Photo by Paolo Nicolello

I’ve been a student of midwifery for about eight years now. During this time, I have gone from two to four children, had the privilege of attending 26 births and taught many childbirth classes. I’ve seen a lot of different birth environments, and I’ve had some time to think about what makes a positive one. I’m sure the right answer is most anything does! Certainly, we can look at the factors that are embraced by the majority of birthing women and make some loose assumptions.