We did it! Emerald Doulas has made it through our second year, and holy wow. What. A. Year! 2017 was a year full of growth, full of joy, full of incredible moments (and some tough ones too, to be fair).

Just how busy were the Emerald Doulas last year? Here's a quick look back:

Let's look beyond the numbers, shall we?

In 2017, our birth doulas attended our 100th birth as a company, our 100th birth of 2017, and our 200th birth as a company! That's a lot of celebration! They also held, supported, and cried alongside of families whose babies are now carried in our hearts forever. 

Our postpartum team had their hands full supporting multiple families of multiples across the Triangle. They exchanged and recreated their favorite recipes for dinners and breakfasts for our client families and our own, and became raving fans of the beloved Instant Pot. 

All of our doulas dove deeper into advancing their own education and trainings, taking workshops and classes in TENS usage, massage for labor support, Mental Health First Aide, Babywearing, rebozo techniques, postpartum relationship building, and perinatal mood support. 

We continued through 2017 as a Donation Hotspot for the Diaper Bank of North Carolina. In addition to the multiple times our bin was overflowing with donations, we collected over 4900+ diapers, wipes, tampons, pads, and postpartum supplies during events and drives held throughout the year. 

Our Infant Feeding Team grew by one, and we welcomed Grace MacNair as a Lactation Counselor, in addition to our IBCLC, Victoria Facelli. Grace and Victoria supported over 200 families in our office and in homes around the Triangle, as they sorted through their infant feeding goals and worked through them. 

One of the most interesting statistics we kept in 2017 was the number of babies born during the different phases of the moon. A common thought is that a full moon brings about more births. Well, in our totally scientific (#nonscientific) tally, we found just about the opposite! In fact, only 2.5% of our birth doula clients were born during a full moon! A whopping 33% of babies were born during a waxing moon instead! 

You may notice that there's one statistic we didn't track; one that's often promoted by birth professionals and doulas in their yearly statistics- the number of clients who used medication in labor. We do not, and have not ever, tracked the number of our clients who choose to use an epidural or IV pain medication during their births. Why? It's simple. It's not our statistic to keep.

We don't buy into the idea that a certain type of birth is more valuable than others. How you welcome your baby into your arms is up to you. Our doulas will support you, without any judgement, no matter what!