Why Having Full Spectrum Knowledge Matters for Every Doula
At Birthing Advocacy Doula Trainings we are committed to offering full spectrum education. We believe it is imperative for doulas to have a wide range of skills and, moreover, a broad, anti-oppression-focused knowledge base. In order words, we want doulas to know a lot about a lot of topics.
Now, before you get ahead of yourself, this doesn’t mean you have to be an expert on every reproductive health topic. But it does mean that you take an intersectional approach to your work and that you remain open to learning and unlearning as you deepen your practice.
But What if I am Only Going to Be a Birth Doula?
Even if you anticipate that the majority of your time will be spent offering birth support services, you will find that your clients and community members will come to you with other needs. These are some examples of ways that full spectrum care intersects with birth support:
A former birth client is pregnant again and is seeking abortion care.
A birth client needs help building a safety and crisis plan as they navigate domestic violence.
A postpartum client is experiencing perinatal or postpartum mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs).
A trans birthing person needs to build a supportive and affirming birth team.
A Black client is concerned about the Black Perinatal Mortality Crisis as they navigate decisions about their provider and birthing location.
A family you are supporting has food access issues as they navigate pregnancy and prepare for postpartum.
A birth client has experienced previous medical trauma outside of their pregnancy journey.
A birth client learns about a second trimester miscarriage and needs support birthing and honoring the loss of their baby.
A birth client shares their complicated trying to conceive (TTC) journey with you and needs space to process their disconnection from this pregnancy.
A birth client is learning how to honor their child’s autonomy as they step into the role of parenting.
These are all real-life examples of people we are in community with and these represent experiences we hold, too, as birth workers.
Each person we support is a whole person, not just a pregnant person who is going to birth a baby we are excited to hold. So, even if you plan to primarily work as a birth doula, your clients come to you with lots of lived experiences. And, hopefully, through the relationship you build, they will come back in the future as other needs unfold. That said, we believe all birth doulas benefit from and can be the best resource to their clients when they have full spectrum knowledge and skills.
When we step into birth work, it is our responsibility to learn from folks who have been doing the work before us—the leaders in Reproductive Justice and the elders in our local communities.
Birth work is not about the photoshopped, Instagrammable pictures of birthing people and babies. It’s about understanding how birth fits into the larger context of bodily autonomy, choice, and liberation.
There’s no such thing as too many full spectrum doulas!
Join Us in Community
We’d love for you to join us in the BADT community! Sign up for our email list if you’re a birth worker or aspiring birth worker, so you’ll be first to hear about new courses, open enrollment periods, and scholarship opportunities. We have a community app where conversations and resource-sharing happens, if you’d like to dig deeper into this conversation (and so much more)!