this may sound like a silly question =D but where do i find places to volunteer to get hours and experience with births? i am fairly new to my area. I had both of my children in the hospital so i dont know any midwives or anything and it was just my hubby and i. And what do i say when i ask to shadow or volunteer with someone?

any advice is certainly appreciated! thank you!

Get to know the local doulas in your area and let them know you are available to do births!

That way, when one of them gets an inquiry from someone looking for a student doula, they will pass along your information. As an experienced doula, I sometimes get inquiries from people looking for my recommendation for a student doula

Put yourself in any free doula listing you can find. Once you have 10 posts, you can create a listing in our directory here also.

thank you so much for responding!!

i am just beginning in my journey to become a doula...so i cant really do any births right now...i would really just like to get some experience as i have never even been to another birth other than my own.

What sort of experience are you looking for if you can't do any births right now?
If you offer to shadow an experienced doula you'll be expected to be on-call for the birth. Unless you start as a postpartum doula, in which case you can schedule the hours you're available.

You could try and find a local doula group and see if they hold any monthly get togethers and try and go, that way you can hear about birth stories and be "in the know" without actually attending any.