The first time I remember hearing about midwives was way back in 1976 when Jimmy Carter was president. His brother Billy was an interesting guy and I heard his wife was attended by a midwife for their last birth. I thought that was really cool. In 1978 I was pregnant with my first and I sought out a midwife. I found Mary Brown at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester MN. Mary was from New Zealand and she was the most wonderful woman. I loved my prenatal visits, she listened to me, calmed my fears and anxieties and taught me alot about my pregnancy and upcoming birth. I felt so cared for.Unfortunately we moved to Iowa months before Matt was born so she was not with me during my birth, but I never forgot her and wanted to become just like her because I wanted all women to feel that safety and security. When Matt was 18 months old I went back to school to be a nurse with the ultimate goal of being a certified nurse-midwife. I started school in Iowa but eventually graduated from the University of Buffalo Nursing School. By then I had 2 children and my husbands' career had us moving every 4 years. I worked labor and delivery in several hospitals and states, taught childbirth classes and had another baby in 1991. In 1996 I learned about the midwifery program based in Hyden KY that let me do the majority of work from home. It was a huge committment time wise and finanicially for my family, but I was finally achieving my dream. I graduated in 1997 and worked for 1 year in the birth center in Chapel Hill, NC before moving here to Phoenix in 1999. I've been at Bethany Womens Health Care since Aug. 2000. I'm so excited about the group of midwives I'm working with and their committment to women and their births.
Lynnette
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