When to hire a doula?

starrynyt · July 2011

I already know that I want a doula for sure. I've done some preliminary research to find several in my area, but when do you think is a good time to actually start contacting them to set up a consultation/intro meeting? TIA

eli_and_jeff · July 2011

We had our first meeting with our doula at 26 weeks. It depends on whether you want your doula to provide more than just labor care. Our doula is also giving us some labor prep lessons in our home and helping with post-partum care, so we made sure she was available when I was around 20 weeks along or so.

If you just want her there for the birth and are planning on learning the rest on your own, you have loads of time.

CurbsideProphet · July 2011

I have been going back and forth on hiring one, so I have just started setting up appointments this week.

StefandTodd · July 2011

We were unsure if we'd hire one and wanted to wait to finish our Bradley classes, so we ended up hiring ours at about 32 weeks.

flyer23 · July 2011

StefandTodd:
We were unsure if we'd hire one and wanted to wait to finish our Bradley classes, so we ended up hiring ours at about 32 weeks.

This is what we did with DD.

With DS, we knew from the start that we wanted a doula, so we started interviewing once I was confident that the pregnancy was sticking. (We had moved out of state since DD was born, so our old doula wasn't an option.) I think we officially hired her somewhere between 16-209 weeks.

With the next baby, our doula (same one we had with DS) will probably be the fourth person to know I'm pregnant, after me, DH and my midwife Smile

starrynyt · July 2011

Thanks ladies!

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