Doula Services

Mitera (μητέρα), pronounced mi-TE-ra, is Greek for mother, and Co. is for company or companion. A mother and her companion (doula) at birth, who are inseparable during the labor and delivery. As a doula/birthing coach, I will provide emotional and physical support for both you and your partner, and provide information about home births and hospital births, so you can make an informed choice about your own birth. Preparing the body before birth is very important. As a certified Body Ready Method pro® (first in the Netherlands), I will help you become "Body Ready" for birth, teaching you about body alignment to minimize pregnancy aches and pain and optimize your body and the position of your baby. Why do you want a certified Body Ready Method pro® at your birth?

Understands what your baby is trying to do and the moves to help create space for baby to do it

Has deep understanding of birth positions

Has hands on balancing and release techniques to help create better baby positioning, space and yield

Proper positioning can avoid long labor and help achieve a smoother birth. In order to make the birthing experience more comfortable, I can provide reassurance and encouragement to the parents-to-be, make suggestions when a labor stagnates, and help with relaxation, massage, positioning, acupressure and water therapy.

The doula service begins with a free introductory meeting. This meeting allows you to get to know me. The focus is placed on discussing what your expectations and needs are, and what my doula services entail.

When you decide to hire me, the basic doula service includes: 2 prenatal visits to prepare you for the birth (1 visit for last minute service); unlimited email and phone contacts to answer any questions you might have; on-call status as of 37 weeks of pregnancy; continued support during the labor and delivery to ensure that you feel comfortable and safe; and 1-2 postnatal visit(s) to help process the delivery, help with breastfeeding and answer more questions. Any additional visits can be added to the main service for a set price.

My care and support are based on both my nursing (Obstetric and Gynecology and Maternity Care) and doula knowledge, and years of caring for people in need, either as a nurse or a volunteer. I spent months (fulltime) learning Dutch, so I could train and obtain my nursing certifications in Dutch. Therefore, I am very familiar with the Dutch healthcare system. I value getting to know my clients and not rushing my services (please see testimonials). My specialty is in helping expectant parents new to the Netherlands, who will be first-time parents or parents who have had a previous traumatic delivery.

Maternity Care/Kraamzorg

After almost working two years as a maternity nurse/kramverzorgende at a maternity organization, I am now offering maternity care/kraamzorg in The Hague and its surroundings through Mitera & Co. That means I will handle the intake, all communications and the actual maternity care. This one-on-one care is to your advantage, because I will work with you from pregnancy to postpartum. After the birth, I will meet you at your home and care for you and your family for eight days. Those eight days, and sometimes even ten days, of postpartum care will be partially or fully covered, depending on the type of health insurance. I am a member of Kraamzorg 1 op 1 and all maternity care back office administrative tasks are handled by them. If you are interested in having me as your maternity nurse, then you can register through Kraamzorg 1 op 1 and mention my name. To register, please make an account under "kraamzorg aanvragen" . The website is in Dutch, so if you need help or need more information, please contact me directly.

Although I work independently and strive to offer one-on-one care, unforeseen circumstances can arise that I will need to double up the care or ask one of my back-ups to help me. Having a baby is unpredictable, one client can be late and the other can be early, causing an overlap. Ideally, I like to accept two maternity clients and/or doula clients a month to avoid any huge overlaps.

The back-ups I work with are all English speaking nurses, who have once been a clinical nurse like me. If they are also full, then I will ask for assistance from other independent nurses in the area.

What to expect from me as a maternity nurse:

-Assist the midwife during a home birth.

-Care for mother and child. The mother's vitals are checked daily. I will check the baby’s skin color, temperature, breathing, weight, navel, and input(feedings) and output(urine and feces). The development is also monitored, such as reflexes and crying behavior.

-Help and support the mother with breastfeeding and/or with preparing and giving bottle-feeding.

-Observe and report to the obstetrician, midwife and/or attending physician.

-Complete the patient care file on a daily basis.

-Teach the mother and father how to take care of their child, in hopes that they can independently take care of their child after the maternity care period.

-Give dad and mama information, advice and tips.

-Do light housekeeping to maintain a healthy environment and to prevent infections. For example, the toilet and shower are cleaned daily. Other household tasks will be done depending on the number of hours available.

-Bring or possibly fetch the other children of the family from school. This is done only if the daycare/school is within walking distance.

-Evaluate with the parents on a daily basis.

As a certified maternity nurse/kraamverzorgende, I am registered with KCKZ, which requires me to follow yearly continuing education courses, such as breastfeeding and the baby-friendly standards (see guidelines in the October 2019 blog), first aid, assisting in emergencies during a home delivery, and many more.