Survivor Moms - Healing after Sexual Abuse
Midwives are called upon to help each of their clients have the best birth possible. As many as one in three or four women have suffered sexual abuse or rape. The effects of such abuse often play out in the childbearing year, as well as in other aspects of a person’s life. In that the experience of giving birth has such great potential either to heal or to hurt, it is important that we, as midwives, know as much as possible about how to work with these women. We can definitely be a part of the healing process, but it is a double edged sword. We can also re-traumatize these moms. Motherbaby Press, a subsidiary of Midwifery Today, has published a book that can help you g

Your Birth
This is what I want to say to every young woman in the world: your birth is the most important event in shaping your life as a mother. It is imperative that you be properly cared for, nurtured and, in this culture, educated. You need a loving midwife, because the effects of the birth year—positive or negative—will affect your whole life, your baby’s whole life, and indeed society, as your decisions reverberate through herstory. Even with good midwifery care, prenatal self-care is essential—this is what you do between your visits with your midwife.   If you think you cannot afford the midwife of your choice,

The Complexities of Birth
A mother’s birth is first a physical event, but if the psychological aspect takes over it may be impossible for the birth to proceed as a straight-out physical event. In this case, the mind needs to be cleared in order to fall into the primal brain, where the birth works best. And then there are the physical realities of position, flexion, fit, pelvic shape, and the weight of the baby. Now add to all of this the reality that birth is also a spiritual and sacred passage. Birth is so incredibly complex and yet so amazingly simple, with s