ProDoula
CURRENT STATUS: Certified Labor Doula
BUSINESS NAME/AFFILIATION: Betsy and Me, LLC
SERVICES PROVIDED: Labor Doula Services
About
AREAS SERVED: Houston, Texas
CONTACT INFO:
Email: betsy@betsyandme.com
Phone: (832) 512-4628
Website: https://www.betsyandme.com
Professional Renewal Due: May 1st, 2022
Meet Your ProDoula
Background/Experience that you think is beneficial to Doula work: I am 26, so I am a peer to the people I work with. I find that this is very beneficial to my work because chemistry comes quickly and naturally. I have family and friends that are of different races, religions, income levels, and family philosophies. The experience I have gained from growing up seeing how different people around me are treated and affected by systems like the medical and birth field is indescribable. In addition, I experienced the pregnancy, labor, and births of sisters, cousins, and friends before pursuing doula work. This gives me insight to how it feels to be part of a birth support team, and what concerns, fears, and questions they might have.
What led you to become a Doula?: I wanted to be an OBGYN from a young age- I was drawn to the joy and miracles of bringing life into the world. I pursued my dreams and entered the Premedical program at Baylor University. Then, my sister got pregnant. She had a perfectly healthy pregnancy, but ended up with a birth experience that was not only unsatisfactory, but traumatizing. When I was researching what happened, how to support her, and how to help other people avoid a similar experience, I found out that doulas existed. Amazed and intrigued by the non-medical form of one-on-one support, I changed my major to Finance/Business, and began pursuing doula work.
What are some positive comments made about you by other people?:
Clients have commended me for my attentiveness and care. For example, more than once has a couple told me they were amazed that I knew when the next contraction was going to start before it did, and suggest relief measures for the stage of labor they were at.
A comment I’ve gotten that always makes me chuckle happened when I was visiting a client after they had returned home with baby from the hospital. A friend of hers was coming by to meet the baby at the time and asked my client what a doula actually does. She replied without hesitation, “She does all of the things you WISH your husband knew to do!” All of us (including the husband) laughed so hard as I brought her snacks from the kitchen while she breastfed.