Whether you plan on giving birth with the assistance of an obstetrician, midwife or family practitioner, choosing your caregiver is an important decision. There are many different styles and methods of practice and stereotypes don’t always hold true. Not all obstetricians are eager to intervene no matter what and not all midwifes are sensitive, flexible and noninterventive. Ask friends for recommendations and then interview several caregivers before making your decision. Ask open ended questions to get unbiased answers. Follow up with vague answers and evaluate how comfortable you feel asking the caregiver questions when something is unclear. Pregnancy is full … Continue reading →

Women find themselves pregnant and without health insurance to cover prenatal care or birth for a variety of reasons. For some, the cost of health insurance is not within the family’s budget or the employer does not offer health benefits to employees. In the current recession, many people are losing their jobs. With these jobs, employer based health care benefits are often lost. Displaced workers have the option of COBRA to continue health benefits. However, the premium to continue the benefits is extremely expensive. Since the family has lost the income, they are often not able to afford these payments. … Continue reading →

Do you feel well informed by your health care provider? Doctors and midwives vary from each other and among other professionals in their field in terms of patient communication and patient education. Some doctors are naturally good at educating and informing patients about options for birth as well as many other health related topics. Others aren’t as good at communicating or are hurrying to the next patient and don’t take the time. Rushing or not bothering to offer information to patients seems to be all too common in the experiences of many women. The reasons vary. Sometimes the doctor is … Continue reading →

During pregnancy, women often aren’t totally honest with their doctors. Some withhold information or avoid questions out of fear. This ranges from small fibs about diet and exercise to more serious deception about smoking cigarettes, drinking and drug use during pregnancy. Women have many reasons for being less than honest with doctors and midwives. Sometimes the reason is a desire to project an image of the perfect patient and perfect mother to be. They want the midwife or doctor to view them in that image and fear disclosing anything that would tarnish that image. This often occurs in women who … Continue reading →