Perhaps you need a mammogram or extensive dental work or require surgery. It would be nice to have a caring family member to go with you to help you feel safe and cared for, to be there waiting when you wake up after a procedure, to help you get home and settled in when you're discharged. Sometimes, even with a fairly minor procedure, the hospital won't discharge you unless you have someone to accompany you when you leave the hospital.

Unfortunately, not everyone has a caring family member or doesn't have one that lives nearby. Maybe you don't want to ask someone in your family to take time off of work to accompany you. Or maybe your family lives far away and can't travel.

That's when the second group of people comes into the story. Doulas are people who have been supporting pregnant people and new families for many years. The founder of By Your Bedside was a birth doula for 27 years, supporting the births of almost 700 babies. A birth doula's job is to be a caring companion for a pregnant and laboring person or new parents. Most doulas are able to accept only a few clients per month because of scheduling difficulties due to the unknown nature of when the baby or babies will arrive. That leaves a lot of free time between births. By Your Bedside provides doulas who are already familiar with working in hospitals and are already used to being supportive, caring and patient and who are available to be your caring companion for a short time.

Imagine someone you love lives far away and has a sudden medical emergency. How long would it take for you to travel to be with them. How quickly could you leave work and family to travel to be with them for a few hours or days? Who can you call for updates on their recovery?  How much would it cost for last minute airfare, car rental, loss of work, possibly child or pet care during your absence? Let a caring companion stay with your loved one either in your place or until you can take over.