Labor and delivery; it brings joy but also pain for the woman. Obviously joy because of the new baby, but ask any woman, and they will tell you a source of unspeakable pain.
Well because there is that pain involved, two schools of thought have come about on how to deal with labor and delivery. 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.
There is one other model, though not as common or accepted, but for those that practice it and believe in it, consider it a safer alternative 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.The medical model is where you rely heavily on medicine, while the midwifery model 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 a profession practiced by 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 popular belief, the non-use of medicine actually allows the labor to happen much faster because most pain killers actually slows the labor down.
The midwife as a profession does have a regulatory board that licenses, certifies, and oversees 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 objective is to let the labor and delivery to occur as naturally as possible. This reduces the likelihood of a c-section. Doesn’t allow you to be subject to invasive hospital procedures such as episiotomys.There will be less use of managing it with medical techniques such as breaking the water or using any types of drugs for the pregnancy. And the best part of all that a woman will love, generally labor happens much quicker naturally.
My hope is that this information has given you more information on the benefits of midwifery and using a midwife in your pregnancy.At the very minimum, maybe it gives you some other options to think about and look into. Remember this is first hand knowledge from a San Diego midwife.