Midwifery Care – Is it right for you?

Midwifery services are recommended for women who desire a natural approach to pregnancy and birth. We believe that women’s bodies are finely tuned to do the work of growing and birthing healthy babies. We believe our role in your care is partner, counselor and facilitator, rather than an expert in charge. We expect women to take active roles in this partnership. This includes a commitment to healthy eating, regular exercise and avoiding alcohol, tobacco, and other harmful substances. It also means a desire for learning and exploration into the journey of birth and parenting.

Midwifery care

• Focus on health, wellness and prevention
• View labor and birth as normal physiologic processes
• Lower rates of intervention
• Mother gives birth
• Care is individualized

Medical care

• Focus on managing problems and complications
• View labor and birth as dependent on technology
• Higher rates of intervention
• The doctor delivers the baby
• Care is routinized

Because midwifery care focuses on health, wellness and prevention of problems, there are some situations where midwifery care is not in the best interests of the woman or her developing baby. In these instances, women should be under the care of a doctor. These conditions include the following:

• You are 24 weeks pregnant and have not received prenatal care during this pregnancy
• You have had three or more cesarean sections or one classical cesarean section
• You have had two or more pregnancy losses beyond 14 weeks gestation or “incompetent cervix” or “cerclage”
• You have or have had chronic hypertension also known as high blood pressure that exists prior to pregnancy
• You have had preeclampsia in two or more pregnancies
• Preexisting diabetes or having been told that you have “borderline diabetes” and are taking medication
• You have had gestational diabetes that required the use of medications or insulin in two or more pregnancies
• Obesity, if your starting BMI is greater than 40
• You smoke more than 10 cigarettes a day and are unwilling to participate in a cessation program
• You have hyperthyroidism
• You have a seizure disorder that requires the use of medications
• You have asthma that requires daily medications or has required hospitalization and intubation
• You are positive for HIV or hepatitis B or C
• You have a blood clotting disorder that requires the use of blood thinners
• You have active kidney or liver disease
• You have a mental illness requiring the use of antipsychotic medications (this does not include the use of SSRIs for anxiety and depression)
• You have a chronic condition which requires the use of daily narcotics or benzodiazepines
• You have a significant autoimmune disease that has a high potential for developing complications in you or your developing baby (such as systemic lupus erythematosis)
• You have a blood clotting disorder or have a history of deep vein blood clot
• You have cardiac disease or have had a stroke
• You have cancer and are receiving radiation or chemotherapy treatments

If any of the above conditions apply to you, we encourage you to find an OB/GYN as soon as you know you are pregnant.