Blog / Doula Resources
Doulas need support too! We’re here for you with information, research, news and more to help you stay up to date and inspired with articles written just for doulas.
Looking for support to grow your practice? Our Doula Business collection of articles has you covered!
Gift Ideas for Birth and Postpartum Doulas
Sharon Muza, BS, CD(DONA), BDT(DONA), LCCE, FACCE, CLE For many parts of the world and for a variety of cultures and religions, December is a time to celebrate and many of these celebrations involve gift giving. Doulas, just like everyone else, love receiving presents...
Pregúntale a Penny (Ask Penny Español)
Queridas Doulas, Como DONA está celebrando su 25 aniversario este año, Jessica English (editora del International Doula) me pidió que le dedicara la columna Pregúntale a Penny a la historia de DONA. Ponderando sobre esto, encontré la primera edición del International...
1 in 10 Babies Are Born too Early – Stand with DONA in Honoring Prematurity Awareness Month & Day
By Sharon Muza, BS, CD(DONA), BDT(DONA), LCCE, FACCE, CLE November is Prematurity Awareness Month and November 17, 2017 is World Prematurity Awareness Day. Babies born before 37 weeks of gestation are considered premature. In the USA, 380,000 (1 in 10) babies are born...
Five Things YOU Can Do to Advocate for Childbearing Families
By Sharon Muza, BS, CD(DONA), BDT(DONA), LCCE, FACCE, CLE I am still pumped and excited from my recent experience last week in Washington DC, where I participated in a DONA International Birth and Postpartum Trainers Retreat which immediately preceded the Lamaze...
TED Talks – Pregnancy and Parenting Resources to Share
By Sharon Muza, BS, CD(DONA), BDT(DONA), LCCE, FACCE, CLE The tagline for the overall theme of any TED Talk is "Ideas worth spreading." Many of you may be already familiar with TED and TED Talks. TED is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization founded in 1984 that is...
Blogging for Business – Ten Tips to Start You Off Right
By Sharon Muza, BS, CD(DONA), BDT(DONA), LCCE, FACCE, CLE Many birth and postpartum doulas have a business website that they have spent time, energy and money on so that potential clients can effectively find them and learn more about their offerings. New and fresh...
DONA International Celebrates Black Breastfeeding Week 2017
Sharon Muza, BS, CD(DONA), BDT(DONA), LCCE, FACCE, CLE August is all about breastfeeding and chestfeeding. The first week of August is World Breastfeeding Week, all of August is National Breastfeeding Month in the United States, and the last week of August is Black...
The Doula and Research: Great Resources to Build Skills
By Sharon Muza, BS, CD(DONA), BDT(DONA), LCCE, FACCE, CLE Birth and postpartum doulas do not need to be scientists or researchers to do their work. According to DONA International, doulas provide physical, emotional, and informational support to families during...
DONA International Celebrates World Breastfeeding Week 2017 (en Español too)
By Sharon Muza, BS, CD(DONA), BDT(DONA), LCCE, FACCE, CLE August 1-7, 2017 is World Breastfeeding Week. This year's theme is Sustaining Breastfeeding – Together. The World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action champions World Breastfeeding Week every year during this time...
14 Fun Facts about DONA International and the DONA Conference
By Sharon Muza, BS, CD(DONA), BDT(DONA), LCCE, FACCE, CLE 2017 Conference Eve On the eve of the DONA International Virtual Conference – Cultivating Connections: It starts with us, I thought I might share 14 fun facts about this amazing organization and our upcoming...
A Fun Quiz on Abbreviations Used in the Childbearing Year – Enter to Win a DONA Gift Certificate
By Sharon Muza, BS, CD(DONA), BDT(DONA), LCCE, FACCE, CLE Today I thought we might have a little fun testing our knowledge of abbreviations that apply to the childbearing year. We may hear these terms during our clients' pregnancy, birth or postpartum period. We may...
Cultivate Connections! DONA Virtual Conference and 25th Birthday Celebration Is Not to Be Missed
By Sharon Muza, CD(DONA), BDT(DONA), LCCE, FACCE, CLE It’s conference time Summer for those in the Northern Hemisphere is a time to kick back and relax, because the living is easy. Lazy days of summer may at times feel unproductive. Did you know that by registering...
Just Add Water – Ten Tips for Doulas
By Sharon Muza, BS, CD(DONA), BDT(DONA), LCCE, FACCE, CLE Many doulas are aware of the benefits of laboring and/or birthing in water. People have long sunk into the sweet relief of the tub and its warm and soothing contents to minimize many a labor pain. There is a...
Introducing “Doula Me This!” – A New Series That Challenges Us to Be the Best Doulas We Can Be
By Sharon Muza, BS, CD(DONA), BDT(DONA), LCCE, FACCE, CLE I am proud to be introducing a new occasional series "Doula Me This!" that challenges doulas to consider how they might handle a birth or postpartum situation, in consideration of their training, experience,...
Six Ways The DONA Blog Can Help You Grow Your Business
By Sharon Muza, BS, CD(DONA), BDT(DONA), LCCE, FACCE, CLE The DONA Doula Chronicles blog has been published for over three years and this post is #151. That’s a lot of useful information that has been put out on the “interwebs” by DONA International over time. This...
One in Three is Too Many – DONA International Recognizes Cesarean Awareness Month
By Sharon Muza, BS, CD(DONA), BDT(DONA), LCCE, FACCE, CLE April is Cesarean Awareness Month (CAM) and if you are a doula, odds are you will have a birth or postpartum client who has given birth by cesarean at some point (or many times?) during your professional...
The Doula Difference: Lowering Cesarean Rates
By Jessica English, CD/BDT(DONA), LCCE, FACCE The research on doulas is solid. Doulas improve outcomes for both parents and babies. Over the next six months, this blog will examine the six documented benefits of having a doula at one’s birth. We know that there are...
Modern “Mary Poppins” – A Guide to The Professional Postpartum Doula Bag
By Sharon Muza, BS, CD(DONA), BDT(DONA), LCCE, FACCE, CLE What do postpartum doulas carry in their bag? New birth doulas are often very concerned about what to pack in their "birth bag" - the bag that they bring with them to every birth that is usually filled with all...