Hellobee

Being a planner by nature, I spent plenty of time thinking about and researching pregnancy long, long before it ever happened. I have sort of been fascinated by pregnancy and birth since I was a little girl. During my “house” playing days, it seemed that on a weekly basis the plot involved a pillow under my shirt, and later in childhood sick days were always spent watching A Baby Story on TLC. Some of my favourite TV characters of all time are Addison Montgomery, and of course Mindy Lahiri.

So, I had a lot of ideas about what pregnancy would be like before it happened, and like most things reality always steered away from execution. One thing that stuck and was very important to me in the process though, was having a midwife for a care provider.

In Ontario, Canada midwifery care is covered by the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care and can be accessed for free by residents of Ontario. You must choose between medical or midwifery care – you can’t have both. I actually have a great relationship with my family doctor; however, in my area family doctors only cover a portion of pregnancy before you’re referred to a family doctor that is also a delivery doctor. And, when it’s all said and done that delivery doctor may not even be present for your delivery (depending on when you go into labour).

Obtaining a midwife was not quite as smooth as I had hoped. I contacted them the week I found out I was pregnant and was absolutely shocked when I found out I was already on a waiting list. Cue first hormonal meltdown on the phone with the receptionist. I think she took pity on me because the next day they magically had a spot in the practice for me.

It wasn’t until I began working with our midwife clinic that I realized how many incredible benefits there were to working with a midwife instead of continuing with my doctor’s office.

Labour Support

One huge selling feature for me was that the midwife stays with you throughout labour. Your primary midwife will join you once you’re actively labouring and stay with you the duration of labour. When you’re getting close to pushing, your secondary midwife joins for the delivery.

Two Midwives

This leads to the second point that I learned after I became pregnant and began working with the midwives. I personally love that you have a primary and secondary midwife. Your primary midwife is who you see on your prenatal visits and she is the mother’s midwife. Your secondary midwife is your baby’s midwife, so after delivery, she helps with the baby, while your primary helps with you. I’ve worked with my secondary midwife several times throughout pregnancy as well (for example, when my midwife was off-call), and love that I have a relationship with them both. In the rare event that my primary is at another birth when I go into labour, my secondary becomes my primary, and a third midwife will be called in. I have a huge amount of relief knowing that I have established relationships with both midwives and can trust one will be for sure present for labour and delivery.

Image painted by a local artist Amanda Greavette, These Hands, Print copy available on Etsy

After Care and Home Visits

Another huge perk was the amount of after care and home visits involved right after the baby arrives. In our practice midwives do home visits on days one, three, five and sometimes again between days seven and ten. You then have two visits between two and six weeks postpartum at the clinic. Afterwards, care returns to your family doctor. I personally love the amount of interaction, support and assistance offered in those early days.

Holistic Philosophy

I don’t want to label myself as too crunchy here, but I definitely prescribe to a bit more of a holistic type lifestyle, and this for me lines up well with the philosophy midwives carry. While I am open to how labour will play out (because we really can only plan for so much), I really love that your midwife has an investment in what your goals are, and are grounded in informed decision making. It’s your body, your life, and they’re there to guide you with the information they have and laying out the best options given your circumstances.

Speciality in Pregnancy and Childbirth

I personally love that pregnancy and childbirth are literally the only thing midwives do. Unlike family doctors, they specialize in one thing only. To me, that level of knowledge and experience is invaluable and really played a role in my decision to work with a midwife.

On Call 24/7

I haven’t had to make use of a middle of the night page, but there is a midwife on call 24/7 and that brings me great comfort. I’ve only had to page my midwife a few times at this point (during the day), but knowing that someone will get back to you within minutes is so nice and from there you can gauge with their help the next steps (versus going straight to the hospital).

Options for Birthing Location

While we have opted out of a home birth for our first child, it’s something I’m open to exploring in the future. I also had the option of choosing between three hospitals for my birthing location. When you decide to birth at the hospital, you’re able to labour at home as long as you feel comfortable. Your midwife will come check you at home, avoiding the potential of going to the hospital and being sent home.

An early preview of a labouring room at 16 weeks after needing a Rhogam shot after a bleeding scare

I’m not trying to paint a picture of sunshine and roses to urge and convince everyone to go and work with a midwife, but merely sharing the positives of my experience thus far. The important thing is making a choice that you aligns with your comfort level and values. With every situation, there are also downfalls that I would like to highlight as well.

You May Need to Transfer Care

There are a variety of reasons a midwife may need to transfer you into medical care, depending on how your pregnancy may play out. This can also include prior to taking you on as a client, as certain high-risk pregnancies cannot work with midwives, because the mother needs to be monitored in a medical setting (for example, multiples beyond twins, mothers with cardiac disease or insulin-dependent diabetes). Sometimes transfer of care is temporary; however, depending on the severity of the situation, you may need to switch providers. Situations that result in transfer of care range from severe hypertension or pre-eclampsia, gestational diabetes requiring pharmacologic treatment, placental abruption to a fetal presentation that cannot be delivered vaginally. I definitely am hoping that I will not be faced with this scenario, but am comforted by the fact that the midwives know when they need to transfer care for my and the baby’s safety.

Not Knowing Who To Contact Sometimes 

This is a minor downfall, and almost laughable, but sometimes it’s hard to figure out if you should call your midwife or your doctor. Sometimes something funky happens with your body, but it may also be linked to pregnancy. In this case it’s kind of hard to figure out whether you should call your midwife or doctor.I ‘ll be sure to provide a full circle update on my experience of working with a midwife after delivery and the postpartum period.

What kind of provider are you working with? What factors contributed to your decision?