Midwife: with woman.
Blossoming Birth offers postmodern midwifery care in Southern Oregon. This means we simultaneously hold the modern, biomedical midwifery knowledge and the ancient wise woman wisdom. We take your blood pressure and talk to your baby. We can order you an ultrasound and be a shoulder for you to cry on. We analyze your labs and offer you herbal remedies grown on our land. We monitor your vitals and assess your over all well being. We listen to your baby with a hand held dopplar and sing with you during labor. We know the modern ways and the ancient ways, and weave them into our midwifery offering. There is wisdom in it all.
We offer complete pregnancy, birth, and postpartum care for mother and baby. We draw our philosophy from the Biodynamic Birth model and the Midwives Model of Care. We monitor and address any concerns, but interfere as little as possible, to support optimal well being during pregnancy, birth, and breastfeeding. Our care is individualized because we know that no two pregnancies are alike, and each woman and child has their own unique needs. Because of this, we also practice informed choice, clearly explaining all proposed tests and procedures, discussing their risks, benefits and alternatives, and answering any questions you may have. We support your right to make choices that are best for you and your family, and we expect you to take responsibility for these choices. Ultimately, this is your pregnancy, your birth, and your baby. We are here to support your blossoming.
Prenatal Care
Prenatal care gives us an opportunity to really know each other and build trust so when the time comes you can fully relax into your labor and birth. It is also a wonderful opportunity to work together to optimize your health. Throughout your prenatal care, we continually monitor for any complications that may require further testing or attention to ensure the well being of you and baby.
Prenatal visits are scheduled for an hour so we have time for more than the standard vitals check. The initial visit is even longer so we can discuss your history and initial paperwork, order initial lab work, and do a physical exam. We schedule one prenatal visit every four weeks or so until you are 28 weeks pregnant, when we start seeing you every two weeks. Around 36 weeks we do a home visit, and from this point on we see you every week. At each prenatal visit, we assess your weeks gestation, check your pulse and blood pressure, measure your fundal height, assess fetal (baby’s) heart tones, and palpate the baby for position and presentation. We ask you about fetal movement. We ask you to weigh yourself and pee in a cup to perform dipstick urinalysis on your urine. We often check in about diet and nutrition, exercise, and healthy pregnancy habits. We ask about any physical complaints you may have, and how you are doing emotionally. We talk about childbirth preparation and your desires around your birth. We trust you to communicate any issues that may arise so we can best serve you. We are here for you.
Birth Care
Birth is a profound life experience, and we honor it as such. Labor and birth can take you to difficult and ecstatic places, showing you the depth and breadth of your soul; we encourage you to surrender into and embrace the huge birthing energy passing through. We will be there for you throughout this journey and monitor you and baby for physical well being so you can be free to relax into your birth. Please see our Biodynamic Birth and Home Birth pages for more on our philosophy of care during birth.
We are able to attend your birth at home between 36 and 43 weeks gestation. Once you are in active labor, we will come to your house to monitor and make sure all is well. Our birth care looks quite different depending on your individual needs; we can rub you back and sing, offer herbs or positioning suggestions, give you an IV, or sit in the next room and just tiptoe in to monitor as needed. We routinely check maternal vitals every several hours and listen to baby about every half hour. Every birth is unique, but we are ready to help you navigate through whatever yours brings. We hold space for a wide range of normal in birth.
Once baby is born he or she will go straight to moms chest, skin to skin, and stay there. We generally do not cut the cord until your placenta is born. We encourage baby to play around at the breast during the first hour of life, and if he or she doesn’t latch then we will offer assistance. Once you and baby are stable, we will do a newborn exam and offer the standard eye ointment and Vitamin K shot for baby. We check your perineum for tears and suture if needed. We make sure you are fed and cozy in bed before we leave.
Postpartum Care
After birth comes the process of getting to know your baby and settling into some rhythms as a family. Many cultures observe a 30-40 day baby moon or lying-in time. It takes this long to establish breastfeeding and family rhythms and for mom to heal from birth. We strongly encourage this quiet rest time. It is so precious!
We offer complete maternal and newborn care through 6 weeks after birth. We come to your home to check on you and baby in the postpartum so you don't have to go anywhere. We visit on day 1, day 3, 1 week, 2 weeks, 4 weeks, and 6-8 wks postpartum. During these visits we check your and baby’s vitals. We also assess breastfeeding, baby’s weight gain, maternal healing, and overall well being. We offer the standard Newborn Screen at 24-48 hours and 2 weeks.
