Why choose Dorset & Wiltshire Independent Midwives?
Frances and Debs share a similar philosophy that women are in the best position to choose the safest and best way for them to give birth. We both have experience with women choosing all kinds of care packages and are keen to support couples to achieve the birth experience they would like.
We both believe that 'less is more'. The less we do - the more we give. We believe that most women can give birth normally with minimal intervention if well prepared and supported, and able to do so in peace. Of course, some women and some babies need assistance, but even if the birth does not go according to plan, the aim is always to keep women involved in decisions regarding their care so that they feel that their choices have been respected.
We provide the majority of our clients with care at home. Research has shown that home birth for women with uncomplicated pregnancies is as safe as, or safer than hospital birth if planned and prepared for. It has also been shown that one-to-one care in labour from a known and trusted attendant has a favourable impact on outcomes. The choices are yours. See www.homebirth.org.uk for more information.
We are prepared to travel up to about an hour from where we live, although we support each other at births over greater distances.
Quotes
Our heartfelt thanks for so tenderly nurturing our journey into parenthood and our daughter into this world. We will think and talk of you with the love you deserve.
I wanted to write and tell you I am appreciating more and more how skilled you are at your job and how much more pleasant it is to have you to care for us .
Thank you for your encouragement and support during my pregnancy and daughter's birth. It is midwives with beliefs like yours who enable women like me to have the courage to do what comes naturally."
"I gained great confidence and belief in my body's ability to nurture and deliver a baby."and after the birth,
"I am in awe of my own endurance and strength and believe there is nothing in the world I cannot do if I choose to".
It's having that one person you know and trust at the end of the phone.
I hope that my fantastic experience, gained with your help, can be a little light of hope for other women as well as a wonderful memory for me" .
I have learned how very deeply one's experience of pregnancy, labour and birth (as well as motherhood of course!) affects one's way of thinking about oneself. It's a make or break thing. If it goes well, it can give the mother a real, solid confidence. On the other hand, if it goes badly, as it did in my older friend's case, there can be terrible scars that remain for fifteen-plus years and that eat into other aspects of life".
Pregnancy/labour/birth is an all-enveloping thing for a mother when it's rightly viewed. It's a physical, emotional, spiritual, psychological, cultural, sexual, familial (etc.) thing ... not just a medical thing, which is why Independent Midwives rock, but don't get me started on that one!"
For me, your balance of letting me do what I wanted and giving helpful suggestions during labour was absolutely immaculate. There were definitely times I needed gentle prompting, and you gave it with perfect timing. This was exactly what I was hoping for from you and it made a world of difference".
