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After three hospital births, a mother discovers homebirth and gets the respectful, no-stress birth she’s been craving.
A mother uses a mantra she learned while hiking the Inca Trail in Peru to have a peaceful birth.
Ada strode into the office accompanied by her husband, mother and grandmother. She was the picture of health—and education.
Photos provided by the author
Five weeks before her due date, a Washington State mother learns from her out-of-hospital midwives that they will be unable to care for her because her baby is breech. A decision to drive to Oregon, where midwives can assist breech births at home is made, but baby has other plans. In the end, the couple’s Oregon midwife assists via phone and Bruno is born butt-first at home, into his mother’s hands.
“There are still midwives and mothers who know powerful stories. Who still live powerful birth stories. We must take courage and tell the stories. … We must take courage and believe the stories,” writes Sister MorningStar in this lovely introduction to our special section of homebirth stories.
When a homebirth is planned, transferring to the hospital can be a nightmare for the parents and the midwife. How can you help create a better experience for your client? In this article, a midwife-turned-L&D-nurse offers practical tips to ensure a smooth transition, and guides midwives through the ins and outs of hospital transfers.
Read more…. Hospital Transfers: Ease the Transition and Optimize the Experience
Michele Anderson—pinkletoesblogstalker.com
A doula and midwife-in-training learns valuable lessons assisting at homebirths, and recognizes that being a birth worker is more of a calling than a profession.
Having a well-thought-out birthkit is crucial to any midwife’s practice. In this detailed article, Certified Midwife (and expert packer) Regina Willette helps you plan, pack and organize your birthkit, so you’ll arrive at your clients’ homes prepared and ready to go.
Read more…. The Well-Organized Birthkit: “How Do I Ever Fit It All In?”
A doula assists at her first homebirth and learns the true meaning of Ina May Gaskin’s saying, “Let your monkey do it.”
Read more…. Let Your Monkey Do It—A Doula’s Take on Homebirth
This midwife is on the cusp of change. The day before yesterday, December 31, I worked my last day at Planned Parenthood. At midnight, as 2009 changed to 2010 and the younger generation set off fireworks in the barnyard, I became a retired person—social security-qualified and all!
Author Michele Klein uses the archetypes of the stork and the phoenix to delve into the issues surrounding burnout within the midwifery profession, and provides examples of “phoenix midwives” who have reinvented themselves and their roles “with women.”
Read more…. The Stork and the Phoenix: Birth, Burnout and Rebirth
Photo provided by the author
The author tells the story of her planned homebirth turned (unexpected) unassisted birth.
