So you’re thinking of becoming a doula? Congratulations! Becoming a doula can be a fulfilling and exciting journey and a great opportunity for personal development and learning. We hope that you meet lots of wonderful people along the way and enjoy developing your doula skills.
“My own journey began at the birth of my friend’s son. Through this experience I began to realise the potential of loving support. I attended more and more births over the next 10 years, learning all that I could along the way. One day I discovered that there was a name for my unusual occupation – a doula”
We feel it’s often helpful to make clear that becoming a doula is a journey of growth and development. Completing a course is just your first step on this journey; because it’s only by working with clients, talking with your Assessor Mentor, meeting other doulas at study events and other meetings, both local and national, that we all continue to learn and develop our practice.
“Longing for sisterhood I joined Doula UK, took further training and became a trainee member. The process of exploring why I wanted to be a doula went deeper. I was so happy to share with like-minded passionate women.”
Doula UK is a network of doulas, set up to support each other at every stage of our development – both professionally and socially. Doulaing can be an isolating job, especially if you are the only doula on your ‘patch’
We have expanded in numbers exponentially in the last few years and Doula UK has grown as a result. We hope very much to support new members with love and care, just as we support new mothers. We are going through a time of growth and change as an organisation to make sure that Doula UK provides all of us with the tools and support we need, and that the term ‘doula’ is held in high regard by all in the childbirth world. We hope you will become part of this vision and volunteer some of your time, if possible, to help Doula UK run smoothly and remain a fun organisation to be part of!
What Doulas Do
Doulas build a close relationship with their clients and provide continuous emotional and practical support, without making assumptions. In order to work in this way you need excellent listening skills and the time to debrief experiences around birth, be they your own or those of a professional nature. There will be opportunities to begin this process on your course.
Doulas actively listen and empathise with women throughout the time they work with them, providing unconditional and non-judgmental support and DUK Assessor Mentors do the same with their trainees.
Doula UK
- Accredits training courses – see the website www.doula.org.uk if you haven’t chosen a training course as yet. If you need more information or help choosing a course, please contact Doula UK
- Mentors trainees until completion of a number of jobs
- Doulas are supervised and debrief regularly with their Assessor Mentor
- We have a code of practice and a philosophy statement. Please do read these before you begin – they are the foundation on which we work.
- We have to commit to ongoing professional development – for example, by expanding our knowledge and skills around childbirth and infant care.
- We have a hardship fund to help ensure that all women who want a doula have access to one.
The realities of Life as a Trainee Doula
Getting Started
When you have completed your initial training course and joined Doula UK, the first step is to contact your Assessor Mentor – how to do this is detailed on the Recognition Process page of the Website. Your AM is there to support you on your journey and to answer any questions you may have along the way. This relationship with your Mentor is part of your on-going learning/training and regular contact with her to discuss and debrief from your experiences will be an invaluable opportunity for you to reflect on what happened with a particular client. You will find her emotional support and practical tips very reassuring.
When the relationship with your AM has begun, you can be listed on our Find A Doula pages and begin offering your services to clients. It is important for you to realise though, that you will be a trainee. This means that your learning and development has really only just begun.
It is very important for all doulas to be honest and open with clients about the experience they have. You will need to inform your first clients about your trainee status, and charge them a trainee rate. This is £150 for a birth package, and £10 per hour for postnatal work. These fees have been set for your benefit – trainees often find it much easier to find their first few clients if they are charging this reduced rate – and for your clients’ benefit – they need to be fully aware that they are paying a reduced rate because you are still learning the art and craft of doulaing and that it is a privilege to spend this precious time with them!
Many trainees find it easy to get their first clients; for others, the process takes some time. If you are in a financial situation that makes it important that you have a dependable, steady income, it may be useful to take other, maybe part-time or flexible, work while you build your doula business.
Impact on your Life
Many doulas also find that without the complete support of their families, starting out can be hard. At first, jobs may be scarce and money tight. If you are working as a birth doula, your family also needs to understand the unpredictable nature of the work – that you may need to disappear at fairly short notice; that you can’t say how long you will be gone and that you need to feel happy that they will cope in your absence, so you can focus 100% on your client. If you have small children, it is essential to have reliable, immediate childcare in place for when you are called to a birth.
Even after becoming recognised, most doulas do not make a huge income. Becoming a doula is a vocation and many of us could make much more money using skills learnt in our past lives! You may be doing your training as an add-on to an existing business, for example as a complementary therapist or alternative practitioner. Many of us offer other, mother-and-baby-relevant, services and each aspect of our business can enhance the other. As a trainee, you will need to make sure that clients are clear in which role you are working at any given time.
Getting the Word Out
Most doulas would say that finding clients is a case of ‘what you put in is what you get out’. Marketing yourself in your local area, for example by networking and distributing leaflets, will pay dividends and we recommend that you glean as much information as you can about this aspect of your business on your training course, and ask your Assessor Mentor for guidance afterwards, if you feel you need it.
It is also important for you to realise that as a doula, you will be self-employed. We therefore recommend that you register as self-employed as soon as possible after setting up. You will need to be responsible for your own tax and national insurance, and it is therefore very useful to keep clear records of your income and expenses. Your local tax office will be able to advise you.
At the time of writing, doulas do not need an enhanced disclosure (CRB Police check). However, if you feel having one would enhance your business, the easiest way to get one is through an umbrella organisation such as a Nanny/Childcare Agency. If you sign onto their books (many now like to have a doula on their books) they will organise a CRB for you.
The Process of Becoming a Recognised DUK Doula
As we have said above, your relationship with your Assessor Mentor should begin soon after you complete your training course and have joined Doula UK. This mentoring process should be seen as the next instalment in your training and development. The guidance and support she offers you should mean that the process of becoming a Recognised Doula should be relatively painless. There is some paperwork for you and your client to fill in after your first few jobs.
“The most important relationship for me was with my Assessor Mentor. We instantly clicked and I discovered that having an assessor, in my own experience, was an opportunity to assess myself, my choices, commitment, and sometimes fears. Like a doula’s doula, she stayed with me, helped me to discover my hidden strengths, face my fears and trust my instincts, she cared, and was there for me and that was very important. She didn’t tell me what to do; she shared information and gave me the space to find my own answers, which helped me to grow.”
After each job, send this paperwork and £10, to your Assessor Mentor so she has all the information she needs to talk to you about your experience with the client(s).
After you have completed a minimum of 4 jobs (it may be more), your AM will invite you for your formal assessment interview. This will cost you £20.
- Assessor Mentors charge these small fees because they are offering you their time and the benefit of their experience. Hopefully, you will feel fully supported by them, and learn and grow through the relationship you build together.
“The assessment period is the time when you discover what being a doula really involves, as part of an organisation committed to birthing children as safely as possible. Rather like birth, it is nicer than doing it alone. Support is the key word, not because we are incapable of doing it alone, but because it is so much more rewarding to share our stories around birth, both as mothers and doulas.”
Doula Forum
- Many of us find help and support and get to know each other on our Forum. Once you become a member of Doula UK, you will be able to access the forum via the website. It is a brilliant place to learn more, ask questions, share experiences or just let off steam! We do hope you will come in and introduce yourself and become part of the online community too.
- Most of us would agree that being a doula is a privilege and we gain immense satisfaction from working with our clients. We do hope that you, too, find fulfilment in your new role as a doula.
“I felt like a doula when I joined Doula UK. I still love pregnancy, birth and motherhood in the same way as before, but I am changed. I have given birth to a new confidence, and am proud to be finally recognised.”
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