Friday!!!! Oh man, am I glad too. What do you guys have planned this weekend? I am off this weekend and plan to enjoy hanging out with family – with a lot of homework. This Friday Five has been in the making for a while and is full of goodies! Check out the new podcast…
Women Ask Wednesday: Amazing, FREE educational resources for pregnancy, labor, postpartum and breastfeeding!
Happy Wednesday! One of the main questions I get (and I mean, at least three times a day in clinic) since the pandemic started is this: Where can I get information on childbirth or watch childbirth classes online? Oh vey. Well, you’ve come to the right place. I posted a while back on a Friday…
Midwife Monday: ACNM Core Data Survey
Happy Monday! I had a short weekend around here due to a 24 hour shift on Friday night followed by sleeping most of Saturday (thank you to the husband!). I had two mamas with beautiful births so as always, the sleep deprivation is worth it. Today I want to chat about a survey conducted every…
Women Ask Wednesday: What I’ve been up to…And my thoughts on the DNP (so far)!
HUMMMMPPP day. Praise hands. Pandemic = pedal to the medal at work, Monday through Friday (plus the weekends I’m working). Anyways, I’m about halfway through my DNP (Doctorate of Nursing Practice) and I figured I would offer some thoughts at the halfway point for those considering the degree, or the long road to a terminal…
Alison’s birth story!
Happy Monday! Today we get to share a sweet story from a dear friend of mine. I was able to take care of her during her pregnancy but was unable to help her during her intrapartum course (I did get a chance to help bring her second baby into the world!). She is sharing her…
Friday Five (#22)
Helllllloooo!!! And man have I missed blogging. It’s significantly more fun than graduate school. To start us back off, here’s a well overdue Friday Five (and we are covering way more than five!). It’s camping/summer/hunting season up in Alaska and we have plans to do just that over the next few weeks. Bring on the…
Daynia’s birth story!
Happy Monday! My favorite way to break in a Monday it with a good ol’ birth story. I’ve chatted before about how important it is to share you birth story and for other women and mamas to read them. For centuries, women passed their stories from generation to generation – that’s how women learned! We’ve…
Friday Five (#21)
Hey guys!!! These tulips in our front garden fully bloomed this week and I cannot stop taking pictures of them. I wish they would bloom year round, or stay in bloom just a little longer than a few weeks…but the brief blooming period makes you appreciate the beauty more right? Alaska knocked it out of…
Happy Mother’s Day!
Hello! Graduate school has officially swamped most of my free time these days…hence the limited blogging. But, I finished some homework early today and BOTH of my babes are still napping so I was able to find some time to catch up with guys! I wanted to take a different view on Mother’s Day and…
Midwife Monday: Nurses in Politics
This was yesterday’s post…but right before publishing my computer died – #reallife. Anyways, I hope this Tuesday finds you well and in good spirits. The sunshine finally melted all the snow in our yard and we have been blissfully playing outside with big grins on our faces all weekend long. I found I also needed…
Friday Five (#20)
It’s Friday!!! I have a little more joy going into a normal weekend (one without a 24hr shift) than a weekend that I’m working. I know babies come all sorts of hours – mine arrived at 1am and 6am after contractions throughout the day and night! But, the normalcy is inviting. I might even squeeze…
Midwife Monday: Interventions during labor associated with increased cesarean risk in nulliparous women
Hooray Monday! A Friday Five did not happen around here (see spouse working the weekend; start of graduate school; and need for sleep). And although sleep and playing with the littles happened, not much else did. But…Sunday showed us some blue sky patches after a long week of fog and rain. And the snow has…
A Midwife Nation interviews on Journey to Midwifery
Happy Wednesday! It’s been a little bit of an off week around here. We have a strange clinic schedule and are standing by for a predicted peak of COVID cases in Alaska over the next week. We’re face masking it like crazy and washing hands like it’s going out of style! Graduate school is back…
Midwife Monday: How to share your birth story!
With all this time at home, I can’t think of a better time than now to journal or share your birth story! I’ve delivered a couple mamas over the past few months and they had the greatest stories to pass on to their babe when they were older. I encouraged them all to jot down…
Friday Five (#19)
Frrrriiiidaayyy! I am excited because I actually get to do some patient care this Friday. Most of my patient “visits” have been on the phone in the past 2 weeks so I’m excited to hear some “whoosh-whoosh-whoosh” on the dopplers. Hope this week has found you safe and social distancing isn’t making your household too…
Women Ask Wednesday: Where can I get good pregnancy, childbirth, postpartum and newborn education during the COVID-19 pandemic?
Happy Wednesday! I have been doing tele-health visits all week from home. A theme I noticed and pregnant women are desperate for some good pregnancy resources. At our own hospital, we cancelled our regular childbirth classes, but our breastfeeding class is still happening via Google HangOuts. Hopefully you still have some type of virtual class…
Recap: ACNM “Meet with the ACNM Presidents” Call
Hello Tuesday! Another bonus post today! I was able to listen to this webinar this morning because I didn’t called into work last night (thank you Jesus). I love that kind of 24 hour shift. I attended a beautiful birth in the morning of one of my favorite families, then had a fairly uneventful rest…
APRN Certification Extension/Waiver Policies
Are an advanced practice nurse with an upcoming certification? Wondering what your certifying body is doing about mandatory certification deadlines? The NCSBN (National Council of State Boards of Nursing) published this handy PDF for quick reference and sharing. Check it out! And if your certification is coming up….make sure you get your required items or…
ACNM Town Hall recap: Perspectives on home and birth center birth during the COVID-19 pandemic
Happy Monday (although it’s almost Tuesday in the lower 48). Alas, when you work the night shift the days tend to blur together. We did a lot of sleeping, playing outside and social distancing this weekend – hope your weekend was filled with the same! Today we have another webinar recap! The American College of…
Friday Five (#18)
Hello Friday! I’m headed back to work after a few weeks off. Telehealth keeps me doing patient care but being on labor and deliver and helping bring babies into the world is where my heart is! Excited for a weekend full of labor and hopefully some births (and maybe a nap??). This was a busy…
Women Ask Wednesday: Everything you wanted to know about pregnancy tests….
Today we’re chatting all things about the pregnancy test. This was a delight to research. I’m a true nerd at heart and love learning something new. Let’s chat the history of the pregnancy test (and some common pregnancy test questions!). How was the pregnancy test invented? The first true pregnancy test was invented in 1927….
Passing along a little hope…
Just a little bonus Tuesday chat…These are trying times for sure. Know that hope is not lost. Give grace. Be generous. Stay calm. Watch below while you’re making dinner and listen to some truth in the midst of fear. The three takeaways: You control your attitude. You control your budget. You control your opportunity. Take…
Midwife Monday: ACNM Midwifery Education Webinar Recap, birth stories and practice spotlights (and a bonus free finance course)!
Happy Monday! If this baby boy in a Zumba skirt doesn’t cheer you up, I don’t know what will! Today’s post is related to a couple midwifery things. First, a recap of ACNM’s (American College of Nurse-Midwives) town hall webinar on Midwifery Education and Student well being during COVID-19. Supporting midwifery students is so important…
Sunday Webinar for Practicing Midwives….
For those interested, ACNM is hosting a webinar Sunday afternoon/evening reviewing federal/state regulations. This is a great webinar to log into, throw your headphones on, and listen to the updates while catching up on all the normal Sunday things (laundry, cleaning, playing with babies, meal prepping…). You can register here or on access the link…
Friday Five (#17)
Happy Friday! I hope everyone is well….this Five is full of resources. Let’s do it. 1. The American College of Nurse Midwives (ACNM) hosted a webinar on: Clinical practice challenges and solutions during the COVID-19 pandemic. This was the first webinar in a series aimed at helping midwives navigate the issues/struggles with COVID-19 and their…
Women Ask Wednesday: What's a cervical exam?
Hello Wednesday! Today we’re chatting cervical exams. I get questions all the time about checking the cervix. In regards to today’s discussion, we’re chatting the cervix in a pregnant woman, but some of the things discussed can be applied to non-pregnant women. What is the purpose of checking a cervix? A cervical exam is performed…
My favorite things for mamas…
Happy Monday! Over the weekend I did a little bonus post on coronavirus and pregnancy/breastfeeding….as well as what to do at home with your littles! I just updated some things on the activities for littles part – as long as we’re stuck at home, I’ll keep the list going! Today’s post is aimed at some…
Coronavirus and pregnancy/breastfeeding (and some things to do at home to pass the time with the littles…)
Hello Sunday (it’s not quite Monday yet…but I figured this was best shared sooner than later!) I hope the weekend finds everyone well and not too stir crazy if you had to be at home. Are you guys working? At home per local or governor recommendations? Most of Alaska has been advised to stay at…
Friday Five (#16)
Happy Friday! Hope you all are well – we’re struggling with some bronchitis at our house…and will likely have a little but of a down weekend here. Let’s get to the Five! This page contains Amazon affiliate links for some recommended products. This means A Midwife Nation may receive a commission for purchases made through…
Women Ask Wednesday: What’s pelvic floor physical therapy?
Happy hump day! Today we get to chat about one of my favorite interventions for women – both outside pregnancy/postpartum or during pregnancy/postpartum periods. We’re talking pelvic floor therapy! Are you already doing your Kegels now? Let’s do it! What is the pelvic floor? Your pelvic floor is a group of muscles at the bottom…