Alicia Witt offers advanced doula services that are completely unique in the state of Arizona.  As an experienced midwife, in addition to emotional support traditional with doulas, Alicia can provide additional home care, early labor home monitoring, and homeopathic recommendations that a traditional doula doesn't provide.

Alicia is Madriella certified doula who has served hundreds of families as their labor doula.  Doulas provide physical and emotional support during labor and delivery, providing you with "continuity of care" that can lead to more ideal birth outcomes.  Hospital and birth center staff change in shifts, but a doula is your constant birth companion during your pregnancy, labor, delivery and postpartum experience.  According to industry statistics, having a doula at your birth significantly increases your chances of having a natural and/or calm and confident birth experience and decreases your chances of having a ceasarean section (scroll down for some statistics and citations).

If appropriate, our advanced doula care may also include monitoring the progress of labor at home prior to going to the hospital where we check maternal blood pressure and pulse, respiration and hydration levels, and cervical progress at regular intervals, plus listen to fetal heart tones, providing you with information which you can use to assess progress of labor, communicate with family, and decide when you are ready to go to the hospital or birth center.

Our Doula Care packages cost from $800 to $1200 and all packages include the initial interview, prenatal visit(s), postpartum visit(s), phone, email and text support, plus emotional and physical support during labor and delivery.  This support will include providing reassurance and perspective, making suggestions, helping with relaxation, positioning and other techniques for comfort while striving to maintain a calm and peaceful birth environment.  Also, we will make ourselves available and on-call 24/7 during your expected due date range.

$100 INTERNET DISCOUNT - Mention this page when you call us at 602-643-9433 and you will receive $100 off our doula package.

TRADITIONAL DOULA CARE - Traditional doula care includes the following services:

• At least one prenatal visit
• Identification of your support needs
• Phone consultations
• On-call availability during your due date range
• Continuous birth support
• Back-up doula services / arrangements
• Emotional support during labor and delivery
• Physical support during labor and delivery
• At least one postpartum visit

ADVANCED CARE - Our advanced doula care packages are customized to your needs and may include the following according to your preferences and needs:

• Free no-obligation initial interview where we will answer your questions about your pregnancy, your objectives, and our advanced doula and home monitoring services.
• We can also do a home visit with you and your spouse during the third trimester to discuss in more detail your goals, plans and birth philosophy.
• If appropriate, we can join you on a prenatal visit with your doctor to discuss your birth objectives.
• You will have access to direct cell numbers, email address and text messaging service so that you can directly ask any questions about your pregnancy.
• We can provide education about early signs of labor and how to best prepare for labor including tips about exercise, nutrition, hospital procedures, and more.
• We will be "on call" starting two weeks before your estimated due date during which time you will be able to reach us 24 hours a day.
• If you aren't sure if you are in labor, we can help assess your status over the phone and/or visit you at home.
• Once we determine you are in active labor, we may begin actively monitoring your vital signs and your baby's fetal heart tones using a fetascope or a doppler.
• We may perform an exam at home to help determine fetal position, presentation, station, effacement, dilation and possible membrane rupture.
• We can observe the progress of your labor and help you identify what stage of labor you are in.   If we determine that you are in early labor that will likely continue for many hours, we might suggest that you get some rest in preparation for more intense labor later.
• We frequently recommend techniques, positions, and exercises which can help alleviate the pain or discomfort of labor.
• We remain available or present through the more active phases of labor, making maternal and fetal assessments.
• We may recommend naturopathic, herbal, or homeopathic remedies or practices, but we do not provide medical advice (you will remain under your doctor's care).
• Once you make a decision to go to the hospital, we can help with making transportation arrangements, transitioning to a traditional labor doula at the hospital, providing emotional and physical support during labor and during the early postpartum period.
• At the hospital, we can advocate for you, helping to communicate your wishes to family, friends, nurses, doctors and other medical staff.
• Advanced postpartum support, including bonding and breastfeeding assistance and advice and continued phone & email support.
• Discounted referrals for photography, placenta encapsulation, massage, sleep support, education, and more.

VBAC or NATURAL BIRTH Patients - Especially if you are seeking a natural birth or a vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC), early labor home monitoring can increase the likelihood of achieving your ideal birth experience.  For many, home monitoring minimizes the chance of leaving prematurely for the hospital, which can result in either being sent back home, or extending a less comfortable hospital stay, which statistically increases the likelihood of medical interventions.

Source: rebeccabatesdoula.co.uk - or download the full PDF of the Chochran review, "Continous support for women during childbirth" - a 2012 analysis of 22 labor support studies involving 15,000 women in 16 countries.

$100 INTERNET DISCOUNT - Mention this page when you call us at 602-643-9433 and you will receive $100 off our doula package.