Are you passionate about:
Birth? Babies? Women? Families?
Do you like to nurture and support others?
Would you like to make a difference
in the lives of people at the most formative time
of human development?
Would you like to work in a rewarding
and revolutionary field?
Debra Catlin
26 Years
in Perinatal Education
ICEA Certifed Childbirth and Postnatal Educator
DONA International Certified Birth Doula Trainer
2009 Bend Workshop Attendees wearing
colorful Rebozos provided by Anne Carlson!
Check the
for dates and locations throughout Oregon.
To register for a workshop,
What is the role of a Birth Doula?
A Birth Doula is a knowledgeable and skilled caregiver of childbearing families, who provides physical comfort,
emotional support, and information before, during, and just after childbirth. As the latest professional to join the maternity
care team, Doulas play a unique role in assisting families to have both a safe and memorable birth.
Birth Doulas practice in hospital, birth center, and home birth settings, with all types of maternity care providers.
The birth doula brings back a kind of care that’s been missing in modern childbirth and is complementary to
clinical care.
A doula meets with the family to discuss their needs and concerns, priorities, coping strategies, plans for the
birth, and how they will work together as a team.
The doula utilizes strategies that promote the normal process of birth, reduce stress and pain, and speed labor
progress. Doulas provide continuous emotional support under all circumstances, and guidance for partners and
family members, enhancing their participation.
Doulas offer education and support, breastfeeding help, debriefing of the birth, and ongoing follow-up to promote
a healthy postpartum recovery and positive family adjustment.
Doulas make a difference!
A Doula’s primary focus is on meeting the physical and emotional needs of the birthing woman and her family.
She is able to solely dedicate herself this way because she works with one client at a time, stays with the family
throughout the entire birth, and is not involved in clinical care tasks. She adds continuous presence, calmness,
objectivity, knowledge and skills to the loving service of others that the woman chooses to support her. If
problems occur or a need for medical intervention arises, the doula facilitates communication with the family and
clinical care providers, maintains emotional connection and human touch, and advocates for the families’ wishes.
Studies have verified that the presence of a Birth Doula:
☼ Reduces stress and shortens labor
☼ Increases mother’s feelings of control
☼ Enhances the partner’s participation
☼ Decreases interventions and cesareans
☼ Builds the mother’s self-esteem
☼ Improves outcomes for newborns
☼ Facilitates parent-infant bonding
☼ Decreases postpartum depression
☼ Increases positive feelings about the birth experience
Life of a Birth Doula
As a Birth Doula, our role encompasses a package of services that involve both pre and post natal visits with our
clients to conduct interviews, assess the family’s adjustment or need for community resources, and to also
attend the entire birth and stay for the immediate postpartum period. Phone calls as needed are a part of our
service. For each family, the time spent would be approximately 25 hours.
The average doula takes 1-2 clients a month, but this is entirely up to the individual, with some taking up to 5 or 6
working in a teamwork situation, and others taking much less. In addition, we spend time towards developing our
personal businesses-marketing our services, networking, keeping accounts of income and expenses, purchasing
supplies, and maintaining continuing education requirements.
Joys
Above all, it is an honor to be invited into one of the most miraculous events of a lifetime, the arrival of a new
human being on the planet and the creation or expansion of a family. Deep feelings of satisfaction accompany
each experience of providing labor support, as you tangibly know that your presence made a difference on many
levels, no matter what the outcome of the birth. Witnessing the raw power and strength of women, the melting of
a father’s heart as he holds his newborn, and the incredible intelligence and consciousness of a brand new baby
is fulfilling indeed. Being able to be of service at a critical time of human development confirms that what you do
will ripple into the lives of the families you support far into their futures and into society.
There are many other advantages of this career. Networking collaboratively with other Doulas, who are just
amazing women, is another source of satisfaction. Many Birth Doulas provide additional services to childbearing
families such as childbirth education, postpartum doula services, massage therapy, or birth counseling to
supplement their incomes. If you quest for new knowledge and skills, this field is a constant source of discovery.
Logistical aspects, such as being able to determine your own schedule, how much work you will take on, whether
part or full time is a bonus. For those of us in the field, the many joys we experience far outweigh the challenges
of this work.
Challenges
Most Birth Doulas will say that being on call is the biggest challenge, as we must be ready to join our families as
soon as they contact us. We are usually on call 2 weeks prior to a client’s guess date and until she gives birth.
Being at a birth for unpredictable hours goes along with that, which also means having physical endurance and
strength for those long births. So being able to arrange your life to accommodate this is a must, especially with
childcare. You must have other financial resources while you build your practice, which takes patience and effort.
Perhaps the aspect of being able to whole-heartedly support women’s choices regarding their birth experience is
trying at times, which is at the core of true support. To be able to be accepting and non-judgmental towards
people of differing backgrounds or values tests us often.
Another challenging aspect is working within a maternity care system that is highly medicalized, fearful, and often
limited in knowledge about the normal and physiological aspects of childbirth, which the birth doula is trained in.
However, the presence of Doulas has helped to bridge this gap both with parents and other professionals. Over
and over, research has proven the benefit to families of psychosocial support, the primary reason for our role,
which has been missing or limited for generations.
In your Birth Doula Workshop, we will be addressing all of these issues in more detail!
.
Birth Doula Training
workshops throughout Oregon
Portland, Eugene, Bend, Corvallis, Seaside, Medford, Salem, Pendleton
Approved by DONA International
If you answered YES to these questions,
learn more about the
Then explore the pages here to learn how to become a Doula, sign up for your Birth Doula Workshop, and get started in providing professional labor support services in your community!
