Wednesday wisdom: midwifery in the US

Did you know that medicine aimed to eliminate midwives in the early 20th century to gain control of the "market" of birthing?! Midwives we blamed for the high infant and materna rates in the US, called illiterate and unclean.  However, research shows that the poor births rates increased directly with the increase in hospital and physician births! Midwives have a purpose and we need to be educated about their skill level, scope of practice, and benefits:

1. Midwives provide competent overall well woman care: gynecology, pregnancy, birth, postpartum, family planning

2. Nurse-midwives can usually practice in hospital, birth center, homebirth settings and have prescription in some states. Licensed and certifed professional midwives cannot do hospital births, prescribe, or give medical invertention.

3. Provide decrease in mortality rates, need for intervention, increase breastfeeding and postpartum benefits.

Monday Mood

I have been away for quite some time.  Much to my amazement actually.  Time passes so quickly, that we often don't realize how much we have missed until we look back.  I started running a Black womens birth circle at the beginning of this year in hopes to educate sisters about our bodies, options, and infant mortality in our community.  As I received a text the other day about another baby born into our circle, I had an epiphany.  We have been blessed by three amazing souls since the circle began, but I realized they all ended with a cesarean section.  While each one had a different "plan" or vision the result was the same.

With that being said, what am I doing wrong? Is the birth circle addressing the needs of the women?! Teaching is fundamental.  Some things are just circumstance in birth, but 3:3 is no bueno for me.  I have to start before pregnancy with the basics perhaps.  That is part of my journey to understand and figure out.  What are your suggestions for needed education to make the change?