Switching to a Midwife
So, you’ve been seeing a hospital practitioner for your prenatal care and have been on the path towards having a hospital birth. What if you decide you want something different? How late is too late to change your plans to a homebirth?
If you’re still pregnant, then there is time!
The latest I’ve personally had a mother transfer to my care was 2 weeks before her birth. She had a wonderful homebirth of her first baby with me. But I know midwives who’ve only ever met the mother once for a consultation, and are hired then and there only to be called to their birth the next day. One midwife I know was hired when the mother was in early labor!
It’s never too late!
What does a transfer of care look like?
I will send a request to your previous hospital-based practitioner to get all of your prenatal care records sent to me. If there isn’t time for this process before your baby is born, then so be it. It isn’t vital in order to attend your birth.
We start prenatal visits right away. There won’t have been as much time to get to know one another and discuss your desires for the birth, so the more times we can meet the better. We will do a lot of talking and cover a lot of topics during each prenatal visit.
I regularly have families hire me in their third trimester. Most have been receiving prenatal care since early pregnancy but have changed their birth plans. Many women didn’t know homebirth was a option, either logistically or financially, when they first found out they were pregnant. And in today’s world, many are not comfortable with the restrictions in place when giving birth in hospital.
To sum it all up:
It’s never too late to transfer care and plan a homebirth! If you have a nudging to explore your birthing options, do it. Call some midwives. Book a free consultation. You only have one chance to birth the baby you’re pregnant with. Birth does matter and you deserve respectful, personalized care during your pregnancy and birth by a team who believes in your ability to give birth naturally!
