What Happens if I Book You and a Lockdown Happens Again?
Great Question!
What happens if I’m booked and the state goes on lockdown again with the hospitals refusing to allow your birth team?
So there’s a few things that can happen if you still choose to book my services. I’ll go through each of my services to try and cover as much as I can.
Birth Doula Services:
There is a 50% nonrefundable retainer to book your guess date, doesn’t matter if it’s virtual support or in person support.
Depending on how the state is doing with the virus, we can plan on doing the typical in person prenatal meetings and labor support. When you get to about 34 weeks, we can reevaluate what you would like to do moving forward if hospitals are still not allowing second support persons.
In person support ($1,000): We’ll do two prenatal meetings at about 34 weeks and 36 weeks for singleton pregnancies and at about 30 weeks and 33 weeks for a multiples pregnancy. Full payment is due no later than 37 weeks as I go on call at 38 weeks for singleton pregnancies, for multiples full payment is due one week prior to the agreed upon on call time. When in labor I will join you when you need me, whether that’s laboring at home until transferring to your birthing place, or meeting you at the birthing place. I will stay one hour after baby is born at the hospital and up to two hours for out of hospital births. Your postpartum meeting will take place 7 - 10 days after the birth of your little one.
if I’m not allowed in the hospital but you would still like in person support while laboring at home, the full fee is due by 37 weeks. Once you transfer to the hospital, virtual support will be offered.
If we switch to full virtual support ($750): my previous blog post here about it explains everything in detail. But in short, I will still do two prenatal meetings they will just be virtually, labor support will be by phone/text, and your postpartum meeting will be done virtually as well.
Birth Photography/Birth Videography Services:
For my birth photography/videography package, there’s a $500 nonrefundable retainer for either photography OR videography. If you choose the photography AND videography package, the nonrefundable retainer is $750. Full payment is due no later than 37 weeks as I go on call for you at 38 weeks.
For OUT OF hospital births: I haven't had any issues attending an out of hospital birth as of yet, as long as myself and the rest of the birth team are healthy and haven’t been told to quarantine. HOWEVER, if a hospital transfer happens, I will follow you to the hospital as long as it’s safe to do so. If I’m not allowed into the hospital, I will come back and do a fresh 48 session for you. If you have already purchased a fresh 48 session, I will add on videography to your fresh 48 session.
For IN hospital births: It is completely up to the hospital you are birthing at and whether they are allowing a second support person. If no primary support person would be present for your birth, and you would like me as your primary person, I can do that. If you are birthing at a hospital that does not allow a second person, but still want photography/videography, I can capture laboring at home and the hospital transfer for you, as well as come back and do a fresh 48 session to round out your story.
Birth Doula and Birth Photography Service:
This package is only offered with in person support. This package cannot be done virtually. There is a $750 nonrefundable retainer with full payment due no later than 37 weeks as I go on call at 38 weeks.
For OUT OF hospital births: Things will be planned as normal. In person prenatal meetings as long as everyone is healthy, in person labor/birth support as well as photography of journey to parenthood, and then a postpartum meeting at about 7 - 10 days after the birth of our little one. In the event of a hospital transfer, virtual doula support will be offered and a fresh 48 session will be offered for the photography portion.
For IN hospital births: Again it all depends on what hospital you are birthing at. If you would like me as your primary person, I can do that (this applies to single parents and parents with a deployed spouse). If you are birthing at a hospital that does not allow a second person, but still want in person support/photography, I can capture laboring at home and the hospital transfer for you, doula services would be offered virtually, and then I can come back and do a fresh 48 session to round out your story.
holy fuck that was a lot I know.
But I hope it answered a lot of your “what if” scenarios. This is such a crazy time and trying to plan for literally fucking anything is hectic and sometimes feels like its damn near impossible.
I want to be as flexible as I can (while still trying to run a business and support my family) but I understand that we’re all just trying our best with the cards we’ve been dealt thanks to this pandemic.
Please feel free to reach out with ideas or even more questions. We can try and make it work, or if you want, I can send a ton of great resources for out of hospital births as that’s really the only way you’ll get to keep your birth team as intact as possible 💕