Single Mother launches business to help new parents

Aug. 17, 2011 - PRLog -- Single Mum turns birth into a business.
A single mum of two in Lancashire is using her knowledge of birth and breastfeeding to start a new career. Michelle Bromley, 26, set up Snowdrop Doula Services to help women get better birth experiences, plus provide hands-on support when mums take their new babies home. The Colne resident, who also volunteers at Family Tree Centre, Brierfield, as a breastfeeding peer supporter, trained as a doula in May and now hopes to use the experience she has gained with her own children to help others.

“A doula mothers the mother,” said Michelle, who is mum to 6year old George and 3 year old Naomi. “I am not medically trained, but I support mums during the birth and also in the early weeks or months after the baby is born. Childbirth can make women feel quite anxious and frightened, because they often don’t know what to expect. But there is no need to fear birth, and in fact the whole thing tends to go much more smoothly when women are well prepared and well supported”.

Research shows that Births where a doula is present tend to be shorter, result in fewer Caesarean sections and fewer requests for pain relief. A doula can be with you during your entire labour, whereas you won’t always have a midwife with you the whole time.
“I can help explain procedures or ask questions of the midwives on behalf of the mum if she doesn’t feel able to. Doulas are hired for all sorts of births, and by all sorts of different people.”

On top of helping women through pregnancy and birth, Michelle, who supports women throughout the North-West, also offers postnatal support. “I can help women in the early weeks after the baby is born. I can give breastfeeding or bottle-feeding support, help look after older children, help with household chores, cook meals or run errands. I am there to make sure the mother has only her new baby to worry about. I can do either birth or postnatal – so if a new mum is struggling I can help her, even if she didn’t hire me for the birth as well. Once upon a time this would have been done by local family and neighbours but in this today many families live apart and the same neighbourly help isn’t available. This tends to leave pressure on new parents to do everything. With parenthood being quite stressful as it is my aim as a doula is to take some of the pressure off in the early weeks and to help parents find their own feet and ease their transition to parenthood.”
For those on a low income there is also a hardship fund available through Doula UK.
For more information please email Michelle at snowdropdoula@gmail.com
www.snowdropdoula.co.uk

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Lancashire doula business. Providing support for parents before, during and after birth. Antenatal classes that can be tailored and specific breastfeeding support can be provided.