Postpartum doula who runs late a lot

[Anonymous]

Ugh I don’t want to refuse to write a review but it’s so unprofessional. She also ran late to doula appointments before the baby arrived. Her excuse today is that her sister is running late and her sister is taking care of her child. I’m so exhausted and was looking forward to sleeping for a few hours from 9-11 am but now I’ll get maybe an house before preschool drop off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ugh I don’t want to refuse to write a review but it’s so unprofessional. She also ran late to doula appointments before the baby arrived. Her excuse today is that her sister is running late and her sister is taking care of her child. I’m so exhausted and was looking forward to sleeping for a few hours from 9-11 am but now I’ll get maybe an house before preschool drop off.

Op here. An hour not a house

[Anonymous]

What does a post partum duela do, does she get you Starbucks

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What does a post partum duela do, does she get you Starbucks

Haha no she takes care of the baby. She could do other stuff but I feel uncomfortable asking her to cook or clean. It was a package I purchased prior to the delivery. I feel it’s not necessary. Should have just hired a temporary nanny. Feel like it’s more hassle managing her.

[Anonymous]

Op here. I canceled. I can’t deal with her anymore. The whole point of postpartum care is to help me not stress and the opposite is happening. She asks to leave early and doesn’t offer to make up hours when late. It’s unprofessional and I don’t want to feel obligated to write a review for a doula that’s not professional.

[Anonymous]

We’ve had a similar experience with our postpartum doula and I’m now convinced they are basically a scam. It’s much better to hire a nanny/housekeeper/chef/etc than a postpartum doula who is inevitably going to be flaky and not do the things that are actually helpful during the postpartum time.

Our postpartum doula only wanted to hold the baby while she slept - a baby who slept perfectly fine on her own in the crib and didn’t need to be held all the time! Asking her to do some light kitchen clean up, or make a snack, or do the baby’s laundry was always more trouble than it was worth.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here. I canceled. I can’t deal with her anymore. The whole point of postpartum care is to help me not stress and the opposite is happening. She asks to leave early and doesn’t offer to make up hours when late. It’s unprofessional and I don’t want to feel obligated to write a review for a doula that’s not professional.

This is when you should write a review. A bad one documenting all her unprofessional behavior. Reviews don’t have to be sunshine and rainbows. Just factual

[Anonymous]

I agree - write the review. Keep it straightforward and to the point.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I agree - write the review. Keep it straightforward and to the point.

Yes or she will keep scamming new mothers.

[Anonymous]

Op here. Maybe some of it has to do with payment. I paid for the entire package 8 or so months ago. I’m not excusing her behavior at all but something to think about. My birth was also very fast and she was asking when she could leave even though it was obvious I needed help until I got transferred to the recovery room. Dh was with the kids in the waiting room and couldn’t come in with a child until I got transferred. She was with me for 3-4 hours that’s it and I would have been fine with that if she wasn’t asking when she could leave during those hours. She was showing me her child’s monitor and saying she’s worried he will wake up but her husband was home with the child. I was stressing after the delivery thinking I’m going to be alone until getting transferred. I didn’t feel strong enough to hold the baby or walk for awhile so it’s concerning. Our childcare ended up with the flu so dh had to take care of our son.

[Anonymous]

Do a service for others and write a factual review. No emotions, just facts as they speak for themselves.

[Anonymous]

I’m really sorry, OP. This is the time you absolutely need no more stress, and she’s failed you. She deserves a bad review, but I’ve found that people and businesses who merit bad reviews are often the type to fight you and make trouble for you if you dare give them one. It’s usually more stress than it’s worth, and right now you deserve no more stress. In your position I wouldn’t write it. I might in a couple years when I had bandwidth to deal with the fallout.