It’s common on the web to bicker about the dramatic risks or benefits of drinking red raspberry leaf tea at certain stages of pregnancy. (Namely that if used too early it “might cause a miscarriage!” or should be saved to the end as it can “put you into a strong labor.”) As a midwife who has safely used red raspberry herbals with pregnant and lactating clients for over four decades, there’s so much more to know! Unfortunately, a lot of incomplete information and fear-mongering has been repeated in authoritative ways. Let’s clear up the confusion!

It’s time we educate the newly pregnant woman that the midwife or obstetrician that ‘delivers' their baby is actually HELPING THEM to deliver their baby, and even more importantly, helping them along the journey of becoming a mother/parent. What this health care provider will do, could do, should do is quite a bit more than to just make sure everyone survives the whole thing. Many assume that whatever their OB does is automatically the best care to be had. However, it can be problematic to ‘just go along’, without asking questions and without actively choosing the sort of care you want. Here’s why….

Our deeper understandings of birth may come to us from the most unexpected sources, and at the most unanticipated times. During a stretch when I was selling insurance, I found myself in a very unusual place: a stud farm for some of the most valuable horses in the world. One of the stalls emanated energy that felt like so much like birth, I peeked in the large horse box. It was a familiar scene, but with a four-legged mama; a swollen mare was pacing restlessly in the afternoon quiet, deeply breathing and blowing. Her unborn foal was already worth about three million dollars (in 1990 dollars!) because of the lineage it shared with two Triple Crown winners. As horseman explained the barn birth I was about to see, it was entirely shocking how MUCH better it was than humans experience in modern hospitals!

During pregnancy, women are already feeling extra warm because of their hormonal changes and increased blood flow.  When the weather turns super-hot, midwives look for all the tricks to help their miserable mamas stay a little more comfortable and guard against dehydration and overheating.  

Here are the strategies that helped me get through my own hot pregnant July, and that help my midwife clients get through their hot season.

While some swelling (or ‘edema’) is normal in well-nourishing pregnancies, nutrition plays a big role in how much swelling a woman might experience. It’s not true that it’s only ‘luck of the draw’ or that you have to ‘just wait it out’ until the baby’s born. As a holistic midwife, nutrition is a part of our very first consultation because of its powerful role in keeping mom comfortable and both of them healthy.

You are NOT powerless in RSV season! During the respiratory season, pregnant women and moms are especially alert to the risk of RSV for their babies, but there are many option beyond “being worried or getting the RSV vaccine.”

Here are 3 powerful preventions and some RSV vaccine info to help you be more empowered in your choices, and keep your babies safe and healthy.

A healthier new year makes everything better! These simple five ideas are powerful starting points, and are offer improvements to everyone regardless of where you are on your healthy journey.

Because of their shared, women-centered maternity health perspectives, midwives and doulas often appreciate each other’s work and may be at births together.  Doulas assist mothers in positioning, provide emotional support and encouragement and act as an advocate for their individual birth plans, regardless of who is their health care provider. Midwives may also do these things, but are actually delivering (or "catching") the babies, and are responsible for the health care and safety of the mother/baby dyad in labor and birth. 

Midwives are highly skilled professionals in the realm of normal birth. Although it’s common for current generations to think that all babies are born in a hospital with obstetricians (OB’s), the preferred attendant around the world for normal birth is still the midwife. So how does one go about finding a homebirth midwife, if you're the first in your circle to consider such a thing? Depending on the health care politics of your area, it could be super easy, or a big challenge!

The two round ligaments that support the uterus are rope-like bands of connective tissue. As the baby and uterus grows, the ligaments stretch along with them, which sometimes results in a spasming pain which may be described as sharp, jabbing, stabbing or ‘a ping’. It’s pretty common for pregnant mamas to bring up “Is it normal to have this weird pain?” in the 4-7 month range. Here are a number of approaches that can bring relief, some that you can do with your hands right on the spot!