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Postpartum Doulas in |
Copyright © 2006 ABC Doula Service |
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Over the last few years, there has been a steady rise in the
number of postpartum doulas offering their services to the postpartum
community in What is a postpartum doula? A postpartum doula is a woman who specializes in providing
in-home postpartum care to new mothers.
Postpartum care typically includes newborn care, breastfeeding support
and instruction, information on available resources and help with various
household tasks. Many new mothers find
that the challenges of having a newborn are more than they anticipated and
they appreciate some extra help.
Postpartum doulas specialize in newborn care, but the ultimate goal of
a postpartum doula is not only to care for the newborn(s), but to help the
new mother to mother her baby more effectively. A postpartum doula will typically come in right after the
return home from the hospital stay and provide care for the mother, baby and
household during the “settling in” time.
Sometimes a postpartum doula will come after the new father returns to
work and the mother is alone with her baby for the first few weeks.
Ultimately it is the needs of the new mother that will determine what type of
postpartum assistance is needed and for how long. Finding a
postpartum doula If you’re like many women when they first hear about
postpartum doulas, you’re probably thinking, “That sounds great, but how do I
find a good, experienced doula?” With
so many postpartum doulas offering their services in Oregon, all with
different levels of experience, training and certification, not to mention
different personalities and convictions, it can be intimidating if not
overwhelming trying to find a postpartum doula that is just right for you. The postpartum period can be stressful
enough without the added pressure of having to select a qualified postpartum
care provider. Below are a few tips
and some additional information that, hopefully, will help make your search
for a postpartum doula a stress-free and productive experience. Training and
Certification: Most postpartum doulas will attend a postpartum training
before offering their services to the general public. Typical postpartum training workshops are 16-30
hours long, and cover a broad range of postpartum topics. There are several national doula
organizations that offer postpartum trainings for women who want to become
postpartum doulas. The two biggest
national doula organizations are DONA (www.dona.org)
and CAPPA (www.cappa.net). Each of these organizations has a listing
of doulas certified with them on their website. As a starting point in your
search for a postpartum doula, you should make sure that any doula you are
considering has attended a postpartum workshop. Becoming trained is only the first step in becoming a certified doula. To become certified a doula must not only
provide proof of training, but also proof of experience (with several client
evaluations). She must also prove her
knowledge in the field, by passing a comprehensive test and/or performing
lengthy research on postpartum topics.
In addition, to become certified a doula must be both CPR and First Aid
certified for newborns. By becoming
certified, a doula is making herself accountable to a community of her
colleagues, which gives her more credibility in the eyes of the medical,
corporate and insurance communities as well as potential clients. Certified doulas will usually list the name
of the association(s) or organization(s) through which they received their
certification after their name. Experience: Ideally, you will want to find a postpartum doula with direct
postpartum experience. But there are several
things to consider when asking a potential postpartum doula about her
experience. First, determine when the doula’s experience was. If her only postpartum experience was
several years ago, there’s a good chance some of her knowledge is out-of-date. As in most fields, new research findings
are always surfacing in the postpartum world, often changing or replacing old
knowledge. In addition to recent
experience, an ideal postpartum doula will be regularly taking part in some
type of continuing education opportunities, such as reading new books,
attending conferences and/or workshops, and participating in forum-type
groups with other doulas. Another thing to consider when it comes to a doula’s
experience is the unique circumstances of her previous clientele. For example, a doula who worked several
years with one family that had a single newborn and no siblings will not have
the same experience as a doula who worked the same amount of time with
several different families with singletons and siblings, or a doula who has
worked with families with multiples.
If possible, try to find a doula who has
experience with situations very similar to your own. If that cannot be achieved, try to choose a
doula with a broad range of experience over several years. Personality: Another thing to consider as you search for a postpartum doula
is her personality and convictions. A
doula might look and sound great on a web-site or brochure and have all the
qualifications and experience you are looking for, but still not be a match
for your family because of her personality.
For this reason, always ask, at the very least, for a phone interview
with any doula you are considering.
Some doulas will even offer prenatal interviews in person, which is
even better, as it will give you a chance to meet and interact with the doula
personally to see first if she will be a good “fit” for you and your
family. Even if a potential doula or
doula service company does not advertise a free interview/consultation it
never hurts to ask if such an interview is possible. Services: As a rule, most postpartum doulas offer fairly similar
services. These services will
typically include: breastfeeding
support and instruction, newborn care, soothing skills, meal preparation,
resource information and various household chores. But some services are not offered by all
doulas - such as overnight care. If
there are certain services in particular that you are looking for, be sure to
ask potential doulas specifically about those services. Another thing to consider is how much time
you think you might want. For example,
if you know that you will want both day and night care for several days a
week, you will probably need to find a group of doulas who work together,
such as a doula service company, since a single doula would not be able to
meet such a need alone. Where to look: So, now that you’re armed with all these tips on finding great
postpartum doula care, where and how do you actually go about looking for
this service? There are actually many
great resources available for finding a postpartum doula, especially in the Conclusion: The postpartum period is
one of the most rewarding and special times in a mother’s life. But it can also be a trying time, both
emotionally and physically. Postpartum
doulas offer a wonderful and valuable service to those families who are able
to take advantage of this service, and |
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