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Community Health - Doula Program

Doula support for pregnancy, birth and beyond.

What is a Doula?

A Doula is a woman experienced in childbirth who provides continuous physical, emotional, and informational support to the mother before, during and after childbirth.

A Doula

  • Recognizes childbirth as a key experience the mother will remember all her life.
  • Understands the birth process andemotional needs of a woman in labor.
  • Facilitates communication between thewoman, her partner, and clinical care providers.
  • Perceives her role as nurturing andprotecting a woman’s memory of the birth experience.

My fiancé continuously says “we couldn’t have done it without her”, to which my response is that I’m sure we would have, but we wouldn’t have wanted to!

I only hope that my Doula will be available to be present at my next birth.


Our Doulas

  • Trained to help families during their pregnancy, birth and new baby period.
  • Can help families in their home after thebirth of their baby. Examples include: light housekeeping, meal preparation and a kind ear for listening.
  • Trained to help those wishing to breastfeed get a good start.

I was pretty scared of what would happen at my birth.The Doula helped me know what it would be like, and kept so calm that I wasn’t scared. The birth of my baby was a day I’ll always remember as beautiful and not at all scary.


What is the American Indian Doula Program?

  • Mentors are American Indian community members with experience in birth and parenting, who have also received specialized birth and postpartum support training and certification by Doulas of North America (DONA).
  • Mentors receive specialized training inpeer breastfeeding support through the Fond du Lac breastfeeding program.
  • Doula support you and your family when you’re pregnant, during your birth, and after you birth your baby.

My Doula is an awesome birth helper and woman with a spirit both kind and strong. I wish every Indian woman could have this help.


What can a Doula do?

  • Remain with you throughout your labor and birth.
  • Provide physical, emotional and informational support.
  • Offer help and advice on comfort measures.
  • Assist your partner and family by offering suggestions.
  • Provide continuous emotional reassurance and comfort for you and your family.
  • Help after birth for first weeks by offering emotional support, light housekeeping/meal preparation.
  • Assist you with breastfeeding by offering information and support.

A Doula Cannot:

  • Perform clinical tasks or diagnose medical conditions.
  • Offer a second opinion.
  • Give medical advice.
  • Make decisions for the you.
  • Project own values or goals.
  • Cannot speak to medical professionals instead of you regarding matters where decisions are being made.
  • Baby-sit or take care of infant without parents present.

Being a teen mom, I didn’t know a lot about having a baby. My doula helped me know what the choices were. She also helped me have a good childbirth and start breastfeeding my baby.


Meet the Doulas

Click below to find out a little about the Fond du Lac Doulas

Meet the Doulas


Interested?

Call the Fond du Lac Community Health Services Department at (218) 878-3790.

Ask for Naomi Defoe, RN PHN.