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Dad's Birth Plan
Plan Ahead for a Less Stressful Birth
By Laura Paul
He also has trouble remembering much about the days and weeks following that first birth. "I remember we lived in a four-story house, and my wife was in the bedroom," he says. "I remember running up and down those stairs every five minutes. I remember being nervous about the car seat and things like that." His wife, Michelle, went on to become a birth doula herself so she could offer new moms and dads assistance.
Not only do doulas help during the birth, they can also help after delivery. Postpartum doulas can help Mom and Dad make a smoother transition into parenthood.
Nunn, who has been assisting women in the birthing process since 1989, says DONA just started certification last year for postpartum doulas. Through research, they found postpartum doulas ease postpartum depression in women, help get breastfeeding off to a better start and facilitate bonding. She says postpartum doulas, which are different than birth doulas, often help with light housecleaning or preparing meals. "They are not there to be nannies or baby nurses," Nunn says. "Their role, just like a birth doula, is to empower the couple in their role as parents. Her ultimate goal is to work herself out of a job. She is helping them feel more comfortable in their roles."
Nunn recommends the father practice visualization techniques, so he can help his wife when she is in the midst of a hard contraction by describing a pleasant place or scene. She recalls the interesting picture one man painted for his wife. The woman was approaching the late active stage of labor and needed emotional support to work through the intense contractions. "I said to the dad, 'Why don't you do a visualization with her?'" Nunn says. "'Think of someplace that is special to the two of you, maybe when you watched a waterfall or heard birds singing.' When this dad started saying, 'Last fall when we went squirrel hunting...' I about died. He started to described how they went out in the woods and the leaves were crisp and the sun was shining through the trees."
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