Dads Need Doulas, Too: Why We Offer a Whole-Family Approach to Doula Training

September 19, 2016

Dads Need Doulas, Too: Why We Offer a Whole-Family Approach to Doula Training

It’s true: dads can suffer from postpartum depression, too. Our doula training will prepare you to support the entire family.

During your doula training, you’ll learn that the postpartum period can be a tumultuous time for everyone involved. While mom and baby are receiving the bulk of the attention, dads can feel left out.

They may not be experiencing physical healing, or dealing with fluctuating postpartum hormones, but new dads are not immune from the effects of sleep deprivation, or the general stress that comes with having a new baby. On top of that, dads are not usually allotted much, if any, paternity leave. This gives them much less time to adjust to their “new normal” before jumping back into their work routine.

It’s also not uncommon for new dads to experience postpartum depression.

At the International Doula Institute, we recognize that everyone in the family is going through a time of adjustment when a new baby arrives. IDI’s Scope of Practice defines a doula as “a professional support person trained in the needs of the family in the days, weeks, and months after birth or addition of a new baby.”

Our doula training focuses on the needs of the whole family, including dads and big siblings.

So, how can a doula support new dads?

Show Him How to Get Involved

In the early days, a dad may feel left out while the spotlight is shining brightly on mom and baby. He may feel unsure of his role, and how to bond with his new baby. Help build his confidence by educating him on baby basics and hands on tasks such as how to soothe the baby or give the baby a bath.

Let Him Sleep

Offer overnight services. Dads and moms alike will both be grateful for the luxury of a full night’s sleep! Even better if you take away some additional stress by doing the laundry, washing the dishes, and prepping meals for the next day.

Show Concern

Ask him how he’s doing and be genuine in your concern. He may need a listening ear just as much as a new mother.

To put it simply: after you complete your doula training and start working with new families, remember to give new fathers just as much care and compassion as you give new mothers.

This Viral Birth Video Shows Our Doula Students the Beauty of Birth

September 13, 2016

This Viral Video Shows Our Doula Students the Beauty of Birth

Birth isn’t something to be feared. This incredible viral video shows the International Doula Institute’s doula students just how peaceful it can be.

It seems to be the norm in our culture to share harrowing stories about birth. Such stories often depict long labors, intense pain, and interventions galore. The underlying theme is that birth is something to be feared.

Thankfully, this simply isn’t the case. Doula students at the International Doula Institute learn that birth is a natural, beautiful process. Sure, there is pain. But, it’s not always the insurmountable obstacle that many would have you believe.

To showcase this point, midwife Lisa Marie Sanchez Oxenham posted a moving video to Facebook on September 3^rd. It shows a mother at home, in a birth tub, peacefully delivering her baby. The scene is one of calm surrender as the new mother pushes her baby out. An early assignment for IDI’s birth doula students is to watch birth videos; this is certainly one to add to the list.

Oxenham’s caption for the video also holds important wisdom for doula students:

“My client Audra’s beautiful second home birth. A midwife’s role is fluid, providing whatever is necessary for each individual birthing experience, although almost always, that role is to simply offer the gift of quiet.”

“The gift of quiet” is the part that stands out the most. Doulas students will learn a lot of hands-on techniques to support a laboring mother during their training with IDI, such a massage, positioning, and use of hot and cold. However, sometimes the most beneficial thing you can do for a laboring mother is to take a step back, give her peace and space, and allow her to listen to her body. Commonly, this is known as holding space for your client.

When doula students first start attending births, it can be a delicate balance knowing when to jump in and when to step back. As a doula, you may feel like you should be doing something at all times. But, sometimes, it’s what you don’t do that is the most helpful.

Start Your Online Doula Training and Fall into a New Career

September 5, 2016

Start Your Online Doula Training and Fall into a New Career

The weather isn’t the only thing that’s changing. Start your online doula training now to prepare for a new, rewarding career as a birth or postpartum doula.

Ah, Labor Day! Time to celebrate the end of the summer with one last trip to the beach, one last BBQ, and one last long weekend. Before we know it, the air will be crisp, the leaves will start to change, and autumn will be in full swing.

What better way to enjoy the changing seasons than with a change of career! Autumn is the perfect time to begin your online doula training with the International Doula Institute.

What makes our online doula training unique?

Go At Your Own Pace

Since our training program is 100% online, it allows you work at your own pace. We understand that you have a busy life, and it can be difficult to fit in a more traditional in-person class. Once your register for IDI’s online doula training, you will have a full year to complete your coursework and earn your certification. OR you can go at an accelerated pace and start doing what you love – working with moms and babies – right away.

Collaborative Curriculum

IDI offers the only online doula training program that utilizes experts in complimentary fields. This ensures that you are receiving the most experienced training available. You will learn from professionals who work with newborns, and expecting and postpartum mothers every day.

Multiple Training Methods

It’s important to us to see you succeed during your online doula training. To accomplish this goal, IDI offers multiple training methods that will expand your knowledge base, and teach you practical application and hands on skills. After completing your certification, you will have the know how to begin working as a doula right away.

Access to Doula Trainer

Although you will be working at your pace, you will not be doing your online doula training alone! Aside from interacting with you fellow doula students throughout the course, you will have phone and email access to a caring and knowledgeable doula trainer if any questions or problems arise. Again, our goal is to see you succeed and thrive during your training.

So, what are you waiting for? Register now for your online doula training, and you’ll be able to celebrate Labor Day, every day!

Chrissy Tiegen’s Healing Uterus Has an Important Reminder for Doula Students

September 1, 2016

Doula students take note: Supermodel Chrissy Tiegen’s tweet about her uterus is a good reminder that postpartum healing is not confined to six weeks.

Chrissy Tiegen has a knack for being relatable and brutally honest on her social media feeds. It’s been no different since she gave birth to her daughter, Luna, four months ago. In her latest postpartum tweet, the supermodel shed some light on her healing process:

I feel like tiny underpaid workers are putting my uterus back together and they’re super bitter about it so they aren’t doing a good job
— christine teigen (@chrissyteigen) August 23, 2016

By sharing this, Tiegen offers a good reminder for doula students: postpartum healing takes time.

In response to her tweet, SELF magazine interviewed several women’s health experts to get the low down on what really happens to a woman’s body as it recovers from birth.

During the first six weeks postpartum, the uterus will be rapidly shrinking back down the size of a fist. While this is happening, a mother may experience period-like cramps that come and go like waves.

After that initial six weeks, abdominal muscles may still be healing. Although the uterus has returned to it’s original size, it may not be exactly as it was before due to stretching of the ligaments that hold it in place. Because of everything that’s going on, women can get confused about the sensations they’re feeling in that area. Generally, it takes a “minimum of six months” for a new mother to start feeling back to normal.

All that said, whether or not you’re a supermodel, postpartum healing is a process. Women need to be patient with themselves as they recover.

For doula students at the International Doula Institute, the above information should sound very familiar. Learning about how a woman’s body heals after pregnancy and birth is an important part of the curriculum for our postpartum doula course.

Of course, there is a range of normal when it comes postpartum healing. It depends on how a mother delivers and how active she is after the birth. Doula students who receive their certification through IDI will understand the similarities and differences in healing for mothers who have vaginal and cesarean births. More importantly, they will know how to best support them.

Boob, Bottle, or Both: Why Non-Judgmental Support is an Essential Part of Doula Certification

August 30, 2016

Breastmilk is the optimal food for babies, but there are many reasons a mother may choose not to breastfeed. During your doula certification, you’ll learn to support moms no matter what decision they make.

The Center for Disease Control recently published its Breastfeeding Report Card for 2016. It states that breastfeeding is a “key strategy to improve public health” due to its known health benefits for babies as well as mothers.

The current recommendation from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is that:

Infants be breastfed exclusively for the first six months of life.
Infants continue to breastfeed for at least one year with the addition of complimentary foods.

The bi-annual report compiles national data on breastfeeding rates from all US states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico with the goal of analyzing how our nation is progressing to meet the breastfeeding objectives set by Healthy People (HP2020).

In summary, the HP2020 objectives include:

Increase breastfeeding initiation.
Increase worksite support for breastfeeding mothers.
Reduce formula supplementation within the first two days of life.
Increase number of births that occur in “baby friendly” hospitals.

This year’s report found that breastfeeding rates are continuing to rise. Over half the states already meet the goal of 81.9% for breastfeeding initiation. Fewer states are meeting the goals of breastfeeding duration and exclusivity.

The writers of the report surmise that although mothers seem to be motivated to breastfeed early on, they may not be receiving the right kind of support from health care providers, family, and employers, which is why rates decline as babies get older. They note that the “early postpartum period is critical for establishing and supporting breastfeeding.”

This is great information to keep in mind during your doula certification and beyond.

You’ll learn during your doula certification that both birth and postpartum doulas can be a key part of the equation in the early postpartum period. As a birth doula, you will likely be there the first time your client nurses their newborn. You can help guide the process as the mother learns to positon and latch her baby. As a postpartum doula, you can help in a variety of ways once your client settles in at home.

It’s crucial that doulas:

Be educated on breastfeeding basics and common problems.
Have resources for local lactation consultants and know when to refer a client out if a problem arises.

Boob, Bottle, or Both: Why Non-Judgmental Support is an Essential Part of Doula Certification

However, learning about breastfeeding during your doula certification is only part of the equation. In addition to breastfeeding basics, you will also learn the proper way to prepare bottles and support formula feeding families.

On the heels of such an important report, talking about formula feeding can seem like a tricky topic. Breastfeeding is important for public health, but a mother’s postpartum emotional health may hinge the support receives in her early days with her new baby.

There are a variety of reasons that a mother may choose not to breastfeed. These reasons can range from supply issues, to a mother who is taking medication that is incompatible with breastfeeding, to a mother who has a past history of abuse.

No matter the reason, choosing whether or not to breastfeed is often an emotional decision.

Additionally, feeding a baby is not necessarily a dichotomy. New mothers have the option of exclusively breastfeeding, pumping milk to feed to from a bottle, exclusively formula feeding, or any combination of the three. After earning your doula certification, you will have the knowledge to guide and support mothers in any of these situations.

This is why we always talk about remaining non-judgmental and unbiased. IDI’s doula certification program covers all aspects of baby care so that you can confidently, and compassionately support your clients and meet them where they are.

The bottom line is that the early days with a baby are challenging. New mothers deserve someone who is 100% on their side no matter how they choose to feed their baby.

8 Things Doulas Need to Know About Postpartum Mood Disorders

August 28, 2016

When it comes to postpartum mood disorders, the most important thing a doula needs to know is how they can best help their clients while they recover.

Due to the nature of their work, postpartum doulas are in a unique position to assist mothers with postpartum mood disorders. Working so intimately with a family, they can keep an eye out for warning signs, and be a key member of her support team. In order to achieve this goal, it’s important for postpartum doulas to have a good understanding about postpartum mood disorders, and how they can help mothers who are struggling.

It’s More Than Just Postpartum Depression

Although the main thing that comes to mind when you think of the postpartum period is postpartum depression, there’s more to it than that. Aside from feeling deep sadness, a new mother may also experience scary and intrusive thoughts. She could be struggling with anxiety, OCD, or even postpartum psychosis. Postpartum Progress has a helpful list and explanation of postpartum mood disorders.

Postpartum Mood Disorders Are More Common Than You Think

It’s reported that postpartum mood disorders affect 1 out of 7, or 15%, of new mothers. However, since this subject is often still seen as taboo, it’s likely that many cases go reported each year. The Mighty estimates that the percentage is closer to 25%. That’s 1 out of 4 mothers. Postpartum mood disorders are also more prevalent in the US where there’s more pressure on moms to bounce back quickly.

There Are Potential Risk Factors, but Postpartum Mood Disorders Don’t Discriminate

Some of these risk factors include:

Previous episodes of depression or anxiety
A difficult or traumatic pregnancy or birth
Previous loss of miscarriage
Fertility treatments
A lack of help after the baby arrives

However, it’s important to remember that all new mothers are at risk for postpartum mood disorders. It doesn’t matter if they are having their first baby, or their seventh.

When Postpartum Mood Disorders Occur

The postpartum period is often classified as the first few weeks or months after birth. But, postpartum mood disorders can occur anytime during the first year after birth.

8 Things Doulas Need to Know About Postpartum Mood Disorders

It’s Not One Size Fits All

There are many different symptoms associated with postpartum mood disorders. These disorders will manifest differently in everyone and it’s unlikely that any one mother will experience all the symptoms.

It Can Be Tough to Differentiate Postpartum Mood Disorders from Baby Blues or the Stress of Being a New Mom

It’s common for new mothers to experience some weepiness during the first two weeks after birth. This is known as the baby blues. Additionally, it can be normal for new moms to have down days where they feel stressed, overwhelmed, and exhausted. What differentiates a postpartum mood disorder from these occurrences is if the mother is affected daily, or it’s altering the way she cares for herself and/or her baby.

It’s Possible for a Mother to Continue to Breastfeed While Receiving Treatment

A mother does not need to stop breastfeeding while undergoing treatment for a postpartum mood disorder. Generally, treatment will involve a mix of therapy and medication, and there are medications that will not preclude breastfeeding.

A Postpartum Doula Can Help

As mentioned above, you can be an important part of a mother’s support team while she’s recovering. While working with a client who has a postpartum mood disorder, here’s how you can help:

Encourage her to talk about her feelings. Be her listening ear and her shoulder to cry. Remember to validate her feelings and maintain a non-judgmental attitude.
Make sure she gets time to rest.
Make helping with her daily household chores a priority.
Go for a walk with her. Getting out of the house and in the fresh air can make a world of difference.
Help her meal preparation and suggest healthy meals.
Offer her a list of local support groups. She can connect with other moms who may be dealing the same thing she is, and will remind her that she’s not alone.
Most importantly: remind her that she’s a good mom! Having a postpartum mood disorder does not define who she is as a mother.

Learn more about becoming a postpartum doula by visiting the International Doula Institute.