Hot+Brave

Send us Fan Mail How do you know when it's time to raise your doula rates, and how do you do it without panicking that nobody will book you again? In the Season 7 finale of Hot + Brave , Bianca talks about one of the hardest parts of running a doula business: charging enough to make the work sustainable. We get into how to know when you've outgrown your current rate, deciding how much to...

Send us Fan Mail What do you do when a provider is dismissive, talks over your client, pressures them into a decision, or clearly does NOT want a doula in the room? In this episode of Hot + Brave , Bianca talks about one of the trickiest parts of doula work: dealing with difficult providers while keeping your client, not the conflict, at the centre of the room. We talk about what advocacy actually...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when TWO of your doula clients go into labour at the same time? It happens. Birth is unpredictable, and even clients with due dates weeks apart can end up labouring on the same day. In this episode of Hot + Brave , Bianca talks about how to handle overlapping births without panicking, why every doula needs a solid backup system, and how to make sure your clients feel...

Send us Fan Mail What does being on call as a birth doula actually mean? Do you have to stay home for five weeks waiting for your phone to ring? What happens if you have kids, pets, a wedding to attend, therapy, a massage booked, or just... a life? Being on call can feel like one of the most intimidating parts of becoming a birth doula, but once you have good systems in place, it really does becom...

Send us Fan Mail Can you become a doula if your own birth was traumatic? YES. In fact, birth trauma is one of the most common paths that brings people into doula work. Maybe you weren't listened to. Maybe you experienced coercion or had things done to your body without meaningful consent. Maybe you felt completely alone during one of the most vulnerable experiences of your life. And somewhere...

Send us Fan Mail There is a persistent belief in the doula world that when you're new, you should support your first few clients for free to “get experience.” Nope. In this episode of Hot + Brave , Bianca talks about why new doulas deserve to be paid from their very first client, the real costs involved in attending a birth, and the difference between intentionally choosing to volunteer and b...

Send us Fan Mail What do you say when a potential client asks how many births you've attended? What happens when their partner isn't convinced they need a doula? And why does talking about your doula fees suddenly make even confident doulas want to crawl under the table? In this episode of Hot + Brave , Bianca tackles three of the hardest doula consultation questions and gives you actual...

Send us Fan Mail This conversation was supposed to start with an introduction. It did not. Before Bianca could even properly introduce Cheyenne Williamson, certified birth doula, writer, graphic designer, and creator of A Doula’s Guide to Labor Positions , Cheyenne came in hot about something happening inside the doula community, so Bianca hit record. They get into scarcity in doula work, competit...

Send us Fan Mail Should you choose online doula training or in person doula training ? It's one of the most common questions aspiring doulas ask, but it might be the wrong question. In this episode of Hot + Brave , Bianca Sprague explores what actually creates competent, confident doulas and why the quality of your doula certification depends far more on mentorship, community, practice, and r...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Hot + Brave , Bianca Sprague pulls back the curtain on life as a  doula.  She shares what doulas really do beyond attending births, including client communication, prenatal appointments, being on call, building a sustainable doula business, and balancing doula work with family life and other careers. Whether you're exploring doula training , curious about b...

Send us Fan Mail Thinking about becoming a doula but feeling overwhelmed by all the different certification programs? You're not alone. In this episode of Hot + Brave , Bianca walks you through the process of becoming a doula, from deciding what type of doula work you're drawn to, to choosing a training program that aligns with your values and prepares you for the realities of supporting...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome back to Season 7! Host Bianca Sprague sits down with Dr. Sam Vaive, psychologist, sexual health educator, author, indigenous-informed full-spectrum doula, yoga teacher, sound therapist, and founder of Sound Birthing,  for a wide-ranging conversation blending neuroscience, psychology, and birth physiology. In this episode: The fear of childbirth (tokophobia) and just how co...

Send us Fan Mail Content note: this episode includes grief, suicide loss, racism, obstetric violence, medical emergencies, family conflict and birth trauma. Please care for your heart while you listen. In this season finale of Hot and Brave, Bianca takes you behind the glossy Instagram version of birthwork and into the real stories that shaped her as a doula.  She shares ten client stories from he...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Bianca breaks down the three pillars every doula needs to build a sustainable, heart centered business: clarity, visibility, and community. She shares the stories we all live through in that first uncertain year, the places we get stuck, and the quiet shame that grows when nobody has ever taught us the basics of business or mission building. You will learn the dif...

Send us Fan Mail Most doulas think they don’t have an audience... but you already have a network filled with potential clients who know, like, and trust you. In this week’s Hot + Brave , Bianca shares how to tap into your existing community to fill your roster with dream clients without feeling salesy or awkward. Learn how to reach out authentically, reframe visibility as care work, and finally st...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Bianca Sprague invites the birth world into a critical and overdue conversation: the end of the weekend doula training model. The weekend era served an early purpose. It opened the door to formalized doula work, community support, and advocacy inside medical systems. Yet birth work has evolved, and the expectations placed on doulas have grown dramatically. Today’s...

Send us Fan Mail You can be the best doula in the world, compassionate, skilled, and deeply dedicated, but if people don’t know you exist, they can’t hire you. In this episode of Hot + Brave , Bianca dives into what she calls The Invisible Doula Problem - why so many incredible birthworkers struggle to get noticed, and how visibility can become an act of care instead of something that feels salesy...

Send us Fan Mail Your calendar’s quiet. The DMs are dry. You’re doing the work, showing up online, and still hearing crickets. So… what gives? In this episode of Hot + Brave , Bianca Sprague shares the five essential steps to move your business from invisible to booked out . You’ll learn why more content isn’t the answer, what clients are actually paying you for, and how to build real systems that...

Send us Fan Mail In this powerful follow-up episode, Bianca sits down once again with Bobette from Uzuri Birth in Ghana to go even deeper into the realities of birthwork in West Africa. Together, they explore what birth really looks like in Ghana today: from systemic challenges and cultural beliefs about danger in birth, to the power of traditional practices that are still alive (and those being r...

Send us Fan Mail If you’ve ever answered a 3 a.m. text about pineapple or found yourself chasing unpaid invoices, this one’s for you. In this episode, Bianca Sprague gets real about boundaries: the messy, hard, business-saving kind. You’ll learn exactly what to say in those tricky moments with 12 copy-and-paste scripts for your doula practice. These are the words that protect your energy, your inc...

Send us Fan Mail Want to support the pod? Click here we SO appreciate it!  This episode is not neutral. Oh, and we cuss. A lot. Bianca Sprague brings rage, grief, and truth to the mic, naming fascism, Gaza, Trump’s lies about Tylenol, and the systems failing families. In a world flooded with disinformation, birthworkers are the antidote. You’ll hear why doulas are not just supporting births, they...

Send us Fan Mail Money stories run deep… and for so many of us, they carry shame, fear, and generational wounds. In this episode of Hot + Brave , Bianca sits down with Jalisa Hardy, the founder of the Healed Money Movement , to explore what happens when we decide to heal our relationship with money. Jalisa shares her own journey of untangling money wounds and offers a fresh perspective on what fin...

Send us Fan Mail Bianca is joined by Alyssa Coleman, founder of Nurture the Journey , to talk about her thesis project on Maternal mental health and nature-based retreats. They dive into the connection between rest, nature, and healing, and how these practices can support pregnant folks and families. This episode is an invitation to rethink how we approach burnout and mental health,  and to imagin...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Hot + Brave , Bianca Sprague sits down with Lindsay McCoy, co-creator of the Body Ready Method® , to talk about what birthing bodies are trying to tell us… especially through tightness, clenching, and restriction. They explore how emotional holding patterns show up somatically, why birth prep is about nervous system safety as much as physical alignment, and how...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text What does it mean to turn personal tragedy and systemic injustice into a powerful calling? In this episode of Hot + Brave , Bianca sits down with Nia Ashay, a graduate of bebo mia’s Maternal Support Practitioner (MSP) program, to talk about her journey into birth work. From her mother’s stillbirth due to medical negligence to the impact of the Trayvon Martin trial,...