While both midwives and OBs provide care for women during pregnancy and birth, midwives focus on providing hand-tailored, holistic care that emphasizes physiologic birth with minimal intervention to low-risk women. OBs, on the other hand, are hospital-based medical physicians who specialize in pregnancy and birth and are trained to handle high-risk pregnancies, complicated deliveries, and surgical cesarean births. Doulas are not healthcare providers and do not perform clinical tasks or catch babies. Rather, they provide physical and emotional support as well as education and advocacy to clients during pregnancy, labor, and birth.

Many studies (such as this one) show that home birth is just as safe as hospital birth for low-risk pregnancies attended by trained midwives. Midwife-attended home births also boast high rates of vaginal birth, low rates of hospital transfer, increased rates of satisfaction, increased rates of breastfeeding success, and decreased rates of perineal tearing. The rate of Pitocin induction in hospital is as high as 90%, whereas rates of induction are less than 10% for planned home births. The rate of c-section for women planning a hospital birth is upwards of 30% in the United States, whereas the rate of c-section for women planning a home birth is approximately 5%.

However, there are some pre-existing conditions as well as conditions that could potentially pop up during pregnancy that may make it unsafe to have a baby out-of-hospital. To determine whether a midwife-attended home birth is the ideal choice for you, please get in touch to book a complimentary consultation with Mira.

Midwives do not carry narcotics or provide epidurals in the home setting. Freedom of movement, the ability to eat and drink as you please during labor, Spinning Babies, rebozo manteada, bodywork/massages, and the use of hydrotherapy are techniques used at Matriarca Midwifery. For anyone planning their first vaginal or unmedicated birth I recommend attending an in-depth childbirth education class centered around out-of-hospital birth as well as hiring an experienced doula, especially for early labor before your midwife’s clinical skills are needed.

Yes! I love supporting water births. Some of the benefits of hydrotherapy and water birth include pain management, increased relaxation, shorter labors, reduced rates of perineal tearing, and a peaceful Earthside transition for baby. You may choose to use your own bathtub or one of my comfy inflatable birth pools.

I am not in-network with any insurance companies or Medicaid, although I do offer a discount for people eligible for Medicaid. Certain healthshare plans will cover some or all of your midwife and/or home birth costs.

All prenatal visits, labor, birth, and postpartum visits are covered in full, as well as any emergency medications or equipment used during birth. Routine labs are covered in the fee, as well as any routine newborn medications you may want. An inflatable birth pool can be provided at no additional cost.

Additional costs may include:

Non-routine labs, any ultrasounds needed or wanted, specialized medications such as RhoGam, any prescriptions that may be written for you, supplements, any fees for necessary consultations with other medical providers or fees for complementary modalities such as chiropractors, acupuncturists, etc. If you choose to have a water birth, you will need to buy a new hose and connector as well as a birth pool liner.