doula

[ihateironing]

right girls can any of you honestly say you make enough oney being a doula?
im a doula but am still employed as havent had a 'job' yet, do i keep on my job or quit it and do some serious advertising out there?

already doing that.Im just bored with my present life i know i want to work with ate/postnatal women just the time getting there is 2 long

IHI.. are you a member of DUK?

Where are you based?

I don't think it's right to say that if you are making a living out of doula-ing you are doing it wrong.

I don't do the work for the money but I do have bills to pay. The fact that I love my work and am earning is a bonus. I feel that I am worthy of my hire and in fact sometimes think it should be more. I don't turn women away because they cannot afford my fee. I have done several births just because I can and not charged (or not charged much).

I also run antenatal classes.

When you work in an industry that is about people it is never going to be easy to make money. That doesn't mean it's impossible.

I think motherhurdicure (and I don't know so this is very much my assumption) what you mean is that if money is your motivation you are doing it wrong (or are in the wrong business).

money is not my motivation but without money i wouldnt be anything (does that make sense)
im a single parent so i only have 1 income so i need to ensure that i am doing things right

sorry im not making much sense am i?

You're making perfect sense.

So... how long have you been a doula?

im in scotland too and just starting out.im in an area where people dont know what a doula is, there is me and another doula in our area but no work

I know.... not easy! However, I'm sure that there are ways and means. My geography is crap so (apart from not knowing where Fife was)... where is Fife? (Where in Scotland I mean). Also, are you a DUK member? And if so are you going to the meeting on the 8th March in Edinburgh?

So we need to find ways to get doula in the Scottish vocabulary! Hmmmmmmmm..............

Okay. So.... (she asks again) are either/both of you members of DUK?

mars,

i havent completed my training so i havent yet joined doula uk i used to be a friend but its just lapsed didnt think of joining again as i will join as a trainee.

im in the west of scotland

Okay. Well give it some thought. Which training course are you doing/going to do?

Will reply in a short while. DS1 needs to finish up and I've just seen the time!

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Well they've been through a reorganisation/ change of committee and volunteers so hopefully it is all running more smoothly.

You have Adela up there and she's pretty on the ball and I'm sure that the Scottish Doulas will have an advertising/publicity strategy.

thanks for your input girls,im training thru adela.Thb i think id make more as a postnatal doula but it would be great to attend births.
i have 4 years hospital experience of looking after mums and babies,am doing antenatal teacher training and massage in between.

im just so impatient i want everything to happen now!!

Will be back later (off to a client) but.... I think that if they like maternity nurses they'll like pn doulas. After all we look after mum and baby.

I am the same as mars - I also teach antenatal classes, but most of my ££ comes from birth doula clients.

I couldnt support my family on my income at the moment - if i were in a position where i had to however, i think i could - i do think the work is out there.

i am not working at 'full capacity' as i also want to spend time with my children and not push myself too much, but i am lucky i dont 'need' the money (its lovely to have and affords me lots of nice things, but i dont worry how i would pa the bills if there are not enquiries) - so i dont have that pressure.

i gave up my city job to 'doula'
and havent regretted it for a second.

cx

Hi ihateironing - I used to be a doula and am now a doula trainer. In my experience most clients come from word of mouth, rather than direct advertising - so it's all about networking, putting yourself out there, building relationships in your local community e.g with local hospitals, going along to speak to mother and baby groups, building links with antenatal teachers, just basically letting people know you are out there and available. Things like having a business care or simple brochure and basically giving one to everyone you meet! Yes marslady is right that a lot of people will look at doulauk as they are quite well known - there are other listing services online that are free such as findadoula.com. Things like writing articles for local papers/community magazines on "what is a doula" etc can also be quite a good way of building awareness (do it for free but make sure your name and phone number is in there!) I do agree that it's hard to make a decent income from birth doula work alone especially if you work alone or have young children to take care of yourself. Doulas who work as part of a team often find it easier as you can be back up for each other etc which means you can take more clients on. If you can combine it with other things like postpartum work, teaching and so on then it becomes more do-able. What's your other job - is it flexible? I do know of a number of doulas who combine "regular" employment with doula work but it can be tricky to manage. Don't worry too much about not being qualified - it's not essential to be certified to be a doula. I know many doulas when they are just starting out feel a bit embarassed to be advertising/charging a fee but go for it - you are offering a valuable service, don't be apologetic, be confident and a good listener and you will find that once you have had a few clients they just start appearing as the word gets out!

theres only one other person in my area who has done training but she is doing hypnobirthing classes at the moment instead