How long are your midwife appts?

tokenhoser · July 2012

And what do you talk about for that long?

We'll be TTC soon and if I want a midwife here, I need to be on it immediately upon POAS. And I hear about how midwife appointments are longer and they have time to talk about stuff... but I don't really understand what I was missing with my 5 minute doctor appointments.

pisceschik · July 2012

Mine are around 30 mins. I just switched from an OB practice to MW, and instead of a nurse coming in and checking my BP, doppler, etc, the MW does everything. So that 10 mins with the nurse is with the MW instead. I feel like we talk a little more about things, and she seems more open to answering questions. It honestly doesn't feel that much longer than the OB appt, it's just w/ the MW the whole time, instead of the nurse, and then waiting waiting for the Dr. to come in.

Noethola · July 2012

It will probably depend on what type of midwife you might have. Those in a practice may not always take that much longer then a doc. With my sis, she met with them maybe for 15 minutes including an u/s at the midwife office.

With mine (homebirth midwife), we met for about an hour. We talk about anything birth related, exercise, nutrition, etc. We also talk about life. She is approaching it from the framework that it has to be a trusting relationship, both medical and emotional. Its more focused on me, I guess, and not just the pregnancy. She also takes the time to talk about birthing methods and things. My husband and I can use her knowledge (having attended over 1000+births) of birthing instead of having to go to a different class.

perplexed59 · July 2012

45 min to 1 hour. We talk about what is going on with the pregnancy, any issues, what is being planned for the birth and we take time to do blood pressure, urine sample and listen to the heart. There is no way we could cover what we do in a 5 min appointment even if we cut out all the superfluous dialogue. Sometimes I got out of there early if I didn't have anything really important to talk about.

I had to call as soon as I POAS and was even wait listed with one place. It is crazy how fast midwives go in Ontario.

tokenhoser · July 2012

The midwives here do both home and hospital births (but mostly hospital as there are only 3 or 4 in town and there often aren't 2 available for a home birth).

I'm torn. I'd love to deliver with a midwife, but I have no interest in making my appointments that long. I do wonder if they'd work with me if I just wanted to keep things short and sweet if all was well.

perplexed59 · July 2012

I'm sure they will work with you. I know my first appointment is always the longest because they are trying to get tons of history and info. Plus they have tons to tell you about their policies and practices. I had a couple 5 min appointments because they were called away. I peed on a stick, had my blood pressure taken and said see you later.

fyziksgirl · July 2012

tokenhoser:
The midwives here do both home and hospital births (but mostly hospital as there are only 3 or 4 in town and there often aren't 2 available for a home birth).
I'm torn. I'd love to deliver with a midwife, but I have no interest in making my appointments that long. I do wonder if they'd work with me if I just wanted to keep things short and sweet if all was well.

Mine were scheduled for an hour because I was a FTM, and they usually took about 30-45 minutes. They schedule longer for FTMs because we usually have more questions, most STMs would prefer the appointments be quicker so they schedule half an hour and often don't take that long (according to my MWs). We talked about all kinds of things, any questions of what was going on, things I was wondering about, things I was noticing, how I was feeling, etc. They talked with me about any tests they'd be running the appointment before doing them so I had time to look into them and decide what I wanted to do if I had concerns. As birth got closer we talked about birth some and they checked with me to make sure I had looked into things like choosing a pediatrician and installing the carseat. It was very natural to me, and we could always end early whenever we were done talking. Plus they did all the finding the heartbeat, taking blood pressure, measuring fundal height, etc, themselves.

I'm CERTAIN many midwives would be happy to do shorter appointments! Mine were! They scheduled themselves for longer so they were available for you, but if you had no questions it was just in and out.

pixieprincss · July 2012

Mine with a CPM are about an hour. We talk about nutrition, they ask all the general health questions, listen for the baby, etc. We talk a lot about the emotional side of birth and PG because that is important to me. (I had a traumatic birth experience with DS.) They certainly can be shorter. They'll go as short or long as we want.

iris427 · July 2012

tokenhoser:
The midwives here do both home and hospital births (but mostly hospital as there are only 3 or 4 in town and there often aren't 2 available for a home birth).
I'm torn. I'd love to deliver with a midwife, but I have no interest in making my appointments that long. I do wonder if they'd work with me if I just wanted to keep things short and sweet if all was well.

I am the same way. I didn't have a midwife with my second but I had a home birth doc so appointments were probably similar to MW appointments. I didn't want to have long appointments and my doctor just followed my cue. We did the pee in a cup, blood pressure, etc., talked about anything I wanted, and that was it. If you find a midwife you like, I am sure they will work with you. GL with TTC!

canoz · July 2012

Mine are about 20-30 minutes long depending on the day. They could certainly go shorter but my MW like to get to know you a bit better at each appointment and I usually have a few questions. I'm sure if you talked to them about having shorter appointments they would work with you.

I had to call as soon as I POAS here too. We only have two MW in the city and they cover a large area of central Alberta. They said they are turning away 75% of people wanting their services.

I will say, having gone from an OB last time to a MW this time, I much prefer the MW. I feel like the care is more personal and they take into account experiences that are going to shape the birth process. I don't think alot of that could possibly be covered in a 5 minute visit with an OB.

tokenhoser · July 2012

I delivered with my family doctor last time. We didn't really have an emotional relationship, but we had a great professional one. She gave me a lovely birth, mostly by just being patient and letting me give birth. There were a few things that perhaps could have gone better with a more birth-focused provider, but on the other hand I get to continue to see her for my and DS's appointments indefinitely. So we've got more of a history because I've seen her for years and will continue to see her outside of pregnancy.

It will probably be a moot point as I'd have to win the lotto to get a spot, and I almost feel bad trying when I know I have a supportive doctor (many don't).

macy42 · July 2012

tokenhoser:
The midwives here do both home and hospital births (but mostly hospital as there are only 3 or 4 in town and there often aren't 2 available for a home birth).
I'm torn. I'd love to deliver with a midwife, but I have no interest in making my appointments that long. I do wonder if they'd work with me if I just wanted to keep things short and sweet if all was well.

My appointments with my MW are never that long. The longest one I've had was about 20 minutes and that included an in-depth convo about my birth plan. I guess it all depends on your midwife. Mine is straight and to the point but doesn't make me feel hurried or pressured when I ask questions. SHe's amazing

annabelle.27 · July 2012

About half an hour.

I think longer appointments would have been nicer as a first time mom. I had a midwife for my second but not my first, and by the time I saw her, everything was old news. She spent a lot of time talking about fetal development, pros/cons to circumcision, breastfeeding, stages of labour, and went into a lot of detail about the pros and cons of every diagnostic and screening test available rather than assume I'd get everything done. However, since I had been through it all before, I didn't really learn anything new and mostly just nodded my way through every appt. I think seeing her the first time around would have been nice, though. You might feel the same.

kali55 · July 2012

tokenhoser:
I delivered with my family doctor last time. We didn't really have an emotional relationship, but we had a great professional one. She gave me a lovely birth, mostly by just being patient and letting me give birth. There were a few things that perhaps could have gone better with a more birth-focused provider, but on the other hand I get to continue to see her for my and DS's appointments indefinitely. So we've got more of a history because I've seen her for years and will continue to see her outside of pregnancy.
It will probably be a moot point as I'd have to win the lotto to get a spot, and I almost feel bad trying when I know I have a supportive doctor (many don't).

Am I correct in assuming you're Canadian? Me too! My first BFP resulted in a miscarriage so I knew that I would need to apply early to every midwife in town. I got a BFP at 10 DPO and applied everywhere, only to be wait listed and accepted to only one of the four I applied to. I would almost submit an intake form early, before you know, as you can always take yourself off the list.

Anywho, my MW appointments only lasted 5-10 minutes. Super fast. Listen to the heart beat, check the bump, etc. I opted to participate in a centering pregnancy which was only in my last trimester and was 1 hour every two weeks

MelissaV10 · July 2012

My midwife (homebirth) takes about an hour with me each time but we're both farmers so most of the time is taken up with chat about how things are going on the farm. The actual time spent discussing my pregnancy, maybe 20 minutes. She's very good about answering any questions me or DH might have and takes as much time as needed. Our shortest appt was 10 minutes, she was on her way to check on a newborn and just checked heartbeat, my bump and bloodpressure.

Tampasomedaybride · July 2012

Noethola:
It will probably depend on what type of midwife you might have. Those in a practice may not always take that much longer then a doc. With my sis, she met with them maybe for 15 minutes including an u/s at the midwife office.

With mine (homebirth midwife), we met for about an hour. We talk about anything birth related, exercise, nutrition, etc. We also talk about life. She is approaching it from the framework that it has to be a trusting relationship, both medical and emotional. Its more focused on me, I guess, and not just the pregnancy. She also takes the time to talk about birthing methods and things. My husband and I can use her knowledge (having attended over 1000+births) of birthing instead of having to go to a different class.

This. I meet with my midwife for between 30 and 45 minutes. We talk about life and the pregnancy. Anything in between really. I think its more so that we are building a trusting and friendly relationship so that I am completely comfortable with her presence at my birth. Its so much more pleasant than an OB. I am not sitting for an hour in the waiting room for a 5 minute appointment. I am sitting for 5 minutes for a 45 minute appointment. Exactly the way it should be IMO.

mlsskr1s · July 2012

Mine are about 45 minutes long, sometimes an hour. I'm kind of neurotic so I usually have a list of questions that we go over before they do their measurements, etc. The questions that I ask cover everything though- from I'm full term and am freaking out about this kid coming to perineal massage, yay or nay. One of the MW in my group is a little older so I feel like I can ask some of the questions about my insecurities and get a little mothering from her. Another MW is a little older than my husband and I and lives near us so she shares information about daycare and pediatricians and such.

When I was with my OB (for the first 32 weeks) she only really told me if things were normal or not, without other discussion about more personal items- she kept telling me that I was worrying unnecessarily and that's part of the reason that I switched to a MW group. My appts. were also only about 10-15 minutes long, probably because I was uncomfortable about asking my questions.

BLuvsE · July 2012

The length of my appointments depends on how many questions I have.

Appointments usually go like this -

PIAC, blood pressure, weight, draw blood if necessary, etc. with a nurse
Go to a different room with a midwife where she measures my uterus, checks baby, etc.
Then she says "Do you have any questions for me?" I ask things as silly as "Can you guess baby's sex based on heart rate?" to "I had some weird cramps last week. Is this normal?" I once even popped out a boob to have her look at my nipple and make sure it was normal. (They look different...I wasn't sure if one was wrong. ) But one week, I just said "Nope!" and she said, "Great! Call if anything comes up. See you in a month!"

I never feel rushed to get out of there, or feel like my question is stupid. I also told her that I had a friend who lost 2 babies to incompetent cervix and that it freaked me out. She took some time to make me feel MUCH better about my risk (or lack thereof) and I don't think an OB would have done that.

StefandTodd · July 2012

Mine are an hour, and I just had one yesterday...I think it could've been over in like 10 minutes, but we just chatted about all kinds of things...my concerns about having two, my plans for returning to work, some ways to help out with some random aches and pains I have from time to time, info about different supplements I am taking. She told me a birth story from a couple days before. They're just friendly, relaxed visits mostly. Also, a little more time to listen to the HB on doppler and talk about differences in this and my last pregnancy.

ETA: oh yeah, lots and lots and lots about nutrition.

tokenhoser · July 2012

I'll probably try to get in when I get pg.

But if I get a long lecture about nutrition, I may just run back to my MD.

goldene · July 2012

My (homebirth) midwives take the position that good nutrition during pregnancy is probably the single most important thing a mom can do to have healthy baby and birth. So...I would definitely check with the care provider in the initial meeting if you aren't interested in talking about nutrition, there is a potential for a really bad fit.

ETA: I also have 1 - 1.5 hour appointments with them, so it sounds like you wouldn't like that either! While such emphasis are probably more common with homebirth midwives, I am certain ALL midwives are not into nutrition and long appointments and I'm sure you can find the right fit for you in a midwife.

catherinerachel · July 2012

So far my first was an hour, in which she did history, talked herself/her experience, talked about expectations at the birth, etc.

My second was about half an hour. She does on a normal visit: urine testing, BP test, listen for baby, answer any questions, and usually a little chit chat.

Blackrose1918 · July 2012

Mine are anywhere from 15-60 minutes. I can't remember jack right now, so I write down questions/concerns/ideas and we go over those. The other thing is, we really have gotten to know each other. We've talked about a fair bit of random, somewhat baby or pregnancy related stuff. It's really nice. I feel much more comfortable with the midwives than I did with the OBs at the practice, just because I know them better.

tokenhoser · July 2012

I think I am a freak of the natural birth world.

I don't care if I know the person that delivers my baby. Not well, anyway. I've been going to my family doctor for about 6 or 7 years. I just need to know that she supports my decisions.

Of course, I'm the one that hates Ina May. I can not read her books.

jesseandabi · July 2012

Mine are only about 20min long.

You do a pee test and weigh your self, then go in, talk to her for a little while, have a Doppler done and if you ask she will do a U/S.

I LOVE her, she is AMAZING, she will do hospital births, home births or at her birth center. I am totally at ease around her, as is DH, we neither one are around doctors...so that in and of it's self it great! Wink

RayRay007 · July 2012

tokenhoser:

I'll probably try to get in when I get pg.

But if I get a long lecture about nutrition, I may just run back to my MD.

They shouldn't lecture you about nutrition. At least, mine didn't. Our appts were usually 45 min. We'd take time discussing all of the options for treatment and care, instead of a dr. who generally (in my experience) just tells you what to do. I liked being very informed and involved in the decision making process. If I get in with the same MW for #2, I'm sure our appts will be shorter.

ETA: our MW practice has a list of things to cover at each appt, so it isn't just me asking questions (if any). They are prompted to discuss things with you.

erin234 · July 2012

I have a CNM and planning a waterbirth at the hospital (one of a few that does waterbirths in the area). After the pee in a cup, weight, and BP check, sometimes it's a 5-10 minute appointment, and sometimes I sit in there for 45 minutes and ask questions. It all depends on what there is to talk about. I will say that they've gotten longer since I'm getting close to birth and thinking of a lot of questions I have. Good luck!

choppinbroccoli22 · July 2012

It depends on what kinds of questions I have. Whatever the question, she thoroughly explains it to me. She is on a stool facing me and she doesn't look away the whole time that we're talking. I really LOVE that about her. I've never had any medical practitioner besides my midwives not interrupt me to cut to the chase of their evaluation.

flyer23 · July 2012

I broke down a "typical" prenatal appointment for each of the three providers I've seen (OB, hospital-based MW, homebirth MW) in this blog post: https://homebirthjourney.blogspot.com/2012/02/typical-prenatal-appointment.html

My OB appointments lasted about as long as my homebirth MW appointments, but that was because I always had to wait forEVer at my OB appointments. My HB MW appointments took longer because we chit-chatted a lot, especially when I brought my older kids along.

My hospital-based MW appointments were the shortest, because the wait was fairly short and we didn't chit-chat as much.

I did have some HB MW appointments that were very quick, if I didn't have my older kids along and I had someplace to be. I'm sure she would've been fine doing that regularly.

I'm not a huge fan of Ina May either Wink (as someone who has had an induction, she turned me off big-time with the whole "Pitocin causes autism" thing) but I do like having a personal connection with the person who cares for me during my pregnancy.

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