Episode 16: Doula Philosophies

Let’s talk doula philosophies.

What does that mean? Do you have one? Do you allow them to dictate which clients you support?

In this episode, we talk about some of the philosophies that we know doulas subscribe to and the reasons why. We try to unpack the reasons why doulas support some clients vs. others.

Being a doula is not a philosophy, it’s a profession. Or at least it is to us.

While we all bring our own life experience to working with clients, our personal philosophies should be left at the client’s door. Saying this is one thing, practicing it is quite another.

In this episode, we cover a wide range of topics:

• How the philosophy of the doula training we receive can contribute to the biases that doulas can carry into our work with families. When the focus is on outcomes and interventions, how does this influence the care that a doula may give?
• Choosing not to support families who make choices that you are opposed to.
• Being comfortable with disclosing or not disclosing your vaccination status to a potential client or client.
• Deciding to not support a client because of where they choose to have their baby due to the doula’s dislike of a provider or hospital.
• Defining a client’s birth as “birth rape” and the implications of that. How do we handle talking to clients who describe their birth as birth rape?
• And so much more!

Come join us as we discuss these hot topics and join in on the conversation on our Facebook page.