Midwifery and Midwives Explained
Labor and delivery; it brings joy but also pain for the woman.Obviously there is joy because of the newborn baby, but any woman will tell you, it was a source of unspeakable pain.
Well it is because of that pain that there are two schools of thought on how pregnancy and delivery should be carried about. I am going to offer some perspective on one particular school of thought that I have gained first hand experience with by being a homebirth midwife San Diego.
There is the medical model for delivery which is associated with drugs to kill the pain, and sometimes cesarean to complete the delivery.
While there is another model, which though not widely accepted, for those who believe in it and have experience it consider it much safer and natural for the woman.
That model is the midwifery model as it is called.That is in obvious contrast with the usual medical model way of doing things. Where the medical model relies heavily on medicine, hence “medical”, midwifery relies on the natural.Midwifery philosphy believes that pregnancy, labor, and delivery should happen as naturally as possible because it is a natural process.
This model is performed by a group called midwives. Midwives San Diego are generally woman, who attend the birth, often times at the mother’s home.This midwife would help the woman try to deliver the baby as naturally as possible without the use of drugs.
Contrary to most people’s opinion, when medicine is not used during labor, it allows the labor to proceed much faster without the use of drugs to slow the labor down.
The midwife is a professional with a regulatory board that certifies and licenses the individual.
Although usually not a nurse or doctor, a midwife can be a nurse as well.
Even though they are not a doctor or nurse, they do carry with them some medical equipment, such as resuscitation devices and suturing equipment.
So in regards to pregnancy and delivery this is what a midwife is and generally what midwifery is about.
Their goals are to let the labor and delivery happen as naturally possible.This reduced the need and use of a c-section.Does not subject you to hospital procedures that are invasive such as episiotomys. Less medical management like breaking the water or using drugs to slow or speed up the pregnancy.And for the woman the best part of all is that labor and delivery usually happen quicker naturally.
Hopefully this was informative and helped you understand some of the benefits of midwifery and having a midwife there for your pregnancy. At the very least, hopefully it gives you more options to explore. Remember this is first hand knowledge from a San Diego midwife.
