Postpartum Doula

Congratulations on your interest in becoming a Postpartum Doula! You will

soon experience the amazing joy of the special impact you will have working with families in your area.

Doula School has been training doulas for over a decade! We offer DONA approved birth and postpartum doula training workshops.

Class dates

Check out class dates here

About the Training

Our Postpartum Doula workshop is experiential and interactive, offering participants a broad-based learning experience.

During the workshop you’ll gain in-depth knowledge about the role of a doula during the postpartum period as well as a personal understanding of the emotions and spiritual nature of birth and life with a newborn.

If you love the idea of working with families to help them more fully enjoy the early weeks with their new baby, you may want to consider becoming a postpartum doula, providing physical, emotional,and informational support to the family just after childbirth.

Anyone who has a willingness to help families through the transition to parenthood can become a postpartum doula. Though it’s helpful, it’s not necessary to have a background in health or medicine. Keep in mind that a doula is a non-medical professional.

“The postpartum home is a sanctuary where birthing is still happening. Birthing of a person into becoming a parent.”
– Kathrin Auger

Topics

• Understanding the role of the postpartum doula.
• How pregnancy and birth influence the postpartum period.
• The importance of bonding.
• The physical care and emotional and spiritual aspects of the newborn and mother.
• Understanding newborn characteristics and infant care.
• The dynamics of family and friends after birth.
• Differentiating ”Baby Blues” from Perinatal Mental Health.
• Dealing with loss and grief.
• Household management.
• Breastfeeding
• DONA International
• Communication Skills
• Business aspects of the postpartum doula practice. (contract, invoices, etc.)
• Certification process in details

About the Trainer

Recipient of the Postpartum Doula of the Year Award in 2007 and Doula Mentor of the Year Award in 2010 from the Doulas Association of Southern California, Kathrin Auger completed her training as a Registered Nurse in Switzerland in 1997. She worked on the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the internationally renowned Inselspital university hospital in Switzerland from 1997 – 2002. During her five years on the NICU the hospital offered continued education in infant handling, infant massage, infant wearing, reflexology, kinesthesia (conscious handling of the newborn), adult and infant CPR, lactation (breast and bottle), homeopathy, and bachflower essences which broaden Kathrin’s knowledge tremendously. Her work there also included the supervision of pediatric nurses and midwife interns.

Her years of conventional medical training fed her desire to step outside the typical medical model and go deeper into more personal care during pregnancy and the birth and postpartum period. After her move to the United States in 2002 Kathrin Auger got certified as a birth doula in 2003 and as a postpartum doula in 2004 through DONA International. She has been working as a doula ever since, committed to helping parents have an easy transition into parenthood and to support them with informed decision – making.

In 2004 Kathrin Auger attended a hypnotherapy master class, pregnancy massage class as well as an advanced birth doula workshop. She became a lactation educator in 2005 and completed her childbirth education training through CAPPA in 2006.

She was the director of postpartum services at the Chapman Family Center from 2005 till 2008 which included assistant teaching of birth and postpartum doula trainings as well as running the postpartum doula agency. In 2007 she became a DONA approved postpartum doula trainer.

Kathrin Auger currently works as a birth and postpartum doula and offers private childbirth preparation, breastfeeding, and newborn care classes as well as postpartum consultations. She also teaches DONA postpartum doula trainings and leads support groups.

Kathrin Auger lives with her husband in Los Angeles. She gave birth to their first son in 2006 via surgery and in 2007 to their second son at home.

Class dates

Check out class dates here