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Doulas! For the love of birth, please stop speaking for your clients
I’m just home from the AWHONN Michigan conference on Mackinac Island, where I was invited to speak about ways labor and delivery nurses can improve birth. As part of my main talk, I addressed nurse-doula relationships, as I usually do when I have the honor of working with nurses. I asked them if they ever…
A doula trainer’s love-hate (seriously-mixed-feelings) relationship with contraction timers
I’ve been a doula long enough to remember contraction timing sheets. They had a thin left-side column to record the time that each contraction happened, another thin column to note how long it lasted, and a longer column to the right to make any notes about that particular contraction. We’d jot down a few contractions…
5 SEO Myths Every Birth Worker Should Know
Before we even begin, please let me encourage you to keep reading. I know that search engine optimization (or SEO) is not a “sexy” birth business topic. It has a reputation as being boring, too technical, and out of reach to normal human beings. My job as The Website Doula and a mentor on the…
7 reasons doulas should train as childbirth educators
You’re an amazing doula. It’s so incredible to help families through the birth experience, but you know that’s only part of the puzzle. Have you ever felt frustrated at a prenatal visit because there’s just so much that your clients don’t know? Do you find yourself spending too much time at those visits educating your…
Lamaze breathing — once and for all
Breath is such an awesome tool in labor. It’s free, available to everyone, and can be used in any position or circumstance. Breathing brings oxygen to a woman and her baby. It helps with relaxation — both physical and emotional. It brings a birthing person’s awareness deep into their body, and it can be a…
On controversy, "one right way," and respect
by Jessica English, Kyndal May and Sarah Juliusson Let’s be real. Controversy is sexy. It grabs us and draws us in to someone else’s drama. That can be entertaining for a short time, but at its best controversy leads us to deeper, more thoughtful conversation. That thoughtful conversation? It’s what Heart | Soul | Business…
Four Key Elements of a Rock-Solid Birth Doula Contract
A great contract is a helpful tool in any business relationship. It lays out expectations for everyone, and it can help protect you if there are ever questions or misunderstandings. Birth doulas often expand and improve their contracts over time as the doula runs into new situations or challenges with clients. Here are some elements…
Respect. It’s good for business
Doulas haven’t always had easy relationships with the medical community. Especially when doulas misunderstand (or haven’t mastered) their advocacy role, tensions can develop inside and outside the birth space. There are tons of reasons why positive, collaborative relationships are good for doulas, for women and for birth, but most of that conversation belongs in another space….
Many Hats: 7 Tips for Successfully Diversifying Your Birth Business
[Editor’s note: I’m thrilled to welcome Sharon Muza to the Heart | Soul | Business blog! There are few other birth professionals who can speak with such authority on diversifying your business. Go ahead, ask Sharon how many hats she wears! ~Jessica] People arrive at birth work after traveling many different paths. You might have…
Search Engine Optimization for Birth Pros: What is SEO?
[Editor’s note: This is a guest post on SEO by Heart | Soul | Business mentor Sarah Juliusson. We are grateful for her expertise on the blog and in our Facebook group! I hope you enjoy learning more about search engine optimization — it’s an important part of today’s birth business equation. ~ Jessica] (Lesson…