Hiring a doula
When should you hire a doula?
Key timelines for interviewing and booking a birth or postpartum doula, plus the questions worth asking during your consultation.
Start looking as soon as you’re thinking about it. Here’s how the timing usually works, and what to ask when you meet a doula.
Hiring timeline
- First trimester (weeks 1 to 12): research and reach out to local doulas.
- Second trimester (weeks 13 to 27): the ideal time to book. It secures your due date window before monthly spots fill up.
- Third trimester (week 28 on): late booking is possible if spots are still open.
What to ask in your doula interview
- What’s your training and certification background?
- What’s your philosophy of labor and birth support?
- How many clients do you take in the month around my due date?
- What’s your backup plan if you’re sick or two births overlap?
- What are your payment terms and refund policy?
Cancellations and policies, in short
- Retainers hold your due date window and are non-refundable.
- Staying in touch: clients are responsible for keeping in contact and letting the doula know when labor begins.
- Turning fees into postpartum care: if a client pays upfront but doesn’t let the doula know when labor starts, cash refunds aren’t given, but money paid beyond the retainer can go toward daytime in-home postpartum visits (not overnight care).
Read the full refund policy, or get in touch to talk it through.
