"After you have read Andrew LeCompte's article on "true" empathy, above, write a short passage explaining, in your own words, what empathy is and why it is an important skill to have as a birth doula or a childbirth educator or a postpartum doula."
True empathy is the ability to identify with another persons feelings and help them begin to have positive possibilities come from those feelings/situation. This is an important skill as a birth doula because it is part of my duties to help the mom realize her birth plan and have that type of birth. I am there to support and assist the mom in anyway I can. By simply empathizing with her when something negative comes around I won't be helping her to reach her goals - nor would I be helping her reach those positive outcomes. Whereas if I were to use true empathy I would be validating her feelings, and helping her to realize positive outcomes so she is enabled to work around the situation and still reach her goals.
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