Recent Events in the Life of one Student Midwife

What’s been going on in the life of this student midwife lately? A lot of beautiful things. I’ve been:

:: Attending some beautiful, smooth, and perfectly normal homebirths

:: Starting to perform more hands-on skills with clients, and just in general get more involved and enmeshed in this practice

:: Increasing my own confidence dramatically when talking with clients, piping up frequently to share my own knowledge or unique point of view

:: Helping teach childbirth education classes

:: Trying to beat the Austin heat by drinking coconut water, fizzy fruit juices, and delicious tomato cucumber salads

:: Listening to radio shows featuring Ina May Gaskin and talking about birth justice while cleaning my kitchen

:: Bringing breakfast in bed to my sweetie after long nights up with our new puppy

:: Getting opportunities to palpate bellies holding twins and breeches. Increasingmy skills and feeling honored to be a part of these mamas’ journeys

:: Getting more involved in the queer community in Austin

:: Taken on my first client where I will (keep your fingers crossed) act as primary under supervision for much of her prenatal care and at her birth. The first one of many, I hope

:: And finally, trying to take really good care of myself as I gear up for what may well be adeluge of births in the next couple of weeks

Dreaming in the Language of Midwifery

The other night I dreamt I was pregnant and laboring. With twins, actually. I remember specifically when my water broke, because I then suffered from severe dream-induced oligohydramnios, I remember specifically talking with my midwife about the timing and intensity of my contractions, and when I transitioned from pre-labor to active labor (as if that’s possible to tell someone exactly) and then worrying afterwards whether I had given her the exact correct information or whether I had messed up the timing of contractions and cervical dilation for when someone transitions into active labor. I remember considering checking my own cervical dilation but deciding not to because I was so busy, and going for long walks to bring the babies down. I remember frequently performing Leopold’s Maneuvers on myself to check the position of the babies worrying that with one transverse twin, I might only get to vaginally deliver one of my babies.

Whew! When did dreams get so complicated? I admit to having a couple of pregnancy dreams prior to starting midwifery school, but this one was so different! It was like I was living my periodical exams in person, worrying about all of the correct answers and making sure I remembered every part of everything. What an exhausting (but totally fascinating) dream!

Is this what midwifery school does to you? I’m so curious to find out what happens next.