As we start a new class, inevitably friends and supporters of the SBD doula students want to have a peek, an inside view of what the student is learning, how the student is being challenged, and in what ways the student is being inspired. Here is a place for SBD students themselves, to comment and share a bit of their journey.
Week 1: fertility, pre-conception, conception, diversity in beliefs about pregnancy, birth and loss
Week 2: prenatal bonding, nutrition, partners, physiology of childbirth in every trimester
Week 3: medical support options during childbirth in every trimester
Week 4: non-medical support options during childbirth in every trimester, birth plans, building a doula bag & networking
Week 5: physical postpartum in all experiences, NICU
Week 6: emotional postpartum in all experiences, hormones, grief
Week 7: mourning, the emotional experience of the doula
Week 8: the practical, professional and business aspects of the doula
What is the SBD training?
A powerful interview of Elizabeth Petrucelli, author of All That is Seen and Unseen, was held by Denver Natural Mom.
Click the link above or the photo below, and you can listen in.
Some of my favorite moments are:
“the ah, ha moment” at 10:00
Personal truth about bonding on 12:00
Doula: stoicism and performance/support fears at 13:00
“Even though it was a tough program on so many levels, it prepared me for what I do now.
I’ve taken other trainings but nothing is comparable to what I received from stillbirthday.” (minute 14)
What a birth & bereavement doula does – minute 15:15 – 23
Why and how SBD doulas benefit hospitals – minute 21-23
About mentoring – minute 21
“The bereavement doula is designed to help the family recover, but slowly.”
“The hospital can’t follow up as often as the bereavement doula can so this is an excellent way for hospitals to provide the highest level of support for families experiencing pregnancy and infant loss, and it is my hope that hospitals pick up on this idea and hire some.
This is one of my goals.”
“It is above and beyond what a hospital can provide without them.”
“Stillbirthday’s Birth & Bereavement Doula training is amazing. Heidi has created comprehensive materials that far exceeded my expectations and instilled in me a strong confidence to support loss parents during their darkest hour. The human touch she weaves into the training confirmed for me that I’d made the right decision in choosing stillbirthday for this experience.”
-Jaime Hogan, part-time volunteer SBD
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“Still Birth Day is an amazing program. I highly suggest ALL doulas take it, regardless of who else you trained/certified through.”
-Shannon Sasseville, SBD trained doula
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“Please know that I have learned so much more in this course than I had hoped and than I had learned in my five years of university. It has been an absolutely amazing honour to have been given the opportunity to meet so many wonderful women and to acquire all of this extensive knowledge. I cannot say enough about Stillbirthday and I am so incredibly thankful that my journey through grief led me to this opportunity. I truly feel that this is my calling and I will forever be indebted to you for all you do and for giving me the tools that I need to follow my dream. Thank you so much!”
-Jasmin Herchak, SBD student
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“Stillbirthday is a refuge for the heart, a safe haven where unconditional love abounds, a place of solace. I am honored to be a SBD doula. My motherhood journey began with a pregnancy loss. The loss of my baby shaped me in very profound ways. It was out of this loss that I felt compelled to take the training and become certified to help other families in their time of grief and mourning. As a SBD doula I am able to support birth in any trimester with any outcome. At Stillbirthday a pregnancy loss is still a birthday. It is a community where resources can be found for birthing plans, farewell celebrations and bereavement support. When I had my miscarriage I did not know anyone who had suffered the same loss. My arms were empty, my eyes were full of tears and my heart was so very heavy. I sought comfort in my faith in God. I knew he was the creator of the life in my womb. 2 Corinthians 1:4 says He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. It is my desire to comfort others in their time of need. Stillbirthday is like balm for the grieving soul. Stillbirthday has equipped me to walk out the desire of my heart in a tangible and meaningful way. If you are in need of compassion because you have experienced loss or if you are interested in becoming a birth and bereavement doula please visit
www.stillbirthday.com a place where all are welcome and loved.”
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“In my opinion, stillbirthday is one of the most rigorous available. Furthermore, the inclusion of miscarriage and stillbirth information provides a firm foundation for helping clients through unexpected outcomes.”
-Summer Thorp-Lancaster, SBD student
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“Many people don’t understand the enormity of this training. It’s 8 weeks (you have 12 to finish it) and it can be completely overwhelming. So many people NEED the 12 weeks to complete it. I have never taken training like this before. I would say it’s close to an accelerated college course. Each week you have reading, assignments, and discussions. Some of the assignments involved making phone calls or visiting hospitals and/or funeral homes. In addition, there are 2 books reports and a community project.
You won’t be disappointed. I know many people look down on online training but this isn’t the same.”
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“I salute you Heidi for the brilliant work you have done to start Stillbirthday. It was a life changing course for me, and I hope I can now better serve the people that the Lord brings across my path. On behalf of all the other students and Doulas, thank you for everything you put into it. We can clearly see that all your heart is in this. Thanks for sharing so honestly and thanks for taking the lead in the field. Not only in the US, but also internationally. My life is so much richer with SBD in my life.”
-Rechelle Vermaak SBD serving South Africa
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What is an SBD Doula?
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“Birth & Bereavement Doula: A birth doula is an essential part of a mother’s support team during the childbearing year, especially during actual childbirth. A birth doula provides constant emotional and physical support, information, and promotes a loving, safe, non-judgemental environment for the mother and her family. Similarly, a bereavement doula goes further and provides families with constant support during one of the most difficult times of their lives. Bereavement doulas help families by facilitating healing through love, humility, and respect. It is important for families to feel unconditionally supported in the event of a loss, especially because there are often external factors that may make them feel as though they cannot express how they truly feel, thus hindering the healing process. Sometimes families do not have adequate family support or they feel as though their loved ones won’t understand. It is important to serve these families in a way that helps them identify and address these feelings, and to be able to grieve in their own way to promote healing. ”
-Brandy Crigger, SBD student
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“Doulas provide support and comfort that can make such a noticeable difference to birth mothers and the fathers too. Support during bereavement can be life changing. Memories of loss will be replayed over and over and will be remembered for a lifetime and will be grasped for something to hold on to. A doula’s support can make the difference in those precious moments that will last a lifetime. At no other time in my life did I need support as much and at no other time was it as difficult to find. During loss the family is in shock it is hard to do basic life but at that moment you must make decisions you probably never considered before. To have the service of a doula to provide guidance, affirmation, preparation, and to justify feelings. To help remove fear so that the couple may bond with their precious child. This can make all the difference.”
-Ashleigh Gipson, SBD student
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