The Role of a Doula
A birth doula, or birthworker, provides physical, emotional, and educational support before, during, and after childbirth. The support is continuous – doulas don’t change shifts like a labor nurse does.
A birth doula does not act in a medical capacity — your doctor or midwife will diagnose, advise, and treat you.
A doula is usually different from your partner, parent, or sibling because they have a deep level knowledge and experience, and are trained at setting their own feelings, needs, and biases aside.
A doula supports the birthing person and their partner in speaking up for themselves, and steps up as an advocate if the need arises. Advocacy is about amplifying the birthing persons agency, not taking it away.
What Does That Look Like in Action?
Every birth, family, and birthworker is different and there is a lot of variety in how I show up for families. But to paint a picture:
I might be talking you through your birth options while you’re pregnant. Listening to your hopes and fears, helping you troubleshoot options.
In early labor, I may help you try something new on the birth ball or anticipate when you need snacks, water, rest, space, comfort.
I love to team up with your partner to apply counter-pressure or hip squeezes, or support your body when you’re pushing.
In your postpartum, I could be at your feet, giving you a little massage while you feed your baby. Later, we can chat and connect about your birth experience and how new (or renewed) parenthood is settling in.
Evidence on Doulas
The evidence on the efficacy of birth doulas is robust. Experts agree that continuous labor support makes a difference to birthing people. The presence of a doula lowers the likelihood of a Cesarean birth, lowers the use of pain medication, and is linked to improvements in the newborn Apgar score. Most importantly, the presence of doulas leaves the birthing person feeling more positively about their birth, whatever the outcome.
For more information on the evidence on doulas, please check out:
- Evidence Based Birth’s signature article on doulas which includes questions to ask when interviewing a doula.
- Or the TLDR one-sheet that summarizes EBB’s long form work.
- You can also listen to the EBB podcast on the topic!
Different Types of Doulas
The work of “doula-ing” different big life moments has been spreading over the past decade. People in community have always done this work for one another, formally and informally, but lately it has made its way into more main stream recognition. Here are a few types of doulas, besides birth doulas:
A postpartum doula provides evidence based information and physical support for new parents in the early months after birth. They may assist with feeding, basic newborn care, and light house keeping.
An abortion doula supports people before, during, and after abortion with accurate information, a compassionate presence, and practical support like childcare, transportation, or meal planning.
A bereavement and loss doula holds space for a family who is experiencing miscarriage, stillbirth, or infant loss. They may support a family during the initial loss and/or support the family through subsequent or ‘rainbow’ pregnancies and births.
A full spectrum doula may support people in all stages of their reproduction (fertility, abortion, birth, postpartum, miscarriage, bereavement) or just a few of those things. Some full spectrum doulas will also do special work to be better equipped to supporting families who are experiencing homelessness or addiction.
A transition doula supports trans people through the ins and outs of change. The services range widely from hormone shot education to presence before and after surgery.
A death doula works with people throughout their end of life. They may be helping the whole family, or working directly with the dying person. Their role is make it easier to talk about, process, and prepare for a meaningful death.
If you need support for something besides birth, check out my Community Resource List page or ask for me to get your a referral.
