only have to recover from birth and care for your newborn, but also give time and love to your older children. This is when the doula can help with your new baby to make sure your older kids have time with their parents and experience less anxiety or stress from so many changes in their family life. This will help you build better relationships with all the members of your family.

Anna Isaiko Photography serves Washington DC and the surrounding Northern Virginia metro areas including Arlington, Alexandria, Annandale, Burke, Falls Church, Bailey's Crossroads, Manassas, McLean, Vienna, Gainesville, Warrenton, Frederick, Potomac, Rockville, Gaithersburg, Germantown, Clarksburg, Damascus, Fredericksburg, Stafford, Woodbridge, College Park, Bowie, Baltimore, Columbia, Hanover, Glen Burnie, Ellicott City, Towson, as well as Fairfax County and Loudoun County, Great Falls, Fairfax, Springfield, Newington, Merrifield, Rose Hill, Tysons, Oakton, Reston, Loudoun, Leesburg, Ashburn, Chantilly, Centreville, Clifton, South Riding, Dulles, Waxpool, Sterling, Aldie, Stone Ridge, and Potomac Falls.