We asked Doula Jen’s daughter to weigh in on this month’s blog topic:

What is a postpartum doula?

Here’s what she came up with:

I know many people who have had babies and I know it’s probably not easy. 

First of all, you have to know what to do — what to feed your baby, what will make it quiet and how to get it to sleep. Sleep! First time moms suffer from too little sleep! They wake up every morning tired, wishing they had someone to HELP. 

The answer to their troubles? DOULAS! 

What do these helpful people do? Well, I know…because my mom is one. 

Doulas are people who come to your house, day or night, and help care for your family. 

The first thing they do is calm the mother — you know, put her to bed and make her green tea and fluff her pillows.

Once Mom is relaxed, it’s baby time. The doula will ask the mom how she prefers to feed the baby — breast or bottle or both. The doula will do the feeding or help the mom do the feeding and in between she will STAY ALERT and sing lullabies to the baby. 

If the baby needs a diaper, the doula will do that. 

Being a doula is NOT an easy job, but she gets paid to keep the new mom and baby happy. That’s what a doula is in my eyes. A person who never gives up, is alert, knows what to do and keeps people happy.