Hi all! I think I'm ready to begin my journey on the path of midwifery. I'd just like to hear some stories and opinions that people might have on this subject. How many of you would use/have used a midwife? Why or why not? Do you know anyone who practices midwifery or is going through training? Thanks!

That is so amazing!!! I had a mw with my last daughter (they were all booked up in our area for the first one) and it was a much better experience overall, higher level of care and definitely more nurturing. It is truly a calling. You have to be a special sort of person to undertake that career imo. gl.

I had a mw - and I'll have one again. I loved the experience so much, I convinced my sister's to get mws, too! (One delivered in Feb, the other is due in Aug).

I think that the level of care is unbeatable: the amount of time spent with clients, the amount of education delivered to patients, the accessibility, the guarantee of being with you during labour and delivery, the options available for med-free labour and delivery, the intense follow-up care.

I adore our mws!

i had a midwife for my first and it was the best thing i ever did. it is a much more holistic approach vs. a clinical (family doc) approach. in the end we had to have an emerg c-section at the hospital b/c i was in labour for 56 hours and had only dialated 4cm...so the babe's heartrate started droping, etc, etc...so it wasn't exactly the delivery i had in mind to say the least. but the midwives were there every step of the way, comforting, working with the doctors, and passing the baby to me as soon as he was out.
having a midwife makes a lot of sense in so many ways. we are planning on having our second soon and i have already called the midwifery clinic in the new town that we live in to get the scoop. i am hoping that we can have a midwife for our second. good luck!

I had a midwife for #1 and will for all of the others (it sounds like im planning on a dozen, huh!?) during my best friends labor (with an ob/gyn)she was left with a nurse for the most part and the dr. came in when she was ready to push. my midwife was there with me from the first second to the last, massaging me, comforting me and acting much like a mother would. she even let me pull my baby out of me MYSELF! that was the most empowering moment of my life, and she made it possible.
when i went back to see her a year later for an exam she HUGGED me. i live in a fairly large city so dr/patient hugging isn't the norm..but after thinking about it, this woman went through an amazing experience with me..she *should* feel close enough to hug me. i loved that!
another thing i like about the midwife group i went to is that they all seemed to have their own "thing", meaning one was also trained in acupressure, one was an herbalist, etc. that gave me a very well-rounded holistic approach.

Wow! Thanks for all the great stories guys! I only hope I can keep the ball rolling and live up to such expectations with such wonderful memories as these!

This may be rushing things too much, but I just saw that a Texas midwifery clinic is giving a $500 bonus for women who can start their internship like this month or next:
>http://www.casamidwifery.com/interns.html

Go for it!