Welcome to Birth People.
A space that supports holistic doulas, birth pros, & parents with hypnosis + evidence based birth education
What is a doula?
The most modern “doula definition” is one that might be offered by an accredited organization like DONA:
“a trained professional who provides continuous physical, emotional and informational support to their client before, during and shortly after childbirth to help them achieve the healthiest, most satisfying experience possible.”
But I’ve come to believe the traditional doula is most aligned with the definition of “midwife,” meaning “with woman.”
A birth keeper, or holistic doula, could be defined as one who holds space for women to move through pregnancy, birth, and motherhood in her power. She is skilled to support mom with comforting touch and encouraging words, though her greatest contribution might be as strength-anchor and witness to the unfolding of birth of both mother & baby.
Doulas are the keepers of life’s most indescribable moments. For better or worse - we hold the space for all of it with loving patience, strength, & advocacy.
Doula vs Midwife - what’s the difference?
In some cultures and countries, there’s little to no difference between doula and midwife. But in most US, the role of a midwife is to care for the health or medical needs of mom & baby while doula cares for the emotional needs of mom, partner, and baby.
Since 98% of US mothers birth in the hospital with an OBGYN overseeing their maternal care, doulas are generally the only continuous care mothers have through their labor and birth. Because continuous support is core to positive outcomes, there’s indisputable evidence that doulas support in improving birth experiences - check out the evidence in favor of doula support here.
How long does it take to become a doula?
Becoming a doula begins with a “yes” to serve women in the birth space and extends to a lifelong practice. The beginning however, can be framed as a journey of gaining confidence with hypnobirthing, spinning babies, coaching, and other support tools.
This birth doula training is a total 10 weeks; an 8 hour self-paced virtual course, 8 virtual weeks (2 hr meetings, 1X each week) with one LIVE, intensive weekend. From this training, it’s up to you on what capacity you’d like to practice doula support. Part time, agency, and full time models will be explored in the class. You will be awarded a certificate of completion once course is over.
How is this doula training different?
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We believe any woman, just by being present in her divine maternal energy, can support a mother in labor. However, the tools you’ll learn in our Birth People program offers an approach to help mom + partner understand the physiological aspect of birth, prepare for her labor, with hypnosis, and help her achieve a comfortable, peaceful birth.
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Being a doula often means supporting both mom and partner in vocalizing their needs, and understanding when to simply listen with compassion. We provide a framework for you to support each family you work with, so you can help mom navigate expressing what she needs, while being an advocate for the couple you support.
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Marketing and business operations can become a bottleneck to growing your practice and so can burn out. That’s why we offer you the tools to design a practice that works with your lifestyle by introducing different business models, marketing tactics, and pricing scales to achieve the business goals you desire.
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While you don’t technically need a certification to practice birth work, you will need a certificate to enter some hospitals. This certification will allow you that access.
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When you complete this program, you’ll continue to have a space to grow. With our monthly meet-ups, you can opt-in for additional support any time, and opt-out when you don’t. Business, marketing, and group support will be available as you grow.
Enrollment opens March 15th, 2025
What does Birth People Certified Doula Training cover?
Includes: 8 Hr Birth Class | 8-Weeks of Virtual Workshops, Wed. 6-8pm CST (TBD May, 2025) | 1-Day LIVE Workshop
Step 1: Supporting the HypnoBirthing Journey
Learn to Support Physiological Birth with Evidence Based Ed. + Hynobirthing
Before in-person training, you’ll take our VIRTUAL 4-Hour Birth Harmony Course, at your own pace, covering :
Evidence based birthing education, for helping mom enter her birth with total clarity on options and tools available.
Coaching + support framework for supporting both mom & dad throughout their journey with NVC tools.
How to build birthing confidence through hypnobirthing tools.
Supporting your client’s search for an aligned care provider.
Facilitating comfort measures such as acupressure, hypnobirthing, breathing, and other comfort techniques.
Understanding Midwife vs OBGYN care models and evidence to support home birth positive birth outcomes
Birth through history, the crisis of US maternal mortality, and evidence to support home birth safety
How to hold space for difficult conversations, change of birth plans, and how to support navigating medical care if it arises.
Extensive tools on supporting the family as a holistic unit with Non Violent Communications tools
Clarifying and encouraging the partner/spouse’s role throughout pregnancy, birth, and postpartum.
Helping couples create expectations around parenting, roles, and intimacy postpartum.
Gain trauma-informed tools for supporting families with the nervous system and understanding the polyvagal theory’s role in birth.
How to advocate for parents using non-violent communication. (This is one of our main roles as a doulas.)
You’ll be encouraged to attend the virtual Birth Harmony Course before attending the training.
Step 2: Launch a Sustainable Doula Practice
Learn an Alternative to Doula Life that doesn’t requires being on-call 24/7
Following our in-person class, we’ll spend the next 8 weeks learning business, marketing, soulful sales tools to support building a sustainable practice.
Training will include step-by-step process of:
Getting started as a new doula and ways to gain experience if you’ve never facilitated coaching or attended births.
Learning what sets you apart from other birth workers and leverage that unique skill in your practice.
Tools for building a business model where you’re not on call 24/7 + options for joining a doula agency
Simple client/doula agreement + operations processes to keep you focused on providing care rather than tedious administrative tasks.
Tools to support signing clients that align with your values as a doula.
How to structure your birth practice for balance, back-up, and support.
Marketing insights to keep you out of the branding, SEO, & web design rabbit-hole.
Templates, guides, and materials and agreement templates to seamlessly launch your practice.
Simple structures of care + education you can adopt or alter to suit your client’s needs.
How to price your services based on your level of experience from past vocations.
Marketing guidance from an expert with over 10+ years of experience in web build, story brand, and SEO.
We’ll meet every Wednesday evening from 6-8pm CST for 8 weeks following the training.
Step 3: Remove Personal
Road Bocks
Doula Service Requires Inner Work.
We’ll meet the 2nd Sunday of each month.
Using a combination of authentic relating (small-group style), somatic practices, and hypnosis, we’ll support each other in the journey of supporting families and finding balance.
Clear patterns & blockages using integrated energy work and hypnosis.
Understand your stories around sexuality and pleasure, so you’re able to hold space for your client’s experience with out judgement.
Learn energy balancing methods from energetic modalities to recover your energy after long or challenging births.
Clarify or refine the best business model to support your lifestyle, skills and social needs as a birth worker.
Rituals to preserve your energy + optimize your high vibrations.
Space to clarify your own birth story, and understand how it affects your view of birth “as it should be.”
Learn tools for identifying your needs/desires and how to communicate them with your clients, family, and loved ones.
You’ll practice trauma-informed coaching frameworks with your doula colleagues and gain feedback on coaching style.
Somatic tools for releasing energy after enduring secondary trauma.
This will be held one Sunday each month through the year. Schedule posted when class begins.
kicking off April 2025
kicking off April 2025
Certification process is a total of 10 weeks
8 virtual 2 hr meeting, 1X a week
+plus 1 full-day in-person workshop
In person workshops held in NWA & Austin
Investment is $1111 or 3x pmts of $388
Core Value for Birth People
It’s my greatest hope that those who serve mothers in birth work remain in autonomy with the tools to support their own nervous systems as they support their clients and each other. May the birth worker’s life be filled with abundant peace & love.
Woman of integrity and authenticity belong in birth work. You will be supported here.
A few kind words from our kinda people…
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“As a busy agency owner, I’m always surprised how much more there is for me to learn. I took the program to help me shape and build my new virtual Postpartum Doula Training business. The mastermind helped me develop a mission statement (I think this was a stumbling block for me) and from there develop ideas about how to better market my training to an extended audience.”
Alison C. ~ Austin Baby Guru
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“All the soul searching we did looking on the archetypes, persona, mission statement and who my ideal customer is, really helped me to realize what makes me unique as a HypnoBirthing® teacher and what type of person would benefit from what I specifically have to offer. Realizing that my main strength and focus in my life is on cultivating mind body connection was very exciting and empowering to me. Thanks Samantha for opening my eyes! The possibilities are exciting and endless!”
Cynthia V., Serene Birthing Solutions
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“Samantha is an amazing and passionate woman who deeply cares for her mamas and families and the work she does. Every ounce of her knowledge and passion comes through in her trainings. I left the training feeling invigorated and filled with purpose. I'm excited about the new path unfolding for me, and Samantha played a HUGE role in that. The quality of her work is manifested in everything she does. Highly recommend anything this woman creates. She's a master!”
Kristen Nall, Breath-Balance
Birth Harmony was created for birth workers & doulas fiercely dedicated to empowering the families they serve with hypnobirthing and holistic birthing insights.
We offer trainings on physiological birth, supporting the hypnobirthing journey, nervous-system supportive business training, and certification for birth doulas.