Stepping Into Your Power: Why You Deserve to Be a Well-Paid Doula

Not because your motives need to be validated with money. But because your work is deeply valuable, life-altering, and world-changing — and work of that caliber deserves to be honoured fully, including through financial exchange. The work doesn’t lose its purity if you’re compensated.

Throughout history, care work — especially when performed by women and marginalised communities — has been systematically undervalued or outright dismissed as "natural" or "expected."

This devaluation seeps into our mindset before we even realise it.
We hear messages like:

• “You should do it for the love, not the money.”
• “Good doulas don’t care about getting rich.”
• “You can’t put a price on birth — it’s too sacred to charge for.”

And while the sacredness of birth is absolutely true, here’s the catch:

Sacred work should be honored, not exploited.

When you pour yourself physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually into this work without fair compensation, the cost is high:

• Chronic burnout
• Financial insecurity
• Difficulty accessing continuing education or professional growth opportunities
• Sacrificing your own family’s needs to support others'
• Eventually leaving the field altogether

The truth is, a movement filled with exhausted, struggling doulas cannot sustain itself — or serve birthing families at the highest level.

Sustainability matters. You matter.

Let’s take a moment to name — explicitly — the transformational power you bring into people's lives.

As a doula, you provide:

• Physical support: Comfort measures, positioning, hands-on care that reduces pain and speeds labor progress
• Emotional support: Steady, nonjudgmental presence, calming fears and holding space for the full range of emotions
• Educational support: Helping families make informed choices, translating medical jargon, and offering evidence-based information
• Advocacy support: Empowering clients to find and use their voice within healthcare systems that often disempower them
• Spiritual support: Respecting and uplifting each family’s unique vision, values, and hopes for their birth experience

And the results of this support are measurable:

• Lower rates of cesarean births
• Shorter labors
• Higher rates of breastfeeding initiation
• Lower use of pain medication
• Higher satisfaction with the birth experience

Your work doesn’t just touch one life — it ripples out into family systems, communities, and future generations.

That’s not just valuable. It’s priceless.

In our culture, money often carries heavy emotional baggage: guilt, shame, fear, scarcity.

But what if we reclaimed money for what it truly is? An exchange of energy. A tool for impact. A reflection of alignment.

When a client invests in your services, they are:

• Investing in their health, safety, and emotional wellbeing
• Committing to a supported, empowered journey through birth and beyond
• Affirming that they and their experience are worth high-quality care

And when you receive that investment, you:

• Honour your time, training, expertise, and energetic output
• Create stability for yourself and your family
• Build a business that can grow, evolve, and serve more people sustainably
• Model healthy boundaries and self-worth for the very clients you support

Charging appropriately is not exploitation. It is a sacred, mutual commitment to honouring the power of this work.

Yes, activism.

Every time you price your services at a sustainable, thriving rate, you are actively disrupting systems that have historically undervalued caregiving.

You are:

• Challenging capitalist norms that separate "real work" from "emotional labour"
• Elevating the collective standard for all doulas in your region and beyond
• Teaching your clients — and your community — that compassionate care is worth investing in

You’re not just building a business. You are building a movement. And movements need leaders who are not depleted — but empowered, resourced, and strong.

1. Craft a Bold, Clear Value Statement

Articulate the transformation you provide, not just the tasks you perform. For example:

“I help families move through birth feeling safe, supported, and powerful — leading to healthier outcomes, deeper bonds, and lasting memories."

Own that language. Practice saying it aloud.

2. Package Your Services Around Outcomes, Not Hours

You are not selling hours of your life. You are offering a transformational journey. When you package your services — prenatal visits, 24/7 phone support, birth attendance, postpartum follow-up — focus on the holistic experience your clients receive, not the clock.

3. Align Your Pricing With Your Desired Lifestyle

Sit down and actually calculate:

• Your monthly financial needs (mortgage, groceries, savings, taxes, etc.)
• Your business costs (insurance, certifications, marketing, supplies)
• The number of clients you can serve sustainably per month

Use this information to reverse-engineer your minimum service price — and then aim higher to reflect your value and growth goals.

4. Practice Confidently Quoting Your Rates

How you deliver your pricing matters. Say it simply, directly, and with a smile: "My birth doula package is £1500 and that includes comprehensive support throughout pregnancy and right through until after the birth of your baby." Period. No justifications, no apologies. Confidence attracts aligned clients.

5. Cultivate a Circle of Empowered Doulas

Community matters. Surround yourself with other doulas who are also committed to thriving — not surviving. Share resources. Celebrate wins. Hold each other accountable to bigger visions. We rise faster when we rise together!

6. Invest in Business Mentorship and Tools

You are the CEO of your doula business. You deserve coaching, branding, systems, and strategies that help you grow with integrity. Investing in yourself is never a waste — it's the foundation of your sustainability. Check out our membership for support and community

You do not have to wait until you "have more experience". You do not have to attend 100 births first. You do not have to shrink yourself into acceptability. You are worthy right now.

Right now, you have the heart, the wisdom, and the sacred calling needed to change lives — and that deserves to be honoured with abundance. When doulas thrive, families thrive. When doulas are empowered, communities are transformed.

Stepping into your power is not just for you — it's for everyone you serve and everyone who comes after you. So raise your prices. Own your brilliance. Take up space unapologetically. The future of birth work depends on it. And trust us: you are ready xo