What to Expect From Your Postpartum Care

Daytime Postpartum Support (typically 3+ hours per visit) focuses on your physical and emotional well-being. Your doula offers hands-on coaching and evidence-based guidance on infant care, feeding, and recovery. They also provide companionship and can help with light household tasks. Some doulas offer meal prep or bodywork - choose the doula who best fits your postpartum plan!

Overnight Postpartum Support (usually 10 hours per visit) is designed to help the whole family rest. Doulas care for the baby while you sleep - handling soothing, diapering, burping and feeding once bottles are introduced. They also help the family strategize healthy sleep routines to maximize sleep even when the doula isn’t there. You’ll have someone trained in breast/chestfeeding support if issues arise. Find the doula who best supports your overnight needs!

Yes! Many families see the benefits of getting hands on coaching and household support during the day and then plenty of rest at night.

More often than not this would be done by 2 doulas (one for days and one for nights) who would keep in touch for good continuity of care. Sometimes if you’re only booking a few nights and few daytime visits per week, one doula can handle it all!

Every family’s needs are different depending on who’s in your postpartum bubble, how much leave you and your partner have, your budget, and how you cope with stress or anxiety.

If possible, we recommend booking support for the first 6-8 weeks after birth.  By this point you will have gone through some of baby’s growth spurts and learned from those potential fussy periods, hormones for the birthing person should have stabilized, and (fingers crossed) baby hopefully has started sleeping for longer stretches.

As a general guide:

• Overnights: 3-5 nights/week.

• Daytime: 2-4 days/week is typical but up to 5 days per week may be helpful when needing more companionship and hands on support around the house.

• You might consider tapering down support over time as we expect you will settle into your new rhythm and/or ramping up support when partner goes back to work.

As soon as you can! Doulas - especially overnight doulas - book up months in advance. Each has limited availability per month, and your booking is only confirmed once a contract is signed and payment is made. Doulas are independent contractors and often meet with multiple families at once, so early planning is key.

If your doula has availability, it is possible to add on more support. However, doulas continue to book clients to fill their time and typically book months in advance.

We recommend discussing with your family and your doula to confirm how much support would work well for your unique circumstances and booking that much.  Don’t count on being able to book someone later! We are often not able to fulfill last minute inquiries.

It depends on the amount and length of support you book. If you're looking for 5+ visits or combining daytime and overnight care, you'll likely be matched with more than one doula. They stay in close communication to ensure continuity of care. The upside? Greater flexibility, availability, and a wider range of knowledge and experience.

It’s always great to ask what each individual doula provides in terms of support! Many daytime postpartum doulas do baby related chores and light household tasks like washing pump parts, doing a load of baby laundry, organizing the nursery etc.  Overnight doulas tend to spend their time resting when the baby rests and most will clean pump parts as needed. Depending on how long the visit is, some may offer to do more.  

10pm – Your doula arrives quietly, hears how your day went/debriefs your recovery, and makes a plan with you for the night ahead.

10:30pm – You feed your baby and they work with you on paced bottle feeding or deepening your latch. Then your doula takes over so you can settle into bed.

11:00pm–1:00am – While you sleep, your doula tends to your baby - soothing, changing, rocking, burping - while keeping a log of the night. If the baby is resting, they will try to rest as well.

1:00am – If you’re nursing, your doula brings your baby to you and makes sure you have water and a snack. If you’re bottle-feeding, they handle the feed entirely.

1:30–4am – You keep resting while your doula cares for your baby, washes bottles or pump parts, and gets some rest.

4am - Baby is brought for breastfeeding or is given a bottle.

4:30-7am – You keep resting while your doula cares for your baby, gets some rest and resets your space.

7:00am – Another feed by breast or bottle.

8:00am - They head out, leaving behind a calm home, a fed baby, a log of the night and parents who’ve had real rest.

10:00am – Your doula arrives, gently checks in, makes sure you have water and a snack, and asks how you’re doing.

10:15am – Your doula supports you through baby feeding - whether that’s nursing, pumping, or bottles - so you feel more confident and comfortable.

11:00am – You get to rest, shower, or eat while your doula folds laundry, tidies, or preps a nourishing meal.

12:00pm – Your doula can guide you through baby care (i.e., how to offer baby a bath, diapering, soothing techniques, baby wearing), and/or has a discussion with you about questions you might have (i.e., how to improve your recovery, understanding baby's crying, strategizing sleep and self care).

12:45pm – Before leaving, your doula checks in on last minute questions and helps you plan for what would feel most supportive next visit.

1:00pm – They head out, leaving you cared for and a little lighter.