Originally posted August 2011:
Do you like how my son posed himself right there in the back center? 
My doula (she was my doula, now she’s my friend!) and I scheduled a playdate and invited along a doula neighbor friend of hers and I invited a doula neighbor friend of mine and I was so excited to have all of them in one room to talk. It was a fantastic opportunity for me to ask them questions and learn from their experiences and I’m incredibly grateful for their willingness to share their knowledge and offer advice and insight, warnings and encouragement.
Thank you, thank you! As I told them, they are truly my doula mentors. They’ve patiently answered my millions of emails and questions and generously welcomed me into the doula community. They are wonderful.
If you are a new doula I HIGHLY encourage you to get in touch with doulas in your area and let them know you would like to learn from them. My mentors have been so gracious in sharing their time and talent with me, and they are a constant source of wisdom and reassurance. We try to get together for doula brunches as a chance to talk, decompress, and learn. While these are small affairs, I’ve also been coordinating park dates that are open to anyone in the birth community. Because of client confidentiality I don’t discuss specifics with anyone besides my back up doulas, and even then we strive to be discrete and share only as needed. Thus the need to keep the brunches private for the sake of confidentiality. The park dates are open as we don’t discuss clients there.
Let me know if you are local and interested in attending our park dates. It’s a great opportunity to connect with others in your community – midwives, doulas, massage therapists, childbirth educators, etc. Wherever you are located, connect with your fellow birth professionals! They are important for back up, receiving referrals, referring clients for other services, and emotional support.