Testimonial for Beverly Nikerle CD(DONA)
Beverly was the doula at the birth of my first child. Ten days before my due date, my water broke. I immediately called Beverly to let her know things were starting, & she was very excited for us. My husband & I arrived at the hospital around 11:15am, & Bev came shortly thereafter. She immediately began bathing my neck & face with cool washrags, as I was very dizzy. My contractions were about 7 minutes apart at this point. After I was finished wearing the monitor, Bev encouraged me to walk in the hall. After only a few minutes, I got very nauseous so we returned to the room where she held the basin as I vomitted. Since I wanted to stay in the room, she encouraged me to labor on the birthing ball, which I did. Bev also encouraged my husband to massage my back & do other things to help soothe me. She also reminded James to eat lunch & take a quick break.
Throughout the afternoon I labored standing by the bed. Bev rubbed my back & breathed with me through each contraction. When I labored on the toilet, Bev was right there, holding my hand or letting me lean on her. She reminded me to sip water after each contraction & even held the straw while I drank. At around 4:30pm, she strongly encouraged me & James to get in the shower. I'm glad I took her advice. 45 minutes later, I had dilated from 5cm to 9cm! By this time I was extremely tired as contractions were coming every 1-3 minutes, so Bev got me water ice. By 6:00pm I felt the urge to push. James and Bev each held a leg and helped me push to the count of 10. At 6:29pm, my beautiful baby girl was born. My placenta took another hour to deliver and was an extremely painful ordeal. Bev stood by my side the whole time, holding my hand & speaking words of encouragement.
Thanks to Bev, I have precious memories of my labor & delivery. She cheered me on every step of the way, helping make my goal of having a medication-free delivery a reality.
-Bethany Dzedzy
October 24, 2013
Beverly Nikerle CD(DONA)
Birth Stories
Birth Fee: $1200
