What does a doula carry in her bag of tricks?

I've been very, very excited about the upcoming birth of an already much loved member of my friend's family, and packing my Doula bag for the event!

Let's take a look inside at Motherfunker's nature cabinet should any of these be asked for/required ....

These all have a long shelf life so if they're not required they'll keep for later birthings!

Essential Oils :  Rose, which can help relax and soften ligaments/pelvis for a smooth birth

Geranium, which enhances circulation and is good for labour management in-synch with breathing techniques

Neroli, which can help reduce fear, tension and anxiety

Bach Rescue Remedy:  "To comfort and reassure"as it says on the bottle - has never failed me so far and used in my own birthings to great effect!

Mimulus: The flower essense of the Mimulus flower for courage (This flower manages to grow in places where all others would have given up - good for grounding and giving renewed strength) 

Arnica 30 - From the amazing Arnica flower, these little tasteless white pillules can have a miraculous effect on healing bruising (As I discovered after all my birthings - restored my yoni from swollen to, er, unswollen in a matter of days!)

A Morroccan bowl with two flannels to either cool or soothe as appropriate, and a beautiful, delicious Cocoa Butter Massage Bar from Lush, which you can make wet and it goes all ooozy and creamy and smells and feels like heaven!

Raspberry Leaf tea does taste like shit on its own, I'll admit. But whack in a generous drizzle of blackcurrant/fruit squash to a hot cuppa, or have it with some honey, and this is quite a nice drink! 

According to askbaby.com 

"Sipping raspberry leaf tea during and after the birth is said to help the uterus contract back down to size, reduce after birth bleeding and help initiate the let down of breastmilk. 

So a pretty good friend to mamas!

Pukka are just fab and I love their LOVE teabags, perhaps I'll be sipping on some o' that! Ditto the Purdey's Rejuvinate drink - A doula has to keep her strength up!

If it gets quiet, there's some lovely reading material.....

And a bunch of other practical bits for myself that I won't bore y'all with. Snacks. Camera. Warm socks. Spare t-shirt. Stuff like that.

It may stay in the bag and none of it be required at all - no problem! It's not my birth. Every mama is different!

The REAL toolkit of a Doula is whats inside - it's an attitude, a way of being.

The main things in the real live Motherfunker heart and soul Doula kit-bag will be....

..... humour.... faith.... encouragement....praise.... compassion.... and mostly....

LOVE!

:-)