Hey Cricket,

Have a chat to your friend & find out what she would like from you, and if there's anything in particular she needs from you.

I had a friend come in & support me with my VBAC (as well as DH). I talked to her about the kind of labour I was after, what I wanted (didn't want) WRT pain relief etc, what I thought I might want from her.
I thought she might be able to help out with heat packs etc, also I had hoped to birth on all fours or squatting, and I thought if DH was at one end, she could take the other. I also put her in charge of the camera

I ended up with a much less active labour than I had anticipated, but she was still a big help... when I felt a contraction coming I would call for a hand to squeeze & she & DH took turns sacrificing their hands for me . It gave me someone to have there when DH took a toilet break, or someone else to grab the midwife when needed (we were largely on our own during the labour). She took some great photos & video for us too.

So, have a talk to your friend & find out if there's anything specific she had in mind or if she wants you there as a general support. Does she want you to back her up if her OB tries to go in a direction she doesn't want?

And don't underestimate how good it is just to have another familiar person to encourage you & tell you you're doing great

HTH