Membership Content

In July and August of 2008 I was an intern at Mercy Maternity Center in Davao, Philippines, where I completed all of my clinical requirements or “numbers” towards my CPM. I learned a great deal from the midwives enrolled in NewLife International School of Midwifery (midwifeschool.org).

 Read more…. Midwifery: A Filipina Perspective

Midwives work with a vast array of interesting, creative, amazing and thought-provoking women; it’s one gift of our work. We were drawn to the work to serve, support and be with childbearing women. Consequently, when we find ourselves inclined to ignore, admonish or run away from a particular client, we may experience conflicted feelings of guilt and inadequacy. In the worst circumstances we may develop a belief that the client is an adversary instead of a sincere person seeking our assistance.

 Read more…. Determining Relational Needs in Challenging Clients

“Due to some pregnancy difficulty, the birth will be induced today. Fingers crossed, prayers and thoughts for the baby’s health (and the mother’s) will be accepted.” This was the text of an e-mail that I received a few weeks ago from a very worried Israeli father.

 Read more…. Remembrance for Nobody

I had a dog named Zoe a long time ago. She was a mix of lab, collie and god-knows-what—a big, half-blind, neurotic dog who always lay right smack in the middle of the narrow hallway leading from the bathroom to my bedroom. Every night, to avoid tripping, I had to take a big step over her.

 Read more…. The Absence of Fear

My journey to truly woman-centered birthing has been a gradual one. Like so many women in the US, my birth history isn’t without disappointment. My first labor ended in the operating room, far from the drug-free labor my husband and I had prepared for. During my second pregnancy I joined the International Cesarean Awareness Network (ICAN), learned about the impact of fetal position on labor and delivery, changed obstetricians and fought for and had a drug-free hospital VBAC.

 Read more…. A Midwife’s Gift: Olivia’s Birth Story

The community Caribe Rubel Tzul, which is composed of several villages, is located in Petén, Guatemala. This is a community of 25,000 displaced indigenous people close to the Méxican border. The closest hospital is within a four-hour walking distance, the most common means of transportation (Communitarian Initiative of Investigation [ICI]).

 Read more…. Guatemala: Simple & Relevant

April 20, 2008, at 3 am, a flow of water rushed out of me—my waters had broken. Immediately following, contractions began to come every one to two minutes, lasting up to a minute or more each time. We called our midwife, Ruli (a 69-year-old veteran with 300 births and six children of her own under her belt), who lived three hours away in the interior of the island, Orocovis. She let me know that she was on her way and to relax. Between sleep and waking, we timed each contraction and slept during the breaks.

 Read more…. My Birthing Experience: Inti Imani Albarracin-Miranda

My introduction to International Midwife Assistance (IMA) came in 2006 when I spent three weeks as a volunteer in their Community Midwife Training Program in Bamiyan province, Afghanistan. IMA offers a high level of people-to-people assistance, with almost no bureaucracy. Our services were direct, personal and highly valued by the recipients.

 Read more…. Marion’s Message: International Midwife Assistance

For many women, giving birth causes stress and anxiety. For women with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), the stress of giving birth can trigger panic attacks. The National Institute of Mental Health estimates that about 6.8 million American adults are affected by GAD (USDHHS 2007). Anxiety disorders affect women twice as frequently as men and usually are first diagnosed in early adulthood, which makes their effects relevant when caring for childbearing women.

 Read more…. Pregnancy and Birth with Generalized Anxiety Disorder