Shared Care Doula Support

If you’ve explored doula support, hopefully it has become clear to you that the relationship you build with your support team is the most important thing. A doula is there to help you navigate your maternity care with fully informed, evidence based information as well as supporting you with decision-making strategies and continuity through your journey. Above all else though, the doula-client relationship is one of trust and care.

So, what is Shared Care Doula Support?

Shared Care packages offer the flexibility and additional knowledge and experience of more than one doula. This is usually two doulas who have worked closely previously, have an agreed way of working together and share a similar ethos. A Shared Care agreement will mean that both of these doulas will work together to support your journey, each drawing from their own knowledge, experience and skills. They will combine their resources to support you practically in a way that aligns with you.

How this works in real life…

When you opt for a shared care doula support package, you will usually agree a number of antenatal sessions, birth support and a postnatal support package. Your doulas will have an agreed way of working this package between them so that you get the most from their support. Most doulas will also be happy to adjust packages to meet you where you are if you need this. An example of what this could look like:

·         Antenatal Sessions

These sessions could be offered as shared sessions where your doulas both attend, offering an enriching discussion where both doulas bring their knowledge and experience together to go over the details that are important to you.

You may also choose to have one doula attend each session, giving you the chance to understand how each doula works as an individual, building the trust with them that will prove so valuable on the day of your birth.

There is value in each of these options, so it comes down to what is most important for you.

·         Virtual Support

From the time of booking, you (and your partner, if you wish) and your doulas will join a WhatsApp group for you to ask questions, for us to share resources and keep updated about sessions and what is going on during your pregnancy. We hope that this is a space for us to connect through your pregnancy also to continue to build on rapport and trust.

·         On-call period and birth

The on-call period will start around 10 days to 2 weeks before your due date and last until your baby is born. Depending on individual availabilities, your doulas will split this to ensure your on-call period is fully covered. Whichever doula is on-call on the day of your labour will attend your birth. We will cover communications for the day of your labour when we go through the details of your package, so you know what to expect and we are all on the same page.

·         Postnatal Support

Usually, a postnatal session is offered with a standard package to allow you the space to discuss your birth, how feeding is going and offer any practical support you may need. Usually, it will be the doula who attended your birth who visits, however if you would like both doulas to attend, this can also be arranged. A doula is invested in you and your family deeply and you will have likely built a connection with both of your doulas through your journey, so a joint visit may be a lovely option for everyone.

If you have booked for a postnatal support package as shared care too, this could be a simple split of hours depending on availability that works for all. It may also be the case that your doula’s have unique skill sets which may be more or less beneficial for you depending on your journey. Should an obvious need arise, your doulas can agree the best plan for moving forward to support you.

The benefits for you…

A Shared Care package can be beneficial for families in terms of availability and cover, scope of knowledge and experience and feeling held by a team.

Doulas often work together within the community to ensure that women are as supported as possible, however booked clients are always given priority. Loose back up arrangements are often made, there may even be periods of ‘official’ cover, but a Shared Care arrangement ensures that you have met the doulas who will attend your birth and that they understand you and your birth preferences. In cases of emergencies or sickness, the chance of a known person attending your birth is much higher in the case of Shared Care.

The knowledge and experience of doulas is truly unique, although we all believe in true autonomy, respect and trust in birth. Some doulas may have more training in infant feeding, another may have more experience in a particular type of birth. One may be incredibly knowledgeable about mental health whereas another may be more able to provide nutritional support. Those practical differences may not be want you want your decision to rest on, so why should you? Have the best of both worlds with Shared Care.

It may be that you have found a fabulous doula but she cannot commit to your whole on call period due to a clash with another client or a holiday. On call periods can overlap but not all families (or doulas!) are confident going into an agreement like this. A Shared Care agreement can be a great workaround for everyone.

Building a rapport with two people gives you the benefit of feeling supported by a team whilst still building a deeply personalised relationship with your doulas.

Who Shared Care is (and isn’t) for

As explained above, Shared Care can be great in certain circumstances for some families, including when a chosen doula isn’t fully available for your dates, those who want more reassurance and flexibility around their support, perhaps if someone feels more comfortable building rapport with more than one person.

It’s important to recognise that Shared Care is not necessarily a better option for everyone. 1:1 support may be better for families who feel easily overwhelmed, prefer to have a fully consistent approach in their support or maybe feel that two doulas would drain their social battery a little quickly. If it is offered to you as an alternative option but you feel it isn’t the option for you, feel free to ask your doula more questions or be honest and say it’s not right for you. We understand that it’s not always the right option.

My philosophy and approach

I have offered Shared Care with a number of doulas and clients now and I find the approach incredibly enriching for families and myself. Having the breadth of experience amongst our doula community, there is always something new to learn.

Having a young family myself, it can reduce concerns for myself, my family and the families I work with to have the flexibility of a Shared Care arrangement in case of sickness or childcare issues. Doulas often have other commitments alongside their birth work which are often disrupted for birth support, but Shared Care can allow more of this to continue as normal, which can be really helpful for the community as a whole. The doulas I work with all value community, continuity, informed choice and feelings of regulation which is all supported by the Shared Care model.

If you want to explore Shared Care Doula Support further, get in touch.

Details of the Willow and World Shared Care package, offered with my colleague Millie (The Birth World Doula) is here

You can also post your questions below and I will be in touch with a response.