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Published by Doulas of the Roundtable
Doulas of the Roundtable, A modern twist on an ancient concept. A place where all voices are equal, knowledge is shared and hard topics are talked about.
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You can do everything right in a doula business relationship and still miss the doula business red flags that may show up along the way. These patterns rarely look dramatic at first. They look like warmth. Or like being told you're valued, essential, part of the inner circle. By the time it starts to look and feel different, you've already committed. This episode breaks down the specific behaviors that show up when a business relationship isn't built on equal footing, whether it's a certifying body, an agency, a mentor, a business partner, or a doula partnership. Approval that has to be repeatedly earned. Generosity that gets punished either way. No acceptable reason to say no. Roles that stay deliberately unclear. Refusals with nothing offered in return. Opportunities given to some people and not others, with no real explanation. Join me as I walk through what to watch for before you sign anything, and what to actually do if you recognize yourself already in a business relationship where these doula business red flags exist.
Most doulas will tell you their ideal client is anyone who is pregnant or postpartum. Without a well defined doula client market every marketing decision, pricing decision, and visibility strategy is aimed at no one in particular. Having an undefined market is much like shouting into a crowd and hoping the right person happens to be listening. And this approach is preventing most doulas from building a sustainable business. This is is Part 2 of the Doula Business Blueprint Series . In this episode we dive into who your ideal client actually is, how to build their profile whether or not you have a long track record of clients to draw on, and how that profile becomes the living document that guides all the other decisions you make regarding your business.. Join me as as I show you how to define your doula client market and explain why that kind of clarity is necessary to the long term success of your business.
Doula trainings don't often teach a neurodivergent doula how to adapt. Especially when it comes to running a business or client interactions. They don't teach a system that already fits how your brain will run your business and interact with your clients and community. You either force yourself into someone else's, or you build your own from the ground up. Most doulas don't know what building their own adaptive system could even look like. The impact of masking through a client visit to the point your cheeks are sore from smiling. Back to back visits that left no time for rest and recovery. Navigating the emails, phone calls, consultations, client visits, the day to day of running a business and making sure that that you keep all the balls in the air. What I built for myself was to ensure success. Systems for scheduling and follow-through. Boundaries around client interactions that let me show up consistently instead of running on willpower alone. Join me as I walk through what I built, why I built it, and what your own version might start with first.
Birth trauma is more common than most doulas realize. Most doula trainings are not preparing doulas to spot it. In this episode, I sit down with Jamie Bodily, MS, LPC , to talk about what the research actually says about how often birth trauma happens, and why the numbers are higher than most people assume. Our conversation covers what birth trauma can look like from a client's perspective. Some signs are obvious. Some show up weeks later and get missed because nobody was looking for them. Jamie breaks down the other mental health factors that may show up alongside it, and why doulas need to know the difference between what's within our scope and what needs a referral. She also walks through how to use the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale as a screening tool, and which questions should trigger an immediate referral. There's also the crisis piece. If a client is in a current crisis, we don't have time to research resources from scratch. We need to already know where to send them. This one is for every doula who has left a client visit wondering if what they just witnessed was normal, or something more.
Most doulas were taught that oxytocin is the love hormone. It's also the hormone that initiates and sustains the labor and birth process. That's true. And it's only part of the story. Oxytocin bonds us to our people. It also makes us wary of everyone else. The same hormone flooding a laboring person's body is running a continuous background check on every person in that space. In-group. Out-group. Safe. Not safe. This process has real time influence on how labor unfolds. And most doulas have never been taught that. This episode takes an up close look into what oxytocin is actually doing during pregnancy, labor, and postpartum. It challenges the bias most doulas carry into Pitocin inductions. And it reframes what connection, prenatal visits, backup doulas, and our presence actually mean biologically. Join me as we explore the biology of trust and how oxytocin influences every client relationship you build.
For doulas, fetal positioning and pelvic anatomy are topics most training programs introduce but don't fully explore. You were likely taught the four pelvic types. Did you know that classification system is almost a hundred years old and modern research tells us pelvic shape doesn't work that way. The pelvis has three distinct planes. The baby navigates all three through seven specific movements. And pelvic shape is the single most influential factor in how that happens. Pelvic anatomy also influences posterior positioning in ways most doulas have never considered. The gap between what you were taught and what you can still learn will change how you support laboring clients. Join me as we look at pelvic anatomy and fetal positioning in a way your training probably never did.
Most conversations about unassisted birth focus on the family's autonomy and the right to choose. This episode looks at the doula's side of that conversation. A doula who says yes to supporting an unassisted birth is making an autonomous choice too. And most of them are saying yes without understanding the potential legal, professional, and personal consequences that may come with it. There is no universally safe version of saying yes. Intervening if something goes wrong, standing by, leaving, all of it carries consequences most doulas have never considered. And the safety net they depend on when a medical provider is present doesn't exist there. Both sides of this arrangement deserve to understand what they are agreeing to before anyone says yes. Join me as we open up the conversation about the doula's autonomy that the birth community has been missing.
A doula business plan is something most doulas never think to create. Many assume it's for bigger businesses, investors, or bank loans. Truth is, it isn't. A business plan is the document that tells you whether your pricing makes sense, if the right clients can find you, and if what you're building will last. Without one, most doulas are making decisions without a solid business foundation to build on. This conversation covers the traditional business plan structure, but adapted for doula work, the financial reality of what this work actually pays, and the pattern of adding certifications to try and get more clients instead of fixing the foundation your doula business is built on. A solid business plan doesn't have to be complicated. But it does need to be honest. If you've been winging it, or you are ready to get started, this is where you start.
The phrases "Trust your body" and "Trust birth" are embedded in doula language and doula culture. Most of us have never stopped to question them. In this episode we look at how these phrases, used without knowing a client's history, can cause real harm. The research on chronic conditions before and during pregnancy, birth trauma rates, and the connection between rising comorbidities and cesarean rates is clear and deserves our attention. The postpartum version of these phrases and how they impact our clients is also addressed, along with a replacement framework for how we gather the information we actually need before we decide what language to use. This episode is for every doula who has ever said trust your body without knowing whether that was something their client could actually do.
Why do cesarean rates keep rising and what does that actually mean for the families you support? We have to start by breaking down the cesarean rate conversation the birth world has been getting wrong. From the origins of the WHO 15% figure what it actually said, what it was designed to measure, and why we've been misapplying it for 40 years. We also need to understand to the difference between total cesarean rates, primary cesarean rates, and the NTSV rate that matters most for hospital comparison. Without underdstanding these numbers we can not have accurate and honest coversations with clients about what they mean. Whether your client is working toward an unmedicated birth or scheduling a cesarean by choice, this episode is for you. Bodily autonomy doesn't require our approval and our clients deserve better than our unexamined assumptions.
Every doula has left a birth or ended a postpartum shift questioning whether their doula skills were actually effective. Nothing went wrong. The client was okay. But something wasn't received the way you intended and you couldn't stop thinking about it on the drive home. Most doulas push that feeling down and move on to the next client. Some spiral into self-criticism. Neither option builds skill or makes you more effective at this work. That feeling is a signal. What you do with it matters. Our nervous system shapes our support in ways we do not always recognize in real time. So does what we are carrying from the clients we've worked with before. So does the story we tell ourselves when we debrief, if we debrief at all. Sometimes the honest look at our practice leads somewhere harder than a new skill. Join me for an honest look at what it actually means to take our doula skills deeper and what gets in the way when we don't.
Knowing how to get doula clients is one of the first real questions after training ends. And most new doulas are getting the same answer. Network with other doulas. Reach out to providers. Wait. That advice is well-intentioned. Most doula training does not effectively prepare you for what comes after it. How do the families who need you actually find you? Becoming a doula and building a doula business are not the same thing. That distinction does not get enough honest airtime. This conversation gives it some. It is also a conversation about visibility, money, and the parts of building a doula business that feel uncomfortable but cannot be avoided. Join me for an honest conversation about what building a business actually takes and how to get doula clients.
The cascade of interventions is often taught like interventions are a row of dominoes. Pitocin leads to epidural. Epidural leads to cesarean. Once the first one is tipped, the rest will inevitably follow. That might sound logical at first. But it can also quietly teach fear and shape bias in the way doulas support clients. This conversation takes a hard look at this belief, the message it sends, and the biases underneath it. The reality isn't a cascade, but care bundles, clinical pathways, hospital culture, and decision points that are part of the process. Clients need more than fear dressed up as preparation. They need language they can use, questions they can ask, and support that is skilled in helping them move towards their goals. Join me as we challenge one of the most repeated ideas in doula culture and look at how bias changes support. This is a conversation about better language, better tools, and skilled support that helps clients keep moving toward their goals.
Supporting induction means knowing how to support what is actually happening. Many clients are scheduled without clear information about why, how induction begins, what options remain, or how long it may take. Then ripening takes a day or two, the plan changes, and disappointment builds because the expectation was unrealistic. This conversation puts induction back where it belongs: informed consent, realistic expectations, and support that adjusts without losing advocacy. Bishop score, cervical ripening, provider language, and accurate information shape how prepared a client is before induction begins. As doulas, we need to understand what these mean, how they shape expectations, and why support matters more when plans shift. Join us as we talk about leaving old messaging behind and supporting induction with more skill and less bias.
Doula tools can help, but they don't keep you grounded. A big birth bag can turn into a crutch when labor gets loud, space gets tight, and you feel pressure to find an immediate solution. Some doulas over-offer, over-talk, and reach for tools too fast. Then a client shushes them, moves their hands away, or rejects a comfort measure, and it feels personal. It isn't. It's feedback. Good support adjusts without getting rattled. This conversation puts the tools question back where it belongs: with the client's preferences. The best comfort items are often the ones they already use during cramps, illness, and overwhelm. Familiar works. Random tools introduced in labor often don't. Join us as we talk about how to stop relying on the doula tools in your bag as a crutch, and how to support clients anywhere with less stuff and more skill.
Core doula skills shape the whole room, not your bag of tricks. You do not build strong support by collecting more tools. You build it through presence, attunement, communication, and timing, in real time, with real clients. These skills show up when things feel tense. When plans change. When your client looks at you for answers you cannot give. When the room speeds up and you feel your own nervous system kick up. They grow through experience, reflection, and repetition. You notice what you do when you feel unsure. You practice staying grounded. You say less, listen more, and choose your moments. Over time, you stop scrambling and start leading with calm. This conversation gives you a simple way to remember the four doula pillars, PACT, and how to use them in birth and postpartum. It also gives you a small, realistic practice plan so you can train one skill at a time instead of trying to fix everything at once. This episode is for doulas who want to feel more confident, support clearer decision-making, and help keep your cliens grounded in the moments that matter most.
Professional Identity shapes how clients experience you, especially when things get hard. It shows up under pressure. In the room. In the moments you do not get to rehearse. This conversation is not about branding or personality. It is about how you practice. In this episode, we talk through: Why skill alone does not create trust How stress reveals your default way of working Four common practice anchors doulas lean into What happens when strengths over-express How unprocessed birth or postpartum medical trauma can quietly shape your work Why regulation and boundaries matter for both you and your clients Along the way, you will be invited to reflect on: What you value as a professional How you support clients in real situations How you communicate when pressure is high Where your default helps and where it gets in the way This episode is for doulas who want their Professional Identity to feel steady and intentional. Not performative. Not reactive. If this conversation stays with you, leave a review so others can find it.
Confidence grows through action, not intention. Did you know that confidence as a process? You do not wake up with it. You build it by doing the work, taking a step of faith, and sometimes missing the mark. Confidence forms through experience, reflection, and repetition. It develops when you act, before you feel certain. Mistakes strengthen your judgment, and real growth happens when you keep showing up even after things do not go as planned. Waiting to feel confident keeps you stuck. Moving forward creates the confidence you are looking for. This conversation is for doulas who want to trust themselves more, take meaningful action, and grow into their work through practice rather than perfection.
Readiness Is Not a Feeling In this episode, we talk about readiness and why waiting to feel confident keeps so many doulas stuck. Readiness is not a feeling. It is an action. We break down why readiness is built through experience, not certainty, and why fear does not mean you are unprepared. You'll hear why mentorship alone does not create confidence, how real growth happens through doing, and what readiness actually looks like in birth, postpartum, education, and lactation support. If you have ever thought, "When I feel ready, I'll take the first step," this episode is for you.
Doulas of the Roundtable wraps up season seven with a look back and a clear look ahead. In this episode, you hear our top ten most listened to episodes of all time and why these conversations continue to matter to doulas at every stage of practice. We also share an important update about the podcast. Eva will be stepping away from the show. We want to take a moment and honor Eva's voice, insight, and role in shaping the podcast into what it is today! Moving forward, Angela will continue as the solo host of Doulas of the Roundtable. The focus remains the same. Honest conversations. Evidence based discussion. Real talk about the work, the business, and the responsibility doulas carry. If you have listened from the beginning or joined recently, this episode brings closure, clarity, and direction for what comes next. Thank you for being part of this community and for helping this podcast grow season after season.
Ranking source
Apple Podcasts rankings via the Mato Topic Intelligence Platform.
Observed September 13, 2026. Cached outside the daily freshness window; the positions keep the date they were taken on.
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