Should You Become a Doula?
Are you the person family, friends, and co-workers go to for pregnancy and birth-related questions? Do you find yourself researching perinatal topics and best practices for maternal-infant health even when it's not for you?....
Does the thought of working with pregnant and birthing women feel like something you have wanted to do for as long as you can remember?
Are you able to put your own opinions and views aside and support a family in achieving their own desired birth experience? Do you believe that emotional and informational support during the childbearing year is as important as clinical support?
Would you enjoy working as part of a team with other professionals to create the best possible experience for families, even when that experience requires boundaries and staying within your scope of practice? Are you committed to abiding by the professional standards of a certifying organization?
Do you enjoy a level of autonomy and independence in your professional life? Would you like to own your own business and work for yourself?
Are you compassionate, caring, and responsive and could you offer the in-person support that doulas give without much notice? Do you have a supportive partner/family who wants to see you succeed and achieve your dreams, even if it means a lot of hard work to get to where you're going?
If you found yourself saying "yes! yes! yes!" to the above, then you should consider saying YES to becoming a doula!
Doula work is challenging, rewarding, and one of the fastest growing careers in the perinatal field. After 16 years of working in this field, I can attest to the fact that my job just keeps getting better. Trends in obstetrics have opened the doors to great opportunity for labor doulas. Now is the time to start your career!
Doula trainings aren't just for people wanting to become a doula. I have had physical therapists, child life specialists, massage therapists, nurses, lactation consultants, occupational therapists, postpartum doulas....many different people from different backgrounds, take my trainings. A doula training tells your clients that you care about the informational, emotional, and physical side of pregnancy, labor and delivery. It tells your patients that you care because you have chosen to advance your education and understanding of the unique needs of pregnant and childbearing women.
Even ACOG agrees that doulas should be recommended to childbearing women. Check out their statement on how to improve birthing outcomes here.
Ready to take the next step towards certification? Go to our FOR PROFESSIONALS page and register for one of our online or in-person CAPPA Labor Doula training workshops!
As always, I am available to answer your questions or respond to comments about being a doula. Contact me to ask your questions and I will get back with you ASAP!
If you feel that call to become a doula, I hope you do it. I hope you dig deep and really ask yourself the hard questions so that you can discover what is or isn't holding you back. If you keep coming back to wanting to become a doula, there is a reason. Trust what is calling you. Take into account all that you uncover- about the field, about the career, and about yourself. And then go for it.