A Miscarriage Doula predominantly provides trauma-informed guidance and emotional and mental support to people who experience pregnancy loss at any stage in a pregnancy.
One could see the Miscarriage Doula as a specialization within the Bereavement Doula profession. That is, miscarriage is loss, but not all loss is due to a miscarriage. In addition, a proficiently trained Full-Spectrum Doula would typically also be able to take up the role of a Miscarriage Doula.
Mind that the definitions around pregnancy loss may vary. For instance, a miscarriage may be defined as a baby that passes unexpectedly before 20 weeks, stillbirth when the baby passes after 20 weeks or in the birthing process, an abortion or termination is a procedure to end pregnancy, and neonatal death when a live born baby passes within 28 days of birth.
Hence, you will also find other “labels” for Doulas that occupy themselves with pregnancy loss, such as Stillbirth Doula, Abortion Doula, or Loss Doula. Nonetheless, in all the aforementioned cases there’s some kind of pregnancy loss i.e. bereavement, a process that’s characterized by grief and sadness for which a Doula can be of practical and emotional support for those involved.
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