Jodi Jewett - Breath of Life

When I first got pregnant I was unsure if I wanted a doula at my birth or not.  I emailed Jodi and asked some questions and took a couple months to think about it.  Me and my husband decided since this was our first baby we might want the extra support during labor.  I emailed a few other doulas but no one was as understanding and helpful as Jodi.  After meeting with her we only liked her more.  When my labor came it came on faster than I was expecting and suddenly contractions were three minutes apart.  I called Jodi and she left that minute to come over.  Even though my labor came on fast it ended up being 30 hours of contractions every three minutes.  We are so thankful we made the decision to have Jodi attend our birth.  Several times during labor and after me and my husband have both said "I'm so glad Jodi was here or I would not have know that."  So many unexpected things happen during labor and having someone that is expirenced and supportive is so very important.  Jodi guided me when I needed it most and let my husband take the lead when I needed him.  In my 30 hour labor she was consistently present and focused on what I needed.  I would reccomend any mother to hire a doula and make sure to meet with Jodi.  She takes so much time to find out what you want during your labor and answers any questions you have.  With Jodi's help I was able to have the labor I wanted and the support needed to make it through 30 hours and not doubt myself once.  Thank you Jodi!

Posted 5/28/2012

We were scheduled to meet on Friday, but on Tuesday I went into labor at 35 weeks. After going to the midwives to get checked I was told to go directly to the hospital. There was a little miscommunication getting ahold of Jodi, but as soon as we got ahold of her she dropped everything and took off to meet us at St. Alphonus in Boise. My whole birth plan was getting messed up by the moment as I was sitting in the maternity ward, instead of at the midwives, but I couldn't have been more thankful to have Jodi at my side. As the doctors would come in and try to push certain things on me, we would send them away and talk it over with Jodi for a while and then decide, without the pressure of the doctors and nurses. Since it was a new situation for Jodi and I we had lots of questions to be answered, and Jodi wasn't scared to call people to do research and ask other doulas questions that she didn't have the answer to. When labor started to become intense, Jodi would help me keep breathing correctly while my husband did double hip squeezes, they worked together so well to help me get through all the contractions! Finally, at 12:29am Cecilia Marie was born through a natural vaginal delivery without medication and was an extremely healthy baby despite being 5 weeks early. We couldn't have asked for better help in such a difficult situation with our daughter coming so early. Jodi was right on the ball and never showed signs of weariness, despite being in the hospital with us for over 12 hours. Jodi also helped us keep our plans to have a natural child birth, despite the early surprise of our baby and having to be in a hospital.

Posted 2/28/2012

When we found out we were expecting I was hesitant to have a natural child birth but when I talked to Jodi she gave me so much confidence that I could do it and told me about her experiences both in and out of the hospital. It was at that point I knew it was the best choice for our family. When we called Jodi to tell her we were in labor she had been up with her son all night and had very little sleep, yet, she came right over and spent the next 15 hours (out of 17.5 hour labor) with us. I had never expected to have such horrible back labor but Jodi was so great getting me on the birth ball and talking me through contractions. She walked our neighborhood with us and did double hip squeezes while I leaned on my husband. It was so wonderful! She also made things so much easier for my husband! She timed contractions for us and made the phone calls to The Baby Place for us and so much more, which was so nice because it allowed my husband to be able to focus on me. Jodi helped us to stay calm and did so great at talking me through the contractions and reminding me to take nice deep breaths to get oxygen to our baby girl. And I loved how she even talked to Ava (our daughter) through the labor; it helped bring such a sense of love to the room while it felt so stressful. After Ava was born Jodi was so great about keeping in contact to check on us and make sure we were both doing well. She even came by when our daughter started having colic to help us out and give us ideas on how to help her best during the crying fits. We highly recommend Jodi as a doula, she made our experience so beautiful and we were so grateful to have her be a part of our birth story and can’t wait for her to be a part of our ones to come!

Posted 8/14/2011

I am so thankful for getting to know Jodi, she is truly a beautiful person inside and out. When I found out I was pregnant I knew that I wanted to have a natural birth with a midwife. She gave me the information for The Baby Place in Meridian, ID and said she would be more than happy to help me with different techniques to use during labor and delivery. Finally the big day, well 3 days, arrived and we called Jodi. She rushed over to my mother's house and helped me breathe through contractions, keep track of them and stayed awake with me on the several trips back and forth to the birthing center. Finally after 65 hours of labor, 28 hours of active labor, and 4 hours of pushing our son Henry was born, 11.6lbs and 24.5 inches long! Still to this day, I truly believe I would not have been able to remain so strong and calm without Jodi. We are very excited that she is going to be helping us again this September with our baby girl. I believe she is the reason for the excitement I have for having another natural childbirth and no fear. Thank you Jodi!

Posted 8/11/2011