The life as a doula isn’t all baby snuggles and happy tears. It can be long nights and 3am wake up calls when you need to quickly run down the logistics of being gone for the day.

The best parts are watching families be made, witnessing a long awaited vbac and seeing the amazement on a father’s face as his child is born.

Throughout the years on call, I often felt like I gave so much to my clients that they never realized. Missed birthday celebrations, cancelled appointments, sisters night out where I took labor support calls and endless hours of sleeping in hospital chairs.

The downsides of doula life were worth the highlights. Getting to know a client and watching their first, second and third child be born. Knowing their labor patterns and being there when they need support.

As I approach a new year, I decided my business will change. I will begin to once again put my family first. I will hold onto my beloved Doula clients and attend limited births.

My children have grown up as children of a childbirth educator and doula. They know Christmas comes once a year but if a baby has chosen the 25th, Christmas may come on the 26th. It’s time for holidays to have predictable dates. I want to make orthodontic appointments and field trips without needing the logistical support of wonderful sister doulas and partners.

If I have been your Doula in the past, I will be if you would like me to be in the future. As for new clients, I have wonderful doula partners who are still actively filling their schedules.

I am continuing my childbirth courses and adore teaching. I will be back to active doula hood soon enough.  I love my job as a doula too much to walk away forever. The season has changed and focusing on my own children has become a necessity.