Meet Summer Rae
Certified Birth Doula (DONA), SpinningBabies Trained, and CPR Certified.
From a small town on the eastern shore of Maryland, Summer loves to travel, and is an empathetic who truly enjoys the beauty of birth work. Experiencing the benefits of doula support personally, Summer’s passion is for birthing women to have the same opportunity for meaningful support & better birth outcomes as she experienced. Her flair for advocacy, gentle touch, and strong, encouraging nature is what brings peace to all she encounters.
Summer has experience in all types of birth and believes that with access to the right support & education, families can have amazing birth experiences.
Summer received her doula certification through DONA (Doulas of North America), SpinningBabies Trained, and CPR Certified.
Why Hire a Doula?
It can help with
Continual emotional & physical support.
Doulas are continuously present during your labor and delivery, as well as at least one hour post-delivery. Your doctor or midwife has very specific medical tasks to perform and is often in and out of the room for various reasons; this is a part of their job. One of the very important aspects of your doula’s job is to remain by your side, emotionally and physically empowering you.
Educational support and information prior to labor and delivery.
Doulas assist you in making your birth plan/wish list with all of the necessary information; they explain integral parts of the experience to you and your birth partner, step by step. Even if you have taken a child birth class, you may not receive the in depth information that doulas share. They thrive on helping you understand exactly what your body is doing, what is natural, what is not, and what your options are.
Offer knowledge and experience during labor and delivery.
Dads can greatly benefit from this while serving mom during the most intense moments of her life; often times dads panic or become anxiety-stricken while they watch their loved one work through each contraction.
Pain management and comfort-inducing.
If there were only two things doulas are famous for, this is one of them. Doulas have a vast knowledge of how to manage pain and how to induce comfort for a laboring woman. They are trained for this and access the knowledge as naturally as a first language! Pressure point massage, counter-pressure massage, rebozo techniques, essential oils, water comfort, noise regulation, heat, ice, constant present support, photography, and monitoring family introductions and visitors, are just some of the countless ways doulas ease pain and induce comfort.
Women with doulas are less likely to request pain medications.
If you are planning an all natural birth, you need a doula by your side. Found in countless research studies, we are sharing the statistics from Evidence Based Birth:
When continuous labor support was provided by a doula, women experienced a:
>31% decrease in the use of Pitocin*
>28% decrease in the risk of C-section*
>12% increase in the likelihood of a spontaneous vaginal birth*
>9% decrease in the use of any medications for pain relief
>14% decrease in the risk of newborns being admitted to a special care nursery
>34% decrease in the risk of being dissatisfied with the birth experience*
Ongoing reassurance, encouragement, and comfort.
This is possibly the doula’s strongest tool of her trade: knowing what to say, how to say it, and empowering a laboring woman. Doulas know the words needed to encourage a laboring mother to get through one more contraction, and then one more. They know how to support and serve her in ways an unskilled birth coach does not. A doula’s ongoing reassurance and encouragement brings more comfort to a laboring woman than anything, and if for no other reason, this is why you should hire a doula.
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Jacksonville, Florida