Virtual Doula Package
Online support for your pregnancy, birth and the postnatal period
Giving you the support you need anywhere in the UK & Channel Islands
Do I need a virtual doula?
I believe that you were born to birth your baby: you have everything you need to grow, birth and raise your baby, and make decisions about how that all happens.
So, instead of ‘need’ let’s think about ‘want’…
Do you want to feel calm, confident and totally supported as you go from person to parent, whilst maintaining your own space?
Do you want someone totally focused on you and your needs to help you navigate labour and birth, without actually having an additional person in the room?
Do you really want to work with me, but live too far away?
Because if your answer to any of these is ‘yes’, you might want me to be to be your virtual doula.
What’s included in the virtual doula package?
As with everything birthy-and-baby, there really is no one-size-fits-all approach that (IMO) works. When you decide to book one of my doula packages, we will spend some time really thinking about what you want your journey through pregnancy, birth and the first few weeks of parenthood to be like.
Then, we’ll carve our a plan to support you in getting that in the time we have together.
For the virtual doula package, this time will include the following:
4.5 hours of online 1-2-1 antenatal classes (3 x 90 minute session via Zoom)
A birth-planning workshop (90 mins via Zoom)
Continuous support via WhatsApp throughout pregnancy (office hours)
Virtual on-call 24/7 for you from 7 days before your estimated due date until your baby arrives
Continuous support through your labour, birth and the first few hours of parent life via Whatsapp, phone calls and video calls
6 hours of postnatal check in chats (Whatsapp, video chat or phone call) to signpost and support you emotionally as you settle into the new normal
Limited time offer: 25% off
Did you know that Born to Birth Cornwall is approaching its first birthday? To celebrate that, I am offering a 25% discount to the next two bookings* of my antenatal packages.
*discount applies to the first two booking confirmed with a deposit: your due dates & dates when you’d like the sessions won’t affect the discount being applied to your package.
What does the virtual doula package cost?
The ‘Virtual Doula Package’ costs £850; a breakdown of the costings is available here.
This does not have to be paid up-front and there are several options for payment.
An initial 25% deposit has been paid to secure your date in the diary, but we can split the remaining amount into manageable chunks.
Gift vouchers can also be accepted; these can be purchased here and are a great thing to put on a baby shower list or ask Santa for!
All I ask is that the full amount has been settled by the time I go on call for you.
Sound great but…
Is a virtual doula as good as an in-person one?
This is a trick one to answer… yes, and also no. It really depends on what you want from your experience of pregnancy, birth and post partum.
Being on the end of a phone, a message or a screen means I won’t be able to physically touch you - this means the massaging, hugs, and more practical bits a doula does won’t be able to happen (but if this is important to you, we can use some of our antenatal time to teach your birth team how to do this in advance).
But, I will be able to offer the same emotional support, the same signposting and information, the same confidence boosting and advocacy: if these are things you really want from me, and aren’t really worried about my physical presence, this is a cost effective and practical way of getting it.
How do I know if you’re the doula for me?
Before we sign any contracts, we’ll make sure of this. This is going to be a pretty intimate working relationship and it’s pretty important that you like me and I like you too.
First of all, I’d like to meet you and your birth partner(s) - this can of course be done virtually. Once we’ve met and chatted, we’ll both have some reflection time before we decide whether we’re going to work together. If we’re both on board, then we’ll sign the contract and get cracking with planning your support.
What if our wi-fi signal is rubbish?
We can only work with the tools that we’ve got, and I always try to do my best on this front. My house is as wi-fi optimised as possible and, though I do live in semi-remote Cornwall, generally when I am out and about the signal quality is good. This means you should always be able to get in contact with me if you need to. When I am on-call for you, I will stay in areas where my signal is strong; this is part of my contract and is my obligation to you.
However, if there is a storm or a power-cut or the internet decides to have a tantrum for whatever reason, that lies outside of my control. I will do my absolute best to get into signal as soon as I can, even if that means moving locations.
If your internet connection is really dodgy, this might be something you consider before booking this option.
How do I book your virtual doula package?
This is a totally personal service so it’s not something I can automate. To start the doula booking process, we need to do the following:
Email me using the link below.
Fill in the blank bits in the email template and I’ll get back to you asap.
Initial meeting & consultation.
Using the information you’ve given me, we’ll arrange a time and date to meet where we’ll chat about everything birthy & baby but also get to know each other a bit. At the end of the meeting, we’ll agree a ‘check-in’ time (normally about 2-3 days later). This stage is totally free.
Check-in chat: I’ll get in contact with you to see how you feel about booking once you’ve had some thinking time. If either of us don’t feel we’re the right fit, we will go our separate ways (or I can point you in the direction of some other amazing doulas) but we both want to proceed then we’ll sort out the logistics.
Contract signing: at a time to suit the both of us, we’ll go through the contract. Once it’s signed, we’ll start booking in your antenatal & birth-planning sessions and then… well… off we go!