How to find a homebirth midwife (quickly)??

[PretzelBaker]

I'm trying to switch to homebirth at 37 weeks pregnant but am having trouble finding a midwife near me who does homebirths. I tried asking in my tribal area on here but no luck. I've tried asking on othe boards, all the various websites out there, yellow pages... Does anyone know of a homebirth midwife in the Pittsburgh, PA area?????


thanks,
Libby

[TurboClaudia]

You might try the word of mouth route by asking doulas, childbirth educators, prenatal massage therapists, infant massage therapists, etc...

You can find a list of doulas at www.dona.org and at www.doulaworld.com

You can find childbirth educators at almost every hospital. I would particularly look for those trained in Birthing From Within, but Lamaze and ICEA and CAPPA usually attract people interested in non-hospital settings as well.

Do you have any freestanding birth centers near you?

Also, try emailing Barbara Harper at Waterbirth International www.waterbirth.org for any recommendations of homebirth midwives in your area who she knows do home waterbirths in your area. Even if you are not planning a waterbirth, Barbara is a great resource and works with people to educate about waterbirth across the country and the world.

warmly (from another 37 weeks pregnant mama),
claudia

[cottonwood]

Yes, start making calls. Lots and lots of calls. I found my first midwife through a low-income healthy clinic -- I just called up and asked if they knew of any local midwives they could recommend. (She wasn't listed in the phone book, as many of them aren't.) For my next birth I got a recommendation from an LLL leader (who I just called on the phone), and then called that midwife and asked her if there was a list of midwives she could recommend. She gave me a list of seven or eight midwives, none of whom had been in the phone book.

[lorijds]

Go to www.midwiferytoday.com and click on their "find a midwife" section.

Also, call La Leche League and ask the leaders (they seem often to be in-the-know).

If you can only find midwives out of your area, don't be afraid to call them and ask if they can recommend anyone closer. We do that all the time.

Good luck!

One of the best births I attended (as a mw assistant) was a mom who had transfered to our practice the day before she went into labor! It is only too late to change practices once you are pushing!

Lori

[mollyeilis]

I noticed that the Bradley instructors in my area know EVERY midwife AND their reputation. Very helpful when I switched at 28 weeks.

[Jenb]

This is late, but have you tried here? PA Homebirth