plural doulas
: a person trained to provide advice, information, emotional support, and physical comfort to a mother before, during, and just after childbirth
Research shows that childbirth does go more smoothly with a doula: labor is 25 percent shorter, the need for epidural pain relief is 60 percent less and the Caesarean section rate is reduced by half.—
Susan Gilbert
Susan GilbertExamples of doula in a Sentence
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Valuable Resource: This podcast frequently features cannabis-friendly therapists, doulas, and health coaches.
5.
—Matt Rozo, Mercury News, 6 June 2025
Another woman, Liz, has, at various points, had a career coach, an executive coach, a doula (or birthing coach), a co-parenting coach, and two different accountability coaches who focus on diet and exercise.
—Olga Khazan, The Atlantic, 5 Mar. 2025
If passed, this legislation would expand access to midwives and doulas, extend care for postpartum and breastfeeding periods, invest in research to address maternal mortality and mitigate risks to birthing people and their children.
—Brea Baker, Refinery29, 22 May 2025
Her doula guided her one night trying to induce labor through exercises and positions, like walking, doing yoga and pumping breast milk.
—Kate Hogan, People.com, 11 May 2025
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Matt Rozo, Mercury News, 6 June 2025
Another woman, Liz, has, at various points, had a career coach, an executive coach, a doula (or birthing coach), a co-parenting coach, and two different accountability coaches who focus on diet and exercise.
—Olga Khazan, The Atlantic, 5 Mar. 2025
If passed, this legislation would expand access to midwives and doulas, extend care for postpartum and breastfeeding periods, invest in research to address maternal mortality and mitigate risks to birthing people and their children.
—Brea Baker, Refinery29, 22 May 2025
Her doula guided her one night trying to induce labor through exercises and positions, like walking, doing yoga and pumping breast milk.
—Kate Hogan, People.com, 11 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for doula
Cite this Entry
“Doula.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/doula. Accessed 18 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
doula
noun
dou·la
ˈdü-lə 
: a woman experienced in childbirth who provides advice, information, emotional support, and physical comfort to a mother before, during, and just after childbirth
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