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The Doula Club

Doula & Doula Matcher Hypnobirthing & Antenatal Classes, Pregnancy & Postnatal Yoga, Couples Yoga for Birth & Doula, North & East London

07/06/2026

Should we go now? Is it too early? Will they send us home?”

The drive to hospital is one of the most anxious bits of early labour, and most of that panic comes from staring at a contraction timer.

There’s a simpler question I come back to every time, and it’s nothing to do with the clock. Swipe through for it, plus the signs I actually look for.

Save this for the day, and send it to whoever’s getting you there.

This is one of the things I go into properly in Ready Birth Go - because knowing it before the day changes everything. Link in bio.

06/06/2026

You won’t be thinking about pelvic outlets when you’re actually in it.

In the thick of labour, nobody’s doing mental maths about angles and anatomy.

Which is exactly why this is worth knowing now, long before the day.

The instinct to move is already in you. Left undisturbed, most women will shift, sway and find the positions that work without being told.

What switches that instinct off is the environment - the bright lights, the bed sitting in the middle of it, the people, epidurals, the quiet pressure to stay put and be a “good patient”.

So take two things from this. First, try the positions now - draped over the sofa, rocking on a ball, down on all fours - so your body knows the shapes before you need them.

Second, tell whoever’s with you that your job is to move, and theirs is to protect the space for it: dim the lights, clear unnecessary people and remind you that moving is allowed.

Your body knows what to do.

Save this for labour. Send it to your birth partner.

thedoulaclub readybirthgo

04/06/2026

Most of us grow up with a very specific picture of labour.

Someone’s waters break, contractions start and they’re very strong, mad panic dash to the hospital, just in time for baby to arrive.

For most women, that’s not what happens at all.

Labour can begin with uncertainty. Hours and hours of wondering and a night of broken, half sleep.

Contractions that seem to be building, then disappear again and the strange experience of knowing something is happening, while having no idea how long it will take.

I think that’s one of the reasons early labour can feel so challenging.

It’s not because it’s necessarily the most intense part of birth, but because it asks for something most of us aren’t very good at: patience, witing and trust. And a willingness to let things unfold without knowing exactly where you are in the process.

If you’ve been through labour before, what would you tell someone experiencing early labour for the first time?
👇

02/06/2026

Labour is hard.

But sometimes we accidentally make it harder.

Not because anyone hasn’t ‘done it right’, but because labour is hormonal, emotional, environmental and physical - and that some of what makes it more intense isn’t inevitable.

You can’t control every part of birth, but you can think ahead.

Who makes you feel safe? What kind of environment helps you relax? What words calm you down? What kind of support do you actually need? What will your birth partner say when things feel hard?

Tiny things matter more than people realise.

And preparation is often less about coping with pain and more about removing unnecessary stress.

What made the biggest difference to your labour experience? 👇

31/05/2026

It’s incredibly instinctive to say the words “relax” “just try and relax” to someone who is struggling.

And anyone saying it is trying to be helpful.

They say it because they love you and they don’t know what else to do.

But labour is physical, emotional, hormonal and deeply nervous-system driven.

So the goal shouldn’t be to force calm, but to help someone feel safe enough to soften.

That can look like reassurance, quiet, touch. It can also be protecting the room from unnecessary noise, questions or interruption.

Birth partners - if in doubt, don’t try and fix, ask yourself what she needs from you and if you’re struggling to work it out, just say “I’m here.”

readybirthgo thedoulaclub

29/05/2026

I’ve supported women who had straightforward births and felt traumatised by them.

And women who had complicated births - interventions, changes of plan, nothing going to plan - who felt positive afterwards.

The difference was almost never what happened. It was actually whether they felt informed. Heard. Like they were part of the decisions being made about their own body.

Birth preparation isn’t about guaranteeing an outcome.

It’s about building enough confidence in yourself and your support system that when labour surprises you - and it often does - you feel able to navigate it.

A birth plan is actually a brilliant decision-making tool.

And the most important question it should answer is “how will I make decisions if things change?”

thedoulaclub readybirthgo

27/05/2026

Something happened at a birth last week that I want to talk about - because most people think it’s unusual when it isn’t.

Not because anything went wrong - quite the opposite. It was one of those moments where you watch a body do exactly what it’s supposed to do, in exactly the right environment for it to happen.

The involuntary pushing before full dilation.

And rather than the usual panic or a woman being berated and told to stop doing it, there was no drama.

A complete absence of panic or urgency to override what was happening.

It made me think about how differently that moment plays out depending on where you give birth and who is with you.

Research by midwife and researcher Dr Rachel Reed shows the early pushing urge happens in 20-40% of births and is not associated with complications. It’s not rare. It’s not dangerous. It’s just not talked about.

Check out her research: rachelreed.website/blog/pushing-leave-it-to-the-experts

Your body and its natural urges are not a problem to be managed. It just needs the right people supporting.

Did you know this could happen? Did this happen to you? What did it feel like?

readybirthgo thedoulaclub

26/05/2026

Labour progress is a whole picture, not a number attached to the cervix. There are so many subtle signs that things are moving towards transition and then end is near.

One of the ones I see a lot? Coming up onto tiptoes (or moving the feet a lot if you’re on all 4’s or on your side) and drawing the knees together as a way to get lower to the ground.

It happened in a birth I supported this week and me and the midwife gave each other a knowing smile!

It wasn’t long after this that the client was involuntarily pushing!

Save this for your birth prep and share with your partner so they’re prepared too!

readybirthgo thedoulaclub

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