Thinking of Becoming Post-partum doula...did You Use One? Are You One?

I've done all my studies but have yet to take the certification class... so I'm literally thissuperclose to becoming a post partum doula :)

Visit DONA dot com for excellent starter information, class schedules, and more!!

I have not used a doula, in fact, I used pain meds during child birth because I'm a chicken, and by the time I knew what a PP doula was, I didn't need one ;) Just because I used meds doesn't mean I don't support natural childbirth!

The only downside is most of the time, YOU have to be the one to really promote yourself.

The upside is, having had kids, you already pretty much know what to expect outside of the textbooks ;)

I want to be a birth doula once my kids are old enough for me to split at a moment's notice... for now, I want to finish my certification and help families establish their new roles as mom, dad, newborn, big siblings, etc.

I posted a question on this FOREVER ago and got GREAT feedback; if you have the time, check it out, good luck, and PM me if you need more info!

Is there any case in which insurance pays this? Do you live in an area with enough affluent people that could afford you?
With people living away from family and friends, there is a real need. There was one doula when I needed one, but she won't drive over 30 minutes even for big bucks.
I would NOT want someone who smokes because the smokers I know are constantly running outside to smoke when we are together and I have bad asthma. Even perfume or spray glue can trigger an attack.

I am a PP Doula as is my daughter-in-law. I love my work and even do it without pay sometimes. You need to be aggressive enough to go out and market yourself and get contacts to give you referrals. In the Mpls/St Paul area we have an organization of doulas for networking and referrals. I am busy part time but my daughter-in-law is busy most all the time. I have never been a birth doula but find that those who do both have to really watch their scheduling. You would only be able to schedule one birth every month or so if you are doing both. I have seen cases where the PP family had to go without while the birth doula went to another birth and that is not fair to them. Good luck with your endeavors and I agree with the other posts DONA is a good place to start

I used a post partum doula for two weeks after my son was born - apparently what those of my mom's generation called a 'baby nurse' doesn't exist anymore. Since neither DS nor I had had any exposure to infants (since we were ourselves) and my mom came two weeks later, we found her very helpful. She primarily helped with things like diapering and feeding (we bottle fed), did some very light cleaning and cooking and was pretty much there along the lines of 'yup, you're doing fine'.

I knew I did not need a birth doula - had a very happy delivery with an epidural and never planned to breast feed.

Go for it! :) I am just beginning my training as a birth doula (conference this weekend, I'm so excited) and will hopefully begin my training as a post-partum doula in December (when the next DONA conference is in my area). I got on the DONA website and contacted doulas in my area to ask what they thought about the demand and the feedback for post-partum doulas was excellent. There are several quality organizations for doulas. Contact the ones in your area and get in touch with their contact people. I've found most people quite excited to talk about it. You can get quite a bit of info from their websites, too. Try googling DONA, CAPPA, ACBE and see where they lead you. Good luck!

I used a post-partum doula. She saved my life! Our birth doula was awful so we got a different one for post-partum. We have no family in the area and both of us had little experience with kids, so we needed education, plus my daughter couldn't figure out how to latch on so we needed tons of help with that. Good luck!