Big, exciting news! I’m adding a new training to the Good Human Series. You can become a trained volunteer abortion doula! The Colorado Doula Project offers an online abortion doula training, and we are partnering up to bring it to you!
What is an abortion doula you ask?
An abortion doula can be the light that guides a friend, loved one, or stranger through their abortion journey. An abortion doula can be the driver during a silent car ride to a clinic, who comforts with their presence alone, or the person at the other end of the phone as they describe exactly what will happen during your procedure tomorrow--all the while managing to make it somehow less scary.
In the most basic sense, an abortion doula can be anybody who provides non-medical support for someone going through an abortion. They are a friendly face, a hand to hold, a shoulder to cry on, a source of information, and an advocate for their client’s care in a medical setting.
A trained volunteer abortion doula, however, is someone who is equipped to provide nonjudgmental, knowledge-based care for someone experiencing a medical, surgical, or self-managed abortion.
Who would make a great abortion doula?
Someone who envisions a world where all people have the information, resources, and power to make informed decisions about their bodies and lives.
Someone who believes every single person has the right to dictate when, how, and if they become parents.
Someone who is motivated to provide on-the-ground support and compassionate care to members of your community throughout their abortion experience.
What does it entail?
Colorado Doula Project’s Abortion Doula Training is a transformative online course that teaches you how to be an abortion doula in your own community. This self-directed training can be taken at your own pace, on your own time, and is applicable for anyone anywhere who wants to gain knowledge about reproductive justice and abortion, bolster their own personal development, or to gain the skills and expertise to go out into the world as an Abortion Doula, either on their own or with a local organization.
Created and delivered by experienced abortion doulas, our Abortion Doula Training features guest speakers who are experts in abortion care, reproductive justice, and gender and sexuality. You will learn:
The medical basics of abortion procedures
How to check your biases and clarify your personal values
How to care for people having abortions
How to care for yourself as an abortion doula
Physical support techniques for people having surgical or medical abortions
The disparities in abortion care for people of color and queer and trans people, and how to combat reproductive injustice
Further Details
The training takes (on average) 12 hours to complete.
The Colorado Doula Project does not want money to be a barrier to anyone becoming a certified Abortion Doula. The training is pay-what-you-can. That said, the suggested donation for this course is $275. They arrived at this number by taking into account the time and resources spent creating and managing the course, the years of expertise of the creators, and the value of the information provided.
Racial and gender justice are cornerstone values at Colorado Doula Project. The training was created with an anti-racist lens and is explicitly queer- and trans-affirming. They use gender neutral terms for body parts, pregnancy, and parenting experiences. If you’re unfamiliar with or unpracticed in speaking about pregnancy and bodies in this way, don’t worry!
Timeline
Apply now: https://www.coloradodoulaproject.org/abortion-doula-training
It takes about 2 weeks to get approved and registered (longer if you don't have a social media presence, for security reasons).
Get started and work at your own pace.
On July 9th we will hold a Zoom-based Q+A with the team at Colorado Doula Project for everyone who has participated in the training. If you are someone who thrives on deadlines, think of July 9th as your graduation day. ;)
Are you ready to get your Abortion Doula badge?
Apply Now! https://www.coloradodoulaproject.org/abortion-doula-training