Birth Support

I see the whole of pregnancy as a process of opening. Most times the focus around pregnant women is the outcome. Waiting for the baby to arrive. Most questions people ask a pregnant woman are "when are you due", "what are you having?" To me this is missing the whole point of pregnancy and birth. The whole time of pregnancy is a time of great power, a time when a woman is at a creative life peak, where she can feel herself as the divine feminine - creating life, an awe inspiring process of opening.

When a woman is seen and communicated with as the divine creative force, she is recognised approprately. Women long to be recognised for this, but are usually not seen as anything other than normal, just with a big belly! Because she is not seen to be in the throws of such a miraculous event unfolding throughout the pregnancy, she tends to feel very isolated and then not in touch with her power when it comes time to birth her baby.

My approach is to acknowledge and encourage each woman to hold herself in the truth of her divinity and to practice opening to all of her new experiences and harnessing her birthing power throughout her pregnancy, this places her in a fantastic position for the moment of birth and the unfolding of motherhood.

What I do

I work with pregnant women and their partners during pregnancy and birth to “hold the space” while they travel the amazing journey of birthing and becoming parents.

I believe that every woman knows how to birth, the knowledge is in the cells of every woman’s body. My goal and vision is to support women in finding their own authority, courage, inspiration, trust, knowing, love and the sheer determination needed to birth powerfully, responsibly and with satisfaction.

I draw upon my passion, my personal birthing, my training, my experience and my intuition to provide emotional support, physical comfort and information to enable you to communicate with your care givers and make informed choices.

The process

Choosing the right support person is very important. A doula is someone who just feels right for you, has your agenda at heart and is there completely on your terms - a rare thing!

The first step is to meet with me and just chat, ask any questions and get to know each other a bit. You will have a gut feeling who is the right doula for you. There is no charge for this meeting.

Depending on what package you choose, I meet with you a number of times before the birth of your baby, these meetings are always different as they depend on what is right for each person. Things we commonly do together include:

Before the birth

• Creating a birth plan - this includes going over all possibilities and options so you know and I understand your preferences and your ideal birth vision
  
• foot massage - I usually use plenty of touch during labour so a foot massage is a great way to get used to my touch and to give you a nurturing relaxing massage!
  
• watching birth dvd's
  
• lots of listening - you are usually feeling and thinking alot about a lot of things in the lead up to birth, I am there to listen.
  
• possibly a birth blessing, or helping you set up a meal tree for after the birth
• bodywork and HypnoChildbirth sessions can also be included in your package

During the birth

• we are usually in close contact around your due date. When any sign of labour happens you call me and I come whenever you want me to, this can be early at home, later at home, or later at hospital.
  
• If you are having a hospital birth I can support you at home and advise you on when it is a good time to go to hospital
  
• lots of reassurance - the most common question is; "is this normal?" it is great to have someone just there to say, "yes"
  
• lots of encouragement, the body knows what to do but the mind is not so sure, with lots of encouragement and positive, nourishing words, the mind can relax and let the body do its thing - I use language I have learnt through the HypnoChildbirth process to really help encourage deep relaxation
  
• touch - massage and pelvic movements can help both relax and help the pelvic opening creating as much space as possible.
  
• suggesting positions and movements - I watch the woman in labour, often she finds a good position that works for her, when I see she is no longer in a good groove, I suggest options to help her find the next position that can work for her.
  
• explaining things, if you are offered some information or options from your care givers (such as pain relief or other medical procedures), I can help explain these options, so that you can make a positive choice for yourself in the situation.
  
• I trust birth - it can be very intense and sometimes scary. It makes a huge difference to look up and see a face that you know, and see trust, faith and love coming back, this applies to both the woman in labour and her partner.
  

After the birth

• again lots of listening - there is usually a lot of talking about the birth
  
• lots of reassurance - again with early parenting the most common question is; "is this normal?" it is great to have someone just there to say, "yes"
  
• just being there with the normal day to day things to see where I may offer a useful tip on things such as feeding, sleep, settling etc.
  
• general nurturing
  

For a full list of my packages visit here.

Come and visit me at Camberwell Health and Healing

Feedback

"just wanted to say hi and thanks for coming to witness the entry of 'sage annalina' in to life. it was really great and helpful having you there to hold a space for sheree to birth in, and assistance afterwards. doulas rock!" Steven Booth father of 4

"I am eternally grateful for Anna being there. It made for a very, very positive experience. It is also something about her and who she is. This is her calling."
Lucy, mother of Archie.

"Thank you so much for assisting with the birth of our son Joel. Your help was invaluable and it allowed us to keep focussed on achieving our ideal natural birth, without any intervention. Our whole birth experience second time around was a beautiful one that we will cherish forever. We thank you for helping us achieve it."
Sonia, mother of Joel.

“Anna supported me during a 12 hour labour with my first child in 2003. She was born to be a doula and has such a gift for making birth a positive event. Our visits pre the birth helped me work out how to approach the birth realistically. Her support helped me be present to the amazing experience that birth is and also allowed my partner to enjoy the birth too. Anna's strengths are her ability to read a situation and offer alternatives to keep the labour progressing, to know when to be close and when to allow some space and to be such a shining spirit that is willing the baby safely into the world. We asked Anna to be present at the birth of our second child recently and have recommended her to our friends. She is an exceptional doula. “
Sandy Killick

"We chose Anna to be our doula because of her knowledge, passion and trust with women and birth. Her confidence and knowledge was reassuring when we were considering a home waterbirth for our 4th child, and also a lotus birth, which was an idea relatively new to us. She trusted me and what I wanted for my pregnancy and birth and helped me find my challenges during the pregnancy and face them. She nourished me with a blessingway ceremony, massages and long chats during my pregnancy and held the space like a true birthkeeper at the birth. After the birth she made sure that all 6 of us in my family were well fed and content. Anna was fantastic to have around. Anna, with the trust and love she has for the women she is with is really heartfelt and empowering. "

Sheree Stewart 

"Thank you Anna for being with me every minute of labour - both physically and emotionally. I appreciate how hard this could have been especially as I struggled through seven hours of transition!
Thank you for being so available during the birth of Elsie, for validating how I was feeling during early labour and assisting me in letting go of some old feelings as labour continued. Thank you for your strength and calm. I feel that your presence during the birth of Elsie allowed Josh and I to be present for Maeve in the days following Elsies birth.
Although I have attended the doula training days - it was not until you were present at Elsies birth that I truly appreciate how beneficial a doula can be for a women and her family."

Sarah Crompton