Life is full of ups, downs, love, grief, and all the other elements that go into being human. We can not, and should not, go it alone.
Jump ahead to these sections:
- Popular Birth Doula Websites for Practitioners
- Popular Death Doula Websites for Practitioners
- Websites for Finding a Birth or Death Doula
Even so, sometimes it’s hard to find people who can hold and support you, especially through your most intense and intimate moments, like birth, loss, and death. Even if you have people in your life that you trust and feel comfortable with, they might not have the proper tools and experience to support you during these life transitions.
That’s why it’s so helpful to go to professionals who have dedicated their lives to giving this kind of care.
One such professional is the doula. Doulas are non-medical care providers who support people emotionally, educationally, and sometimes physically during big life transitions like birth, pregnancy loss, and death.
There are quite a few different types of doulas out there:
- Birth doula: Deal primarily with prenatal preparation, birth, and labor
- Postpartum doula: Help people heal and adjust to life with a newborn
- Full-spectrum doula: Support people through labor and birth, as well as any outcome of pregnancy including abortion, stillbirth, and miscarriage
- Death doula: Support people and their families as they near the end of their lives
We’ve rounded up a list of popular doula websites whether you’re looking for a doula to provide support or you’re a practitioner looking for resources.
Popular Birth Doula Websites for Practitioners
1. Evidence Based Birth
This website was founded by a registered nurse named Rebecca Dekker, who was fed up with the way the medical system treats expectant families.
Rebecca founded Evidence Based Birth to create a place where all sorts of providers can go to find evidence-based research that puts the needs of pregnant and birthing people first.
This research is from all over the world and is sourced from scientists, birth workers, and advocates who are all passionate about safe, respectful, empowering, and evidence-based care.
2. Carriage House Birth
Carriage House Birth is a New York and Los Angeles-based organization offering live and online trainings for birth and full-spectrum doulas.
This is a great place for birth doulas to turn to in order to gain more education and knowledge in their field.
Carriage House Birth offers not only doula trainings but also classes for new and expectant families. They have a directory of doulas for New York-based clients.
3. Spinning Babies
Birth isn’t always as straightforward as it might seem from the outside. All sorts of mishaps and unexpected events can come up. Sometimes that’s because the baby isn’t in the ideal position before birth (head down, face toward the back).
That’s where Spinning Babies comes in. Spinning Babies is an organization that has merged nature with science to create a system that helps facilitate the movement of babies into an optimal position, thus lowering the chance of people needing a cesarean section or another kind of intervention during birth.
They provide trainings for doulas and medical providers so that they have one more level of skill to help support their birth clients in having the birth they hope for.
4. DONA International
DONA is the world’s first and largest doula certification organization. Founded in 1992, DONA offers trainings and certifications based on the research-based benefits that doulas offer birthing people and their families.
They have certified thousands of doulas and provide endless resources as well as many opportunities for continuing education for doulas. They’re committed to providing creative salutations that provide sustainability for doulas and the people trying to access their care.
5. Cornerstone Doula Trainings
Cornerstone Doula Trainings is a West Coast-based organization offering in-person and online trainings for aspiring doulas and those wishing to further their education.
Founded by a mother and daughter duo, Juli and Nickie respectively, who aim to fill the gaps in providing inclusive, evidence-based care for people across the reproductive spectrum.
They offer all sorts of trainings in addition to birth doula like:
- Homebirth for Doulas
- Fetal Positioning
- Postpartum Doula Training
- Childbirth Educator Training
6. Ancient Song Doula Services
Ancient Song Doula Services is a New York- and New Jersey-based doula training organization that offers doula services as well.
They are based on the values of community, advocacy, reproductive and birth justice, and education. They offer full-spectrum doula trainings as well as virtual childbirth education classes for expectant parents.
Popular Death Doula Websites for Practitioners
Birth isn’t the only time people need support. Another huge life transition that people go through is death and loss.
A death doula is one of the unique jobs that deal with death. They help people get the care and comfort they need toward the end of their life while supporting their families through the process and providing practical information and education on what their end-of-life options are.
Here are some popular death doula websites for practitioners:
7. Doulagivers
Doulagivers Institute for Higher Learning is dedicated to raising collective consciousness through education and events on end-of-life care.
They offer a wide range of death doula resources and places to connect as a community as well as a blog on embracing life and moving through death.
8. The Institute for the Study of Birth, Breath, and Death
The Institute for the Study of Birth, Breath, and Death is a home for all those who hold space for people’s journeys through birth, breath, and death.
It was founded by Amy Wright Glenn, a birth and death doula, meditation teacher, and personal and professional mentor.
They offer birth doula as well as death doula trainings like “Loving, Dying, and Letting Go,” “Hungry Ghosts,” and “Holding Space for Pregnancy Loss.”
Death doulas can go here to take part in death study circles and join retreats for other death and full-spectrum doulas.
9. A Sacred Passing
A Sacred Passing is a non-profit organization founded as an educational resource for those who want to learn more about death, grief, and dying. It is also a place for death professionals like doulas and midwives to build on and enhance their professional skills.
They offer a wide array of trainings on being a death doula and end-of-life care like:
- Death Doula Training Death Companion
- Practical Skills for a Death Doula
- Honoring Choices: PNW Advanced Care Planning
- Abortion Companion
- No One Dies Alone Volunteer Training
- Overdose Prevention, Recognition, and Response
- Intro to Death in Film
In addition, they also offer a wide array of group workshops as well as the “listening line” – a place for folks to call and talk with a non-medical professional about whatever they’re experiencing in regards to death, loss, and grief.
10. Bevival
Bevival (being+revival) is a resource for people and care providers to make better-informed decisions on end-of-life care.
They are a death literacy platform for the living. Their goal is to help people die well, through support and education. The heart and soul of their mission is to motivate people to “do death differently.”
This is a comprehensive resource for death doulas and anyone who wants to find innovative views on what it means to live and die on this planet. This beautiful collection of cultural takes, stories, wisdom, and celebrations on life and death is an incredible resource for death doulas and everyone else.
Websites for Finding a Birth or Death Doula
Life is full of excitement, anticipation, joy, grief, loss, and so much more. Big life transitions can bring up so many questions. A doula can help answer those questions and so much more.
If you’re looking for a birth or death doula, here are some places to look:
11. Doula Match
Doula Match is a United States- and Canada-based directory for doulas and expectant parents to find each other. They have over 10,000 doulas listed in their directory in all major U.S. and Canadian cities.
Doulas can say what specific skill sets they have and offer so that parents can find a doula that matches their unique needs.
They also allow people to search specifically for Black and Indigenous doulas so that people can feel fully understood and safe in their care.
Parents can also read and look at reviews, as well as find childbirth education on doula match.
12. BADT Directory
Birth Advocacy Doula Trainings is an incredible organization that was founded by Sabia Wade that offers socially conscious, culturally appropriate, diverse, and action-oriented doula trainings.
They are based on their core values – anti-oppression, justice, inclusivity, accessibility, humanity, visibility, healing, cultural humility, and community.
BADT has built a directory of doulas who are in or have completed their trainings, offering care that reflects those core values. You can also search for childbirth educators, midwives, and lactation consultants.
13. Queer Doula Network
It can be difficult to access competent reproductive health care no matter who you are. It becomes that much more complicated if you’re part of the LGBTQIA+ community.
Queer Doula Network was founded on the belief that every person capable of gestational experiences should feel seen and respected throughout their journey.
While they do not train or vet their doulas, they have a directory where LGBTQIA+ doulas can list themselves so that queer and gender-expansive clients can find inclusive care.
14. Lifespan Doulas
Lifespan Doulas is an organization that offers birth, postpartum, and end-of-life doula trainings, as well as doula business development.
Their end-of-Life doula directory allows death doulas across the United States to list themselves, whether or not they’ve taken their trainings. This is also a helpful resource to find perinatal bereavement care.
There’s a Doula for Everyone
No matter what kind of doula you’re looking for, there is someone out there who is the right fit. It’s such an intimate relationship to trust and invite people in during your most intense and intimate moments.
With technological advances and pushes for accessibility during the COVID-19 pandemic, more and more doulas offer virtual and remote support. That means even if you can’t find someone locally, there is someone out there for you.
Ask around for recommendations, explore different doulas on social media to get a better feel for them, don’t be afraid to ask all your questions, and use your intuition. You will find the right doula for you.
If you’re a practitioner, you can use these directories and websites to gain more clients, promote yourself, and build a network and community. Doulas need doulas too!