What is a Midwife?

What is a midwife?

A midwife is a trained health professional who helps healthy women during labor, delivery, and after the birth of their babies. In South Carolina, CPM and Licensed Midwives may deliver babies at birthing centers or at home, and only CNM can deliver babies in a hospital in which they have a physician that will back them and allow them to deliver.

Women who choose midwives usually want more personalized care, a relationship with their care provider, so they can receive as little medical intervention as possible and who have a normal uncomplicated pregnancy.

Midwives can have different levels of training:
Certified nurse-midwives (CNMs) are registered nurses who have graduated from an accredited nurse-midwifery education program and have passed a national exam. They can practice in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Certified midwives (CMs) are non-nurse midwives who have a bachelor’s degree or higher in a health field, have completed an accredited midwifery education program, and have passed a national exam. Only a few states permit CMs to practice.
Certified professional midwives (CPMs) are non-nurse midwives who have training and clinical experience in childbirth, including childbirth outside of the hospital, and have passed a national exam. Not all states permit CPMs to practice. Fortanually SC does recognize CPM’s.
Licensed Midwives are non-nurse midwives licensed by DHEC in the State of SC, who have been through an MEKA accredited school, as well as hands on training (an apprenticeship), with a Licensed Midwife who allows them to handle the care for certain number of births, who then take a state exam to become licensed in SC.
Lay midwives are unlicensed midwives with hands on training, and without the formal education from an accredited school.
What Care Does Your Midwife Provide?
Like an OB, your midwife can provide care before, during, or after your pregnancy. Your midwife will:
Provide family planning and preconception care
Do prenatal exams and order tests
Watch your physical and psychological health
Help you make your birth plans
Advise you about diet, exercise, meds, and staying healthy
Educate and counsel you about pregnancy, childbirth, and newborn care
Give you emotional and practical support during labor
Admit and discharge you from the birth center
Deliver your babies
Make referrals to doctors when needed
Your Midwife Should Have a Team
Your Midwife should have a relationship with a doctor who provides consultation as needed.
Your midwife may refer you to a specialist for care if a problem develops during your pregnancy.
Your midwife also may team up with another midwife or doula to help with your labor and delivery.
Make sure your midwife’s practice has transport agreements with the hospital and doctors should your care need to be transferred.
Why You Might Want to Choose a Midwife
You may want to consider working with a midwife if:
You want your childbirth to be as natural as possible with little medical intervention
You do not wish to have a routine episiotomy, but only as a last resort
You do not wish to be flat on your back hooked up to fetal monitoring
You want to go into labor naturally and not scared into an induction
You want the emotional, practical, and social support that only a midwife can provide
You do not want to be poked and prodded or made to feel inadequate
You want your input and feelings to matter, and have the best birth experience possible
Call us today to set up your consultation for a meet your midwife and birth center tour, 864-285-0574

For more information see: https://LaborsofLoveBirthCenter.com
Call us to schedule a consultation/tour with Linda Weaver LM, CPM 864-285-0574

A Brief History of Midwifery;
Midwife means “with woman.” Traditionally, women have attended and assisted other women during labor and birth. As modern medicine emerged in the West, birth fell into the realm of the medical. Since women were barred from attending medical schools, men became the birth practitioners. Having never had a baby themselves, they were unable to approach women and childbirth with the inner knowledge and experience of a woman. Childbirth became viewed as pathological rather than natural. Medical techniques and interventions that were unnecessary and often dangerous became commonplace.

During the 1960s and ’70s, along with the women’s movement and renewed interest in homebirth, the midwifery movement rekindled. It has been growing steadily ever since. Midwives are becoming more and more involved with birthing families and have been instrumental in redefining birth as a natural event in women’s lives. Midwifery empowers women and their families throughout pregnancy and birth.


How to Choose a Midwife;
Midwives have varying styles and levels of expertise. It is important to choose a midwife with whom you feel confident and compatible. The following questions may help a pregnant woman select a midwife who is well-suited to her and her family:

How did she become a midwife?
What training has she had?
Is she certified or licensed with any organizations?
Does she belong to any midwifery organizations, attend conferences and workshops, subscribe to professional journals?
What is her basic philosophy of childbirth?
How many births did she attend as the primary midwife?
Does she handle higher risk situations, such as twins or breeches?
What is the fee for her services, how must it be paid, what does it include?
What kinds of services are included in prenatal care? (May include early detection of problem areas for the mother and baby; nutrition information; exercise recommendations; in-home care; recommendations for parent education via books, videos or classes.)
Does she work with another midwife or assistant at births?
What does she do if two of her clients are in labor or birth at the same time?
How do clients reach the midwife? Does she have a pager or cell phone allowing 24-hour access?
How does she handle problems or complications that develop during labor?
What standard and emergency equipment does she carry? What herbs or medicine does she use? Which ones does she not carry and why?
Does she have any affiliation with a physician who can answer questions about unusual developments either during the pregnancy or in an emergency?
What is her policy for transporting to a hospital?
What medical facility would she use? Has she developed a good working rapport with them?
What kind of postpartum care does she provide? (Ask about frequency of baby checkups, assistance with breastfeeding.)
In addition to asking these questions, it is important to be clear about what you expect from your potential midwife. Be prepared to share your vision of the birth and discuss any fears you may have. Tell her how knowledgeable you are about birth at present and how informed you would like to become.

Determine if the midwife’s answers to your questions agree with your desires. If your heart trusts her, you have found your midwife.

Natural birth at home;
Homebirth allows for full participation of family members. Under the guidance and assistance of the midwife, husbands or partners have an opportunity to “catch” their child as it is born. These moments can be very powerful and transformational in the lives of the new parents.

At home births, babies are usually placed on the mom’s stomach or breast immediately, providing security, warmth and bonding between mom and baby. In the rare case in which the baby has difficulty breathing on its own, midwives are fully trained in infant CPR. Usually, putting the baby right to the breast and having mom talk to her baby will encourage it to take those first breaths.

Putting the baby immediately to the breast also helps reduce any bleeding the mom may have. The sucking action stimulates the uterus and causes it to contract. This closes off blood vessels and reduces bleeding.

After a hospital birth, things can get very busy, with bright lights and many people carrying out procedures on the baby. This can cause a baby to shut down or shy away from people.

At home, on the other hand, there is time to be quiet, calm and peaceful. Those first moments are sacred-baby’s special bonding time with parents. A new baby wants only love and nurturing. This early bonding allows the baby to relax and feel secure.

The mother’s milk supply usually comes on the third or fourth day after birth. Prior to that, the baby is drinking a substance called colostrum, which has many antibodies to help fight bacteria and build up the baby’s immune system. It is also rich in vitamins and protein. The midwife will offer counseling and support in getting started and continuing to successfully breastfeed.

Some members of the medical community have recently acknowledged that having a homebirth decreases the mother’s and baby’s chances of contracting an infection. The mother is used to the bacteria in her own environment and has built up an immunity to it. This is passed on to the baby through the colostrum. Even when women are segregated in maternity wards, infections are much more common after hospital births than home births.

One of the benefits of homebirth is that after the birth and bonding time, mom and baby can be tucked into their own bed to rest and sleep. The husband or partner sometimes joins them for rest and deeper bonding.

After the baby is born, the midwife is still accessible for information and support. This can be of great comfort during the postpartum period when moms have questions or problems. The midwife usually continues to check on the mother, baby and family for six weeks, although some midwives continue to get calls for much longer. Some families and midwives form lasting friendships.

For more info check out: https://SCmidwife.com

Call us to schedule a consultation/tour with Linda Weaver LM, CPM 864-285-0574

The Benefits Of Home Birth

The benefits of home birth are difficult to exaggerate, with few problems when in the capable hands of an experienced midwife. More and more mothers are searching for not only a home birth, but a natural one, too.

Midwives, in general, are far more knowledgeable about birthing than most obstetricians, although obstetricians always hold the balance of power in hospitals.

Having a baby is not an illness, so it should not be normal to give birth in hospitals. I have heard far too many personal stories of unnecessary interference especially on the birth of the first child, when the mother is inexperienced and fearful. And therefore so easily manipulated.
Mostly, they learn before the birth of the second child.

To avoid complications in pregnancy and birth, it is vital that the mother looks after her own health, that she takes responsibility for this, rather than giving her power away. This means good, fresh food, lots of rest, lots of appropriate sun exposure, lots of appropriate exercise and as little stress as possible. Amongst other natural and beneficial ways.
Getting rid of the stress may be near impossible for many people, but it can be achieved under good homeopathic treatment. This is one major advantage, amongst many, of this wonderful, natural and holistic form of treatment.

The stress seems to evaporate. Where does it go?

Everything the mother does will affect the child. So taking a back seat in life, if you can, will be hugely beneficial for the future well being of the new person you are bringing into the world.
When the mother follows these ideas, she can expect an easy and natural home birth.

Natural Birth Secrets Revealed - The 4 Keys to Achieving a Natural Birth

You want a natural home birth but everyone is telling you birth horror stories, the videos you have seen have women screaming and hating their husbands, and the childbirth teacher at the hospital seems to think pain medication is inevitable?

Are you fooling yourself into thinking that you can have a natural home birth?

There is plenty of information about childbirth available in books, online, and through stories we hear. The problem is that not all available information will empower you to achieve a natural home birth. Much of it is actually negative, disempowering information that tells you what interventions are likely to be performed on you or your baby, and how you are of course going to want "the epidural."

"If you do what everyone else does, you'll get what everyone has. If you want something different you need to do something different."

If you want something different you need to create something different. There is another side to childbirth and it is within your power to achieve it. You just need to get information, support, and model people who have achieved the birth you want for you and your baby.

What are the 4 Keys to Achieving a Natural Home Birth?

1. Surround yourself with women who have had empowering home birth experiences.
There are many women out there who have had great home birth experiences and will be willing to share them. You can find them through referrals from doulas and midwives, through childbirth educators, or on natural birth forums and meet-ups. Have them tell you their home birth stories: what they did to prepare themselves for their home birth, who they had at their home birth, why they chose to give birth at home, what was their emotional experience of birth. Modeling and mentoring are important ways to achieve goals. You can benefit from the birth experiences of other mothers around you so you can set yourself up for the same outcome.

2. Read books that teach you how to trust yourself, your body, and the birth process.
There are many books that discuss natural childbirth. Read the best of the best such as "Ina May's Guide to Childbirth," "Childbirth without Fear," "Gentle Birth Choices," and "Immaculate Deception." These books explain how and why natural childbirth is the best option for your baby, how you can achieve a birth without intervention, and dispel the myths about the superiority of medically managed birth.

3. Watching movies and videos that show what natural birth is really like. The visual blueprint you have in your head is important for you to draw on both when you are visualizing yourself giving birth as well as when you are going through your labor and delivery. We have been programmed with visual images of birth from TV and movies. It is important to replace those with positive images of women birthing naturally in their own power. These images will give you something positive to draw on while you are birthing your baby. You can find beautiful births online, just make sure you are watching the good ones, by looking for those that have been posted to natural birthing websites. There are also wonderful documentaries discussing natural birth such as "The Business of Being Born" and "Orgasmic Birth". These are great to watch with your family so they too can understand why you are making the choices you are making and how these choices are best for your baby.

4. Attend a childbirth class outside the hospital that focuses on natural birthing.
There are many natural childbirth classes available. If there are none in your community you can find online prenatal classes. Look for classes that focus on empowering you to birth naturally. You need to choose classes that will help you understand what happens in the hospital so you know how to choose from the interventions that you are presented with. The class should also give you the tools that you will need to avoid those interventions, and to know when choosing them is right for you. It should be focused on trusting birth, yourself, and the strategies that will get you to the desired outcome.