Midwife Appt Number Four

This afternoon was my latest midwife appointment. We started it off by me being assured that yes, as soon as I call for a midwife when I go into labor, one will head my way. And I was reminded to remind whomever is coming that #1 took four hours. This was the first time during my pregnancy I've seen the midwife who was in charge of my birth last time, and it was so nice to have some time with her. I adore all of the midwives, but there is a special relationship with the two who were there the first time. Anyway, they checked my vitals: urine, good; blood pressure 120/60 (good, but high for me); listened to Baby's heartbeat (and my midwife introduced herself, I love it when they do that), 150 bpm; took a vial of blood for the last of my blood tests. Spent plenty of time talking about my diet and going over some of the problems I had last time (particularly with breastfeeding) to make sure that the communication lines are open and to head off any issues this time around.

One of the wonderful things about midwives is that they allow the time, and actually take it, to go over everything. I cannot stress this enough. When I was with an ob last time, the appointments were about ten minutes each, including the time it took the nurse to take my vitals. Not nearly enough time to discuss what's going on, particularly for first-time moms. One of the biggest problems that I see with how pregnancy is treated in this country is that women are so uneducated. Even educated women don't know the half of it. I feel so lucky that my Bradley Method instructor last time was so knowledgeable and knew where to find answers. She also gave me the courage to finally leave my ob practice and switch to midwives. So let me add another plug for the Bradley Method as well. And one last thought: I think the best sources of information about childbirth are from women who have experienced it, and witnessed many, but who don't have an agenda. Doulas are excellent for this, which gives me tomorrow's topic.