Prenatal Care

We schedule prenatal visits for one hour each month until your third trimester when we see you every 2 weeks. At about 36 weeks of pregnancy we have a home visit (we deliver the birth tub, make sure all your supplies are gathered, and make sure we can find your home in the dark!) and see you every week thereafter until you have your baby.

Prenatal visits include all the clinical components-taking your blood pressure and pulse, measuring your belly, feeling the position of your baby, urinalysis, discussing any complaints and discomforts, talking about good nutrition, etc. We have laboratory privileges and can draw all labs in office. All tests and screens are offered to you with full informed choice and nothing is performed just as a routine. Ultrasound referrals can be made with other practitioners if you desire.

We have knowledge of natural remedies for the normal discomforts of pregnancy. Herbs, homeopathy, vitamin supplements and specific exercise can go a long way in helping alleviate much of what you experience. We can also make referrals to other resources in our community such as naturopathic physicians, MDs, yoga centers and teacher, acupuncturists, massage therapists, and chiropractors.

Just as importantly, prenatal visits are a time to get to know each other. Good midwifery care is based on having a relationship with you and listening to your hopes, fears, concerns, and excitement about this transformative time in your life.

Home Birth / Water Birth

Our role during labor and birth are to monitor the well-being of mama and baby. We do this by monitoring your vitals, listening to baby and keeping you fed and hydrated. We are there to give information, answer questions, suggest different positions, fill the birth tub, rub backs and shoulders, offer food and water, remind you to pee, listen to baby's heartbeat, take walks with you, hold you while you squat, put a cool cloth on your forehead, and offer kind, supportive words. We also read and knit inconspicuously in the corner as you and your baby navigate the throes of labor.

After you, your partner, or we catch your baby he/she is placed on your chest and we can check the sweet babe out while he/she is in your arms. You and your family have time to bond and snuggle together while the midwife team discreetly checks on mama and baby, brings/prepares a meal, cleans up and starts a load of laundry. We then do a complete head-to-toe newborn exam which also includes weight and length. We help you get started with breastfeeding and then tuck the new family in bed.

Why have a home birth?

  • Your own space, environment, things, germs.
  • Less intervention.
  • Freedom to move around and choose positions that come naturally.
  • No routine IVs or external fetal monitors to be strapped to.
  • Freedom to eat and drink to maintain energy for the hard work of labor.
  • Choice of who is with you-your family, friends, caregivers.
  • Continuity of care-you have met your midwife and she is not just whoever is on-call.
  • Labor is allowed to progress at its own unique pace.
  • Choice of water birth.
  • Baby is not separated from mama.
  • Cord is not clamped until after the birth of the placenta.
  • Family togetherness-siblings can be present.
  • Safety from interventions and separation of mama and baby.
  • Breastfeeding is supported.

Postpartum Care

We continue to be on call for you if you have any questions or concerns during the postpartum period. One of the midwife team will visit you at one day, then at three days, one week, and two weeks at your home. The four and six week visits take place at our office. Postpartum visits include checking vital signs of mama and baby, breastfeeding support, weighing of the baby, asking about your bleeding, and answering any questions you may have. We also fill out a birth certificate and make keepsake footprints.

The last visit is always bittersweet as we say goodbye to our time of seeing you so frequently. We are honored to have been present during this miraculous time.

Childbirth Education Classes

We offer a 4-class series for women/couples.

Placenta Encapsulation

Whether you give birth at home, at a birth center, or at a hospital there are many benefits to having your placenta made into medicine. Ingesting the placenta is traditional in many cultures and is something all animals (including herbivores) do. Preparing the placenta into capsules is done according to the Traditional Chinese Medicine tradition to return ìheatî back to the mother after childbirth. There are many benefits to ingesting the placenta according to both scientific studies and anecdotal stories from mothers who have chosen this way to nurture themselves in the postpartum period. These benefits include:

  • Enhancement of breast milk supply
  • A source of protein and iron
  • Helps combat postpartum depression
  • Increase in energy
  • Balances hormone levels after childbirth

For more information go to:
http://placentabenefits.info/research.asp

In addition to using your placenta to make medicine for your postpartum recovery there are also other options to honor the amazing organ your body made to nurture your growing baby. Many options are available and you can choose one or all of the following:

  • Plant a part of your placenta under a fruit tree or flowering bush that blooms in the season your baby was born.
  • Put a bit of placenta aside for eating. Your placenta is rich in iron and protein.
  • Dry out the umbilical cord in a heart or spiral shape.
  • Make a placenta print on nice art paper or canvas. The fetal side of the placenta looks like a tree and the prints are quite beautiful.

I am happy to prepare placenta recipes, make art prints, and/or shape umbilical cords at no extra cost to you. Just let me know if you want one, some, or all of these options.
My fees are $50.00-$100.00. Pay what you can in this range. Most placentas make 75 to over 100 capsules depending on the size of your placenta.

Sibling support

You are welcome to bring your other child(ren) to prenatal visits. Our office has a play area with a play kitchen, tools, toys, and art materials. Big brothers and sisters enjoy seeing how big the baby in the belly is with our fetal development charts and folder. They also love helping feel the baby and helping with the doppler or fetascope as we listen to the baby's heartbeat each visit. Tea, water, and snacks are provided and kids can get a sticker and feed my chickens in my backyard on the way out. Siblings are also welcome to attend the birth of their new brother or sister if this is something you are interested in. We have a "sibling kit" with movies, books, coloring pages, and a small baby, placenta, and pelvis model for kids to borrow as they prepare for the big day whether they plan on attending the bith or not. We are also located across the street from a lovely park with a playground, so attending prenatals can be an outing for the whole family!