What is a Postpartum Doula? A Guide to Postbirth Support

What is a Postpartum Doula? A Guide to Postbirth Support

Having a baby is an exciting, joyous, and challenging time. While your focus is rightly on your newborn, your postpartum recovery and transition to parenthood also require care and support. This is where a postpartum doula can help. 

As you’ll learn, hiring a doula for the first weeks and months after childbirth can profoundly impact your physical, mental, and emotional well-being.

What is a Postpartum Doula?
A postpartum doula is a trained professional who provides in-home non-medical support and care for mothers and families following childbirth. Also referred to as a postnatal doula or simply doula, their role is to nurture, educate, and assist a new mother in her transition to parenthood.
The core responsibilities of a postpartum care doula include:
- Providing hands-on care and assistance with the baby, such as feeding, swaddling, soothing
- Giving emotional support and encouragement to boost maternal confidence during 4 weeks postpartum
- Educating on infant development, care basics, and establishing feeding and sleep routines
- Helping mothers care for their postpartum recovery and healing
- Light household help such as cooking nutritious meals, cleaning, errands
- Offering objective guidance, resources, and referrals as needed
In essence, a postpartum doula helps fill in the gaps that medical providers don’t address during the often overwhelming first 4-12 weeks post-childbirth. Their in-home care is typically more specialized, personalized, and attentive than that of a baby nurse or night nurse.

Why Have a Postpartum Doula?

There are many excellent reasons to have extra assistance during your postpartum recovery:

Recover Faster Physically

A postpartum doula can monitor how you are healing while reminding you to rest and recover. She can assist with self-care tasks that a new mom often struggles to manage alone, like preparing nutritious meals, staying hydrated, and establishing a manageable breastfeeding and pumping schedule.

Having an extra set of hands with the baby allows your body the downtime it needs to heal from any trauma sustained during childbirth. It also lets you catch up on much-needed sleep and return to regular routines at your own pace.

Reduce Anxiety & Depression

It’s very common for new mothers to experience signs of postpartum depression and anxiety, including excessive worry about their ability to care for their baby. Sadness, irritability, loss of appetite, and trouble bonding can also occur.

Professional emotional support is proven to dramatically reduce the risk of postpartum mood disorders. A postpartum doula is there during the hard days to listen without judgment, provide coping strategies, boost confidence in parenting abilities, and know when to step in if further medical help is advisable.

Moreover, postpartum depression in men is not common, yet dads can get some emotional support as well.

Better Partner Support

Partners often want to help but don’t always know how best to split overwhelming newborn duties with an exhausted, healing partner. This can lead to tensions over who does what and feelings of inadequacy on both sides.

A postpartum doula helps assess individual and couple needs to establish manageable responsibilities, communication techniques, and self-care practices. Partners feel less overwhelmed and more empowered to be present, which leads to greater unity and fewer arguments during 6 weeks postpartum.

Household Help

Keeping up with household demands like having regular nutritious meals, a somewhat clean home, and getting out for walks is hugely beneficial but often pushed aside. A postpartum doula can cook, tidy up, and encourage healthy lifestyle habits so new moms don’t have to shoulder the entire burden alone.

Moreover, a postpartum doula can also help with postpartum hair loss and weight loss after pregnancy for mothers.

How is a Doula Different than Other Postpartum Support Roles?

There are a few common types of birth support professionals - postpartum doulas, baby nurses, and newborn care specialists. While their services overlap, there are important differences between these roles.

Baby or Night Nurse

A baby or night nurse is best suited for short-term help, usually just 1-2 weeks. For example, if you need someone solely focused on taking over feedings every 2-4 hours overnight so you can get uninterrupted blocks of sleep after a vaginal or c-section birth. 

Or if you need temporary daily coverage for naps or errands in the early weeks of cluster feedings and intense postpartum recovery. Their care is very task-focused on essentials like feedings, diaper changes, and soothing for sleep.

Newborn Care Specialist

A newborn care specialist can cover longer-term daytime care if you plan to return to work early at 6-8 weeks postpartum or regularly need date night sitters after parental leave ends. 

They help establish and maintain newborn care routines like feeding, sleep cycles, playtime, and development tracking. However, the support is centered more on following set schedules and parent directions than imparting their expertise to boost confidence or customize care.

Postpartum Doula

A postpartum doula uniquely provides in-depth nurturing, especially in those critical first 4-12 weeks postpartum. Their care is tailored to the emotional and physical recovery and transition needs of each mom and baby. 

For example, if it's your first baby and you are struggling with breastfeeding or feeling anxious, sad, or irritated frequently. Or recovering from an unexpected c-section, or simply so exhausted caring for the baby alone while also trying to heal your body. 

That's when a postpartum doula can guide you with care customized to your situation - hands-on assistance plus emotional support, lactation help, education, resources, and coaching.

What Does a Postpartum Doula Cost?

Postpartum doula fees can range widely but tend to cost $25-$50 per hour on average. Most have a base rate and then add on costs for overnight hours or weekends. Considering their round-the-clock availability, costs quickly add up.

Many doulas require a minimum number of hours booked per week such as 15-20 hours. For full-time care, every week for a month, expect to invest $2,500-$5,000 or more. While not exactly cheap, costs are comparable to a postpartum nurse or a night nurse.

The good news is that more insurance companies now offer doula reimbursement. Some childbirth education classes include a free postpartum visit or two from affiliated doulas. If costs are prohibitive, look into local volunteer doula groups to see if you qualify for free or subsidized services.

No matter your budget, even just having a doula check in periodically or retained for the hardest nights can provide immense relief. Prioritize the first two weeks when recoveries are most difficult, and Consider asking family to contribute rather than shop for baby items. The investment in your recovery is worth it.

How to Find and Choose a Postpartum Doula

Here are great ways to find skilled postpartum doulas in your local area:

Doula Match Services

Reputable national organizations like Ayi Connect refer trained doulas through their “find a doula” search tools. These match services connect you with doulas certified in your geographic regions.

You simply enter your due date zip code, then can browse profiles and reviews of doulas in your area. After identifying potential, you can interview candidates by phone, video chat, or in person. They help facilitate the process from match to hire.

Birthing Class Referrals

If you attended any local childbirth education courses, the instructors likely have close relationships with doulas they can recommend. Explain your needs, and they will suggest candidates that seem like a good fit.

Hospital Program Lists

More hospitals are establishing official doula programs approved to serve their patients. Ask your delivery hospital or birth center if they have a go-to doula list you can access.

When to Hire a Postpartum Doula?

Ideally, reach out in your second trimester, around 20 weeks pregnant, or as soon as you can if the baby is already born. The earlier you start the interview process, the more choices you’ll have for finding a good personality and schedule fit. No matter when you hire them, they can still help!

If you’re newly postpartum, don’t hesitate to call for assistance even for the next day or temporary support. Good doulas can usually take short-notice clients when needed for urgent recovery or emotional support, even if they end up referring to longer-term care.

Schedule services to start as soon as you return home from the hospital. Continuity of care into the first 2 weeks postpartum is enormously helpful for hitting the ground smoothly.

Conclusion

The fourth trimester after giving birth presents huge physical, emotional, and lifestyle changes. A postpartum doula’s specialized care and wisdom provide support unmatched by medical providers alone. They empower mothers, partners, and babies not just to survive but to thrive.

If the cost gives you pause, know that investing in this transitional support pays exponential dividends in the long term. The early months lay the foundation for the whole family’s well-being in parenthood. Whether you can afford full-time or just a few critical hours, the right doula makes all the difference.

AyiConnect is a platform to connect families with helpers who have a language specialty in addition to care. You can post a free job to engage with them through self-service or use concierge service. For self-service, you can even join in the discussion. The concierge service can provide another option to ensure successful matches for busy families who don't have time to search or need language assistance. Schedule a free consultation here for our concierge service, or check us out at ayiconnection.com