Community Midwifery Care

We weave together the ancient practices of midwifery and modern medicine into a tapestry of true holistic home birth & birth center midwifery care.

Prenatal Care: Growing, discovering and wonder

Midwifery care centers around physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual fullness.

Prenatal care is a symphony of methods, integrating food, plant medicine, bodywork and spiritual awareness. We trust each person’s internal whispers of deep maternal knowledge while partnering with her as the care providers we have trained to be in a collaboration of what midwives really are; with woman. All of this centering around the set intention of bringing your family to your sacred center, your intrinsic knowledge of yourself and your needs as you move through growing, birthing, and nourishing this new life within.

But mostly, pregnancy care is an alchemic melding of friendship, learning, and diving into your own life story. We explore the discomforts, nervousness, desires and quiet spaces of pregnancy and birth while speaking truth and strength through the wisdom of our ancestors and the gifts of modern reasoning.

At VCM, we work to render away distractions, obstacles, fears and doubts to hold sacred space and honor the intuition of each family as they find their new path as a growing family.

Prenatal visits are at the heart of your care.

During our hour-long visits, our small team of midwives builds trust and relationship with each birth giver. We check your blood pressure, baby’s position, heart, and movements. We offer all routine lab work and testing as desired by the client. We recognize that pregnancy is a journey of the whole being and we strive to integrate the whole person into your care.

MIDWIFERY PRENATAL CARE INCLUDES:

Every 4 weeks until 28 weeks
Every 2 weeks from 28-36 weeks
Every week from 37 weeks to birth

The Quest: Labor and Birth

And then, just like that the secret hope within begins to emerge. Prenatal care prepares families to engage in the intense and intimate process of birth with curiosity and confidence. Families come together in a new and mysterious journey of intimacy, comfort, anticipation, and nearness within their own home for a home birth, or the comfort of the Bridge Birth Center in readiness to welcome this new soul into the world.

When the work of labor begins, the midwives will join your family. Our sturdy, quiet presence guides rather than instructs, trusting the birthing body to move to the rhythms of labor as we have for millenia. Midwifery is built on trust, trusting the birth process, trusting the family, and trusting the steady hands of midwives for when the time comes. We are witness to this miracle. The keepers of the night, of space, of hopes, and dreams, and the slippery little newborns who emerge triumphant into this brand new world.

After baby arrives, we quietly monitor both mother and child, tucking them in together, supporting feeding, and tidying up the space. We tenderly celebrate and depart this miracle and yet are still only a phone call away.

"From one to two. Birth produces two people. The first, a flailing soul struggling to take in a new world, a new way of being as it draws breath against the unknown. The second, a baby."

--Bunmi Laditan

Postpartum Care: Healing, Bonding, Reveling

We take such time and preparation for labor and birth, but the twelve weeks after that first breath, the fourth trimester, is the melding and bonding of this new family. Midwifery care builds a sturdy floor upon which each family can build upon. We impress the importance of family, bonding, and nourishment both physically and spiritually. We encourage rest, connection, quiet, and pause.

POSTPARTUM CARE INCLUDES:

  • Home visit for mom and baby in home at 1-2 days after birth
  • “Check-in” visit for mom and baby 3-5 days after birth (This depends on the needs of the family)
  • In office visit for mom and baby 1-2 weeks
  • “Check-in” visit for mom 3 weeks after birth (This depends on the needs of the family)
  • Final visit 6-8 weeks after birth
  • Continuous on call availability

For birth givers: Our midwives facilitate bringing pause and health to the new parents body and soul, supporting the intrinsic knowledge of mother to care for self and baby. We help guide the journey of feeding, sleep, and hormones, helping to normalize the shifts in body, time, identity, relationships, sexuality, and life. We care for the new mother/parent for 6-8 weeks after they give birth.

For the babes: Transition earthside is a complex and magical process. Midwives honor this process by checking in often and recognizing baby’s changes in weight, feeding, sleep, and well baby care. We care for newborn for 2 weeks after birth.

Vancouver Community

Botanical Medicine and Whole Body Care

At VCM we find the miracle in all forms of life. As Clinical Herbalists, plant medicine is woven into our practice with intention and care. While we value the importance of modern medicine, we also revere and utilize the traditional nourishment of botanical medicine in all its forms.

Included in a family’s care are methods of healing for many pregnancy and postpartum issues including pelvic tone, iron deficiency, uterine preparation, mood stabilization, and so much more. Untangling the many complex layers of self care, anxiety, depression, creating new life, family dynamics, and sexuality to help you find your best path through the childbearing year and beyond.