Hospitals offer the full range of medical care, including epidurals, continuous monitoring, cesarean birth and neonatal intensive care (NICU) if your baby needs it. They're the right choice for many high-risk pregnancies and for families who want every medical option close at hand. Hospital policies vary, so ask about support people, eating and drinking in labor, movement, and skin-to-skin after birth.
Birth centers are designed for healthy, low-risk pregnancies. Care is usually led by midwives, and the setting feels more like home, often with tubs for labor or birth. Epidurals aren't available, and families transfer to a hospital if medical care becomes necessary. In Texas, birth centers are licensed by the state.
Home birth is an option for healthy, low-risk pregnancies with a qualified midwife. In Texas, home births are typically attended by licensed midwives or certified nurse-midwives. You labor in your own space, with your own routines, and your midwife brings equipment and a plan for transferring to a hospital if needed.
A doula provides continuous emotional and physical support wherever you give birth. About half of the births our team attends are in a hospital, and half are at a birth center or at home. We help you understand your options before labor, support you through it, and walk hand in hand with you through any changes in plans, including a transfer from home or a birth center to a hospital.
Houston has some of the widest choices in the state. Our team has supported families at hospitals including The Woman's Hospital of Texas, Texas Children's Hospital – Medical Center and Memorial Hermann hospitals across the suburbs, at birth centers including Katy Birth Center, The Journey Birth Center and Nativiti Birth Center, and at home with local midwifery practices. See Houston providers we've worked with.
The Austin area has several large hospitals, a number of birth centers and an active home birth community. Our Austin team supports hospital, birth center and home births across greater Austin and Central Texas.
San Antonio and nearby cities like New Braunfels and San Marcos offer hospital, birth center and home birth options. Our San Antonio and Austin doulas support families across the corridor.
Families in the Panhandle have fewer options than families in Texas's big cities, which makes it even more important to plan ahead. Our Amarillo doula supports hospital, birth center and home births in Amarillo and Canyon.
Talk through these questions with your provider, and bring your doula into the conversation. We're glad to help you think it through.
Book a free consult and we'll talk through your options.
