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Episode 87: What I Wish I Knew
What do you wish you knew before becoming a doula? This is a question that we see frequently from those considering birth work or those who have just entered the field. Working with growing families is the part of the work that most have at least a loose idea about. But when I think about what I wish I knew it’s the practicalities that many often fail to consider. Living the on-call life. Pacing yourself when supporting families. What self-care actually looks like. These are just a few things that come immediately to mind as experienced birth workers. Then there are other things that many may not consider. Running a…
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Episode 86: Doulas & Personal Mental Health
As a birth worker, your personal mental health is just as important as your physical health. The very nature of our role often places us in stressful situations that can cause or exacerbate our own mental health issues. Anxiety, depression, and other conditions can all factor into our ability to care not only for our clients. These conditions can also heavily influence our ability to care for ourselves as well. However, there are strategies to help birth workers combat compassion fatigue and vicarious trauma. From therapy to medication to processing with a trusted colleague, there are many ways to help birth workers cope. Come join us as we discuss…
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Episode 85: Working With Repeat Clients
As a birth worker working with repeat clients is always an exciting and humbling experience. For many, the repeat client is like working with an old friend. Someone you’ve developed trust, a deep bond with, and a healthy mutual respect for. Yet at the same time we as birth workers have to be careful not to make assumptions about what the client will need in this birth or postpartum experience based on previous experiences. There are also many questions that birth workers have when it comes to working with repeat clients. For example, we often hear the following: “How much do I charge a repeat client if my prices have…
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Episode 84: Navigating Postpartum Overnights
Providing daytime postpartum care often comes with helping families find a routine. A routine that works best for them. However, navigating postpartum overnights can be a much more challenging type of care. Some doulas struggle with setting boundaries for how frequently or how long they will work overnight postpartum shifts. Others will experience challenges in feeling like they need to “do something, or “do more” during overnights shifts. It’s not uncommon for postpartum doulas to experience unsafe sleep situations or for families to use unsafe practices when caring for their newborns. It is important for doulas to give careful thought and consideration to how to handle these situations long before…
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Episode 83: Supporting Epidurals
One skill set that many doulas express a lack of confidence in is supporting clients with an epidural. Many doula workshops overemphasize how to support an unmedicated birth. As a result, doulas may feel uncertain and often unprepared to support the client who has chosen an epidural. Supporting the client with an epidural is multi-faceted. Many clients and even doulas assume that the doula’s job is done once an epidural is in place. The reality is, that the doula’s job has just begun. Physical support is still necessary when supporting epidurals. Frequent position changes help the baby navigate the changing diameters of the pelvis. The necessity for emotional support can…
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Episode 82: The Art of Newborn Soothing
Newborn soothing can sometimes seem like a mysterious, magical, art, especially to new parents. The phone rings, it’s a new parent who needs help. Sometimes they need more sleep. Others need help with learning how to settle or soothe their newborns. They are feeling panicked, helpless, desperate, and oftentimes as if they are not doing it right. Some also express that they feel as if their baby doesn’t like them. For some, the frantic urgency to try and calm their baby perpetuates the cycle. For others, they cycle through the newborn claiming techniques they know too quickly. As a result, no one technique is given enough time to work. This…
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Episode 81: Navigating Family Challenges
Navigating family challenges surrounding our clients and their support systems can be challenging for many doulas. The relationships between our clients and their support systems are nuanced and built over time. As with all relationships, there is often a deep history that we as doulas are not privy to. Helping clients navigate the challenges that family and friends can present is often a huge part of our role. Giving birth and becoming a parent are emotionally charged transitions. At the same time, it is also an extremely vulnerable state, both emotionally and physically. The people our clients choose to have around them during birth can impact how they view themselves.…
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Episode 80: Cervical Scar Tissue
Trigger Warning: Discussion about gynecologic procedures. While there are many reasons for dilation during labor to take time or pause, one reason is often overlooked—cervical scar tissue. Cervical scar tissue can come from many sources. Biopsies, cryosurgery, LEEP procedures, to name a few. For some, the scar tissue caused by these procedures may pose no problem at all during labor. But for others, scar tissue can impact the progression of dilation. While doulas are not clinical care providers, some will choose to explore a clients GYN history a bit to see if there is a history of such procedures. Others may decide not to ask but instead remain mindful and…
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Episode 79: Doulas As A Lived Identity
As doulas, it’s easy to let the what-ifs that surround our lives take control. Unlike many other professions, a doula’s entire life can center around our work. Being a doula may become a bit of a lived identity if you will. For some, the philosophies of doula work will apply to everyone they encounter. Non-judgmental support, reflective listening, the desire to help in any way possible. For others, the role of a doula is an intentional mindset that they step into or out of as they go to work or transition back to at-home life. As doulas and individuals, how we interact with and support those we encounter in…
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Episode 78: Doula Advocacy
noun: advocate; plural noun: advocates /ˈadvəkət/ a person who publicly supports or recommends a particular cause or policy. “I want my doula to advocate for me.” When this sentence is spoken by someone seeking a labor doula it often means “speaking for” them. However, we believe that it is not our place to speak for our clients. This belief can ruffle some doula feathers. While we can achieve the same goals, we tend to define advocate and advocacy a bit differently. We believe that as doulas, we amplify our client’s voices. Speaking for them removes their voice. It assumes that they haven’t changed their mind. Speaking for the client can actually remove…
