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Hallie
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| Posted: Jan 03 2008 at 9:11pm | IP Logged
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Hello ladies, :)
I was hoping some of you might be able to give me some advice about a midwife dilemma I am having. I have spent a lot of time during this pregnancy searching for care. We are relatively new to the area (Austin, Texas) so I did not have anyone lined up when I discovered I was pregnant again. I am really hoping to have a homebirth this time around but am having trouble finding a midwife. The first midwife I visited was wonderful but charged almost double what other midwives in the area do. Unfortunately, my insurance coverage is not midwife-friendly and we aren't wealthy so spending the extra money wasn't an option. I then went to the pro-life OBGYN but discovered that he doesn't allow children in his office and with 3 little ones and no family in the area that posed a bit of a problem. Being back in an OBGYN office also confirmed for me how much I wanted to deliver at home. Today I met with another midwife whose practice had been recommended to me. She herself is new to the practice but I had heard great things about the other midwives (unfortunately they are all booked up for April). As soon as I walked into her office I saw a huge National Organization of Women poster along with several other pro-abortion books and such. I am finding that it is nearly impossible to find a pro-life midwife (at least in this area). I have trouble with the idea of having someone who is pro-abortion caring for me and my baby and being present at something that is as intimate as the birth of my child. Am I overreacting? There are several pro-life OBs in the area and I'm sure one of them would let me bring my children to the appointments but I had my heart set on a homebirth. Have any of you had similar experiences? Thanks for listening and for any insight you may have!
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Hallie
Wife to Dan
Mama to Daniel (5), Jack (4), Sophia (2) and Lucy (born in April).
http://hallie.wordpress.com/
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SuzanneG
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| Posted: Jan 05 2008 at 1:26pm | IP Logged
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Hallie:
I visited about 5 sets of midwives 7 years ago when I was looking for one. There were a couple that had those types of posters up, pro-choice/abortion, etc. It bothered me too. I did not end up using them. Even though I knew (somehow) that the 2 midwives I chose were probably pro-choice, they were never outward about it. They were always very respecting of our Faith, NFP practice, pro-life choices in pregnancy, etc.
I now have a very outward pro-life midwife, which is wonderful, but certainly not necessary. It's VERY unusual to find such a person, around here anyway.
If I had to choose between.....
***midwife/homebirth/birth-center care with an outward pro-choice/abortion midwife
and a...
***pro-life OB/hospital birth
....I would still choose the homebirth with the midwife.
Most midwives are in their profession because they believe there are choices in childbirth and they'll support you no matter what.
Bottom line.......
1. You need to be able to bring your dc to your appointments.
2. You need a midwife who is "soft and squishy"....whom you feel comfortable with during the most vulnerable moments, the BIRTH. Most "soft and squishy" midwives will be completely accepting of your Faith and beliefs, even if they ARE pro-choice. It's the more vocal, feminist, strident ones you want to avoid.
I say keep looking. Do you need a resource for trying to find more names of midwives to do "meet and greets" with?
HTH,
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Suzanne in ID
Wife to Pete
Mom of 7 (Girls - 14, 12, 11, 9, 7 and Boys - 4, 1)
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Maddie
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| Posted: Jan 05 2008 at 2:37pm | IP Logged
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Hallie wrote:
| I then went to the pro-life OBGYN but discovered that he doesn't allow children in his office and with 3 little ones and no family in the area that posed a bit of a problem. |
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 I don't get that thinking at all.
I delivered with pro-life Ob/GYNS for 5 out of my 8 births and my last baby was born at home with a pro-choice midwife (Fallen away Catholic too  )I struggled with this too, (I was a CPC director in my other life) but she was wonderful and was truly committed to my "choice" of homebirth. I am a newbie to homebirth, but I grew up in a hippie community that had a midwife practice. They too were committed to the choice of homebirth and they didn't have a political agenda other then to fight restrictions on a mother's choice to birth at home.
My midwife understood my pro-life no BC position and was fine with it. I know she has been concerned about delivering babies of mother's who have had babies close together, but only because of the possibility of risks that she wasn't prepared to take professionally.
I LOVED my homebirth! It was the best birth I ever had, even though my midwife missed the birth by 30 minutes! 
Prayers for a healthy pregnancy and delivery.
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~Maddie~
Wife to my dh and Momma of 9 dear ones
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aiereis
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| Posted: Jan 05 2008 at 4:57pm | IP Logged
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There is a blog called Darwin Catholic that is written by a husband and wife who live near Austin. She had a homebirth last year. Maybe you can email her and ask her for midwife suggestions? Their email address is on the side of their site.
It would be hard for me to choose between a prolife male doctor and a prochoice midwife. As long as the midwife wasn't a lesbian (there is one in my town, so I actually have to think about this) I would go with the midwife. The reason is that a doctor has a whole different mindset about birth than a midwife. Midwives are all about non-intervention, respecting the mother's desires, being as natural as is safely possible. Doctors tend to be more of the mindset that pregnancy and childbirth are "problems" that need to be managed. I am generalizing quite a bit, but those are the basic differences.
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Christina
Mommy to a lively toddler and a sweet bambina.
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Hallie
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| Posted: Jan 10 2008 at 9:12am | IP Logged
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Thanks you so much for your input, advice and prayers! I am happy to report that I have found a midwife that I think will be wonderful. (Actually Christina, it's funny you mentioned the Darwins because they are friends of our and Mrs. Darwin introduced me to this midwife!)
Thanks again and God bless!
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Hallie
Wife to Dan
Mama to Daniel (5), Jack (4), Sophia (2) and Lucy (born in April).
http://hallie.wordpress.com/
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Lisbet
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| Posted: Jan 12 2008 at 12:36pm | IP Logged
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Hallie I am so glad you found a midwife! I was going to suggest your local LLL, that's where I first was introduced to the homebirthing community in our area years ago. I am VERY blessed to have had the same midwife for 8 babies now, she is very much a mother figure to me at this point. She is Catholic and prolife and beautiful! She only takes apprentices that are prolife, and she has had a new assistant midwife who has been with me for 4 babies now, and while she's not Catholic, she's Christian, prolife, and lovely!
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Lisa, wife to Tony,
Mama to:
Nick, 17
Abby, 15
Gabe, 13
Isaac, 11
Mary, 10
Sam, 9
Henry, 7
Molly, 6
Mark, 5
Greta, 3
Cecilia born 10.29.10
Josephine born 6.11.12
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4Real Forums : Mothering and Family Life
Topic: The search for a midwife
