My name is Lisa Vallett and I am a doula, or otherwise known as a birth attendant or professional birth support person. The following is a little bit about me and why I chose to become a doula.
I completed my doula training with Optimum Birth in 2007. I am also a qualified Breastfeeding Counsellor with the Australian Breastfeeding Association. I have been involved with ABA for over 8 years and during that time I've attended many educational workshops that specialise in breastfeeding, early parenting, pregnancy and birth. I'm currently the Group Leader for my local ABA group. I am a keen advocate of natural birth and gentle parenting styles.
I have four gorgeous 'attached' children, and have had four very different births, including an emergency C - Section to start with, then a VBAC (vaginal birth after caesarean) then two lovely natural births. As each one got better, I further educated myself about the wonders of Mother Nature and the woman's ability to birth her own baby – without any intervention. This where I discovered the doula, and I decided I needed one! I found that I'd been swept along the river of intervention and didn't realise that I had choices in pregnancy and childbirth, and that I was the one that should have been in control – not complete strangers.
During my last pregnancy, I had a doula with me for antenatal visits – right through until the birth of my baby. The difference in my experiences was incredible. I felt well in control and very involved in my own care. I had the power of knowledge – of the ability for a woman to birth her baby, and the fact that my body knew exactly what to do – if I just let it, without any interference. Something I had too much of previously. My doula had trust in me and I was able to finally trust my instincts - we have them for a very good reason! I learned that fear equals tension, which leads to pain, which of course leads to the cascade of interventions, when pain relief is required. This time I was able to let go of the fear with the aid of my doula and hypnobirthing.
I finally gained trust in my body's ability!
Knowledge is power – I am woman, hear me roar!!
So now I strive to empower women, to have the birth that they deserve through information support, emotional support and physical support. I truly believe that women are incredible – Mother Nature is incredible. We CAN birth our babies the way nature intended! I feel honoured to be able to share the birthing journey with women and their families, and I love to be able to watch a woman grow in strength as she discovers her body's amazing ability to bring a new life into this world.