What do you do? What is a Doula?

I got asked this about 50 times today while I was standing behind my booth at the Community Baby Shower. How do I explain what a doula is in one to two sentences? My answer seemed to change person to person. "professional labor support person"
"I'm a non-medical labor support person"
" I educate the mom's and find out what her birth wishes are then..."
"I help engage the partner in the process"
"I''m a childbirth educator and a birth doula  and I..."
I felt like I was having an off day and should have planned a line to use. But the truth is you can't explain what doula support is in just one or two sentences. A doula's role changes person to person, labor to labor. I've worked with single mom's, married couples, dating couples, inmates, women of different levels of education and income, first birth, second birth, natural birth, epidurals, emergency and planned c-sections. And my role changed from person to person. Some  of  the women I got to meet with 3+ times prior to birth and was able to give prenatal education, others hired me after there were admitted into the hospital for complications, and I am a on-call volunteer labor support for women from the local prison.
In all cases I leave behind my own views on birth so I am able to support birth for them, because it is after all there birth not mine. I do suggest reading book's such as Ina May's guide to birth, pushed, The Birth Partner. Books that focus on  birth being  a natural process, something as women we are designed to do... We talk about what the clients wishes are and how they can achieve them... educate them on the pro's and con's on interventions so they know ahead of time.  answer questions. find information. If there is a partner of other family members who will be there I show them how they can help mom in labor. I am on-call from 37 weeks until the baby is born. I give my emotional and physical support to the family's. sometimes I'm there for 4 hours sometimes I'm there for 25hours. I  continuously support. For the good outcomes and the not so good outcomes. For the baby's first breath and first "meal". I'm there to answer questions that the new family has in the first few weeks. That is what I do how in the world as I supposed explain all that in one or two sentences?

the normal newborn

I am always reading articles on birth and newborns this was past along to me from another doula and is one of my favorites I wanted to share.
the normal newborn

my favorite quote from this article is "We're talking normal babies.  Breastfeeding is normal.  It's what babies are hardwired to do.  2009 or 209, the kids would all do the same thing: try to find the breast.  Breastfeeding isn't special sauce, a leg up or a magic potion.  It's not "best. "  It's normal.  Just normal. Designed for the needs of a vulnerable human infant.  And nothing else designed to replace it is normal."

background...

First let me say my grammar is awful... The Grammar Bible and Dictionary have just recently become my friend. I also heavily rely on spell check. So if you don't mind that then read on.

I am a doula and childbirth educator I started this blog because my personal one was filled with birth "stuff" rants mostly. It is a really long story to how I became a doula so I will save that one for another time... educating other on pregnancy and birth is what makes me tick, it gives me great satisfaction. There is nothing more special then being able to witness life happening before your eyes. And on the flip side nothing tears at me more then the way birth is so "actively managed" and that it has become the norm.

When I tell people what I do (after explaining the differences are between a midwife and a doula) often time they tell me there birth story. The stories that to often seem to end in "and then I had a c-section". At that point I take a deep breath, shake my head up and down, and in a soft voice say something sympathetic. When in my head I'm running down a check list of what could have possibly  been done to avoid it. Thinking "if I could have only gotten to them first".