toLabor

📣 LAST DOULA TRAINING OF 2024 📣 Join us in person in Richmond, VA OR from wherever you are in the world via Zoom, for a weekend long intensive Birth Doula Training. This workshop will get you ready to begin attending births and work toward your certification with us so that you’ll be recognized as a Professionally Certified Birth Doula- able to receive payment/reimbursement from , and other organizations supporting families working with Doulas.

was created in 1977 and remains to be the most well rounded, evidence based and comprehensive Doula training out there. We are a small, grassroots organization ourselves which helps us Doula YOU through your training, certification and career as a birth worker. We believe in YOU, and are here to help you build, grow and sustain your business in birth work. From our in depth knowledge around birth, our focus on social justice and incorporation of our Business of Being a Doula segment, we aim to prepare you for all the twists and turns of Doula-ship.

Sign up today!! Link in bio or go to https://tolabor.com/workshops for more info! Comment or DM to set up a phone call with our team if you have more questions ✨

📸: by the incredibly talented 😍💕

It’s almost time for our September Birth Doula Training! Held IN PERSON in Richmond, VA or VIRTUALLY via Zoom in your own location 📍Choose as your Birth Doula Training + Certifying Organization!!

Join us for a truly transformative weekend immersed in Birth education, care techniques, advocacy skills, diversity guidance, career building and MORE! 👏

PLUS… DM if interested in a special little, last minute discount code!! 💸 We can’t wait to get started 🤗

📸: the incredibly talented Go give a follow!! ✨

Did you know that our Ultimate Doula Training Combo Event with will prepare you to receive certification in FOUR different areas of birth work?!

• Birth Doula
• Postpartum Doula
• Lactation Support + Education
• Epidural Support

This offering is perfect for new Doulas embarking on their birth work journey AND seasoned Doulas looking to deepen their skills or add to their repertoire. Join us in Charleston, SC on October 10th-14th for a transformative, empowering, multi sensory education on all things birth…and build your career! Stay with us in this stunnah of a beach house on Isle of Palms, commute from your own abode, or sign into Zoom and show up from your very own living room- we have every option thinkable to make this workshop accessible for YOU! Sign up now while spots are still available ✨

Link in bio or comment/dm for more info 💛

🌴STOP YOUR SCROLL 🌴

Join us at a beautiful coastal retreat on Isle of Palms near Charleston, SC for a doula training workshop combo that you can use toward dual-organization certifications! This unique and enriching experience will prepare you with everything you need to work with families and build your business.
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This is the ULTIMATE Doula Training Retreat, co-hosted by ToLABOR and our friends at !
You don’t want to miss this!
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Earn your:
CLD - Certified Labor Doula
CPBD - Certified Professional Birth Doula
CPD - Certified Postpartum Doula
CLSE - Certified Lactation Support & Educator
EpiDoula - Advanced Skills for reducing epidural complications

We are so excited about this! It is going to be the workshop of the year 🥳

SEE YOU THERE!

The trust that’s developed between Doula + Client during the prenatal time- (with the guidance in choosing the most aligned provider/birth location, all those appointment updates, the “hey, is this normal?!” texts, the in home visits, the education designed specifically for them, and all those ‘talks off the ledge’ when the ‘due date’ passes)- creates a solid, unwavering feeling of support through the labor and birth itself. When your client looks at you like this, with their baby safely on their chest, the work of labor behind them, this look- says it all. This is why we do what we do 💛

Gorgeous shot by 📸: 🥰

We had such a wonderful June Doula Training in Richmond, VA! Participants from both coasts came together to learn, to share and to connect over compassionate care. We are so proud of these new Birth Doulas for following their desire to continue the support and empowerment of Birthers everywhere 💛

Thank yous go out to our pregnant model (who got in some great hip squeezes that day ☺️), for sharing the history of racism with us and how our modern health care system has been, and still is, impacted- plus facilitating a very powerful discussion around allyship and birth work, AND for teaching this latest group the business side of being a Doula. What a team!! 🙌

Interested in becoming a Doula with ?! Join us for a fun and wholly educational weekend workshop to get you started on your path! Our next training will be September 27-29th. In Person (Richmond, VA) OR Virtual via Zoom. Sign up now!! DM or Comment for link 💛

✨ Juneteenth ✨

Have you supported a Black Birth Worker today? Here is a short list of some of our favorites- give them a follow and show them some love today by donating to their work 🖤










Amazing photo by: 📸 .photo (give them a follow too!!)

When the hard work of labor is done and the relief in the room is palpable. The weight of this brand new person, just born, is heavy and real on the outside and the tears wash away all the doubt and fear of the last few hours ✨ This image is everything 💛

📸: 💞

Registration is OPEN for our In Person OR Virtual Workshop happening June 28-30, in Richmond, VA or on Zoom from wherever you are! Join us for a truly transformative weekend! You need zero prerequisites, and you will leave the weekend as a Professionally Trained Birth Doula.

Learn the art of Birth Doula-ship, advocacy skills, positioning and counter pressure techniques. We will welcome fellow educators: and to teach the history-present day Racism in Reproductive Rights and Healthcare (and how to participate in your community as a true ally) plus the business side of being an entrepreneur with your own birth biz!

Join us! June 28-30, In Person (RVA) or Zoom (from wherever you are!) Link is in bio or comment/DM for more info 💛

PUSHING… There are so many ways to push a baby down and out, and the efficiency of that journey is dependent on a few things + is entirely relative to that individual birther. Sone things that factor in: Position/size of baby, tolerance of baby, anatomy/space in the birthers pelvis, the elasticity of the perineum, the powers of the contractions, the sensation of the pressure the baby is creating, the position of the birther- are we making ENOUGH space?One trick we’ve learned to really help garner more force to help the momentum downward is LEVERAGE. Holding or pulling something while bearing down can increase the force of movement. Here, in this gorgeous pic from we see the use of a Rebozo.

The Rebozo is a special, Mexican, woven cloth, woven by indigenous weavers generation after generation. The Rebozo is a cultural emblem as well as an artifact of women’s ceremony and daily life. The beautiful traditions of using an authentic Mexican Rebozo are handed down from mother to daughter and midwife to midwife. (If you’re thinking of learning about Rebozo techniques, please look into trainings offered by traditional Mexican Midwives like www.naolivinaver.com/rebozo-for-birth.html)

We see fabric used in birth in many different ways, but for pushing, it’s used mostly in a “tug of war” style- either wrapping it around a squat bar at the end of the bed and giving the birther the other end to hold and pull, or a lucky doula gets to be on the other end of it instead, balancing the birther’s pulls with their own. We can also use the handles on either side of a hospital bed, the back of the bed if the birther is on all fours, the headboard of a bed at home, the sides of a birthing stool and sometimes squatting in a doorway and holding onto the the doorknobs on either side of the door can act as leverage or even a partner’s/midwife’s/Doulas hands can be the extra support they need.

The next time you’re with a client in the 2nd stage, see if offering them something to hold or pull while they’re letting that pressure sink down is helpful! And then tell us all about!

Happy pushing!! 😤😮‍💨💪

📣 ToLABOR is hosting our very first RETREAT + Birth Doula Training!! June 7th-10th in San Diego, CA 📣

Join us for your Birth Doula Training while being taken care of- mind, body and spirit, through experiences relating to all 5 of your senses- just as you will care for your own Doula clients 💛

👁️ Have you seen this gorgeous place?! Steps from the Del Mar beaches with plenty of indoor and outdoor learning and private space, with a giant hot tub surrounded by that lush Cali greenery. There are 2 King Suites with en-suite baths and 2 Queen Suites with en-suite baths available. RUN, don’t walk, to snag those! We also have limited spots for locals and those staying elsewhere, in our “A La Carte” offering. Both In House AND A La Carte options include all activities and beautiful, organic, plant based meals prepared by Top Chef contestant, Emily Hahn all weekend long!

👂Be lulled into a state of complete relaxation and tranquility with a sound bath + meditation activity right in our own space, with doors open to the sounds of nature right outside

🖐️ Another activity we’ll embark on together is a group acupuncture session, inviting in openness and true respite. A chance to unwind from the day to day grind and fully sink into the weekend.

👄 The entire training will be privately catered by Chopped + Top Chef contestant, Chef Emily Hahn- an absolute force in the culinary world. She’ll be whipping up delicacies you’ve never even dreamed of and we’ll enjoy them family style + al fresco, while discussing all things birth, advocacy and support.

👃 The house will be filled with so many intoxicating scents all weekend- from cooking to the massage/essential oils we’ll have for you to use (and to buy for your birth bag!) when we practice touch and counter pressure on ourselves and each other!

Do NOT miss this training!! Sign up now, before it’s too late! Registration link in bio. See you in San Diego ✌️😎🌴🐚🌊

***ToLABOR Certification is recognized by

World Doula Week couldn’t go by without recognizing Thérèse Hak Kuhn, the woman who created the of today. Though she would have first described herself as a Mother to 6, she was also a Partner, Friend, Teacher, Midwife’s Assistant, Birth Doula, Birth Photographer, Writer, Activist, Podcaster, Executive Director and so.much.more. Thérèse moved through the world with the poise and grace of a person who deeply understood humanity, could artfully look at multiple perspectives at once and had the ability to truly connect with anyone. She brought out the best in people. She lived and breathed Doula-ship.

Thérèse Hak Kuhn is who we’re remembering and celebrating this week. was born under her care and we are doing our best to uphold her legacy in each and every training and workshop we hold.

This image of her- sitting on the bathroom floor, giant cup of coffee in hand, soothing our family dog while my baby is working their way earthside in the bathtub steps away, is the image etched on my own heart, as she was MY Doula and the force that brought me into birth work all together.

Happy World Doula Week everyone! Hug your Doulas and tell them how much their presence means to you 💛✨

Our March Birth Doula Training wrapped up bringing a whole new group of Doulas into the world!

Here’s a review of the course from one of our recent graduates:

✨ “I know I expressed it in class, but I really was so FIRED UP about medical interventions. The way people are treated during birth. And the awful truth that America is one of the worst places to give birth. I kind of came in wanting to “save” women from what I went through. What my sister went through. And I probably would’ve gone on to push my opinions and beliefs on people if it weren’t for you.

You taught me a lot more than just being a good support person and doula.

You kind of reminded me that I can’t save people or help anyone who doesn’t want to be saved or helped. And that their autonomy. Their intuition. Their opinions. And Their lives and stories will all determine what they want out of their birth experience and what’s most important to them. And it really meant a lot to me.” ✨

🎯 This is exactly the sentiment we want our learners to leave with. Every.singie.person has a story, a desire, a construct around birth. It’s not our job to mold them into wanting what WE would want. It’s a Doula’s job to listen. To facilitate. To ease. To support. Our ego is left at the door, and we enter every birth with open hands 👐 and an open heart 💛

Join us for a training!! Next trainings are:

• June 7-10, San Diego, CA Training + RETREAT!! 🌟In Person Only🌟
• June 28-30, Richmond, VA 🌟In Person AND Virtual🌟

Comment or DM for more info or to set up a call to answer questions ☎️💛

IYKYK 🍓 We love showing this beautiful birth video (shot by Eva Rose on YouTube) the 1st night of our Birth Doula Training. And we REALLY love this partner, catching his baby’s placenta 🥰

Sharing stories, videos, podcasts, articles, books and real time experiential lessons with pregnant volunteers, are how we normalize birth in our workshop and help our Doulas UNlearn some of the Hollywood inspired birth constructs out there shaped by fear.

What are your favorite birth videos out there?! Have you seen The Birth of Perdy?! Check it out 💛

📣 ToLABOR is hosting our very first RETREAT + Birth Doula Training!! June 7th-9th in San Diego, CA 📣

Join us for your Birth Doula Training while being taken care of- mind, body and spirit, through experiences relating to all 5 of your senses- just as you will care for your own Doula clients 💛

👁️ Have you seen this gorgeous place?! Steps from the Del Mar beaches with plenty of indoor and outdoor learning and private space, with a giant hot tub surrounded by that lush Cali greenery. There are 2 King Suites with en-suite baths and 2 Queen Suites with en-suite baths available. RUN, don’t walk, to snag those! We also have limited spots for locals and those staying elsewhere, in our “A La Carte” offering. Both In House AND A La Carte options include all activities and beautiful, organic, plant based meals prepared by Top Chef contestant, Emily Hahn all weekend long!

👂Be lulled into a state of complete relaxation and tranquility with a sound bath + meditation activity right in our own space, with doors open to the sounds of nature right outside

🖐️ Another activity we’ll embark on together is a group acupuncture session, inviting in openness and true respite. A chance to unwind from the day to day grind and fully sink into the weekend.

👄 The entire training will be privately catered by Chopped + Top Chef contestant, Chef Emily Hahn- an absolute force in the culinary world. She’ll be whipping up delicacies you’ve never even dreamed of and we’ll enjoy them family style + al fresco, while discussing all things birth, advocacy and support.

👃 The house will be filled with so many intoxicating scents all weekend- from cooking to the massage/essential oils we’ll have for you to use (and to buy for your birth bag!) when we practice touch and counter pressure on ourselves and each other!

Do NOT miss this training!! Sign up now, before it’s too late! Registration link in bio. See you in San Diego ✌️😎🌴🐚🌊

***ToLABOR Certification is recognized by

Thinking of becoming a Birth Doula? Let doula you through your journey. Our upcoming March 15-17th hybrid In Person/Virtual training offers the most well rounded, fun, informative and fully evidence based training to prepare you for what birth work can actually be: a sustainable, rewarding CAREER! Join us in Richmond, VA or on Zoom for a transformative weekend of birth education magic. Register NOW!! Link in bio 💛

✨posted with permission ✨