The Original Birth Connection

Continuity of carer isn't a nice-to-have.

It's the thing the evidence keeps pointing at, and it's the thing hardest to staff. Non-clinical but well trained birth support makes the difference!

So families are doing what people do when a system can't provide something: they're sourcing it themselves.

That's not a criticism of midwifery — it's a description of what's left when caseloading isn't available and every appointment is with someone new.

If you've been wondering whether there's demand for this work: this is the demand.

It's not aesthetic and it's not a wellness trend.

It's people trying to make sure one person in the room knows their name and their history, what they want, how to provide advocacy and help them navigate a system that's not set up for the individual.

If you want to be that person our Full Spectrum Doula Training — six months, in-person practical weekend, mentoring for up to 18 months, including through your axcreditation.

If you'd like to find out more and ask all your questions join us on 18th August at 8pm - Doula Connections - via zoom. Meet the doulas and find out about our incredible training.

DM me for the zoom link x

The hardest thing to teach on this part of our doula training course isn't the physiology of birth. It's the ability to hold two true things at once.

Obstetric intervention saves lives. You will support clients whose babies are here because of an emergency caesarean, an induction, a home birth transfer — and you'll be in rooms where the escalation was exactly right and exactly fast enough.

And: the way maternity care is currently set up makes intervention more likely than it needs to be and causes iatrogenic harm. Not because clinicians are careless, but because of environment, staffing levels, defensive practice, hospital policy and habit.

Every step in the cascade is defensible on its own terms. That's what makes it so hard to interrupt.

Doulas who can only hold the first thing are no use in the room - your clients won't feel they got the support or advocacy they needed. Doulas who can only hold the second one have no place supporting people to birth in our maternity system.

Both. At once. That's the job. Doula work is beautiful and tough, heartfelt and pragmatic but always, always worth it.

If birth work is calling you drop DOULA in the comments and I'll DM you with more info about our training and next open session we're holding for those who are interested and have questions!

Alex x

In our birth space group mentoring session we did a deep dive into something one of the attendees brought to the group. “The births that really stay with you as a doula”.

For some it was the births that were beautifully physiological and then something seemingly random happened .. a big PPH / a 4th degree tear. For some it was the birth that seemed to dissolve into a cascade of endless unnecessary intervention and iatrogenic harm and for others it was birth where healthcare professionals did stuff that was damn right dangerous or unnecessary.

All these births created an element of trauma response in the doulas as they discussed them.

At the session we held space for this. We unpacked what this meant to the doulas and their work, and how they forged a path forward enabling them to process these experiences and continue their incredible work without becoming shut down/ switched off and turned out.

If you feel like you need a safe space to be a heard as a doula, we would love to be that for you.