Resources & More Information about Your Birth Options

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We’ve spent a century telling people that birth is dangerous. Only if mothers start from the premise that they can successfully have their baby without all that intervention will they start to question the existing U.S. system. Our research suggests more and more women are starting to believe that. Probably because it’s true.

- Eugene Declercq, PhD, Professor,
Boston University School of Public Health,
"Call (back) the Midwife," Boston Globe, September 2, 2015

Resources About midwives and birth

  • Evidence Based Birth - Accurate, evidence-based information for pregnant families so that they can make informed and empowered choices. PhD Nurse, Rebecca Dekker, compiles all of the current research on different pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum related topics, analyzes it, and puts it into simple language that non-medical professionals can understand. There are articles and one-pagers on all sorts of topics––everything from the evidence on induction for due date to routine newborn procedures like the Vitamin K shot. Their goal is to help people have the positive birth experiences that they deserve!

  • Every Mother Counts’ Choices in Childbirth - An interactive film series with the goal of helping people make informed decisions about their pregnancy and birth. There are several chapters, each exploring different themes that are important to maternity care. It also includes free downloadable resources to guide your journey. Some examples of chapter titles are “Sources of Support,” “Using your Voice,” and “Unpacking the Postpartum Experience: What do New Parents Need?” 

  • Massachusetts Birth Connections - Contact information for home birth midwives in Massachusetts, as well as a plethora of other birth-related resources in the Commonwealth. Looking for a birth or postpartum doula or a childbirth educator? What about pelvic floor therapists or placenta encapsulators? This site links you to many of the birth workers here in our state.

  • Childbirth Connection - Evidence based resources for pregnant people from the National Partnership for Women and Families. From anatomy and physiology of pregnancy to fact sheets on pain relief options for labor, there are many valuable pieces of information on this site. 

  • Cochrane Review - Curious about the safety of home birth? Check out some of the seventy nine Cochrane Review articles that reflect the meta-analyses of systematic reviews completed by their organization. 

  • LBGTQ Birth - Resources, classes, videos and more. Birth preparation: For the LGBTQ+ community, by the LGBTQ+ community.

  • The Business of Being Born (film) - This documentary, from Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein, looks at the ways that the American healthcare system approaches childbirth. The traditional form of U.S. birth involves hospitals, drugs and obstetricians, while births in many other countries utilize midwives. This documentary tries to explain the realities of maternity care through interviews and anecdotes.

  • Why Not Home (film) - Why would doctors who attend birth in hospitals choose to have their own babies at home? What do they know about birth that others don't? Join Jessicca Moore, filmmaker and nurse practitioner, on a compelling journey through maternity care in the United States. Told through the lens of doctors, nurses, and midwives, Why Not Home? examines the latest evidence on risks and rewards of different birth settings. The film presents a balanced and accessible view on the latest research, along with moving personal stories of medical practitioners faced with big decisions for their own growing families.  Viewers are challenged to move beyond preconceived ideas, and to envision a fresh future for maternity care in America.

  • Happy Homebirth - Happy Homebirth offers encouragement and education on all things home birth. They have a podcast where you can hear about peoples’ experiences with home birth. They also provide a checklist that you can download of “must-haves” for having a home birth. 

  • The Big Push for Midwives - A national campaign to expand access to certified professional midwives, community birth options, and out-of-hospital maternity care.

Birth Centers

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