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Second time around

Ksmyth03Ksmyth03 member
in Natural Birth
Being in the military when having had my son, I didn't have the health care coverage to see a midwife. We were in Hawaii and the hospital there just didn't have a midwife program. Now my second time around, it's really important that I see one. Are there any mom's that transitioned from an MD to a midwife? What should I look for when finding the right one? What questions should I ask? Are there any main differences (besides the obvious) that may surprise me right off?
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Re: Second time around

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    aetgaetg member
    Do you mean transitioned in that in this new pregnancy you want to see a midwife for the whole time?  I did this, I had an OB/Gyn for my son and now I'm seeing a midwife.

    I think the biggest thing that surprised me was the big difference in different types of midwives.  You can have practicing midwives (CPM) and those that are CNM (certified nurse midwives).  In some states both are legal and other states only CNM are legal to attend births.  I guess you will also want to think about whether you want a home birth or a birth center.  
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    jennypolkadotsjennypolkadots member
    When I started my pregnancy I went to my old OBGYN for the first 12 weeks. It became evident very quickly that she wasn't supportive of a natural delivery and she basically ignored my husband. And we would wait over an hour to see her for all of 10 minutes.

    At 12 weeks we met a midwife and it was just a great experience. We didn't settle then and also interviewed two other midwives. We ended up staying with the first one we met and we just love her. 

    The most important thing for me when interviewing a midwife was just to emotionally connect with them. I want to feel comfortable and really trust the judgement of my care provider. We also asked for birth statistics, specifics about hospital transfers and "what if" scenarios, how they deal with women who go past due dates, what emergency medicine they bring to births, and about fee structures. It was an easy choice for us because we just clicked with one while the others just didn't feel right. I can honestly say it was the best decision we ever made. Our appointments are an hour long with no wait and my husband gets to be fully included in the pregnancy and birth instead of treated like an accessory. My midwife has an invested interest in keeping me low risk and healthy through pregnancy, and if an emergency arises and she tells me I need surgery or to transfer to the hospital I never have to second guess it. The only downside is it is more expensive as most insurance won't cover all midwife services, so if this is a consideration for you then you will need to check and see. 

    Good luck finding a midwife! 
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    sschwegesschwege member
    I have always seen a MW, so I can't answer your first question.  However, I'm obviously used to seeing doctors for other things, and there is a difference IMO.  With the MWs I really felt like a partner in the decision making process.  They gave me the information and sat back letting me decide.  Sometimes, though not always I've felt like doctors give the orders and you follow.  Like, "OK, we are going to do X, Y, and Z."  I remember my MWs saying things like, "We would like to do an a/s at 20w, how do you feel about that?" or with my first I remember my MW saying, "You can start pushing if you want to."  I actually opted to labor down for 1.5+ hours because I didn't want to get out of the bath, but how nice to have it presented that way as opposed to "You are fully dilated, time to push!"  I will admit, for me it took a little getting used to, in the beginning sometimes I felt like saying, "Just tell me what I should do!"  I think you will really enjoy seeing a MW!


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    Stephij1Stephij1 member
    It depends on where you want to have your baby. If you're looking for a home birth midwife, that's going to be a different set of questions than for a CNM who delivers in a hospital. I go to a clinic that has both midwives and OBs on staff and I LOVE it. I see the midwives, but the OBs are very natural birth friendly as well. I would recommend making a list of things that important to you (skin to skin? Not being offered drugs? Being allowed to move around? Eating and drinking during labor?) and ask about their policies regarding those things.

     

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