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Top Questions to Ask a Doula in an Interview

Writer's picture: Nicole AmentNicole Ament


Client holding baby after cesarean, doula Nicki beside her bed
Doula Nicki with a Birth Client

It can be intimidating to know how to find a good doula, so we've put together some questions to help you find the right match.

Often, when one starts their search for a doula, they don’t know where to start. Maybe they’ve heard of doulas in the news or read a story about their support or perhaps they’ve had a friend who used a doula for their birth or postpartum (hopefully, that friend is passing on their information!). Maybe their provider mentioned one. 

One great place to look is a good Google search, that will produce options for people of local-to-them doulas. Another great resource is Doulamatch.net, where parents can enter their due date and zip code and be given a list of local-to-them doulas who have availability for their due date, as well as give their background, bio, and reviews. 

It’s a good idea to interview multiple doulas so one gets a good feel of the type of support that’s available to them in their area. So, once you’ve reached out to a doula and set up a consultation (many of us do them for free, btw), you may now be wondering what good questions you should be asking this potential doula at your meeting. Here is a list of doula interview questions that you can ask all potential doulas:

A great place to start is Tell me about your doula philosophy. Why did you become a doula?  How long have you been doing this work? How many births have you attended? This is where they can tell you all about how they feel about birth,  how they fit into the picture in terms of supporting you, and how long they’ve been a birthworker. The number of clients a doula has supported really is only important to the one looking for a doula; I’ve known incredible doulas who have half the births that I do and we all have to start somewhere (something to keep in mind).  Are they super into the physiological aspects of birth? Did they have birth trauma themselves and are now trying to help others from experiencing the same? Are they hands-off? Their style will tell you a lot about how they will mesh with your outlook on birth.

What training/certification did you receive? Do you offer other services, and if so, what are they? Not all doulas are certified, but most of us are trained and continue to update our knowledge on the subject of birth, pregnancy, and postpartum. One doesn’t have to be certified to be a great doula, though, one should always want to expand their knowledge on the subject so they can help their clients better. Some doulas take training in many different areas of birth, such as lactation and feeding, postpartum support, abortion/bereavement support, childbirth education, etc.

It can be beneficial to have a doula who is skilled in various areas so you have great, continuous support and good community resources, in a myriad of ways. 

What kind of births do you attend? Some doulas only attend home births or birth center births, while others only do hospital births, and even more that support birth no matter where the laboring person is birthing. The last thing one wants is a doula who has a negative outlook on the space  that we’re hoping to birth in. 

When do you join me for in-person support during my labor? Some doulas will come to your home, before you’ve even left for the hospital, to give you support there, before joining you there later on. While most doulas will join you in the hospital, once you’re in a pretty active labor pattern (dilated to 5-6cm, contractions happening every 2-4 minutes, you are needing to really focus and have extra support for yourself and your partner), others will show up just as you get there and get settled in. A good doula will have you and your partner feeling comfortable enough to handle things without them being physically present until you get to the hospital/birth center, they’ll  be communicating with you plenty through texts and phones calls, and will be waiting in the background for you to call them in when you’re ready for them. Some doulas will only give you a limited number of in-person hours of support, so keep that in mind when hiring them. 

What does your pricing include? You want to know how many prenatal visits and how many postpartum visits their birth package(s) includes, as that varies from doula to doula. It’s pretty standard to get two prenatal visits and one-two postpartum visits, along with continuous pregnancy and labor support. Do those postpartum visits include lactation or feeding help? What is covered at the prenatal visits? 

Do you have a backup doula and what happens if you can’t attend my birth? It’s incredibly important to have a doula that has backup! Babies and birth are unpredictable. Sometimes, multiple babies like to come at the same time. Most often, everything works out, and we doulas manage well to get from one birth to the next in plenty of time and never miss a beat, but sometimes, we can’t get to your birth. Sometimes, weather affects us. Sometimes, we get sick and it’s not safe to be around you or your new baby. Sometimes, babies come so quickly, the provider doesn’t even make it on time! No matter the reason, your doula should have someone/people that they can send in their place to support you until they can get to you or be with you for your entire birth instead. Those costs for backups are often covered by the doula, so it’s nothing more out of your pocket and you should be offered to meet the backup, if you desire. 

How many due dates do you take a month and when do you go on-call for my birth? Many doulas take anywhere from 2-5 birth clients a month, which means there are often overlapping due dates. But because due dates are just guesses as to when a baby may come, 99% of the time, babies come on their own days and nothing is ever made of it. I’ve had babies that are all due on the same date, come in three different weeks and I’ve had babies with due dates in three different weeks all come on the same day. It’s a literal crap shoot and one of the reasons we always have a backup. Many doulas go on-call for your birth at 37 or 38 weeks and stay on-call until your baby is Earthside. Being on-call for us, for example, means that we don’t go more than an hour away, we don’t partake in substances such as alcohol, and we immediately respond to your texts or calls rather than the soonest we can get back to you. 

Do you have references I can contact or reviews I can see? Word of mouth is HUGE in the birth world! It’s where the majority of our clients hear about us, from other people. Check the Google reviews, check the Doulamatch reviews, check the Yelp and Facebook reviews. They tell a lot about the type of doula that you’re looking to hire! While not everyone wants to be contacted by a stranger for a reference, they are willing to leave reviews for future/potential clients to see. 

Finally, after the interview/consult is over, there are some things you should ask yourself. Did you click with that doula? Is this a person you could see yourself hanging out with for 24 hours, during a time that’s likely to be the most vulnerable of your life? How does your partner/spouse feel about this doula (they support BOTH of you, they are not a replacement of the partner). You will know within a few minutes if you and that doula click, as it will feel like you’re talking to your best friend or that you’ve known them for years and you will feel safe in their presence/on the phone with them. Did the doula answer all of my questions? Do I feel confident about this doula’s abilities? Is there one doula that stood out among the others? Most importantly, what is your gut telling you? 

Plan on letting the doulas know within a week after the consultation whether you’ve picked someone them or not. Given the limited availability that doulas have, we tend to  book clients on a first come, first serve basis; it’s always possible that someone else books for your month before you get a chance to. Don’t wait too long to start looking for birth support! The sooner you get a doula, the better chance you both get at getting to know each other before your life-changing event happens. 

Deep breaths, you got this. 

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