Labor and delivery; it brings joy but also pain for the woman.Obviously there is joy because of the newborn baby, but any woman will tell you, it was a source of unspeakable pain.

Well because of the pain that woman go through, there are two different schools of thought on how labor and delivery should happen.  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 delivering babies which is tied in with using drugs to kill the pain, and sometimes c -sections to finish the delivery.

While there is a lesser known model, not as widely accepted, for those that have experienced it and believe in it, they consider it a safer alternative for the woman.

That model is called the midwifery model.That model is the exact opposite of the medical model which is usually used.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 performed by a group called midwives. Midwives San Diego are generally woman, who attend the birth, often times at the mother’s home.This midwife would help with some techniques that help the woman go through labor as naturally as possible without 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 is a profession that has a regulatory board that oversees, certifies, and licenses the individual. 

Although a lot of the times they are not a nurse or a doctor, a midwife sometimes is a nurse also.

Even though they are not formal doctors or nurses, they will have some medical equipment for emergencies like resuscitation devices and equipment for suturing.

So this describes what a midwife is and what midwifery is about in relation to pregnancy and delivery.

Their goals are to allow the birth and delivery to happen as naturally as possible.This makes the likelihood of a c-section less likely.Does not subject you to hospital procedures that are invasive such as episiotomys.Less medical intrusion will be used such as drugs to speed up or slow the pregnancy or the breaking of the water.And for the woman the best part of all is that labor and delivery usually happen quicker naturally.

Hopefully this was informative and helped you understand some of the benefits of midwifery and having a midwife there for your pregnancy.  At the very least, hopefully it gives you more options to explore.  Remember this is first hand knowledge from a San Diego midwife.