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I took childbirth classes and had a fabulous midwife who I loved for my birth. But next time I think I will hire a doula, I like the idea of having someone less emotionally attached there for support. I think DH was a little overwhelmed and we both kind of forgot a lot of the tips we had learned when the time came.

My first reaction is....make both work! But if you really, honestly can't, then a doula will be probably be your best bet for achieving a medication-free hospital labor. We loved Bradley for the community and to help ease both of our fears when it came to labor and post-partum, but our doula was the one who was with us through all 54 hours of unmedicated labor. She gave us confidence when the hospital was pushing more invasive procedures, advocated on my behalf for less monitoring and more freedom to labor and push how I wanted, and she helped my husband feel like he could do something to comfort me.

We took Bradley classes, and our Bradley instructor was also a doula so we decided to hire her to be our doula. It was $400 for classes and $800 for doula services (on par with your prices). IF I had to choose one or the other I would go with a doula over the classes because I think you can read the materials and watch videos, and research the nutrition info, breathing/relaxation techniques, etc all on your own.

Having a doula there on the day of my delivery was something I'm glad I didn't skimp on. At the end of it, my DH and I both felt she was worth MORE than what we paid. I was glad I had an advocate who knew what she was doing by my side throughout my whole labor/delivery process... and she helped me successfully breastfeed right away.