The twenty first century woman has access to unlimited information at the swipe of a finger. This creates an interesting paradox in no matter what phase of your motherhood journey you find yourself—opinions flow freely and are not often kind. The information management struggle is so real whether preparing for the birth of a child, navigating challenges associated with postpartum recovery, or deciding how to adjust a parenting approach to match a child’s developmental stage.
As I become more confident in myself I am empowered to make decisions that align with my core values even if they contradict the conventional model of care. The need is great for a consistent brand that women can turn to and trust if they desire natural and holistic care.
With my first birth, I chose the path of least resistance opting for pregnancy managed by an OBGYN with delivery in the hospital. Rather than feeling reassured by my mainstream choice, I found myself conflicted by my understanding of pregnancy and birth as a beautiful and natural process and the treatments that I was consistently offered that proclaimed that it was a condition that required close monitoring.
The Center for Disease Control has published statistics showing that the trend of hospital birthing in the United States saw the sharpest increase between 1940 (when 66% of births remained out of hospital) and 1969 (when only 1% of births were in an alternate setting). The growing medical profession and accessibility to care undoubtedly contributed to this trend while the art and tradition of natural based midwifery care fell to the periphery.
I would consider my first pregnancy and birth as highly medical, from the obstetricians that managed my pregnancy, to my daughter’s birth wrought with interventions, and the half-hearted support I received when struggling to establish breastfeeding. The OBGYN that I selected never got to know me and didn’t seem particularly concerned with my birth plan—this is because it was unlikely that he’d actually be there for the delivery. Having no experience with birth, this didn’t concern me greatly until it was go-time and I arrived at the hospital following spontaneous rupture of my membranes while I was at work (and only 37 weeks).
I went to the hospital where the staff told me it was doubtful that my membranes had ruptured since I was not showing signs of active labor. They sent in a resident who literally stared at the speculum with a look of confusion and asked for instructions on insertion. I should have taken this as an ominous sign and ran for the hills.
After confirming that my membranes had indeed ruptured, I was admitted and introduced to the on-call physician. She can best be described as gruff, recommending immediate induction by Cytotec. I asked for information on why I would need an induction by this method so quickly since my baby and I were not showing signs of distress. I also asked for paperwork on the medication and the nurse told me that she was unable to provide it. My husband queried the internet and after reading me all of the possible complications, I declined induction by this method.
Unfortunately, the doctor seemed to take my advocacy for myself as a challenge and her tone changed. Aside from her telling me that I could only walk around for certain intervals of time, I only had contact with her one other time during the 22 hours that I was in labor, where she rushed in when my daughter had a deceleration during continuous fetal monitoring. During this interaction, she was flipping me from side to side, shouting for the anesthesiologist, and inserted a transcervical amnioinfusion without warning and without my consent. I waited until this doctor was off-call the next morning and managed to have my daughter without incident—dilating from 4 to 10 in 45 minutes, pushing a handful of times and birthing a beautiful baby girl.  I do not take any of this for granted.
The scenario described above encouraged me to explore midwifery care for my current pregnancy and the upcoming birth of my son. At my initial consultation at a local birth center three weeks ago, I found a place where I feel secure. The midwife team that I have been introduced to has already taken the time to get to know me and they have shown painstaking attention to detail.
With midwifery care I have not felt rushed.  They have not made me feel guilty about weight gain, but rather, have emphasized the uniqueness of each woman’s physiological response to pregnancy.  They have also provided me with in-depth explanations about my upcoming choices for testing and screening. The midwives encouraged me as I shared the history of my previous birth experiences, offered me understanding as I expressed my fears about labor and delivery, and explained natural methods that would support my goals for birth. As I was describing my fertility and motherhood journey, one midwife even paused me when I was describing the second trimester miscarriage of my twin sons last June.  She asked me what I had named them. I almost cried when I saw that she had included their names in her notes in my medical chart later that week.
What I have been given so far at the birth center by the midwives is personalized care. In February, the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) published a perfectly timed Committee Opinion titled, “Approaches to Limit Intervention During Labor and Birth” which solidified my decision to jump ship and pursue natural midwifery care for the remainder of my pregnancy. This article highlights the importance of medical professionals being aware of non-invasive labor management techniques, limited interventions, and emotional support.
It should be celebrated that ACOGs published opinion hints at a positive future for low-risk laboring mothers in medical settings where professionals recognize that favorable outcomes increase when a natural approach is used. As the medical community shifts to acknowledge the health benefits of intervention free labor and delivery, perhaps it is time for more women to consider the advantages of pursuing a natural approach to pregnancy supported by midwifery care.