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Circle of Life Childbirth Practice ~ Cheryl Moore Licensed Midwife


FAQ





Who is eligible to birth with a Licensed Midwife at home?



Who is eligible to birth with a Licensed Midwife at home? Any pregnant person who is low risk is eligible to birth with a Licensed Midwife. Licensed Midwifery care is ideal for people who wish to allow their bodies to birth as undisturbed as possible, while having a skilled midwife present to monitor safety and well-being, as well as guide the birthing process as needed to ensure the best and safest outcomes. Out-of-Hospital Births are ideal for those who desire to birth without medical pain management, as midwives’ skills and portable, waterproof equipment ensure safety and monitoring benefits without compromising your options for continued movement, positions, and access to water in labor. These options, along with the emotional and mental support provided by your Midwife enable to you more easily cope and move through the intensity of labor than in a traditional hospital setting.



Who is considered low risk?



This question can be somewhat confusing because risk is assessed in different ways by different providers who practice in different birthing settings. Common risk factors given in obstetrical care – including advanced maternal age, reoccurring miscarriages, or vaginal birth after cesarean, can almost always be mitigated and classified as low risk with in-depth midwifery care. In the same way, some things that obstetrics does not consider high-risk, including certain lab values or ultrasound results, will risk you out of midwifery care. The best thing to do is schedule a phone consultation with Cheryl Moore Midwife in order to discuss your personal health and pregnancy history to see if you are a good candidate for an out-of-hospital birth. We often work with people who have complicated health and birthing histories to help them realign their body in a healthy way so that they can be qualified as low risk. Choosing midwifery care also means you are choosing to be an active participant in your prenatal care through more conscious nutrition and hydration, daily supplements, and overall body health and movement in order to qualify as low risk for out-of-hospital birth. As your Midwife, Cheryl Moore LM takes your health and wellbeing seriously, and her entire focus during prenatal care is to help you become the healthiest version of yourself.



When should I begin Midwifery care?



We often have people inquiring about care later in pregnancy, stating that they were waiting “to make sure everything was low risk”. This is NOT ideal for midwifery care. The best time to begin care with a Licensed Midwife is as EARLY as possible, for two reasons.


1. Obstetrical care views low risk differently, and many people have been told they were low risk by their OB, only to find out that under midwifery care they have multiple high risk factors and now have very little time to correct these issues before delivering.


2. Midwives limit how many clients we take per month in order to ensure our availability. If you wait too long to hire a midwife, we could easily be full and not able to take any more clients during your “due window”. Many of our clients begin care with us even prior to conceiving – and this is ideal. Midwives are able to do hormonal testing, all early pregnancy genetic testing, as well as order all the same ultrasounds as obstetrical care providers.


We also tailor our care to each client, so we review all the options for labs, tests, ultrasounds and more and you choose the ones that feel right for you, your situation and your pregnancy.


Often when we have clients come into care later in pregnancy, it is very difficult for us to get everything into range for midwifery care, and clients can often feel overwhelmed. Obstetrical “low risk” care and lab ranges are not the same as Licensed Midwifery care ideals. Being told you are low risk by your OB does not mean you will automatically qualify for an out of hospital birth, so the sooner you start with your midwife, the better.


We see many more transfers in labor with clients who begin care later in pregnancy, simply because their physical and mental preparation are not always able to be as ready and ideal for labor when they begin care later in pregnancy.


However – even if you are already later in your pregnancy now, don’t hesitate to give us a call. It can still be well worth coming into care with a midwife even if you are later on. From time to time we are able to take late-transfer clients – if we still have space – and we will work tirelessly with you to quickly get everything in place in order for you to have your best and safest out-of-hospital birth experience.



Is there a discount in your fee if I start later in my pregnancy?



Is there a discount in your fee if I start later in my pregnancy? The later in your pregnancy that you start care, the more difficult and time consuming it is for our team to care for you and ensure you are safe for an out-of-hospital birth. Also, the vast majority of the care and time is invested at the end of pregnancy. So no, there is no price discount for starting care later in pregnancy. Starting care later in pregnancy requires that our team request all of your previous records, upload many pages of records by hand into your account, give you months of education and recommendations in a short amount of time, review all of your current and past health history in depth to ensure you are safe to birth out of the hospital, and more. Often to get someone qualified and prepped for their birth when they are already late in pregnancy can also require many hours of admin work after hours to ensure everything is ready in time. The goal is for everything to be in range and up to date by 37 weeks, as that is when you are legally able to birth outside of the hospital. In order for your midwife to go on-call for you at 37 weeks, your chart and values must be complete and in-range. Otherwise, if you go into labor before we have all of your previous records, or before all your current lab values in range, you would be transferred to the hospital to give birth.




Do you recommend I have a Doula?



Yes! Doulas are amazing and we highly recommend hiring a doula to be part of your birth team. Your midwife is your medical care provider, and as such, she must always prioritize your medical health before emotional and mental support. Kindness, informed consent and shared decision making are built into our care, so she is never “checked out”, and always gives care with informed consent, gentleness and love. However, it is still so helpful to have a doula there who’s dedicated role is for emotional and mental support – not only for you, but for your partner, and even your other children and family members. It is also within the doula’s role to accompany you in transfer situations. This can be a huge support for clients that may need to transfer non-emergently to the hospital, as having your doula by your side throughout is so supportive and reassuring. Doulas also offer postpartum care and visits, which is beyond helpful to families in the first few weeks of adjusting and surviving with a newborn. There are several Doulas in that we work closely with that we are happy to refer too.



Do I need an obstetrician in addition to my midwife?



No. Licensed Midwives are independent practitioners and offer complete prenatal care and lab testing. You will be referred to an obstetrician if any situation arises that requires obstetrical care or physician consultation.









Circle of Life Childbirth Practice
~Cheryl Moore Licensed Midwife