Podcasts for the Doula and Her Clients
When I first started out as a doula, I was, quite frankly, overwhelmed. I knew what I wanted to do, how many births I wanted to take per month, and the type of clients I was drawn to. But, I’ll admit, I am not the best person at staying motivated over a period of time. I read books in the beginning and then got busy. I watched documentaries and then stopped. I found myself struggling to stay on top of new data and research. Google searches would bring up a plethora of sites, but how did I know which ones to read? I rely heavily on reviews to help me decide which birth books to read, websites to frequent or podcasts to listen to.
I have gradually gotten better at finding things on my own. When I discovered podcasts (yes, I know they have been around for a long time), I was shocked at all that I had been missing out on. I decided to compile a list of a few awesome podcasts that you should start listening to now (if you aren’t already).
For Doulas and Clients
The Birthful Podcast
Adriana Lozada tackles interesting and tough topics related to breastfeeding, circumcision, co-sleeping, and more. She speaks with experts in a wide variety of fields to give moms evidence-based research so they can make informed decisions for the families. This is a great resource to recommend to clients! I love learning from her guests and adding their research to my resource lists.
Informed Pregnancy Podcast
I just discovered this one and I am very excited about it. The reviews are all positive and the topics are great. Dr. Elliot Berlin hosts this podcast which aims to bring unbiased information about pregnancy and childbirth to parents and birth workers alike. He is an award winning prenatal chiropractor, childbirth educator, and labor doula (or is it dudela)? If you can get past the intro music, I think it’ll be a good one to listen to.
The Birth Hour
Bryn Huntpalmer hosts The Birth Hour podcast. Her passion is ensuring that women know their rights, and options, when it comes to pregnancy and childbirth. Mothers come on her show, and share everything about their births. Everything is covered from water births to c-sections and medicated births to adoptions. The Birth Hour has it all. This is a great podcast to suggest to clients who want to hear empowering stories, of real births, told by women who experienced it. As a doula, I love listening to it, because who doesn’t love a good birth story? The Birth Hour website has a great resource list as well for mothers and doulas alike.
For Doulas:
Dearest Doula Podcast
Nathalie Saenz spends time talking to seasoned professionals about all things related to birth work. This podcast can be especially useful for newer doulas, but also has great reminders for birth workers who have been at it for years. Topics such as doula self-care, belly binding, chiropractic care, essential oils, and more are all explored on this podcast.
Social Media Marketing
Michael Steizner brings success stories and expert interviews to you from social media pros. He talks about video blogging, Facebook ads, selling on Instagram, and even how to improve your smartphone videos. With over 537 reviews (most rated 5 stars), he must have some good advice. Listen to this one to help you grow your business.
http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/tag/michael-stelzner/
Social Media Marketing Happy Hour
I like the style of these podcasts, because they are short (15-20 minutes), and 5 days a week. Sometimes an hour can take us an entire day to get through, right? Dawn Marrs Ortiz and Traci Reuter want to help all those that are tired of the daily grind of full-time work to build their online businesses. While as doulas, we work in person, online is how we get there. It has pretty strong reviews, not too many, but the vast majority are 5 stars.
So there you have it! That should keep you busy for quite some time. We live in a busy time, and as enjoyable as it is to sit down and read a book or a magazine, it’s not always practical in this day and age. Podcasts are an amazing resource for those of us who are always on the go. And please, if you have some other podcasts you love, leave them in the comments.
Melissa Olson Birth Doula Bundles of Joy Doula Services