A Walk to Beautiful

Kent and I watched this tonight and were so inspired. What a tragedy for these women! How we take for granted having roads, cars, instant access to hospitals with surgeons and technology right when we need it.


We long to be out of debt and free to serve wherever God is leading us. Please pray that we will persevere and be faithful in our efforts.

Cover letter for my midwifery resume

To Whom It May Concern:
I am becoming a midwife because I have seen too much to not become one. Over the past five years, since I had my daughter at home and started attending home births (and the occasional birth center birth), I have seen a better way, and I need to spread the word. I had been working as a doula attending hospital births for three years prior, and truly had felt called to help empower women and the families to achieve their desired births. But I now know that that was just a stepping stone on my midwifery path. Since then, I have seen numerous beautiful and safe births at home…
I have seen a young 20-year-old woman sail through the transition phase of labor in the jetted tub at the birth center, and then beautifully deliver her own daughter while lying on her side on a queen-sized bed. I have witnessed the serene birth of a couple in their thirties who spent most of the labor of their first child outside under the stars in their hot tub. The mom then calmly entered the house, only to deliver her baby crouching in the 4:00am moonlight streaming from the window. She immediately, yet slowly pulled the baby to her chest, so quietly. I have seen a 42-year-old home-schooling, goat-raising mother of ten rejoice in her first waterbirth. My doula clients of over five years ago have no idea that this world exists, that this kind of birth is even possible. I had no idea when I had my son. But now I have seen too much to go back….
I have seen a lot- good and bad, wonderful and terrifying. I have seen shoulder dystocias- handled expertly by midwives, then gruesomely by an OB. I have seen severe maternal hemorrhages, an inverted uterus, an umbilical cord snap upon delivery, mouth-to-mouth baby resuscitation, malpresentations, thick fresh meconium, preterm labor, partial placental ruptures and a complete breech (undiagnosed) home delivery (on a primip!), ALL of these complications handled perfectly by a skilled midwife. I have seen that good, wise midwives can handle these events appropriately or transfer care to the hospitals when warranted. I am going to be one of these midwives.
So I want to become a midwife. I hope to serve families in my community by providing them with safe, yet beautiful birth experiences. I want parents to truly learn what informed consent is and what their rights are; as consumers, as patients, as parents. This will empower them so much as they become bigger families and go on from their birth, to hire pediatricians, family docs, or any healthcare service provider in the future.
I want to help women learn to take responsibility for their own health and diets, during pregnancy and throughout the rest of their lives. Their nutrition and lifestyle can affect their health, for good or bad. Too often I’ve seen healthcare providers fail to teach women this. It is all pathology to them and the answers are all too often pharmaceuticals or other technologies. They don’t trust birth. They don’t trust the design.
I trust the design. I have “what it takes”. I have good math, science and problem-solving skills. I am very relational, and have a keen sense at all times of what my role is in situations with other people. I consider myself to have a very observant nature in general and pride myself on my ability to remain calm in crisis. And as my maid of honor pointed out at my wedding, I am very loyal. Completely reliable. Ask the midwives I have assisted in the past.
I am first and foremost a child of God, secondly my husband’s wife, and thirdly my children’s mom. But God has given me a passion for birth and I firmly believe that midwifery is my calling. He has provided me with the honor of being present at each birth I have attended. I will go where He next leads me on this path.

The other thing I've been working on...

Christ Centered Birthing

THE plan (finally)-

Anyone who knows me knows that I have had a passion for all things birth and baby related for several years. My journey has led me from being a certified doula assisting families in hospitals, to assisting some lovely midwives in various out-of-hospital settings. My son's birth was a typical hospital birth with my OBGYN. Four and a half years later my daughter's was a birth in my home with a midwife in attendance. It was life-changing, and there was no going back for me. Homebirths and the midwifery model of care became my goal and dream.

I finally have a realistic plan and goal for my midwifery education. In the coming year, I will be working towards my Certified Professional Midwife (CPM) status from the North American Registry of Midwives (NARM) and state midwifery license in Idaho. I will be completing my Portfolio Evaluation Process (PEP) and studying as an apprentice under at least two amazing midwives. I should be able to complete my requirements within a year, due to the experience that I already have under my belt assisting midwives for the past four years.

I had been considering midwifery schools, and even nursing school. I know that a few weeks ago I posted on here about the Midwifery College of Utah, but it is still $200 per credit, and that kind of money is just not around right now for us. Kent and I are not willing to go into debt again. We have not used credit cards or taken out loans at all for the past three years. We will pay as we go when Kent gets his doctorate, so we are not about to enter into huge debt for midwifery school for me. The state of Washington basically requires midwifery school for licensure, this is why I am choosing to license in the state of Idaho for now. (I live only 5 miles from the state line and all of my family is in Idaho.) I also strongly believe in apprenticeship-model education. Maybe we can afford more schooling for me in the future.

SO- here is the list of primary textbooks that I will need. And I am putting this out there at the suggestion of one of my mentors, and soon, preceptor. She recommended that I put this book list out so that anyone who wants to donate to my midwifery education may do so buy purchasing a book or Amazon certificate for me. Here is the list-

-Davis, Elizabeth, Heart and Hands: A Midwife’s Guide to Pregnancy and Birth, 4th edition, Celestial Arts, 2004.
-Frye, Anne, Holistic Midwifery: A Comprehensive Textbook for Midwives and Home Birth Practice, Vol. I,
-Care During Pregnancy, Labrys Press, revised 1995.
-Frye, Anne. Holistic Midwifery: A Comprehensive Textbook for Midwives and Home Birth Practice, Vol. II,
-Care During Labor and Birth, Labrys Press, 2004.
-Frye, Anne, Understanding Diagnostic Tests in the Childbearing Year, 6th edition, Labrys Press, 1997.
-Gaskin, Ina May, Spiritual Midwifery, 4th edition, The Book Publishing Company, 2002.
-Myles, Margaret, Textbook for Midwives, 14th edition, Elsevier, 2003
-Page, Lesley Ann, The New Midwifery, Churchill Livingstone, 2000
-Simpkin & Ancheta, Labor Progress Handbook, Blackwell, 2000
-Sinclair, Constance, A Midwife’s Handbook, Saunders, 2004
-Thureen, Assessment & Care of the Well Newborn, Saunders, 1998
-Varney, Helen, Midwifery, 4th edition, Jones and Bartlett, 2003
-Walsh, Linda, Midwifery: Community Based Childbirth, Saunders, 2001

Teaching-

I love, love, love teaching these childbirth classes! Why did I not do this years earlier? I have been putting off midwifery studies for years, saying that I did not want to neglect my family, but also finances have had a lot to do with that as well. But, teaching is SO fun- I get to talk about birth, give advice, share stories, and hopefully, help families have more positive birthing experiences. All of this, without the stress on my family of having to be on call and actually go to the birth. This is a way for me to stay connected and involved in the birthing community while at the same time avoiding the on-call lifestyle that is so tough with young children.
So, I am researching the different organizations to certify under. And, there are many: Bradley, ICEA, Lamaze, ALACE, Birthworks, Birthing From Within, many more. Any recommendations? If so, you must say why you like this or that organization, please. Thanks for your thoughts!!

Lots of Classes-

Well, October has filled up quite fast for our family. We are all enrolled in a dog training course with Niko. I need to post new pictures of him, as he is (in true runt fashion of course) gi-normous now. :)
But, even more exciting for me are the other classes in October-
1. I am teaching a Childbirth Preparation class for the first time. I am really thrilled to be doing this- in fact Lindy and I watched birth videos all morning in preparation. My group is comprised of three young couples from my church expecting their first babies. They are allowing me to practice teaching, and receiving a semi-private class for free. Win-win!
2. Margaret and I are doing a two-weekend workshop to train Midwives' Assistants. This will be a great opportunity to impact our local birth community by further educating and inspiring women about the midwifery model of care, and also provide a marketable skill set to our trainees.
I/we are hoping to really organize and streamline these classes so that they may be offered repeatedly. Eventually our reputation will become known in the community and the classes will become a regular option available to women and families seeking knowledge in these areas.
So, don't pass the word on for me yet- I'll let you all know. Just prayers for now, that all will go smoothly for our family throughout this month and we can remember to serve one another and die to ourselves, despite our stress and weariness. (Corbin's 8th birthday coming up too!) Thank you!

How old do I look?! (Don't answer that!)

So, I was at a birth with Margaret the midwife the other night. We went to the hospital, settled in to the room and the nurse turns to me, "So, you're her (indicating the woman having the baby) mother, right?"- I just stared at her- "Me?"- "Well, I'm just trying to figure out who everyone is."- "How old do I look?"- "Oh, well you're tired. She just looks so young- she looks like 15. You would be a really young mom."
Mortifying. This mom was like 23- I am 31. Are ya kidding me? Seriously.

Adoption-

I went to a training on Saturday in Understanding Infant Adoption and counseling for unplanned pregnancies. Then, I rented the movie "Bella" accidentally yesterday. Whoa. If you have not seen that movie, it is really good.

Commercial, Shameless Plug-

This year, (our family always thinks in school years), we will be focusing on my birth stuff, so that Kent does not need to give voice lessons on week nights. Therefore, for the first time since we've moved here to Spokane, I need to advertise my businesses. So, here they are:
I am a trained birth doula. I provide physical, emotional and informational support to women and their families in labor. I have been attending births as a doula for 7 years now. Phone consultations and initial interviews are offered at no charge. See DONA for more info on what a doula is.
I also can provide postpartum doula care. A postpartum doula supports the new family in the first few weeks after a birth and is usually hired on an hourly basis. Various contracts may be arranged, as needs can vary greatly during this time.
Also, Margaret and I are in the final planning stages of our Midwives' Assistant Training we will be offering this fall. I trained to be a Midwives' Assistant 3 years ago in Colorado and am very excited to pass on these skills to other birth junkies like myself. Please let me know if you are interested in this class to acquire a skill set of your own.
So, please spread the word about my services to local women and families. Thanks!
Phone- (208)964-5268
Email- terrikentcorbin@hotmail.com

Birth Quotes

Here are some good, thought-provoking ones (The first one is my favorite, often quoted by Margaret):

Birth is as safe as life gets.

Harriette Hartigan

Treating normal labors as though they were complicated can become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Rooks

Midwifery is rooted in the natural approach. Pregnancy and birth are considered fundamentally healthy processes which have many normal variations; it is normal part of life, not a medical condition…Only when complications occur which are beyond the midwife's expertise, is the woman transferred to obstetric care.

Steiger

We have a secret in our culture, and it's not that birth is painful. It's that women are strong.

Laura Stavoe Harm

Lo, children are a heritage of the LORD: and a reward from Him.

Psalms 127:3

Life only demands from you the strength you possess.

David Hammarskjold

Fear and faith cannot coexist and they both demand different conclusions and actions.

Christy Faber

Epidurals rip women off of an opportunity to experience themselves as competent adults.

Margaret Egeland, CNM

Just as a woman's heart knows how and when to pump, her lungs to inhale, and her hand to pull back from fire, so she knows when and how to give birth.

Virginia Di Orio

In the sheltered simplicity of the first days after a baby is born, one sees again the magical closed circle, the miraculous sense of two people existing only for each other, the tranquil sky reflected on the face of the mother nursing her child.

Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Throughout the world, there exists a group of women who feel mightily drawn to giving care to women in childbirth. At the same time maternal and independent, responsive to a mother's needs, yet accepting full responsibility as her attendant; such women are natural midwives. Without the presence and acceptance of the midwife, obstetrics becomes aggressive, technical and inhuman.

Professor G.J. Kloosterman, Chief of OB/GYN, Univ. of Amsterdam

The woman about to become a mother, or with her newborn infant upon her bosom, should be the object of trembling care and sympathy wherever she bears her tender burden or stretches her aching limbs…. God forbid that any member of the profession to which she trusts her life, doubly precious at that eventful period, should hazard it negligently, unadvisedly or selfishly.

Oliver Wendell Holmes

Whenever a woman gives birth to a child, she remembers the hard work no more, for the joy that a child has been born into the world.

John 16:21

Women's strongest feelings [in terms of their birthings], positive and negative, focus on the way they were treated by their caregivers.

Annie Kennedy & Penny Simkin

Technology has turned the fetus into a patient, reducing the mother to being the 'maternal environment' and preventing attachment until after the ultrasound has shown the fetus to be 'normal.'

Jennifer Hall

Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; He rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!

Isaiah 30:18

Man cannot feed the baby within the uterus. What justifies his presumption that he is able to improve upon the physiological provision because the child has recently left the uterus? We can fortify and reinforce with certain substances the adequacy of both the placental and the breast nutrition, but the basic natural nourishment supplies something no concoction can contain.

Dr. Grantly Dick-Reed, M.D.

For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of POWER, of LOVE, and of SELF-DISCIPLINE.

2Timothy 1:7

A healthy woman who delivers spontaneously performs a job that cannot be improved upon.

Aidan MacFarlane author of The Psychology of Childbirth (1977)

If it hurts, get off it, move it around, rub it better.

Barbara Kott (president of the NCT)

If in doubt, breathe out

Cathy Doberska - Reading, UK NCT teacher

Rain, after all is only rain; it is not bad weather. So also, pain is only pain; unless we resist it, then it becomes torment.

I Ching

There is no way out of the experience except through it, because it is not really your experience at all but the baby's. Your body is the child's instrument of birth.

Dr. Penelope Leach

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Phew!

Last night, (well, 2am this morning actually), was my 9th birth in one month. That is the most birth action I have ever had! 3 doula clients: one of those an unassisted homebirth which dad caught the baby- no problems, one a gorgeous water birth at the birth center in town, and the other a long hospital birth at which when I left the nurse told me I was the best doula they had ever worked with. 1 assistant birth with another midwife. 5 assistant births with my dear friend and midwife Margaret: 3 of those were lovely uncomplicated births, and sandwiched in the middle of all these miracles were the 2 families who lost their babies.
Tonight is the ladies sewing and craft night at our church. I am SO looking forward to this! I'm hoping to finish some curtains for Lindy's room. And tomorrow we will all be at my parent's house in Twin Lakes, Idaho- the best place in the world to be on 4th of July, IMHO. It's a huge relief that I won't be on call for any births. Our dear friend and brother Cody is coming to visit for a week next week. We will spend lots of time at BBQs, the lake, and Silverwood, I'm sure. Margaret and I are planning on an afternoon of floating the lazy river whilst sipping drinks to veg out after the birth traumas. And then we leave for our trip to Colorado to visit Kent's family and friends on July 18 to return on the 29th. Ah- time to sit back and enjoy the summer for all it's worth!

Funny Story-

The Middle Wife
by an Anonymous 2nd grade teacher

I’ve been teaching now for about fifteen years. I have two kids myself, but the best birth story I know is the one I saw in my own second-grade classroom a few years back.

When I was a kid, I loved show-and-tell. So I always have a few sessions with my students. It helps them get over shyness and usually, show-and-tell is pretty tame. Kids bring in pet turtles, model airplanes, pictures of fish they catch, stuff like that. And I never, ever place any boundaries or limitations on them. If they want to lug it in to school and talk about it, they’re welcome.

Well, one day this little girl, Erica, a very bright, very outgoing kid, takes her turn and waddles up to the front of the class with a pillow stuffed under her sweater.

She holds up a snapshot of an infant. “This is Luke, my baby brother, and I’m going to tell you about his birthday.”

“First, Mom and Dad made him as a symbol of their love, and then Dad put a seed in my Mom’s stomach, and Luke grew in there. He ate for nine months through an umbrella cord.”

She’s standing there with her hands on the pillow, and I’m trying not to laugh and wishing I had my camcorder with me. The kids are watching her in amazement.

“Then, about two Saturdays ago, my Mom starts saying and going, ‘Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh!’ Erica puts a hand behind her back and groans. “She walked around the house for, like an hour, ‘Oh, oh, oh!’ Now this kid is doing a hysterical duck walk and groaning.

“My Dad called the middle wife. She delivers babies, but she doesn’t have a sign on the car like the Domino’s man. They got my Mom to lie down in bed like this.” Then Erica lies down with her back against the wall.

“And then, pop! My Mom had this bag of water she kept in there in case he got thirsty, and it just blew up and spilled all over the bed, like psshhheew!” This kid has her legs spread with her little hands miming water flowing away. It was too much!

“Then the middle wife starts saying, ‘push, push,’ and ‘breathe, breathe. They started counting, but never even got past ten. Then, all of a sudden, out comes my brother. He was covered in yucky stuff that they all said was from Mom’s play-center, so there must be a lot of toys inside there.”

Then Erica stood up, took a big theatrical bow and returned to her seat. I’m sure I applauded the loudest. Ever since then, when it’s show-and-tell day, I bring my camcorder, just in case another “Middle Wife” comes along.

____________________________________

Terri here- Saw that today, and wanted to post something light-hearted. BTW, I walked into a birth the other day to hear the cry of a healthy newborn. Let me tell you, after two fetal demises last week, that sound was joyous music full of miracle and thanksgiving. I now appreciate the normal, healthy babies much more than ever. They truly are a gift from God.

Running the risk of sounding defensive, here is my disclaimer. In case anyone reading this is skeptical of midwives or homebirth: these babies would have died in any circumstance. Both of them had been dead in utero for two days before the mom noticed or labor started. These two moms had healthy, normal pregnancies and had previously delivered all healthy, normal babies.

Life Passed On-

I held a deceased baby today. I guess it was bound to happen. I've been attending births now for almost 7 years, almost completely avoiding tragedy of any kind, really. But like Margaret says, "Birth is as safe as life gets." And today was my day to see and hold a baby whose soul had passed on. Blond, fuzzy hair, red lips, long feet, absolutely gorgeous, perfectly formed full term baby girl. When she was being examined I could have sworn she was going to open her eyes, turn her head or raise her arms. It was shocking to me how UN-shocking she was in reality. Wrapped in a blanket, I found myself rocking and bouncing her as I always do when holding a newborn. Stillbirth is an appropriate medical term, I think. Because that is how she looked and felt- like any other newborn- just still. So still.

A Privelege

It is a privilege and an honor to be an attendant at births. At such an intimate time (hours, days), I am enveloped into a family and their version of "normal". It is incredible to be invited and present during these miraculous, yet completely earthy, moments. As an example of how different families can be, here are two of my three last births:
#1- A doula client: their house- a top-of-the-line, state-of-the-art model home in a very upscale golf course neighborhood, where the son and husband were always playing Wii or watching movies at our prenatals. She was tan, perky, always made-up and gorgeous. Throughout the birth there were jokes with the staff and current movies being quoted. He got takeout from Chili's for himself and me for supper. Her 14-year-old niece stayed the night at the hospital and watched the birth. They were so happy.
#2- A midwive's assistant birth: A very devoutly religious family with 7 kids who lived in a very modest-sized house on a good-size chunk of land. The 4-year-old girl held my hand and showed me the chickens, pigs, garden, new milking machine, and red ant nest. The girls in their long skirts and dresses, the boys in their button-up shirts were barefoot all day long, climbing trees and chasing chicks and kittens. They said their prayers before meals and did their chores. I held the little boys when they hurt themselves and cried. I played piano for them and the girls asked me about my hair style. They made their own PB&Js for lunch, and the popsicles I brought were a rare treat.
I believe that I am starting to fully appreciate what a wondrous thing it is that I get to be in these families lives, so intimately, though temporarily. I love that I get to see so many different variations of "normal" family. I get to see what each family values, and elevates to primary importance, during each birth I attend. It is incredible to see how people relate and show love and consideration for one another. Occasionally I encounter some ugly situations, but usually I see positive interactions. I can then incorporate these things into my own life and family. I learn and grow through each baby being born. What a miracle. What an honor.

Babies, Babies, Babies. . .

Well, my war waging on Mt. Washmore is going more slowly than I planned, but I am persisting steadily on that battlefront. For those of you who don't know I am a doula and midwive's assistant. I did clean-up duty for two births with two separate midwives last Friday- missed both of the births by less than five minutes- the first one: 6th baby, she always goes fast, the second one: the midwife called me late and then my car wouldn't start (don't worry, it's fine now). Sunday morning: a doula client goes into labor- llllllloooooonnnngggg story- baby born 4:30am Monday morning. I have two other doula clients due June 20th and 22nd and four other births with a midwife due between June 15th and July 7th. And my mom's out of town helping my sister move. Corbin's last day as a first-grader was today. I'm organizing playgroup and ladies' craft nights at church for the summer. Oh- and Margaret the Midwife and I are going to be giving a class this summer to certify new midwive's assistants. SO- there's life for Terri in a nut shell. Whew! Yikes!