Included in the birth package

Labour and birth supportin Montreal

From week 37 I am on call for you 24 hours a day, on Montreal Island. Early labour usually starts with phone and text, and I join you in person when you want me there. From that point it is continuous doula support through labour and birth — your care team may change shift while you are there, and I stay with you as the room changes around you, until you are settled with your baby.

Lina supporting a client during labour in hospital, with her hand on the client's lower back

Who this is for

Anyone who does not want to be alone with it, and first-time parents who do not yet know what to expect. People planning an epidural and people planning to go without one — I am not there to steer you either way. Partners who want to stay close, and whoever else you want in the room: your mother, your sister, a friend.

Before I arrive

Unlimited phone and text, for as long as you need it. Early labour is mostly a question of when to rest, when to eat and when to go in, and it is much easier to answer with someone who has done it before — we will have gone through most of it already at the prenatal visit.

When I arrive

I help with the comfort work — positions, counter-pressure and hip squeezes, the rebozo, the shower, the ball — and I show your partner how to join in. Breathing to hold on to when a contraction is hard, a hand to hold, and the lights kept low. I keep the room calm and the space yours.

In the room, when decisions get made

I already know what you wanted before the contractions started. When something is offered, I help you understand what is being discussed, ask the questions you want asked, and take a moment before answering when there is time for one. I do nothing clinical and I never speak for you. The decisions stay yours; my part is making sure you can say what you want said.

Your partner is held too

I show them where to press and how, so the massage and the counter-pressure are in their hands too. I tell them what is happening and what is coming, so they are not guessing at it. And I make sure they eat, sit down and stay close. A partner who is looked after can be present with you instead of standing at the wall.

If the plan changes

Induction, an epidural, a caesarean. We talk these through before the day so they are familiar if they come up, and my support carries on through all of them.

After the baby is here

I stay until feeding has started and the room has settled, usually another hour or two. Then I leave you to it, and we arrange the postpartum visit for the days after.

What I do not do

Anything clinical. I do not perform examinations, monitor the baby, give medical advice, or speak to your care team on your behalf. I help you ask the questions and understand the answers; the decisions stay yours, and the medical care stays with the people qualified to give it.

What this means in practice
  • Continuous support through the labour and the birth
  • Someone who already knows what you wanted, so you are not starting the story again
  • A partner who knows what to do with their hands, and is not guessing
The practical details
  • On call 24/7 from week 37
  • Continuous support, with backup coverage if needed
  • Montreal Island
  • In English or in Spanish
  • Included in the birth package
  • A deposit secures your booking; the balance is due before week 37
Questions about this visit

You call me. That is what being on call means, and it is why the number has no limits on it.

Yes, and I stay. Position changes, comfort and steady company all still matter after an epidural, and so does having someone who knows what you wanted.

Continuous support through your labour and birth is the normal service and what I plan for. If I cannot attend, my service agreement provides for backup doula coverage. I can explain exactly how that works at the Meet & Greet.

I prepare you for that possibility well before the day so it is familiar if it happens, and support continues through it and afterwards.

Everything they want to. I do not take your partner's place — I make it easier for them to stay close, by showing them where to press, when to speak and when to eat, so they are not standing at the wall guessing.

Reviews

Kind words from the familiesLina has supported

Every review here is from Google. Read any one in full.

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