DOUM -- Pioneering the natural birth movement in İstanbul

What is DOUM?

DOUM is a play on the word “doğum” which means “birth” in Turkish. DOUM is a group of professionals who offer services for pregnant women and their families to help them prepare for childbirth and support them during labor and the postpartum period.

How was the concept of DOUM conceived?

We, Nur and Başak, wanted to leave the corporate world and follow our hearts to work in a field that both excited and satisfied us. Working with mothers and babies was our calling. When we realized how the birthing environment in Turkey -- including the big cities and private hospitals -- compared to more developed countries, we wanted to work to improve the conditions here and help normalize the birthing environment. We therefore started to train as childbirth educators and produced a radio show about natural birth. This show airs every Thursday at 2 p.m. on Açık Radyo, 94.9. It all went from there. We kept investing in our education and ourselves and became yoga teachers and doulas (a trained woman who lends support to the mother during birth), and the learning still continues.

In your opinion and experience, how is natural birth viewed in Turkey?

Unfortunately, options for women who are after a completely natural birthing experience are extremely limited. However, this is now changing slowly as there are a group of individuals working to improve this. The concept of natural birth isn’t understood by a majority of the public. What we have instead are “normal births,” where normal includes all sorts of medical interventions like augmentation, epidurals and routine cuts to the perineum. The separation of mother and baby right after birth is also considered normal. A medical delivery at a hospital is considered “modern” whereas a woman who wants to deliver naturally, especially without drugs, is often told: “So you want to give birth like a villager. How primitive!” Many middle-class women feel proud as their husbands “buy” them Cesarean sections. There isn’t a single group responsible for the situation today. We believe that everyone holds part of the responsibility: our healthcare system, mothers and fathers to be, physicians and hospitals. We do not want anyone to feel disheartened, though. Even though options are limited, they still exist.

Can you explain some of the cultural views regarding cesarean births in Turkey?

Turkey has one of the highest cesarean section rates in the world. One of the reasons many women request cesareans these days is that they only hear bad birthing stories from women around them and not enough positive stories. We believe that the generation of our mothers had especially traumatic experiences in the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s where the use of medical interventions (such as inductions) became widespread but painkillers were not as common. It is difficult to want a natural delivery when you only hear bad stories from your mother and your aunts, and your friends have only had C-sections.

What kind of courses does DOUM offer? What can parents expect from a class?

We believe that every woman carries within her the power to give birth and raise her child. Our classes try to help women and their partners to get in touch with that power by providing unbiased information and a supportive environment and developing awareness of the physical body and breath. Our classes are interactive and fun rather than a presentation of facts and theories you can easily read in books or online. We talk about how to navigate through the birthing environment in Turkey and practice ways of getting the most out of the system here. We work on natural ways of pain coping and teach birthing partners tools for supporting the laboring woman.

What is the main objective of DOUM?

DOUM aims to empower families to make their own choices regarding pregnancy, birth and beyond. Whatever they choose and experience, DOUM wants women (and their partners) to come out of their birthing experience feeling stronger and more confident as parents.

What other services does DOUM provide?

Childbirth classes (in Turkish and English), doula services, pregnancy yoga, mother and baby yoga, support groups, childbirth counseling. Check out our website, www.do-um.com, for more information.

When is the next course? Where and at what time?

Our next class in English is in early November in Zincirlikuyu. The exact dates are:

Thursday, Nov. 4, and Thursday, Nov. 11: 7:30 p.m.-10:30 p.m.

Saturday, Nov. 6, and Sunday, Nov. 7: 10 a.m.-1 p.m.

Is there anything else about DOUM, natural birth, giving birth in Turkey, etc. that you would like to share?

In developed countries midwives have an active role in natural childbirth. This is not the case in Turkey. Midwives work as nurses at hospitals and homebirth midwives do not exist. Almost all births take place at the hospital under the responsibility of a doctor. Therefore, if one wants a natural birth, finding the right doctor is very important. Having a doula around can make a huge difference. It is all a matter of getting in touch with the right people!

Although my dreams of having a natural birth were not realized, the classes that I took from educators such as Nur and Başak helped me come to terms with my Cesarean birth, and helped me make the birth still my own and special. Knowing how to navigate the system and what to expect from the medical system in Turkey were crucial lessons I learned during my childbirth preparation classes with my husband. I applaud them as they challenge the current birthing standard in Turkey, and try and educate a new generation for a gentler, empowering approach to childbirth.

This viewpoint helped me feel more positive about my birth, no matter what kind of delivery I would have. So many of the voices of Turkish family and friends were filled with negativity and horrific birthing scenarios. My heart bled for Turkish women if this kind of cultural mentality was what they were surrounded by. Nur and Başak challenge that with DOUM, and offer Turks and foreigners alike a place to positively explore the miracle of birth and delivery.