Grab a cup of coffee with me, and let’s chat. You see, there is a growing trend among doulas recently to tack on extra charges and add extra restrictions to their services. What this translates to is extra stress for the laboring mom. That will never happen with me, and I want to tell you why. But I need to start at the beginning.
The word doula means servant. And that is exactly what we are. Our job is to serve the mother in whatever way she needs. That includes the needs that she expresses and the needs that she may not be aware of yet, but that a knowledgeable doula can anticipate. In addition, a professional doula has a responsibility to ensure that her client has received complete care. For this reason, when I first set up my business, I began by offering my doula services as a package. I charge one price and it includes the whole kit and caboodle: prenatal meetings, time on call, continuous care from the beginning to end of labor including at home and at the place of birth, breastfeeding support immediately following the birth, and a postpartum follow-up appointment.
Over the years, I have had people ask if they can pick and choose from those services and pay only for the services they want. Like ordering off a Doula Menu. 😉 Ethically, I have never felt comfortable with this and have not allowed it. Each one of those meetings and services has a purpose. The prenatal meetings help to ensure that the mother is prepared for this labor and that we are prepared to work together. The postpartum meeting is essential for me to follow up with the mother and baby and make sure that no postpartum or breastfeeding issues are overlooked.
It is a package deal, because if you hire me, I’m going to do all that I can to ensure that you have complete and comprehensive doula support. If your labor is extremely short, I’m not going to charge you less. If your labor is extremely long, I’m not going to charge you more. I will come to you at whatever point in your labor that you need me. No sooner and no later. I am going to give you total, continuous care regardless of what circumstances we encounter along the way. Can you tell this is a passion of mine?? I believe *this* is the trend that we need to be focusing on as doulas. Providing the very best care for our clients with no strings attached.
———————————
Would you like to become a birth professional??
CAPPA trainings: