As a Mother and Wife:
I am the mother of 4 sons who were born in 4 and a half years. I was 23 years old when my 4th son was born. My husband of 25 years and I home educated our sons. I also have a granddaughter.
As a Midwife:
I completed 3 years of midwifery education before beginning an 18month apprenticeship at "The Birth Cottage of Milford". During this apprenticeship I was able to achieve the required amount and level of skills experience required to be permitted to sit for the 8 hour written examination given by the NARM as a part of the national certification, and also was able to sit for the local skills examination with the New Hampshire Midwifery Council. I am licensed in the States of New Hampshire and Vermont to practice Midwifery by those states certifying agencies. I am certified nationally through NARM (North American Registry of Midwives). I carry medical malpractice insurance through The New Hampshire Medical Malpractice Joint Underwriting Association, and am a member locally of the New Hampshire Midwives Association (NHMA) of which I am the secretary and nationally the Midwives Alliance of North America (MANA).
My Philosophy of Birth:
Birth is the beginning. The beginning of a new life, the beginning of a new phase for a woman, and also the beginning of new phases in her relationships with those who love and support her. I believe with all my heart that it is here that a foundation is set in the lives of each of us. I believe our birth experience can indeed have an effect on who we are as adults. I believe that a woman will remember her birth experience good or bad, as if it was yesterday, even when she is old and gray and has forgotten many other important details in her life. I believe that babies come out more often than not when given the time, and that a woman's body was made to give birth. I also believe that trusting birth is a skill that is learned with experience, with heart, and by listening to one's own intuitive abilities but most importantly, to the mother's sense of her body and her baby. I believe that midwives are called, typically from an early age, and have been all through time. I believe that at present it is a tragedy that so many who are meant to serve women at the time of birth, are distracted from their calling by a societal blindness. I believe it is my place as a Midwife to have the skills and ability to do anything, and everything I should do within my scope of practice, with the hope of using nothing but my heart, my hands, and my voice to assist what is a normal, natural, body function. I believe it is the choice of the woman and her partner as to where and with whom they give birth, and that all options should be made available to them in the complete process of informed choice.