What is a fertility doula?

You’ve probably heard of a doula before, right? It’s a support person who serves primarily pregnant, birthing, and postpartum people through their parenthood journeys.

Fertility doulas have a similar role, though they don’t always work with parents or those wanting to become one. Just like other kinds of roles in this work, fertility doulas are trained professionals who provide preconception support to individuals, partners, and/or families as they navigate through abstaining from or getting pregnant.

Fertility doulas are non-judgmental, non-medical support people that specialize in reproductive anatomy and all the ways people can get or avoid being pregnant.

They help a wide array of people, that’s for sure.

For those individuals and their partners trying to abstain from pregnancy while avoiding hormonal birth control, fertility doulas can provide education and information about natural family planning practices that utilize the body’s own signs and symptoms. Taking charge of one’s own fertility can be life changing, especially for those deeply affected by the side effects of other family planning methods. When tracked correctly, the Fertility Awareness Method (FAM) is 99% effective, much like hormonal birth control.

And for those people who are on their journey to parenthood, fertility doulas can be even more helpful. Learning natural family planning is a great starting point for those individuals and couples who are trying to conceive, as it teaches them to understand and trust their body’s cues.

If conception isn’t occurring after a few months or if individuals and their partners aren’t able to get pregnant on their own, fertility doulas can help clients start to explore other methods including medicated cycles, IUI using own/donor sperm, or IVF. Just like birth, conception comes with options!

Infertility affects 15% of reproductive aged couples internationally. It can make people feel broken and alone. Fertility doulas can help ease the loneliness and give those affected by infertility the space they need to explore every emotion, no matter how difficult. They can also provide holistic resources and interpret the sometimes-confusing medical language one must learn when navigating infertility.

Wherever you’re at in your journey toward becoming pregnant (or not!), fertility doulas can be an incredibly useful person to have on your support team.

Want to know more about what I can do to help you? Contact me through the home page on my site.