She finally speaks on the topic. Article on Oprah's website about birthing options.

[Belle]

I've wanted someone as influential as Oprah to tackle this topic for years. I guess she finally listened. A fairly good article on the politics of birthing on Oprah's website.

With Caesarean section surgeries occurring in nearly one in three pregnancies and traditional hospital births by obstetricians costing an average of $8,000 to $10,000, some pregnant women are exploring other options. And the future of childbirth in America might start looking more like the past.

http://www.oprah.com/relationships/M...-Birth-Options
(A side note, Doulas have not been around for thousands of years, but still.)

[SeattleRain]

Originally Posted by Belle

I've wanted someone as influential as Oprah to tackle this topic for years. I guess she finally listened. A fairly good article on the politics of birthing on Oprah's website.

http://www.oprah.com/relationships/M...-Birth-Options
(A side note, Doulas have not been around for thousands of years, but still.)

I don't know if that's true. It's part of the Jewish tradition to have a doula due to family purity laws that prevent husbands from being a part of the birthing process. I believe its even mentioned in our texts from at least two thousand years ago that women used female birth attendants to support them during labor.

[*MamaJen*]

Wow, that was remarkably well done. It was a little simplified, but I think that's good for an article that is aimed at a mainstream audience that may be new to the topic. Props for that one. I hope it reaches a new group of women and shows them that they do have options.

[~Boudicca~]

I'm pretty impressed.

[Belle]

Originally Posted by SeattleRain

I don't know if that's true. It's part of the Jewish tradition to have a doula due to family purity laws that prevent husbands from being a part of the birthing process. I believe its even mentioned in our texts from at least two thousand years ago that women used female birth attendants to support them during labor.

I stand corrected.

[JorgieGirl]

Excellent article.

but yeah, I also agree, as long as women have been birthing babies, other women have been there to support them through it. Title of 'doula' or not.