Cas helps mums through pregnancy

Cas McCullough, pictured with sons Liam, 10, Daniel, 7, and Adam, 5, is training to be a doula.

Claudia Baxter

WITH three healthy children of her own, it seemed a natural transition for Cas McCullough to take on the role of a birth doula.

Also known as a birth attendant, the doula movement is booming in Australia.

It also has the backing of celebrity mums such as Nicole Kidman and Demi Moore.

Mrs McCullough said doulas generally provided information for the pregnant woman and her partner, emotional and physical support during labour and assistance for the woman to develop a birthing plan.

“Some women aren’t confident going through it on their own and I’m there to support them through their experience,” Mrs McCullough said.

“I help arm them with natural pain relief techniques and with the emotional issues that come up before and after birth.”

The Mount Crosby resident said she offered support in conjunction with qualified medial professionals, such as midwives.

“I don’t provide clinical support, I have more of a supportive role,” Mrs McCullough said.

“I provide comfort measures during labour and emotional care.

“The midwives focus on the clinical care, while my focus is to be there for the woman and her partner as their support.”

She said her aim was to ensure women weren’t “traumatised by labour” and instead had a positive memory of the process.

“Birth is the most amazing thing,” Mrs McCullough said.

“You see the raw power of women and how strong they are.”

After seven years lobbying for maternity reform, Mrs McCullough said she had decided to “make a difference one woman at a time”, beginning her doula training in 2008 through DONA International.

Mrs McCullough said after a traumatic first birth with 10-year-old son Liam, she had elected for a natural birth with her third son, five-year-old Adam, with a friend standing in as doula.

“She was really encouraging and supportive and did things like give me a massage,” she said.

“Even though I had a midwife, I appreciated someone being there to give me emotional support.”

She said her experience as a mother meant she had a wider depth of experience to draw on.

“I have been through the full spectrum,” Mrs McCullough said.

“I know what it is like to go through a caesarean, labour and what it is like to lose a baby.”

WHAT IS A DOULA?

Doula is derived from the Greek word for a ‘woman of service’.

It has been used in its present context since 1976.

They are popular in the US, where there are 100,000 doula-assisted births a year.