Evans, GA Home Birth: A Safe and Empowering Alternative to Hospital Birth with a Midwife | Birth Photographer
I had the absolute pleasure of sitting down with Evans, GA homebirth midwife, Christine, from Morning Glory Childbirth Services. Going into our interview, I was a little nervous, but Christine’s warmth and kindness immediately put me at ease. She is not only passionate and genuine, but also deeply knowledgeable and skilled in her practice—so much so that she made me wish I was pregnant just so I could have her as my midwife!
In our conversation, Christine shares her personal journey to midwifery, her extensive training and qualifications for homebirth, and what families can expect throughout their care with her. If you’re considering homebirth or simply want to learn more about midwifery, you won’t want to miss this. Let’s dive in!
Q: How long have you been a midwife and what got you into midwifery?
Christine finished her training in December 2008 and received her certification in August 2009 after passing the exam.
When asked what inspired her to become a midwife, she explained that she had always been interested in pregnancy, mothers, and babies. She laughed as she told me, “I remember as a child, like maybe seven or eight years old, a friend of my parents came over and she was very largely pregnant and I kept dropping things on the driveway so I could bend down and try and look up her dress to see what was going on up there.”
Christine noted that, although her father was a doctor and she enjoyed the medical field, she never wanted to be a surgeon. Because obstetrics is a surgical specialty and her early exposure was limited to her father’s practice, midwifery was not initially on her radar. However, when she was pregnant with her fourth baby, she became involved with La Leche League.
“My co-leaders had all had home births and I was like “Oh, well that's kind of weird, but okay.” So, I hired a hospital midwife.”
Partway through that pregnancy, she convinced her ex-husband to accompany her to an interview with a homebirth midwife.
“As soon as I walked in her office it was like the clouds parted, beams of light shown down, a voice from heaven said, “You shall be a midwife!”
And I just knew I had found it, I just didn't know how that would work. That baby will be 27 at the end of this month.”
After moving to Augusta, in 2000 Christine experienced her first unplanned cesarean. She remembered thinking, “I may not be able to be a midwife right now, but I’ve got to do something to help women have babies. So, I got certified as a Bradley Method child birth instructor and I started teaching Bradley classes and started attending births as a doula.”
The first birth she attended that was not her own was in November 2000, and this year marks 25 years of her attending births.
Q: What other specific training and qualifications do you have that make you well suited for home birth?
“When I finally was able to start, I learned by the apprenticeship model. I do have a bachelor's degree from Midwives College of Utah and that's where I got my didactics and then I did a clinical apprenticeship with a midwife from Atlanta.”
Beginning in January 2003, she drove to Atlanta for the first three years to see that midwife’s clients for prenatal, birth, and postpartum care. Once she was ready to conduct primary births under supervision, the midwife drove to Augusta to supervise Christine’s clients. In total, Christine completed six years of apprenticeship, taking a break of about nine months to have her seventh baby.
Q: Can you walk me through a typical home birth, from your initial consultation to postpartum follow- up?
Consultations generally last between 30 minutes and an hour, depending on the number of questions and depth of discussion. Prenatal care typically begins around eight to ten weeks. Clients are seen on a schedule similar to that of a doctor—every four weeks until 28 weeks, then every two weeks until a home visit around 36.
“We do one visit at their house at 36 to 37 weeks and every week back at the office until they have their baby. We do all the same clinical things, but then we're really getting in more holistically with how are you sleeping, what are you eating, what's your exercise like, what stressors do you have right now, you know all that kind of thing.”
“In labor we typically arrive during active labor. If we get there and they’re still really early we might hang around for an hour or so and see if it goes anywhere and if not, then we go back home again. Once they're in labor we're checking baby's heart tones every 30 minutes. In active labor we're checking mom's vital signs every four hours unless there's a problem or a concern. We usually try and stay out of the mom's hair as much as possible.”
Christine explained that her team strives to remain unobtrusive, quietly entering the room to listen to the baby before stepping out, so that the mother can labor in a quiet, dark, and private environment.
When it is time to push, they remain present continuously. For women who have given birth before or when progress is evident, the team simply observes, checking the baby’s status after every other contraction. Once the baby is born, it is immediately placed on the mother’s chest. The baby is then dried and carefully observed for good color, tone, and signs of breathing or crying, while the mother is monitored for signs of placental separation—such as a gush of blood, a lengthening umbilical cord, or renewed contractions.
The team prefers to have the placenta expelled naturally. They encourage the mother to push it out and provide gentle assistance if needed,
“Sometimes we give just a little bit of help, but again, we aren't pulling on it until it's fully detached, so we're not just pulling it out like they do at the hospital sometimes. Once the placenta is out we put it in a bowl cover it up with a chux pad and it just sits next to mom and baby. We don't cut the cord or clamp it usually, until it stops pulsing at the baby's belly button and that can take sometimes an hour and a half after the birth.”
After the placenta is delivered and bleeding is stable, and as the baby begins to root, the team assists the mother in achieving a good latch and begins the cleanup process. This involves charting, providing food or drink for the mother, and allowing the family some time together. Once the baby has nursed adequately from both breasts, the baby and placenta bowl are typically handed to the father.
“Sometimes it's time to cut the cord and we free the baby at that point and we help the mom get up and use the restroom. We strip off the birth sheets and there's clean sheets underneath and then once she comes back to her bed that's when we do the newborn exam, so it's usually two hours or so after the birth before we know weight and length and all of that stuff. Once that's all done and everybody is stable that's when we go home.”
Christine’s protocol includes a return visit to the home 24 to 36 hours after birth to perform a heart defect screening and, if desired, a metabolic screening. The parents receive the necessary birth certificate information and contact details for a professional who will perform a hearing screening at home. For first-time home births or first-time mothers, another visit may occur three to four days later to check on breastfeeding, inspect any stitches, and ensure that the mother is resting and eating adequately. Follow-up appointments are then scheduled at two to three weeks and again at six weeks.
Q: How do you ensure continuity of care for families during the postpartum period?
“I remind everybody that we're their midwives until we discharge them from care at six weeks, so they can always, always, always call with any questions.”
Although there is a standard visit schedule, there have been cases where she has visited a mother four or five times during the first week due to concerns such as breastfeeding or weight checks.
“We've got two really fantastic lactation consultants that we work with as well that do home visits. We try to make it so that they don't have to go anywhere for at least the first week.”
Q: How do you work with families to create a birth plan that is specific to their needs and preferences?
“Because we spend so much time prenatally, we really get to hear them talk about their fears, their desires, you know what they've got on their mind. Most people who come to us already want the stuff that we do, so a lot of the things that you'd put on a hospital birth plan are kind of a moot point at a home birth. I want to be able to be free to move around, I want to be able to eat, delayed cord clamping, and we do that stuff automatically.”
During the home visit, she also inquires about any specific requests, such as a preference for a particular room in the house or a desired birth setting. Over time, she develops a deep understanding of each family’s expectations and works collaboratively with them to create a personalized birth plan.
Q: What would you say to someone with concerns or fear about giving birth at home?
“I would say make a consultation and come ask every one of your “what if–“ questions. A lot of times it's just because they don't know. They don't know what training we have, they don't know what equipment we bring, they don't know what we are able to handle at home, and so a lot of people just have this generalized, “What if something goes wrong?” but they have no idea what could go wrong, or if we can predict it, or prevent it, or treat it when it does happen.”
By discussing these details, families can gain a realistic understanding of potential scenarios and how complications might be predicted, prevented, or treated.
Q: Could you talk more about that? How are you equipped to handle emergency situations?
“We have everybody meet with a nurse midwife one time in their pregnancy and she prescribes anti- hemorrhage medications and they pick those up before the birth so we have hemorrhage medications, the same medications they use in the hospital. I do carry IV supplies, although I do them so rarely, I'm not good at them and that's what I tell people.”
In addition, she carries full resuscitation equipment, except for intubation supplies. Christine noted that they do not intubate newborns or administer heart medications if a newborn’s heartbeat drops too low; such events are extremely rare with full-term newborns. However, she does carry alternate airway devices, as well as oxygen and the capacity to administer CPAP if necessary. Should CPAP be required for more than about 15 minutes, a transfer is initiated. She also carries urinary catheters and is equipped to handle at least first- and second-degree tears. In summary, while many of these supplies are rarely needed, they ensure that she is well prepared for emergencies.
Q: Do you have any unique or innovative techniques you use during labor and delivery to ensure safe and comfortable experience for mom and baby?
“That are unique? Not really. I mean the main thing that we concentrate on is making sure that the mom is fed, hydrated, you know, that we spend so much time prenatally trying to address fears and mental blocks that I think that is probably the most important piece, is for people to not be afraid and to feel well supported. It's really the stuff we do prenatally, I think, that makes a bigger difference than any trick or tip that we have during birth.”
Additionally, both she and Julia (her apprentice) emphasize fetal positioning by recognizing when the baby is not in an ideal position and using exercises and positioning techniques to help. However, she noted that many midwives and doulas use these methods.
Christine emphasized that insisting the mother eat and drink during labor is a significant difference from many hospital protocols. Hospital protocols often restrict eating or drinking during labor. She stressed that nourishment is crucial because the laboring uterus requires fuel, and without it, the mother could run out of energy.
Q: How do you help families prepare for the possibility of transfer to a hospital during a home birth? What circumstances would make you decide that it's time to transfer?
“Starting at the consult we talk about it very matter of factly, that transfer is part of the continuum of safe home birth. What we always tell people is we do “normal” and “normal” has a huge range, much bigger range than OBs think it does.”
When a situation deviates from this normal range—such as fetal distress, significant bleeding during labor, or fever—the need for transfer is discussed. For example, she described a case involving a mother giving birth to her fifth child, whose labor stalled for more than 12 hours despite clear signs of active labor. Ultimately, after receiving Pitocin at the hospital and finally having a vaginal birth.
Q: Do you work with health care providers at all? Are you familiar with them, do you have a good relationship with any of them?
“We have a really good relationship with two of the OBs and one of the nurse midwives at Wellstar MCG and they've provided us with a super smooth pathway for getting people seen. They have volunteered that even if we have a higher risk mom, if she wants to just go in and see them once or twice to establish care and then continue prenatal care with us and have a hospital birth, they're happy to do that as well.”
Midwife apprentice, Julia & Christine
Q: Can you talk about the role of fathers or partners during home birth and how you support them in their role?
“We encourage them to do whatever is right for their family. We've actually had one dad that left the house with the older kids during the birth, we've had some dads that were like cowering in the doorway, watching with half of an eye, and we've had dads that are in the birth pool with the mom catching the baby. So, it's the whole gamut. We encourage them to do whatever is right for their family and if the dad wants to catch, we will talk them through and do like a four- handed catch so that the dad can do that.”
Q: Can you share any tips for families who are considering homebirth for an upcoming birth? What they could do to prepare or choosing the right provider?
Christine advises families to carefully interview any midwives they are considering because the title “midwife” can encompass a broad range of training and educational backgrounds. She recommends choosing the midwife whose approach aligns best with their birth preferences. Additionally, she encourages families to educate themselves as much as possible. Emphasizing that the ultimate responsibility lies with the parents.
“They're the ones who have to make the decisions, we don't make choices for people. We give them as much objective pro and con information and then they choose what's going to work for them because they're the only ones who have to live with the consequences of their choices.”
Even in hospital settings, the decision to follow a doctor’s recommendations is a choice that may lead to a cascade of interventions, so being well informed is essential.
Q: What do you think are some of the more common misconceptions about home birth?
“That it's illegal for people to have a home birth. It is not illegal in any of the States, regardless of whether the midwife is practicing legally or not. It is not illegal for parents to have a home birth anywhere in the country.”
“Another one would be that midwives can't handle emergencies that come up. And again, that all is going to go back to what is this midwife's training? What is she prepared to deal with? Some midwives only use herbs for hemorrhages. Some midwives use prayer. Some midwives go straight for the meds. They need to know what their midwife is prepared to handle and what emergency she's equipped to deal with.”
Christine added that another misconception is that home birth is only for “hippies” or those who are anti-establishment. In her experience, clients come from all walks of life—including doctors, lawyers, nurses, and many others—and it is not limited to any one socioeconomic or cultural group.
Q: What do you think are some of the biggest benefits of home birth?
“People tend to be a lot more relaxed when they're on their home turf. And it's their bed, their food, their shower, their toilet, their germs. There's not a whole lot of foreign viruses and bacteria that they haven't been exposed to. There's no strangers at their birth. Everybody that's there, they will have met before the baby comes.” (Except in the rare case when a backup midwife is needed), “everybody there is an invited guest in their home. And that goes a long way towards making people feel safe and safe, supported, and eliminate that fear part. It really makes people a lot more comfortable.”
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