A postpartum doula is a non-medical professional that provides practical and emotional support to parents following the birth of a baby.

Every postpartum doula’s offerings are slightly different, but they typically include:

- lightening your mental load so you can focus on your rest and recovery – e.g. in the form of light housework or running errands such as picking up groceries;

- caring for your baby while you sleep, shower or recharge;

- providing you with companionship and emotional support (e.g. active listening or simply sharing a cup of tea!); and

- helping connect you with other families, classes and support groups.

Ultimately, a postpartum doula helps you navigate life after having a baby and offers part of the ‘village support’ that we seem to have lost.

Apart from the physical and hormonal changes that can arise in the early postpartum period, emotionally you’ll be learning to take care of the needs of another human, and you may be doing this while juggling the needs of your other child/ren.

What helps us navigate this period of transition? Warm food, rest, a lightened mental load – to name just a few things.

And what helps to put all of this within reach? A quality support system!

Around the world, many cultures provide new parents with a broad range of support – covering warmth, nutrition, rest and a lightened mental load.

The Chinese tradition of “sitting the month”, the forty-day confinement period known as la cuarentena in many parts of Latin America and Malaysia’s forty-four day pantang protocol are just examples.

There’s a reason these types of village support exist – they recognise that in the weeks and months after becoming a first (or second, or third, or fourth…)-time parent, a period of rest and recovery is ideal.

Literally anyone who would like to be supported and listened to in the weeks and months after they have given birth!