Testimonial for Melissa Duenas-Witter
I hired Melissa for my second birth. I was up-in-the-air about having a doula for my second child since I was able to labor and birth naturally with my first (I had a different doula then). But knowing how different birth experiences can be and the medical profession's profitinity for birth interventions, I decided to err on the side of caution.
I made the right decision as some minor medical complications arose later in my pregnancy that required weekly monitoring. There was concern I would have to be induced several weeks early, but fortunately I was able to reach 40 weeks before the midwife and doctors felt I should proceed no more.
I was scheduled for an induction two days later. I expected the induction to go much like my first induction- get the cervadil, water would break and go into labor on my own and have my child by the next morning and never have to receive pitocin! But my second labor did not go like my first at all. It was a snails pace in comparison and it rattled me. But Melissa was the perfect complement to this new and unexpected experience.
She was there to suggest alternatives to pitocin that the OB took seriously and eventually worked. She suggested to the RN that I needed a light breakfast, to which the OB changed my dietary orders and allowed me a small meal (absolute lifesaver- I needed the protein!!) She was there to keep me calm when I began to doubt the progression of the labor and she was there when my labor suddenly and furiously took flight.
I wouldn't change a thing about my labor experience, especially about Melissa as my doula and her support that helped me to achieve a second natural childbirth.
-Alexis Taylor
March 02, 2017
Melissa Duenas-Witter
Diary of a Doula
Birth Fee: $2250 to $2850
