Holiday Survival Guide for Busy Doulas: Practical Tips for Rest, Boundaries, and Joy
The holiday season can be magical—but for doulas, it can also feel intensely demanding. With unpredictable birth schedules, client communication, family obligations, and year-end responsibilities, it’s easy to feel stretched thin.
Whether you’re a birth doula, postpartum doula, or a doula in training, the holidays require thoughtful planning to support both your clients and your own wellbeing.
Below are essential, practical tips for doulas during the holidays—to help you stay grounded, organized, and nourished during this busy season
1. Set Clear Holiday Boundaries (Without Losing Connection)
Boundaries are a doula’s best friend—especially during the holidays. Communicating your availability upfront helps reduce stress for everyone involved.
Tips for setting doula holiday boundaries:
Send clients a message outlining your on-call windows and any dates you are unavailable
Introduce your back-up doula early
Use automated text replies or email templates for quick communication
Establish expected response times (e.g., “I’ll return non-urgent texts within 4–6 hours”)
Clear expectations boost client confidence and protect your ability to rest.
2. Prioritize Doula Self-Care (Because Attuned Support Requires a Rested Nervous System)
The holiday season can intensify sleep disruption, emotional load, and on-call fatigue.
Simple self-care strategies for doulas during the holidays:
Schedule protected “off-call” blocks
Do a nervous system reset daily (box breathing, grounding, 5-minute meditation)
Keep a doula go-bag packed and ready
Meal-prep for the week so you’re not scrambling
Hydrate—birth work is dehydrating even on a normal day
Remember: A regulated doula supports a more regulated birth space.
3. Plan Ahead for Holiday Births
If you’re on call during major holidays, preparation can make the difference between chaos and calm.
Holiday doula planning checklist:
Confirm driving routes and traffic expectations
Keep your phone fully charged and a charger in your bag
Identify relatives or neighbors who can help with childcare
Set up backup support for postpartum clients
Communicate early with all December due dates
4. Embrace Flexibility (The Doula Superpower)
Birth doesn’t care about holiday plans—and doulas understand that better than anyone.
To maintain emotional balance:
Expect that plans might shift last minute
Choose one or two traditions you really want to keep, and let the rest go
Allow space for joy in unexpected moments—like lighting a candle in a birth room or sharing a holiday song with a client
Flexibility doesn’t mean chaos—it means aligning your values with what’s possible.
5. Build Community With Other Doulas
No doula should navigate the holiday season alone. Peer support is not just comforting—it’s essential to sustainability and burnout prevention.
Ways doulas can connect with one another during the holidays:
Join a local doula meetup
Attend a virtual doula circle or case review
Check in regularly with your back-up doula
Share birth stories, tips, and encouragement
Exchange quick-shift gifts or resource lists
6. Honor Your Own Family’s Needs and Traditions
Doulas give so much to growing families—it’s important to give to your own, too. Some doulas create new rituals for on-call seasons, such as:
Celebrating holidays on alternative days
Preparing holiday breakfast the night before
Recording video messages for their kids
Building a “backup holiday plan” just in case they’re called out
Your family deserves your presence—and your work deserves your care.
7. Remember the Heart of the Work
Amid the hustle, the holidays often bring unforgettable birth moments.
Whether it’s a baby born under twinkling Christmas lights or a NYE countdown in a labor room, these moments remind doulas why the work matters.
Your presence brings:
Calm
Stability
Emotional safety
Evidence-based support
A sense of sacredness
These are priceless gifts for families during the holiday season.
Final Thoughts: Doulas Deserve Support Too
This holiday season, give yourself permission to:
Rest
Receive support
Ask for help
Set boundaries
Celebrate the work you do
You are holding families through their most life-changing moments. Your wellbeing matters—today, during the holidays, and always.
Happy Holidays to our doula community. You are seen. You are valued. You are appreciated more than you know.
