Kelly, do you find the 'on call' aspect of being a doula difficult to cope with?

>> I do find it difficult but if you have a good support network it's fine. As you know I don't have much back-up in terms of babysitters so I used to have to get a nanny in for the hours John can't be here or John will take the day off. It is quite stressful and I hate worrying that John's work wont be supportive but they seem okay so far. Apart from that my passion is strong, so it's not enough to keep me away from birth. Of course it depends on how many births you are doing a month. Most with families will only do 1-2 a month (even 2 can happen on the same day, I know of doulas this has happened to!) and some do 3 a week! So depends on your situation, kids, etc.

Do you think its better to work in partnership with someone else so that they can cover for you when you really have to be there for your family and vice-versa?

>> Most doulas or birth attendants do have a back-up, some don't. What most will do though is advise in avance if they have holidays booked or something planned and then introduce them to a back-up. I think women prefer to know that they are booking someone and they are going to be there, iykwim? But not to say you shouldn't address this with them! I haven't been doing this for ages and haven't had this issue yet, but I have been building relationships with other attendants to help me with back-ups. Of course you want to work with someone who has the same beliefs and personality as you, as this is what drew the woman to you - who you are - so it's good to get someone who matches with you quite closely.

How difficult is it to be an advocate for birthing women in hospitals? Do you ever find that when you speak for a woman who is having problems with speaking for herself that hospital staff (drs, nurses etc) try and override you or are they generally co-operative? Do you ever need to get forceful?

>> The thing is, they will only and should only ever take instructions from the woman. So if the woman has written something into her birth plan / birth intentions and the doctors are suggesting inductions / epidurals etc and she doesn't want this, then you can say, 'in her birth plan she'd like to do this...' and then you do the BRAN thing... (benefits, risks, alternatives, now). Because sometimes the woman isn't in a state to speak or think clearly. It's an important part of my job to translate the jargon to the woman and ask her what she wants to do with that and encourage her to ask questions. As an attendant you can't make the decisions, but you can encourage explainations, facilitate communication and help the couple be informed about what's going on. Then they are left to make the decision. I was nervous about probing for more info at first, but it's not been hard to overcome especially when it's clear that intervention is being offered when it's not needed or when you are passionate about the woman having the birth she wants if all is well. All of this passion has grown, I had a fire burning when I thought about becoming an attendant, but I didn't realise the height of my passion until late in my course.