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If you’re reading this, chances are you’re about to step into something that can change your life… seriously, you have no idea. You’re considering a doula course (yipppeeee): this is a path into meaningful service that changes the lives of every parent and baby you care for.
It is also an opportunity to build a business aligned with your values of anti-racism, equity and deep care. Because hey, the world is in a state of absolute chaos and we need more doulas to protect birth and parenting in the middle of this mess.
At bebo mia we believe that becoming a birth worker is not just about acquiring a credential or certification, it’s about stepping into a role of trust, education, protection, and community. Birth work is political and needed and saves lives.
This is wildly important work!
Before you commit to a doula training, especially if you’re looking at a doula training Canada or the US, or perhaps specifically a birth or postpartum doula training, here are five questions that matter.
Ask them. For real. Like, get the organization that you are considering to actually answer these questions.
ProTip: If they can’t get on a call or zoom with you, there is a red flag already!
Really dig into these questions with the organization you are thinking about registering with to avoid deep disappointment later. Let your intuition lead you and don’t get stuck on some of the big brands – they are just a popular name, not necessarily a good training. The right training will support you and mentor you and care about you as a student, and the wrong one will leave you uncertain or unprepared.
1. What exactly does the curriculum cover, and does it reflect full-spectrum, anti-oppressive practice?
When you’re looking at a doula course, you’ll see many programs that focus on labor and birth. But the world of reproductive health and parenthood is broader: it includes fertility, pregnancy, birth, postpartum, loss, business building, anti-racist frameworks, mental health care and more… At bebo mia inc you’ll see that our Maternal Support Practitioner program (aka full spectrum doula training) offers a wide lens: incorporating fertility, birth and postpartum (see our overview).
If the curriculum stops at information about birth or ignores the business side, you will find gaps later. Ask if there are modules for postpartum support (key if you’re exploring a postpartum doula training), for business and marketing, for trauma-informed practice, and how to take care of you as you do care work. It is all well and good that you want to take care of others, but you need to have an intentional plan for your own care to have your doula business be sustainable.
If you find a course just titled “birth doula weekend workshop” and it doesn’t mention postpartum, business, or anti‐oppression education, take a beat and review the website really, really carefully…. If you see a training that explicitly states it is full-spectrum, anti-racist, inclusive, trauma informed, and provides mentorship, then you’re probably on the right track.
2. How long is the training and what support is offered afterward?
Not to be cheeky, but length matters! A quick two or three day training may give you a certificate, but will it give you confidence to serve clients? To run a business? To deal with power dynamics in the medical system?
Many doulas report that short-format trainings leave them with questions later. For example, one online commenter noted that while their training was online it was longer and they felt well-prepared and appreciated being able to certify within two years. Reddit
At bebo mia our courses give you time, depth and support. In fact, our certification process (for MSP) gives you up to two years to complete requirements.
Make sure you ask: Will you have access to live Q&A? Is a community included? What happens when you finish? Will you still have resources and mentors?
If your training ends on that Sunday and that’s it, you will definitely find yourself isolated as you start your doula work. You deserve and require continuity and community when you are doing helping and healing work in reproductive health.
3. Is the training tailored to where you live (or where you serve)?
If you live in Canada or the US and you are planning to practice in Canada or the US, make sure you are searching doula training Canada or doula training US. Birth-work, postpartum practice, regulations and cultural context vary by state and province. Ask whether the training addresses those regional differences.
At bebo mia we’re globally accessible, and we support our students in Canada, the US and internationally. We are so proud of the students in 50+countries we educate and support.
Ask: Does the training recognize client types, cultural differences, Indigenous and immigrant experiences? Does it reflect your community and your future clients?
Choose a program that honours the diversity of birthing families and the realities of your location.
4. Will you learn the business of being a doula?
Weekend doula trainings will ensure that you have at least heard some of the terms around stages and phases of labor, or some comfort measures. However, real talk, the business side of being a doula is overlooked. How will you find clients? What is your pricing structure? How do you market ethically, especially when you serve families impacted by systemic inequities? Do you know how to create a sustainable business that also aligns with anti-racist values and serves BIPOC/marginalized parents?
At bebo mia our training includes business skill-building alongside the practise of care. We need you to know how to find clients, how to connect with them and how to have sustainability and consistency in your business. If the course you are considering omits business modules, or treats business as an afterthought, ask yourself if you’ll be ready when you graduate.
When Bianca did her weekend training back in the day, the business section was 1 hour at the end and mostly recommended getting business cards printed (you don’t need business cards y’all).
If you’re looking for a stand alone birth doula training or postpartum doula training specifically, the business side becomes even more important: most birth and postpartum doulas operate as small business owners, and you’ll need sustainable, ethical pricing and marketing strategies to attract the different markets of people expecting and folks who are exhausted new parents and need your help yesterday.
5. Is this program built for deep learning…or is it just a weekend crash course?
This is one of the most important questions you can ask yourself before enrolling in any doula training. The truth is that much of the industry still operates on an outdated model that squeezes an entire profession into a two-day workshop. Those weekend trainings were first designed decades ago to support a narrow audience, mostly white, cis, straight couples, and a very limited version of support that focused only on comfort measures.
But birthwork has evolved.
The families you will serve deserve so much more. Trauma-informed care, fat-positive practice, LGBTQIA-inclusive support, navigating complex medical systems, understanding systemic racism and its impact on birth outcomes, and learning how to build a sustainable business…none of this can be meaningfully covered in 48 hours.
At bebo mia, we’ve been leading the movement to end weekend doula trainings because doulas deserve real education, not a crash course. Adult learning science shows that we can only absorb information in short, spaced sessions (like, no more than 2 hours at a time and this number is shrinking each year, thanks TikTok). When we try to cram months of learning into one weekend, very, very little sticks, and new doulas end up really overwhelmed and wildly underprepared.
Before signing up, ask how much time is built in for mentorship, integration, and community in the training. Is there space to ask questions and process? Are there live classes where you can practice advocacy conversations or scenarios? Does the program take you from learning to doing in a supported way, or does it leave you with a binder full of content and no one to turn to when your first client texts at 2 a.m.?
Your training should reflect the kind of care you want to offer: thoughtful, trauma-informed, and grounded in relationship and trust and intimacy. The right program will never rush you through that process, it will hold your hand as you become the kind of doula your clients need.
OK, now time to choose your doula training
Choosing a doula course is a decision that reaches far beyond you. It touches the families you will serve, the communities where you will work, and the legacy of birth and care you will build. By asking these five questions you ensure you’re not just registering, but you are using your intuition (a skill you will do with your clients) and aligning. Aligning with your calling, your values, your future clients, your business, and most importantly, yourself!
Remember that becoming a doula is about showing up in a world that fails women and queer folks, and becoming that stop gap for the systems. You are choosing to do better for the world. You are choosing to serve. That starts with powerful and intentional education.
Jump into the next doula training – it will be one of the best choices you will ever make!
If you’re ready to take the leap, come join us at bebo mia for our next full spectrum doula training.
This is your moment to move from intention to action and from curiosity to certified birth worker. The cohort is so high touch and we guide you through your training and never leave your side (yes, free continuing education for life!)
Enroll now because the families who are waiting for care need you.
FREE ONLINE MINI-COURSE
BLISS IN BUSINESS RETREAT
Your future is created by what you do today — that's why we created a completely FREE mindset mini-course to help doulas and birth workers find bliss in their business!