West Country Midwives

08/03/2026

What's the difference between a doula and a midwife?

Both are evidence-based roles that can help improve outcomes and birth experiences. However, their roles are very different.

A doula is NOT a replacement for a midwife (or OB). However, a midwife CAN be instead of an OB and provide all the clinical prenatal, birth, and postpartum care for expected risk pregnancies.

Why? Doulas often have comprehensive training but this is not clinical training. Midwives have extensive training and hands on clinical practice to safely support pregnancies and births as a primary provider. Midwifery training takes years because of the many potential variables in birth.

Doulas provide continuous support throughout active labor. In home births, they often arrive before your midwife as most people do not yet need clinical care in earlier parts of labor, just support and guidance. For those at birth centers or hospitals, a doula might meet you at home before you're ready to head to the birth facility, or meet you at the birth facility.

Midwives are VITAL for improving overall birth outcomes and provide evidence-based clinical care.

Doulas also provide support associated with improved outcomes but this is through education, physical and emotional support, and empowering parents to be self-advocates.

While doulas might occasionally be employed or contracted with a health system or midwifery practice, they're almost always independent of health systems.

Midwives come in a variety of roles in health care, all important. Some midwives practice independently, some in larger practices with OBs, and some work for the hospital.

Both midwives and doulas offer significant support during pregnancy and birth but their roles are different.

Midwives can provide safe birth care and catch your baby. Doulas provide non-medical support and do not catch babies.

👇🏽 Did you know the differences between midwives and doulas?

08/02/2026

Summer’s First Arrivals ☀️

07/31/2026

07/24/2026

Pelvic floor physio can be such a helpful part of pregnancy and postpartum care. 💚

We loved this quick video from Elle Physio and thought it was worth sharing!

Lundie sees clients right here at West Country Midwives every second Friday (and select Mondays), making it easy to access pelvic health care alongside your midwifery care.

You can book your appointment online anytime here by clicking the Rocky Mountain House location 👇

https://www.ellepelvichealth.com/book-online?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAZnRzaATPzgBwZG9mAmV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDzEyNDAyNDU3NDI4NzQxNAABp_tEMOT89RM6sGrZXjV84VWAsElo-5N3rvaFwOecxv48zjaw5Sv2avC-I8fr_aem_E6u7Ep24kOe2ca3kRW_CXg

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DbJbE7byEMX/?igsh=MWM4N3d1Z29kbDI0Yg==

07/23/2026

The next Prep your Body for Birth class is on August 23 at 2:00 PM! Be sure to sign up at www.gentlehand.net before all spots are gone!

07/23/2026

Every woman has the right to make an informed choice about where she gives birth—including at home, attended by a competent midwife.

On this , explore our updated statement on Home Birth. Evidence shows that for women at low risk, planned home birth offers comparable outcomes to hospital birth, with lower rates of unnecessary intervention and higher satisfaction. Midwives are skilled at supporting physiological birth. Women deserve autonomy and choice.

But in many places, legal barriers and regulatory restrictions make it nearly impossible.

Read more at: https://zurl.co/S1U3i

07/19/2026

Tuck that baby in close so they can get a good latch.

07/18/2026

This is a new term to me but it really does sum up beautifully what I see in practise in terms of tongue ties being EVERYWHERE!

Some feeding issues may be caused by tongue ties that need releasing, but there are a huge number of factors and elements that go into understanding infant feeding.

Because we hear so much about tongue ties, it’s easy to hold it up as the magic solution. But the reality it is it isn’t. I see so many babies who’ve undergone a frenulotomy, only for feeding issues to continue because the root cause hasn’t been identified.

A frenulotomy will divide a frenulum under the tongue. But frenulums are normal anatomy, so their presence alone is not always a problem.

So while, yes some babies may benefit from the procedure, the vast majority may not.

And it’s hugely important that feeding is evaluated by a skilled practitioner (ideally an IBCLC) who will work with a family to overcome the challenges, rather than rushing into a procedure that ultimately won’t help.

07/13/2026

Very interesting and hopefully more people in the future will know if they have MTHFR variation.