What do you know or think about women (and some men) who work as midwives? Are they part of your maternity system or not? What do they do that is different from a doctor or Ob? Do you have some beliefs about midwives or just see them as part of your maternity health care system?
Have you given birth with a midwife? Was your midwife part of a team or your ‘continuity of care’ provider? Did you have a home birth with a midwife or in hospital?
Were you aware that your midwife had a family and other clients? What did you do to support your midwife or did you see her ‘being there’ for you?
Do you believe all women should have a midwife or only low risk women? Do you feel midwives are as skilled as Obs or differently … and how?
Do you feel there’s a conflict between midwives and Obs? Do you care?
Do you care whether a midwife is a nurse midwife or directly trained?
Did you have a good experience with your midwife or not? Why? Do you view the midwifery profession as special or just another profession?
Lots of questions about the role of midwifery in our diverse maternity systems.
There is no doubt that pregnancy and birth are infrequent life experiences. People at birth always feel honored to welcome a baby … although the baby has been there for the past 9 months. Yet, The Birth is a very dramatic, intense, dynamic activity that each woman absolutely must do with her baby.
As a pregnant/birthing woman how many skills did you learn and use to do that activity? Honestly … could you have ‘done’ the activity of birthing your baby on your own? Honestly … can you ‘do’ the activity of birthing your baby when others are present in the room or do you look to others?
Common Knowledge Trust, a registered not-for-profit educational charitable Trust that holds all the Birthing Better skills that hundreds of fathers and mothers developed in the early 1970s so they could learn skills and work through the activity of birthing a baby.
Hear that concept loud and clear. When you are pregnant, it should be normal and natural to self-learn birth and coaching skills the use those skills as birth unfolds. Think toward yourself and your skills and then show your midwife (and Ob and labor a