When you think of the word wild you don’t usually associate it with a pregnancy. At least not in our society. The word wild meaning, living, or growing in the natural environment; not domesticated or cultivated. For me, I would consider my pregnancy wild, with support. Although I fully trust the process of birth & all its unfolding’s, I wanted to be supported. I wanted to have wise women around me throughout my pregnancy. I wanted someone present during my birth who had done this before. Not to mention the extensive clean up that I knew would come after birth, I wanted help so we could relish the quickly fleeting moments of after birth. Being a first-time mom, I also wanted support after the baby was born. Although I live a holistic & natural lifestyle, I wanted some reassurance we were doing okay & baby was well. A supported wild pregnancy was what I desired.
Finding these women was not easy, at least not for me. I knew what I wanted & more importantly I knew what I didn’t want. It was important for me to have full autonomy. Welcoming someone I felt completely comfortable with into my space (& headspace) while pregnant & to be with us during one of the most transformative & intimate moments of our lives was important. I knew after quite a few interviews with many lovely women this was going to be no easy task. After searching long & hard during the throws of first trimester I finally found my women. I was most comfortable asking them the hard questions & they had such simple, sweet answers that made me feel at ease. I knew they shared my trust in birth & my intuition knew they were the right women for me.
How to find a midwife/doula that suits your needs & wants:
Before getting pregnant I accustomed myself to the world of motherhood by listening to podcasts & following midwives on Instagram. I knew prior to getting pregnant I wanted a homebirth, so I already was set up for success. After looking at various accounts online, endless google searches & phone calls I reached out to a friend that had a homebirth. Referrals are always the best way to go & fortunately for me I ended up loving the midwives she had supporting her. The midwives recommended a doula for first time moms & actually discounted their services if I had one at my birth. While it wasn’t exactly in our budget, we found a wonderful woman who lived close by & she worked with us on the payment & even let us trade for part of it. (Being a hairstylist & HVAC Tech comes with some perks). The way things work out is truly magic.
To find a midwife or doula for your birth the first thing to do is ask your friends & circle of people. In my experience that is the best way to find someone for any type of service. Instagram is also a great source for finding likeminded women, you’re going to get a feel for the type of person they are through their posts & what they repost.
The right midwife that fits your wants & needs is what’s most important. You don’t have to go with the most popular woman in your area & you don’t have to make sure she has all the right certifications. Finding a woman or women that honor your choices, trusts birth & has a calm presence is what matters. At the end of the day, you’re going to birth the baby & it will unfold how it is meant to unfold. Having the right woman to witness & support you makes it just that much better.
Backing up a little, when I first found out I was pregnant my naturopath ordered blood work for me to confirm the pregnancy. I needed no confirmation, I had 4 positive at-home tests & I knew I was pregnant, no doubt about it. The confirmation through blood work was for insurance purposes & to have on file for when I was ready to take my maternity leave. (Each state’s requirements are different but where I live, getting paid maternity leave doesn’t come with my job. Thus, I had to follow their rules). Other than this test I did nothing but eat when I could, slept all the time, continued my 2/3-day workouts, got my prenatal massages & soaked up every moment of this bittersweet first trimester. Bittersweet because it comes with many ups & downs, hormone fluctuations & emotional roller coaster moments.
When I started seeing the midwives, I was about 10 weeks pregnant. Meeting them consisted of emotional check ins, storytelling, conversations around my changing body, life updates & everything in between. Of course, they checked in with where I was nutritionally & how much I was resting. I always consented to having them feel the baby & sometimes use the Doppler to hear the baby’s heartbeat. I know using a Doppler isn’t something you do in a true wild pregnancy, but I felt comfortable doing it & this being my first baby it was such magic hearing the heartbeat. My favorite was whenever they would go to touch my pregnant belly, they would always say hello to baby before doing so. Something western medicine wouldn’t dream of doing. It was always a very casual conversation on a comfortable couch with a friend, nothing more, nothing less. I saw them as routinely as I believe women see their doctor through pregnancy. Once a month until 28 weeks, once every 2 weeks until 36 weeks & then weekly until baby is born. The one major difference is that each appointment is at least an hour long. Oh, and of course the fact that they come to your house the last few weeks before the baby comes. A true blessing like none other when you’re 38 weeks pregnant. Again, something your OBGYN wouldn’t dream of doing or have time in their schedule for.
This being my first planned pregnancy I wanted to do some check ups on my blood work but nothing too extensive. I don’t regularly see a PCP & I don’t trust mainstream “medicine,” medical advice, precautions, etc. At 12 weeks I did the basic blood panel. One of the things my midwives & I aligned with was getting most of my nutrition for myself & baby through food. The blood panel was able to show my levels & confirm everything I was eating/taking was keeping me where I should be. In a truly wild pregnancy one wouldn’t dare do any testing but simply trust your body will do what it’s supposed to. While I completely do trust my body & my baby I wanted to see if there was anything that I could be missing to make sure we both felt our best & baby would have everything they needed.
From 12 weeks until 20 weeks, I focused on eating as nutritiously as possible, which all mama’s know is no easy task. I am so thankful I took the time to get my body ready & nourish myself with nutrient dense foods before getting pregnant because for many months of this pregnancy I relied on supplements. While I know food is better than a supplement, you must do the best you can to get through the day when you’re pregnant.
A list of the supplements I took both before pregnancy, while pregnant & postpartum:
Integrative Therapeutics Tri-Magnesium
Perfect Supplements Beef Liver
Seeking Health Vitamin D3 + K2
Seeking Health Active B12 with L-% MTHF
Mito Life Vitamin E
Vitanica Maternal Symmetry
Green Pasture Cod Liver Oil
Just Ingredient’s Electrolyte Powder’s
*From top to bottom is what I focused to take the most often. There were many days I couldn’t stomach the thought of even taking anything. Prior to getting pregnant I regularly took most of this list & continue to being 5 months postpartum. There are many things I’ve added in postpartum as well, but I’ll save that for another time.
Some other favorites while I was pregnant:
Dandy Blend with Milk Thistle in place of coffee
Pregnancy Pillow (No recommendations because everyone’s needs are so different.
Just make sure it’s organic cotton!)
Upspring Stomach Settle for nausea relief
Three Bird’s Nest for the most comfortable loose clothes
At the 20 week mark I decided to get the anatomy scan done. While I’m not the biggest fan of ultrasound, I am aware of the risks, I wasn’t pressured into it & I wanted it done. Working with a midwife who didn’t require these things was such a burden lifted, I didn’t feel pushed in a corner or apart of the system in anyway at all. Throughout my whole pregnancy this was the only time I was nervous. Ultrasound doesn’t feel right. Although it’s such an amazing experience (mostly for dad) to see the baby you’re growing on this little screen, it just feels wrong. I have no other way to put it, but I am glad I did it. Selfishly I will always look back on those pictures & can’t wait to show them to my grandchildren one day.
From 20 weeks on I continued to focus on nutrition, rest & getting ready for baby. No more bloodwork, ultrasounds, or anything other than the regular check ups with my midwives & a few other supportive women. I listened to many homebirth podcasts, envisioned the birth I wanted & snuggled with my dog every day. Around 30 weeks I stopped working out only because we were too busy searching for a house & I was too tired to want to do anything other than what I had to. Walking around houses & packing was my substitute for working out those days. When I was 35 weeks we moved into our new home & from that point on I took daily walks around the yard, grounding & setting things up for the baby. Around 38 weeks I saw a chiropractor for my low back pain & quickly discovered the magic they perform. I got adjusted weekly until baby was born. At 39 weeks I saw a lactation consultant who gave me a 2 hour extensive lesson on all things breastfeeding & how to support a homebirth baby. Another truly magical experience, the knowledge I came out of that meeting with gave me the last boost of confidence I needed before I was ready to birth my baby.
To recap, as far as “interventions” go, I got bloodwork done twice & one ultrasound. Everything was my choice. I educated myself pre-pregnancy & trusted the process. Although I am not naïve to other women’s experiences, I know there are special cases when a more hands-on approach is best for mom & baby. For most women there is no need for extensive testing, doctors that tell you what’s happening to your body or interventions you don’t want. My dream for women & mothers is to trust their intuition & the process of growing a baby, you know what to do. My dream for myself is to lean more into the wild for my next pregnancy & do even less. Intuition & pregnancy go hand in hand for a woman, I trust it fully.
Baby girl was born at 40 weeks & 4 days in a birth tub in our bedroom. Peaceful, intimate & everything I dreamed of. I can confidently say I had an amazing birth that I contribute to my prioritizing preparing for pregnancy & a pregnancy supported by women who trusted birth.
Credits to my support,
Midwives: @awakeningtraditions @primalrootsmidwifery @earthsnaturaltouch
Doula: @douladorie
Massage Therapist: @flourishwellnesscenter
Chiropractor: Tina at Carbone’s Chiropractic
Lactation Consultant: Lauren Akers at Forrester Lactation Office
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