Home Birth Midwives in Twin Cities

[Taramisu24]

Hi, I'm new here and have looked over a couple previous threads on home birth midwives in the Twin Cities, but after reviewing and reviewing, I have over 10 midwives I want to look into for the future! I'm not currently pregnant, but due to a not-so-great natural birth in the hospital with my first last December, I'm really interested in home birth next time around. I'm determined to have a better experience and want to plan ahead a bit :) I was at HeathEast and delivered at St. Joe's (with midwives) which was more natural friendly than most hospitals would be, but I was in the hospital for my entire birth and was frustrated with a lot of the protocol/testing I didn't believe was necessary.

I'm asking the question of which midwives you have had good experiences with (though I know it's been asked before) because I have specific criteria that's important to me, and I want to weed out some midwives so I don't have to interview them ALL. So, if you can help, great!

Here are some things that are important to me:

-A midwife who is a bit more hands-off, trusting my body, and making decisions with me during prenatal care and birth.

-Someone who is experienced. Not sure what constitutes "experienced" but want to make sure I'm in safe hands.

-I hemorrhaged with my first birth due to a long labor and tired uterus (at least that's what I was told)- 23 hours active labor (2 hours pushing), but I think in part it was due to the fact that the midwife was really trying to hurry along the placenta (within minutes of his birth) and I think she tugged on it a bit. So, I want someone who is comfortable/experienced with dealing with a similar situation.

-I DO NOT want to have the gestational diabetes screening (as it unnecessarily caused me a lot of stress and in the end I did not even have it!) OR the GBS test. I tested GBS positive and declined abx, but I researched a lot and felt comfortable with my decision even though I was yelled at by nurses/midwives at the hospital. I wanted a waterbirth but was denied it for this reason.

-Someone who is more of a kind, gentle, encouraging person. I absolutely LOVED Kerry Dixon, the first midwife on call during my labor, but due to the length of my labor, I was assigned a different one (I was NOT a fan of) for the second half. She very much influenced my birth negatively by offering me an epidural even though I explicitly asked in my birth plan for it not to be mentioned. For a few moments I doubted my ability to finish ONLY because she did. She was very cold and business like, and just wanted to hurry everything. I really want someone compassionate who I trust. I don't need a bully during labor, I need a friend!

-Someone who is flexible about going overdue. I was 10 days overdue with my first.

Awesome, but not necessarily a deal breaker:

- Someone who comes to my home for prenatal appts. (or someone somewhat close to where we live- Crystal, MN)

- Affordable

I've heard that licensed midwifes have to adhere to more rules, which scares me. I want to equally make decisions about care with my midwife and not do something only because she is worried about losing her license, if that makes sense.

Thanks!

Oh, and I haven't heard much about the following midwives...anyone have any experience with them?:

Maureen Dahl

Rolla Crandall

Rachael McGraw

Jane Kirby

[Taramisu24]

Oh, thought of a couple more things:

-A midwife who only brings one assistant max

-Very few, if any vaginal exams during labor. The WORST part of my labor was when I thought I might have to push, so the midwife said she had to check me DURING a contraction before she'd allow me to push (to see if I was a 10). AWFUL. Never again... :)

Maybe this midwife doesn't exist.... haha.

[lilkat]

My midwife Rachel Knudson matches most of your criteria. She is extremely gentle and encouraging, and trusting of women's bodies and the birth process. She is comfortable declining any of the tests you want, including GD and GBS. She will not do any internal exams unless you ask for one, or there's some issue and she thinks you need one, in which case she'd discuss it with you and make sure you agree. She generally does not bring an assistant along. Her current rate is $3000 for everything, and she'll come to you for all appointments.

The only thing that may not match your criteria is experience; Rachel is relatively young. I believe she started her practice in about 2006. I know she's done dozens of births. But there are midwives in our area who have been practicing for decades and have hundreds of births, so I guess it depends on your definition of "experience". :D I do know for a fact that she has experience with post-partum hemorrhage.

Best of luck with your search!

[snguyen]

Rachel was the assistant at my homebirth, she was wonderful.  My midwife was Erika Urban out of St. Peter-- she was absolutely wonderful and also meets most of your criteria.  She and Rachel seem very much alike, including age and experience (she's about 30.)  She can come to you for your appts., but for an extra fee.

[Vaske]

We have had mixed experiences with St. Joe's as well.  We've had two babies with Rachel McGraw, no vaginal exams during either one, and we declined a lot of things, no problem.  She is good at both the hands-off and the hands-on stuff (I had some hemorrhaging at both births), and I recommend her highly.  She does bring an assistant along, an apprentice midwife or another licensed midwife.

I've met Maureen briefly, she seemed to have a more hands-on style, and I got the impression that she preferred to do at least one vaginal exam during labor.

[flightgoddess]

Perhaps a middle ground would be the new birth center on grand? (or is is summit?) They even have equipment you can rent to bring home, if you choose a midwife who doesn't have her own...

[Taramisu24]

Thanks, everyone. This is helpful! I'm not too interested in birth centers at this point, because I feel like it's a home birth, well, not at your home, which kinda defeats the purpose. But I'm sure it's a good alternative for those who aren't completely comfortable with home birth. Also, I was guessing a birth center would be more conforming to protocol than a home birth, but maybe I'm wrong.

Thanks again and any more suggestions are welcomed! :)

Also, I'm still a bit confused about licensure. Is there more training or schooling behind a license? Does it necessarily mean more experience? I'm just wondering for when I have to tell people I'm having a home birth AND possibly not with a licensed midwife :)

[Rev1053]

I have given birth with Jeanne Bazille before and she is awesome.
There were no cervical examinations during my labor because I didn't request them. She has been doing midwifery for 30(?) years and she is just awesome. I would really recommend calling her. She only takes one assistant to the births and both of them are very hands off.

Good luck on your search.

[azurite]

I used Kim Garret (Dear Born) and ended up at St. Joes (had a wonderful ecperiance there and w/ Kim). Vanessa Coldwater is a friend of mine and I am hoping she will deliver for me this round (612 747-9096)- depends on if I can get up to the cities or not.

 

[lindsayjean]

I live near you at gave birth with Jeanne Bazille over 2 yrs ago now and she's awesome.  

I have been to births with Vanessa Stephens Coldwater and she is really great and fits your criteria... she comes to your home for appointments and does not bring an assistant.  I was very impressed with her and I thought of her right away when reading your post :-)

WIth that said, there is truly a midwife for everyone- interview a couple!  

[Ophelia]

Originally Posted by lindsayjean 

I have been to births with Vanessa Stephens Coldwater and she is really great and fits your criteria... she comes to your home for appointments and does not bring an assistant.  I was very impressed with her and I thought of her right away when reading your post :-)

What Lindsay said (and she was there at ours)!  We had Vanessa for our daughter's birth in Feb. and I think your criteria describes her.  I had never been through a natural transition before during labor so I even had to ask if it was OK for me to push since I had no clue, Vanessa knew it was OK by the way I was acting and how things were moving along.  She told me to reach up and see if I could feel my baby's head and I did.  One of the most unforgettable moments of the birth!  Never any cervical checks.

You are correct that if you get a licensed midwife they are bound by certain rules, one of the reasons I wanted traditional which is what Vanessa is.
 

[krst234]

I would say most of the midwives in the Twin Cities would honor just about everything you want. Honoring your requests (the mother's and families wishes) is pretty much standard care for OOH midwives.

And the other big difference in midwifery care - they will provide you rationale and reason for asking to interrupt your labor (ie checking a cervix, etc) - and usually don't do things just because they're protocol. Taking your birth out of the hospital changes the entire situation. It's woman-centered, family-centered, baby-centered care.

Any homebirth midwife is going to seem hands-off in relation to hospital providers - the model of care is totally different.

That said - just start meeting and interviewing midwives - there are degrees of "hands-off-ness" and see who's personality you click with.

Jane Kirby? Love. Her.

Laid back. Sweet. Skilled.

I enjoyed her sense of humor - and she has a very unobtrusive presence.

[Childbirth_Fanatic]

We love Vanessa here too. She delivered my son in July '10. She did one check only because she could tell with the way I was pushing that something 'wasn't' right. She was right and I had a cervical lip. We got it taken care of and I delivered my son soon after. She is wonderful.