Why Having a Community During Pregnancy is Essential

We all know the phrase, “it takes a village,” but it’s usually applied after a child is born. When really the village comes together long before we ever see that beautiful new face.

Becoming a parent is a transformation all its own, and it’s hard work! As beautiful as it is, pregnancy does come with emotional, physical, and lifestyle changes. It’s no wonder that we can’t do it alone.

Having our community around us becomes essential for many reasons during pregnancy, and continues to have positive effects after birth!

Research* shows that having a Doula to provide the proper social support during your journey can offer amazing benefits:

• A sense of belonging and stability
• Improved self-esteem
• Improved emotional and physical well-being
• Reduced stressors
• Less anxiety or symptoms of depression
• Increased sensitivity to your new baby’s needs
• Positive feelings about your birth experience
• Lowered frequency of perinatal problems
• Shorter labor
• Fewer medical complications, and less medical intervention
• Improved rates of successful breastfeeding 
• Increased bonding between you and your baby
• Doula-supported parents also rate childbirth as less difficult and painful than parents not supported by a doula.

And it doesn’t stop there. Having proper social support also led to increased longevity! You read that correctly, social support helps create a healthier life, which leads to a longer life. Which we know you’ll want every second you can get with your little one.

If you have questions on how I can support you through your journey, contact me today!

If you’re local to the San Diego area, join us for one of our monthly meet ups where you can connect with other pregnant people IRL and maybe even meet your new “birth bestie”! 

Check out our events calendar here.

*References

J Perinat Educ. 2005 Summer; 14(3): 15–22. "Perceptions of Social Support from Pregnant and Parenting Teens Using Community-Based Doulas". From https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1595255/ 

Scott KD, Klaus PH, Klaus MH.

J Womens Health Gend Based Med. 1999 Dec;8(10):1257-64. doi: 10.1089/jwh.1.1999.8.1257.

PMID: 10643833 Review. From https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10643833/