The Midwife

Today I finally got to talk to the midwife I hoped to use, KM. Poor thing, she is on bedrest for mild pre-eclampsia; she's not due till 4/2 but she said it's not looking good that she'll be term. We had a good talk - she was very open and upfront with me. But I'm a little depressed now.

Basically, she's not coming back to the business anytime soon. She said in a year or two maybe. But that is way too late for me! She also told me that the midwives that delivered the Little Miss are no longer around. There is one other midwifery practice in Columbus (which is about a 45 minute drive for me) but she doesn't really recommend them.

So, my local options for a midwife are pinned on the one remaining at KM's practice: L. I have nothing against L, other than the fact that she's not KM. Her bedside manner is just different. KM assured me that she's a very competent midwife and KM was going to her up until the pre-eclampsia thing. I expressed concern that L would have a tough time being the sole midwife with 5 kids and a husband at home. She agreed but said that L is very committed to it. She will probably rotate call weekends with the backup doctors and KM told me that L will probably choose to do that only when certain docs are on call. The ones she names are the ones that I wouldn't have a problem going to.

Being delivered by a midwife is important to me for lots of reasons. After the Little Miss was born, it was agreed by everyone that an OB would most likely have done a C-section if for no other reason than that I was taking too long. But the midwife hung in there with me and I had a perfect vaginal delivery with no intervention and only a minor tear. I just don't think I would find that kind of patience in the OBs that are available to me. This is the one instance that I really hate where I live because there are just so few options available in terms of midwives.

So, I guess I have my decision made for me: I will take my chances on L. I plan to book an appointment with her soon and see how I feel about her in person. I'll try to go in with an open mind and clean slate. Wish me luck.