As you begin to think about who you want to have at your birth, you may decide you want a birth doula to provide labor support to you and your partner. But how do you choose which doula to hire? Today, most cities and towns have many practicing doulas, so you should have no trouble finding a doula who is compatible with your wishes for your birth. Most doulas offer free interviews. I recommend interviewing at least 3. Every doula is different; you want to find the one with whom you really click.
Here are some questions you may want to ask as you interview doulas:
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How do you support women who want to have a natural childbirth?
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How do you support women if they want or decide to use pain medications
or an epidural?
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How do you support the father?
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What kinds of things do you bring with you to the birth to help the mother
(i.e., birth ball, aromatherapy, hot/cold packs, etc.)?
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What kind of training and experience do you have as a doula? How many births have you been to?
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What other skills or certifications do you have that might support a mother?
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Have you worked with my doctor/midwife before?
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Have you worked at my chosen hospital/birth center?
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What is your relationship with my care provider and hospital/birth place?
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What other services do you provide?
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What is your on-call availability? Do you use back-up?
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What is your fee and what does that include?
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Please give me three references of clients you have worked with recently.
This list originally appeared here.
