Debbie Pocica was our doula for our second child's birth (a VBAC). When I first met Debbie at her birth education studio, I was still an emotional mess when it came to discussing my first child's birth. It had been almost 4 years since my unnecessary "emergency" c-section for "failure to progress," and Debbie was a warm shoulder to cry on, both figuratively and literally. While I know she would have supported me even if I had decided to opt for a medically managed OB/GYN hospital birth again, I chose her because she had experience with natural birth, specifically with VBAC mothers. Growing up I had always thought I would be like my own mother, who managed to have three pain-med-and-Pitocin-free vaginal births in the hospital, but hospitals don't seem to be set up to give birth this way any more. I certainly was naive going into my first birth to think that I would be able to avoid unnecessary interventions under my doctor's guidance, and I wanted someone to help us stay on the path I wanted for my next birth. Because home birth did not appear to be an option this time for my "unproven" body that had "failed" four years earlier, I chose to birth in the same hospital where I had my first child. This time around, however, I read all I could about evidence-based maternity care, I used a certified nurse-midwife group as my practitioners, and I hired Debbie to support both me and my wonderful-yet-clueless-when-it-comes-to-birth husband.

During our prenatal visits with Debbie we discussed what led to my c-section and my feelings about birth. We discussed my plans for the VBAC and role-played scenarios if things did not go the way I had planned. I felt that our discussions not only opened up lines of communication with my husband, but it put me in a better place emotionally to get past my anger at my OB and my surgical birth experience and move on so that I could enjoy my pregnancy and the delivery. Debbie also got me to attend my first ICAN meeting, something that I probably would not have done on my own.

Debbie did a wonderful job of listening to me and helping me stick to my birth plan. When my water broke at 11 o'clock one night with absolutely no notice (!), she reassured me that I should try to get some rest and call her in the morning. Ninety minutes later contractions started, and my husband called her again and put me on the phone so that Debbie could assess my progress. I was sitting in the bathtub with the shower massage directed on my stomach, and I could barely talk. Within 40 minutes (we live about 40 minutes away from her), she was at my door--quicker than my mother-in-law who we'd called at the same time and who lives 5 minutes away. Debbie sat with me by the tub for an hour and helped put counter pressure on my back. She reassured me that the pressure that seemed to be all along my cesarean scar was normal. I was not rupturing. I had nothing to be afraid of. I was progressing fast, and she knew we needed to get to the hospital. Debbie sat next to me in the backseat while my husband drove. She held my bucket as I threw up in the car and kept a calm, firm, and reassuring tone when addressing me. When we got to the hospital, she made sure that the nurse we were assigned had a copy of my birth plan. Debbie stayed by my side the entire time and held me through contractions that seemed to be coming on top of one another. I was in a great amount of pain, and she convinced me that I was close to delivering and that I did not need pain medication after all. She and my midwife worked together to get me into a few good pushing positions (I had been sitting upright on the bed clinging my arms around Debbie's neck since arriving at the hospital), and after only four hours at the hospital, I successfully delivered a healthy 8 pound, 1 ounce baby girl.

After the birth, Debbie stayed with me and followed me to my room while my husband went with our baby to the nursery. The hospital was in between meal times and she made sure that I got something from the cafeteria. I did not think I was hungry at the time, but I was so glad that she thought of me and that I did get something to eat.

My family had been skeptical about hiring a doula--an expense that insurance/our FSA doesn't cover--and Debbie proved to them that continuous woman-to-woman labor support is a powerful necessity for any laboring woman. Doulas are there to advise and support their clients' wishes, and Debbie did just that without being judgmental or preachy (something I find hard to do myself). I would recommend her to anyone.

Debbie was wonderful during the whole birthgiving process.  If I ever have any more children, I would DEFiNATELY prefer to have her as my future doula!  Thanks, Debbie.

  We chose Debbie to be our Placenta Encapsulation Specialist (PES).  She was just great from the very first meeting.  Right from the beginning Deb explained how everything worked and what we could expect.  We called her as my wife was going into labor as she requested and then again once the baby was born.  Our baby was born at 5:45am and we contacted her later that morning.  Deb arrived at our house that afternoon and began the process of preparing the placenta.  She came right in and I showed her where the placenta was being kept.  From there on I was able to stay upstairs with mother and baby while Deb took care of everything.  She didn't bother us once to ask where something was, she simply went about her work and quietly closed the door behind her when she left.  I went downstairs later that evening to find that she had completed all of her prep work and had completely cleaned up behind herself.  You would never know she had been there except for the food dehydrator on the counter that was dehydrating the prepared placenta.  There was absolutely no smell at all.  She arrived the next morning and finished the job of grinding and encapsulating.  Deb was very clear on explaining to us the dosage schedule for the capsules and even offered some great advice when we asked her about a problem we were having with breastfeeding.  I cannot say enough good things about DoulaDeb.  She was great for us and I highly recommend her as a PES.  Thank you Deb!

By Bill Landry Jan. 2010