Is the doula the same as a nurse?
Doulas do not replace nurses or other medical staff. Doulas do not perform clinical or medical tasks such as taking blood pressure or temperature, monitoring fetal heart rate, doing vaginal examinations or providing postpartum clinical care. They are there to comfort and support the laboring person and to enhance communication between those in labor and medical professionals. A doula can remind you of questions you want to ask. Nurses may need to take breaks or change shifts. A doula provides continuous support.

How can I be available all the time?
You probably can’t. That’s why most doulas make arrangements with a back-up doula to cover them when they are not available. You would inform your client of this in advance. If you can’t arrange back-up, you would let your client know of the times that you would not be available and decide together how she would want this handled. Some doulas work with an on-call group of doulas who take turns covering different days of the week. They provide their clients with this schedule. There are a few doulas who work for a hospital-based program and are on-call on certain days.

Do you offer payment plans?

Yes. Call or email me so we can plan one out.

Should I quit my day job?
Probably not. Most doulas start out with just a few clients in their first year. They allow back-up to cover them when they are not available.

How will I find clients?
At the end of the workshop I will provide a list of volunteer opportunities in Sonoma, Marin and San Francisco area.  For those coming from other places, I will do my best to help you connect with others in your area. For your own purposes, identify people in your community who have access to pregnant women. Doctor and midwifery offices, pregnancy counseling services, prisons and teen groups may be interested in spreading the word about your services. You can also publicize your services by posting flyers or speaking at bookstores, moms’ groups and childbirth classes.

Should I print business cards?
Yes, but not too many. You may want to change something on them.

What do doulas get paid?
It varies. There are doulas who charge $600 a birth (usually when they are newer) and those who charge $2800 a birth.  I even know of some charging $5000 but that typically includes other services like chiropractic or acupuncture. It is dependent on your level of experience, the area you live in, and your desire to keep labor support financially accessible weighed against your family’s need for income. Although it is not required, most doulas who are starting out offer their services on a voluntary basis or at a low cost – perhaps just enough to cover food, parking, transportation and childcare. I personally recommend charging something if at all possible. This helps ensure that you will be called at 2am so that the person in labor doesn’t worry about bothering you. They paid for your service and have the freedom and permission to use it no matter what the time.

What books and links do you suggest?

• The Birth Partner, by Penny Simkin, 5^th edition – a must for the workshop
• The Doula Book by Kennell and Klaus
• Pregnancy, Childbirth and the Newborn by Penny Simkin
• www.childbirthconnection.org This site is full of up to date, evidenced based information about pregnancy and childbirth.
• www.motherfriendly.org Promoting a wellness model to improve birth outcomes and reduce costs, this group has over 90,000 members.
• www.lamazeinternational.org Many people don’t realize that Lamaze is no longer about the “strange” breathing.  Normal birth is the name of the game!
• www.DONA.org Info on certification.

1. Like many doctors, nurses and midwives – giving birth is not what qualifies you as being able to help at a birth. Training, knowledge, diplomacy, reliability, stamina and perhaps most importantly, your compassionate heart for the laboring person are more important factors.
2. You are a “tabula rasa.”  This Latin phrase for “blank slate” means to me that as a doula who has not given birth, you have no preconceived notions about birth and what this person is experiencing. You fully believe what they tell you of their experience. You are a blank slate.One time I was with a pregnant person in her teens during labor. She was 2 cm dilated and rocking back and forth as she moaned in her labor bed. Rolling her eyes as she looked at me, her mother whispered, “She’s very dramatic. 2 cm doesn’t really hurt this much, does it?” I knew what I had read in books, and what I had seen at other births, but I didn’t have any personal experience of labor at 2 cm, so with an open heart I was able to say to this soon-to-be grandmother, “The pain is real to her.” 2 hours later my young client held her baby in her arms! Because I had no personal birthing experience, I was less tied to what I thought labor “should be” and was able to validate what was actually happening. This person was moving quickly through her labor, no matter what her cervix might have indicated. Thank goodness I didn’t tell her something like, “save your energy, it’s only going to get harder.”
3. One (or two or three) births of your own don’t make you an expert. They make you knowledgeable for sure.
   If you gave birth ten times you would agree that every birth is different. Just because you may not have had that one experience, doesn’t mean that you don’t have an understanding of what the needs of people in labor are. You empathetic heart is a greater guide. Your willingness to be generous with praise and to provide anticipatory care are of greater service to the laboring person than your own experience of giving birth.
4. If you haven’t given birth, you have no baggage. Yup. Some of us have to practice leaving our baggage at the door before we walk into the room with that pregnant person. You don’t. You are fully present. You are not comparing what she tells you to your own experience. You aren’t tempted to tell your story when really, you should be listening to her needs.
5. You have the freedom to be fully present. If you don’t have children, you don’t have childcare concerns.