Frequently Asked Questions
Can you deliver my baby?
No, this is not a medical midwifery service, as I let my midwifery registration lapse whilst being a stay at home Mum, so it would be illegal and unethical for me to do so! My service is purely breastfeeding, sleep/routine management and domestic help. Naturally, in the event of an emergency, I would use my skills and experience until an ambulance arrived. However, since I am no longer a practicing midwife, any first aid provided can only be expected to be at the standard of a basic first aider, not that of a midwife. I do attend regular first aid courses. I am careful not to dispense medical advice since I am no longer registered; however it’s not unusual for me to detect medical problems such as mastitis, postnatal depression, wound or urine infections etc. during the course of my work and I then of course recommend that women contact their midwife, GP, CYH nurse or obstetrician. I make no promises that I will detect medical problems during the course of my visits since I am not carrying out medical examinations; it is just something that occasionally crops up through observation.
Can you be my birth doula or birth partner?
Sorry, I do not generally attend births. I specialise purely in the postnatal period. I cannot guarantee that I will be available when you go into labour as I may not have overnight care for my children at a moment’s notice if my husband is away. I also feel there could be a potential ethical dilemma as a trained midwife being present at a birth but having no authority to act if I were to witness unsafe practices.
I live in rural South Australia, can you still support me?
I live in the Adelaide Hills, so I mainly cover the hills, the city and the Eastern Suburbs. I do sometimes travel a bit further but I charge a bit more. I can’t travel outside of the Greater Adelaide area but I can provide Skype consults for people in remote locations.
I’m planning to formula feed or breastfeeding wasn’t successful, will you still support me?
The statistic that '99 % of women are physiologically able to breastfeed' is often bandied around and can make the well over 1% of women who have a horrendous breastfeeding journey feel inadequate. An unsuccessful breastfeeding experience can be devastating for mothers and can also be a trigger for postnatal depression. In those circumstances, it is more important for the overall well being of the family to have a happy mum and well-fed baby than to continue with breastfeeding. I’m definitely not one of the breastfeeding mafia.
I know full well that there is no way I would have been able to breastfeed my first daughter if I hadn't been a midwife and known how to diagnose and fix our multiple breastfeeding problems including oversupply, lactose overload, impossible to latch on one side due to her torticollis (a significant neck muscle problem she was born with), breast thrush and one bout of mastitis!
What I always say is: 99 % of women can breastfeed but the MAJORITY of women do not get the support and help that they need. A few hours of help from midwives in hospital cannot replace the lifetime of knowledge that we don't gain in our culture. In times gone by, we would have been involved in assisting our mothers, sisters, sisters-in-law, cousins, neighbours as they gave birth and cared for their babies before we had our own and we would have absorbed all sorts of skills needed for successful breastfeeding. Breastfeeding is something that you have to learn; it does not usually come naturally.
You will notice a heavy emphasis throughout my site on breastfeeding but that is because it is hard to learn how to breastfeed and Mums commonly need help with this.
Myself and the majority of my clients have breastfed for months or years so my personal and professional experience with bottle feeding is not as extensive as with breastfeeding. However, all of my advice on sleep, routines and everything else is still just as useful for bottle-fed babies. I can also support women who need / want to use formula top ups or mixed feed later down the track. I aim to do this in a way which minimises the risks of formula top ups on long term breastfeeding success. If you wish to bottle feed from the beginning, then I can still support you with feeding, sleep and any other questions you have.
I know full well that there is no way I would have been able to breastfeed my first daughter if I hadn't been a midwife and known how to diagnose and fix our multiple breastfeeding problems including oversupply, lactose overload, impossible to latch on one side due to her torticollis (a significant neck muscle problem she was born with), breast thrush and one bout of mastitis!
What I always say is: 99 % of women can breastfeed but the MAJORITY of women do not get the support and help that they need. A few hours of help from midwives in hospital cannot replace the lifetime of knowledge that we don't gain in our culture. In times gone by, we would have been involved in assisting our mothers, sisters, sisters-in-law, cousins, neighbours as they gave birth and cared for their babies before we had our own and we would have absorbed all sorts of skills needed for successful breastfeeding. Breastfeeding is something that you have to learn; it does not usually come naturally.
You will notice a heavy emphasis throughout my site on breastfeeding but that is because it is hard to learn how to breastfeed and Mums commonly need help with this.
Myself and the majority of my clients have breastfed for months or years so my personal and professional experience with bottle feeding is not as extensive as with breastfeeding. However, all of my advice on sleep, routines and everything else is still just as useful for bottle-fed babies. I can also support women who need / want to use formula top ups or mixed feed later down the track. I aim to do this in a way which minimises the risks of formula top ups on long term breastfeeding success. If you wish to bottle feed from the beginning, then I can still support you with feeding, sleep and any other questions you have.
How do you set your fees?
Almost all doulas operate on a package system where you pre-pay a deposit and sign a contract committing to a certain number of visits at a pre-set fee. I do not operate a package system; it is pay as you go, so you may only need to spend under $500 to get the help you need. You just don’t know how much help you will need and when you’re going to need it. It’s a big thing to commit to a package and then find that maybe your doula is nice but doesn’t know much, or very knowledgeable but plain irritating to have in your house, or that actually your baby is feeding and sleeping like a dream and you wish you’d spent the money on a holiday! You have to click and be comfortable with that person in your home and around your family.
I like Mums to feel comfortable to dip in and out of using my service whenever it suits them and I find that as a result I often have quite long but sporadic relationships with my customers. The service really works however you need it to work.
Most doulas only attend 3-10 women before being certified as a doula. Many postnatal doulas do have additional experience and qualifications as breastfeeding peer supporters etc. I have supported thousands of women in the postnatal period as a midwife. This is reflected in my fees, which are still lower than they really ought to be, but I keep my rates as low as I can whilst putting a value on my knowledge and expertise, degree level study, ongoing personal education and running costs. I enjoy helping people and believe this kind of valuable support should be affordable.
When I am at work I give 100%. There is never a moment wasted, whether I'm washing up whilst observing a breastfeed, playing with your toddler while hanging washing, counselling you whilst you eat your lunch as I sweep or mop around the room - it's all about maximising the benefit of every single visit. Even when I'm holding a sleeping baby, I may be calculating your baby's optimal awake windows and texting you info for later!
Since I do not operate on a package system, the fee for the first appointment is proportionally higher than subsequent appointments, in the same way that a first consult with any health professional is higher, to allow for a detailed history to be taken.
I like Mums to feel comfortable to dip in and out of using my service whenever it suits them and I find that as a result I often have quite long but sporadic relationships with my customers. The service really works however you need it to work.
Most doulas only attend 3-10 women before being certified as a doula. Many postnatal doulas do have additional experience and qualifications as breastfeeding peer supporters etc. I have supported thousands of women in the postnatal period as a midwife. This is reflected in my fees, which are still lower than they really ought to be, but I keep my rates as low as I can whilst putting a value on my knowledge and expertise, degree level study, ongoing personal education and running costs. I enjoy helping people and believe this kind of valuable support should be affordable.
When I am at work I give 100%. There is never a moment wasted, whether I'm washing up whilst observing a breastfeed, playing with your toddler while hanging washing, counselling you whilst you eat your lunch as I sweep or mop around the room - it's all about maximising the benefit of every single visit. Even when I'm holding a sleeping baby, I may be calculating your baby's optimal awake windows and texting you info for later!
Since I do not operate on a package system, the fee for the first appointment is proportionally higher than subsequent appointments, in the same way that a first consult with any health professional is higher, to allow for a detailed history to be taken.
Do you do controlled crying on babies? Or are you an attachment parenter?
I’m not generally a fan of controlled crying but I also recognise that for some families, it can become the preferable option to divorce, severe depression or death by driving sleep deprived! Humans are able to cope with a certain amount of short to medium term sleep deprivation, but if you have a toddler who is waking up seven times a night and then you have another baby – something has to give. Some babies will sleep dreadfully no matter what you do but I believe that for most babies if you get them into a very gentle, very flexible routine from about 4-5 months of age, which is tailored to their own sleep personality and changes with them as they grow (not a standard ‘one size fits all’ routine from a book that makes most people abandon routine altogether when attempted) then there won’t be any need for sleep training in the first place.
Attachment parenting is not something new – it is just standard human parenting: how we always parented as a species before the advent of agriculture. Problems with attachment parenting in our society can occur when we are inadvertently mixing up several different opposing philosophies and because we lack the support systems that traditional societies have; therefore attachment parenting can sometimes lead to burnout in parents, particularly mothers. For example, if you are a strict attachment parent in terms of co-sleeping and extended breastfeeding but allow your toddler to get hopped up on excessive sugar, additives and huge amounts of screen time, then it’s not surprising they are waking for long periods overnight every night. If you also have very limited support networks, an unsupportive or absent partner and are on your own with small children the majority of the time, then you can become overwhelmed with the needs of your children. Children and parents in traditional societies co-sleep comfortably overnight because they have had plenty of exercise, fresh air, daylight and stimulation during the day. They may wake to feed then resettle fairly quickly or suckle regularly half asleep but they are not up running round the house demanding to put the TV on and eat biscuits at 4.30am, because there is no TV and there are no biscuits!
I support you in whatever style of parenting you choose, provided it is kind and safe. I may just help you to take the best bits of different philosophies to create your own style rather than rigidly adhering to one school of thought.
To do this question justice requires a full blog post which is coming soon!
Attachment parenting is not something new – it is just standard human parenting: how we always parented as a species before the advent of agriculture. Problems with attachment parenting in our society can occur when we are inadvertently mixing up several different opposing philosophies and because we lack the support systems that traditional societies have; therefore attachment parenting can sometimes lead to burnout in parents, particularly mothers. For example, if you are a strict attachment parent in terms of co-sleeping and extended breastfeeding but allow your toddler to get hopped up on excessive sugar, additives and huge amounts of screen time, then it’s not surprising they are waking for long periods overnight every night. If you also have very limited support networks, an unsupportive or absent partner and are on your own with small children the majority of the time, then you can become overwhelmed with the needs of your children. Children and parents in traditional societies co-sleep comfortably overnight because they have had plenty of exercise, fresh air, daylight and stimulation during the day. They may wake to feed then resettle fairly quickly or suckle regularly half asleep but they are not up running round the house demanding to put the TV on and eat biscuits at 4.30am, because there is no TV and there are no biscuits!
I support you in whatever style of parenting you choose, provided it is kind and safe. I may just help you to take the best bits of different philosophies to create your own style rather than rigidly adhering to one school of thought.
To do this question justice requires a full blog post which is coming soon!
What training and qualifications do you have?
I have a Diploma and Bachelor of Science in Midwifery. I looked into doing a short postnatal doula course to make sure I was properly registered, however I was told that there is no regulation for doulas in Australia and that I would be wasting my time and money to do a course as I’m somewhat overqualified! I use the word doula in various places throughout the website just to make it easier for people to find me in searches. The word doula is the closest I can find to describe what I do and it’s catchier than saying ‘I used to be a midwife and now I help people privately with baby feeding and sleep’. I list myself in all the same places as other doulas in the area and maintain links to other doulas, lactation consultants and midwives. Although I seek to get to know women during their pregnancy and stay in regular contact in the first few days after the baby is born, I most often take over supporting the mother around the time when the midwife and/or birth doula reduce their support (usually around 10 days-3 weeks old). This role is meant to be filled by CYH nurses but they can only provide limited support in infrequent, short visits, where I can come for as often and as long as you need. By really getting to know you and your baby I can usually anticipate problems before they even happen and I have the time to really get to the bottom of things.
Are you a Lactation Consultant?
No. Breastfeeding has always been one of my special interests within midwifery and when I was at home with my children, it was my plan to sit the IBCLC exam in preparation for returning to work as an LC when I realised that my midwifery registration was going to lapse. Unfortunately, I should have done better research because I did not realise that all my breastfeeding support hours expired at the five year point (at which point I had a four month old baby, a toddler and was in no fit state for masters level exam prep!) so it would have taken me years to re-accumulate all the hours required alongside passing the exam to gain certification. It just wasn’t financially viable for me to take that path as I need someone to observe my practice and sign off my hours, which takes me away from my work with my own clients and the time that my own family need me.
I have a special interest in lactation and have continued to maintain my professional knowledge at the highest level I can through ongoing personal study. So far I’ve been able to tackle common and more complex breastfeeding problems, but would not hesitate to refer you on to an LC should the need arise. I can work alongside other professionals to help you implement their plan of action. Most public hospitals have drop in breastfeeding clinics where you can see a Lactation Consultant for free and I encourage my clients to make use of these services if needed between visits with me to keep their costs down, especially in the early days of establishing feeding, where things can change quite quickly in a matter of days. However, I do prefer see every baby feed within the first 10 days of birth, as sometimes obvious problems can be missed in a clinic setting or by hospital midwives on the ward. It is harder to undo problems if no one picks up the issue until a day 10-14 weigh.
Once other professionals have stopped visiting, I aim to be a kind of one-stop shop for Mums so that they can get specialist help with breastfeeding and sleep alongside the practical help and emotional support they could get from a doula, mother’s help, cleaner or their Mum, rather than needing to pay separately for an L.C, a babysitter and a cleaner.
I have a special interest in lactation and have continued to maintain my professional knowledge at the highest level I can through ongoing personal study. So far I’ve been able to tackle common and more complex breastfeeding problems, but would not hesitate to refer you on to an LC should the need arise. I can work alongside other professionals to help you implement their plan of action. Most public hospitals have drop in breastfeeding clinics where you can see a Lactation Consultant for free and I encourage my clients to make use of these services if needed between visits with me to keep their costs down, especially in the early days of establishing feeding, where things can change quite quickly in a matter of days. However, I do prefer see every baby feed within the first 10 days of birth, as sometimes obvious problems can be missed in a clinic setting or by hospital midwives on the ward. It is harder to undo problems if no one picks up the issue until a day 10-14 weigh.
Once other professionals have stopped visiting, I aim to be a kind of one-stop shop for Mums so that they can get specialist help with breastfeeding and sleep alongside the practical help and emotional support they could get from a doula, mother’s help, cleaner or their Mum, rather than needing to pay separately for an L.C, a babysitter and a cleaner.
What do you think of home-births?
I’d be delighted to work alongside your independent midwife to support you in the postnatal period after your home birth. In countries where home birth is common, such as The Netherlands, home birth for low risk pregnancies is actually slightly statistically safer than hospital. The safety of homebirth has to be worked out on a case by case basis - it all depends on the skill of your midwife and whether you are actually suitable for a homebirth.
I believe that home birth is a wonderful and usually safe option provided that:
You are attended by an experienced midwife who has a good working relationship with local hospitals & back up obstetrician.
Your midwife has a second midwife to attend the birth with her and a back-up midwife for if she is at another birth or unwell. The whole team should be suitably experienced in high-risk hospital care and low risk care at home (if you have an emergency at home, you want a midwife who has experienced the same thing in hospital many times, not someone who has only done simulated drills with a doll and mannequin pelvis).
You live within a short ambulance ride of a tertiary hospital with a maternity unit where an obstetrician is on-site at all times.
Your pregnancy is classed as ‘low-risk’ with no known risk factors for home birth.
You are aware that home birth is slightly safer for second babies than first babies, because your body has been ‘tried and tested’ once! (when your first baby was born vaginally without any major problems)
It may sound like I’m putting a lot of conditions on home-birth but actually the majority of pregnancies are low-risk and are suitable for a home birth. I did not have homebirths as I did not want to pay for an independent midwife, but if I had been in the UK I would definitely have had homebirths. Most of my midwife friends delivered each other’s babies at home and I was sad that I didn’t get that opportunity, though I did get excellent, unobtrusive, home-like care at Mount Barker and in the Midwifery Group Practice in Canberra.
My concerns around homebirth in Australia are not that homebirth per se is not safe, but that the supportive structures around homebirth that exist in the UK (where a woman has a legal right to be attended by an NHS midwife at home) do not exist here.
I believe that home birth is a wonderful and usually safe option provided that:
You are attended by an experienced midwife who has a good working relationship with local hospitals & back up obstetrician.
Your midwife has a second midwife to attend the birth with her and a back-up midwife for if she is at another birth or unwell. The whole team should be suitably experienced in high-risk hospital care and low risk care at home (if you have an emergency at home, you want a midwife who has experienced the same thing in hospital many times, not someone who has only done simulated drills with a doll and mannequin pelvis).
You live within a short ambulance ride of a tertiary hospital with a maternity unit where an obstetrician is on-site at all times.
Your pregnancy is classed as ‘low-risk’ with no known risk factors for home birth.
You are aware that home birth is slightly safer for second babies than first babies, because your body has been ‘tried and tested’ once! (when your first baby was born vaginally without any major problems)
It may sound like I’m putting a lot of conditions on home-birth but actually the majority of pregnancies are low-risk and are suitable for a home birth. I did not have homebirths as I did not want to pay for an independent midwife, but if I had been in the UK I would definitely have had homebirths. Most of my midwife friends delivered each other’s babies at home and I was sad that I didn’t get that opportunity, though I did get excellent, unobtrusive, home-like care at Mount Barker and in the Midwifery Group Practice in Canberra.
My concerns around homebirth in Australia are not that homebirth per se is not safe, but that the supportive structures around homebirth that exist in the UK (where a woman has a legal right to be attended by an NHS midwife at home) do not exist here.
Do you support free birthing (deliberately giving birth without a trained midwife or doctor present)?
Absolutely not. You are putting your own and your child’s life in danger. It is not hard to deliver a baby- you really just have to catch them. The hard part is knowing how to detect problems before they happen and how to save a mother and baby’s life in an emergency situation. Your partner cannot learn this from YouTube! Besides which, it is illegal for someone to act in the capacity of a midwife, who is not a registered midwife.
Although women have been giving birth unassisted throughout history and statistically your chances of any serious harm coming to yourself or your baby are relatively low, if something does go wrong and there is no one there to help, how would live with yourself?
Women often consider free birthing because they have had a traumatic birth in the past and are scared to go back into a hospital or even see a midwife at home. If that is the case, you most likely have PTS and your first point of call should be your GP to get medicare-funded psychology treatment. A psychologist with particular experience in birth trauma can help you debrief your birth experience and begin to heal. You should also shop around for a midwife or obstetrician who is sensitive to the trauma that you have experienced and who will do everything s/he can to work as team with you to reduce your anxieties.
Some women who are survivors of abuse also have hospital phobia. Again, there are many options, such as a care by a known midwife in a birth centre with home-like rooms and only performing examinations when strictly necessary.
Although women have been giving birth unassisted throughout history and statistically your chances of any serious harm coming to yourself or your baby are relatively low, if something does go wrong and there is no one there to help, how would live with yourself?
Women often consider free birthing because they have had a traumatic birth in the past and are scared to go back into a hospital or even see a midwife at home. If that is the case, you most likely have PTS and your first point of call should be your GP to get medicare-funded psychology treatment. A psychologist with particular experience in birth trauma can help you debrief your birth experience and begin to heal. You should also shop around for a midwife or obstetrician who is sensitive to the trauma that you have experienced and who will do everything s/he can to work as team with you to reduce your anxieties.
Some women who are survivors of abuse also have hospital phobia. Again, there are many options, such as a care by a known midwife in a birth centre with home-like rooms and only performing examinations when strictly necessary.