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Posted by amidwifenation on January 8, 2021

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Thinking about midwifery as a profession? It’s time to take the next step. Scroll through these tips if you’re considering midwifery as a profession or if you’re thinking about getting into some birth work! Love the tips, check out the successful student midwife guide. It’s all the tips I gathered over ten years of being a midwife, precepting students and offering mentorship to those interested in midwifery or birth work. You get access for a lifetime too. Make more midwives! 😘💪👩🏼‍🍼

Newborns and the postpartum period. Does anyone else think society paints this picture that women should be up and about the day after they have a baby? Running to the grocery store, taking care of the other kids and making dinner?! 🤦🏼‍♀️😘🤦🏼‍♀️ You’re supposed to be tired, leaking milk and sore. (Remember, you just birthed a little human that is relying on you for survival in this great big world!). If you’ve had a baby, share the advice you wish someone had given you about the newborn period! And if you’re expecting, what questions do you have? No question is too “out there!” For me, I wish someone would have told me how fast they grow and to cherish all their little newborn noises. I wish someone reminded me to not put my marriage last even though the fatigue is overwhelming sometimes - your spouse needs hugs too. And I wish someone would’ve reminded me how amazing women’s bodies are - that we are made to have multiple babies and that each pregnancy, birth and postpartum phase is a blessing and a moment of awe. 😘🙏🏻🤰👩🏼‍🍼

Wonder what to bring a new mama? Try a postpartum basket! If you’ve ever been on the receiving end of one of these you know it’s a great gift. ✨Tell me your favorite thing someone brought or sent you during your postpartum period. Or, what’s the one thing you wish someone had brought you?!✨ #postpartum #baskets

One of the best things you can do before the baby arrives is set up a nursing station. Pick a rocking chair, couch corner or comfy chair; grab a basket to throw all the baby stuff in; have a space to put snacks, drinks, books, phones, etc.; and add a heating pad or rice sock…viola! You’ll be so glad to have everything you need in one place to make nursing/feeding the baby that much easier! Save this post if your expecting or share with a mama that is! #smarternotharder #birth #amidwifenation #midwife #breastfeeding #postpartum

This seems like a straightforward question – what happens at my pregnancy visits – but I spend a lot of time talking about the current and upcoming visit’s components.

MEAL PREP! 🥗🥪🌯 As a mama of littles and a family that needs to eat, we meal prep on the regular. My crock pot is the most used appliance in the kitchen other than the coffee maker 🙏🏻.

Pregnancy test positive?! Congratulations! 🎊🎈🎉 But now what?? Do these three things: start a prenatal vitamin with folic acid, find a prohibited and schedule your first visit, and download the first pregnancy visit template to learn about what will happen at your visit, important education in the early weeks of pregnancy, and safe otc meds during pregnancy. Free PDF is on the blog 24/7/365 - make your pregnancy care great! Save this post if you’re thinking about becoming pregnant soon! #6weekspregnant #pregnant #midwife #youdeservebetter

Whew…I’m going to share a truth with you guys: my swelling this pregnancy has been the worst of my four pregnancies! I’ve been trying these three things to help keep/reduce the swelling as much as possible - save this is your swelling is creeping

New blog post is up on the blog!

Who loves to set their bowl or coffee on their belly? Look closely and you’ll see the cup wiggle from the baby kicking the cup 🐣⚽️. I always miss this in the first week postpartum when I go to set something on my belly and the belly table top is gone. Tell me your favorite funny pregnancy thing that you can only do in pregnancy. ⬇️⬇️⬇️😘 #superpower

Sharing your birth story is powerful. Even if you don’t want to share your story, I still encourage postpartum mamas to take time and document their journey. Those words offer wisdom and guidance to each of us - and we’ll pass those same words on to the generations behind us whether we realize it or not. Does anyone remember A Baby Story or a A Wedding Story on TLC?! I used to love those 30min stories into someone else’s life. Fast forward 20 years, I still believe in the power of storytelling. Fun fact: If you get a group of midwives together it’s usually less than 5 minutes before one of us is sharing a story with one another about a recent birth 🥰

4 weeks out and I’m just about done prepping/nesting! My other three babes have all come on their due dates. So I expect this babe to do the same. Regardless, the days and weeks are flying by and it’s easier to have everything ready to go than scramble at the last minute. Although, my first two labors I packed my hospital bag in labor 🤦🏼‍♀️ Tell me what I’m forgetting or what the best prep thing you did was… save this post if you’re prepping for birth soon or tag someone who needs this list 🙋🏼‍♀️🙋🏼‍♀️🙋🏼‍♀️ #35weekspregnant #birthprep #pregnant #readyforbaby

Happy Tuesday!!! This post has been in the docket for a while. I have randomly added to the list for over a year but think it’s about time to share. Holidays are on the way and you may want to shower your favorite midwife, birth worker, doula, OB/GYN or labor and delivery nurse with one of these goodies.

It’s FAQ day! Questions about baby movement’s often sound like this:

Well hello! I’ve been posting tips for mamas and midwives since the beginning of the year on the insta. Most of these are the bread and butter that I talk about over and over with mamas in the clinic or get messages from friends about. A lot of the tips are simple, but make a big difference in your pregnancy.

In honor of the week, I'm sharing some of best posts on the blog about all things midwifery.

Pregnancy support belts are great for mamas with sciatica pain, that are on their feet a lot, or just have a lot of dull back aching at the end of the day. The normal lordosis of pregnancy (a backward tit of your sacrum) causes discomfort for most women. And sometimes your sciatica nerve(s) get pinched as they move through the bones and muscles of your pelvis. (Did you know your sciatica nerve isn’t just one nerve? It’s a group of nerves!) Support belts offer additional support to your lower back while helping to evenly distribute the pressure and weight of the gravid uterus across your pelvis. There are many support belts to choose from on the market - unless you are a runner or you are struggling with pelvic floor prolapse, most mamas will find a $25 support belt does the trick. I recommend support belts as early as 16 weeks as they can help with round ligament pain as well. And they are a must for any hospital workers or shift workers.

It's midwifery week! This is a week to celebrate and recognize the great work midwives do. I wanted to celebrate in a unique way and thought a BINGO card for morale would be fun for the midwifery teams across the US. Try to complete it as a team, or put one up on each person's locker and see who gets a BINGO first. Winner gets a night off, a coffee or just a high five. Download your BINGO cards for FREE on the blog's TOOLS & HANDOUTS page - or follow the FREEBIE link in the linktree. Stay tuned for more goodies all week! And if you see a midwife this week, give them a hug :)

Today we get to share in the sweetest birth story of my dear friend Abby and her baby boy Bennett. Abby shared her first birth story a while back. If you missed it, she had a planned cesarean section for breech position (you can catch that story on the blog under birth stories).

Ever wondered how to make a postpartum basket?

Medical Disclaimer and Copyright

A Midwife Nation was created for information purposes only and is not intended to replace professional medical advice, recommendation, diagnosis or treatment. All site content – to include images, text, audio and other formats are for informational purposes only. The information on this website is subject to change without notice and you should always seek to verify the accuracy and source of the information provided. Information provided on this website is not complete, or exhaustive, and currency of the information is subject to change frequently. You should always seek the advice of your medical provider for any questions about your health or healthcare, and should never disregard or delay medical care because of something you have read on this website.

This blog was created by Jamie Guertin, DNP, CNM, RNC-OB in 2019. Copyright 2019-2022, amidwifenation.com. All rights reserved. Copyright protects the content of this blog (original content, images and artwork) and use of any content without permission is illegal. Tools or handouts have specific disclosures for use; see the bottom of each tool for copyright allowances; credit should always be given to the original source. For any copyright questions, please email amidwifenation@gmail.com. Thank you!

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