“…the deep knowing that what’s good for the mother is also what’s good for the newborn, the family, the midwife, the community, and the world…”
Wide Circles Holistic Midwifery is the practice of board certified nurse midwives who are intentionally steeped and grounded in low-intervention community birth at an Amish & Mennonite birth center in Wayne County, OH - one of the few places CNMs are practicing community birth in the state due to Ohio’s legislative issues around the practice of midwifery. Wide Circles was born out of a response to the skillful midwifery care that is available to the Amish/Mennonite community, the over-medicalization of pregnancy & birth that often exists outside of this setting, and the deep knowing that what’s good for the mother is also what’s good for the newborn, the family, the midwife, the community, and the world - all flourishing is mutual. This translates into practice in things like grounded, mother-centered slow visits and an intentionally low volume practice. We believe that every neighborhood and every family should have access to this kind of community midwifery care, and we hold a vision of (re)normalizing community birth, one family at a time.
Our Mission
Skillful, evidence-informed, low-intervention pregnancy, community birth, & holistic health care with board certified nurse midwives.
Our Vision
(Re)normalizing community birth, one family at a time.
Philosophy of Care
Decisions made concerning your pregnancy, birth, and health belong to you. We work closely with you using an informed choice, low intervention, and evidence-informed collaborative midwifery model of care.
Clinical research evidence is one of the many sources of knowledge that are essential to consider in your decision-making process.
We believe the processes of pregnancy, labor, and birth are normal, natural, and instinctual while acknowledging it is possible that you may have or may develop medical conditions or complications that warrant medical treatment, consultation, or transfer of care.
It is our role as community midwives to provide ongoing education about how best to support normal physiology, to offer screening for and discuss deviations from normal, to provide midwifery care recommendations and medical referrals as necessary or requested, and to work with you to plan your individual pregnancy and birth journey in a non-judgmental and loving way.
Families who choose homebirth benefit from highly individualized, relationship-based care and the unique joy of meeting their new baby in the comfort and familiarity of their own spaces.
Families who choose homebirth also take on a greater level of responsibility and accountability for their care decisions and pregnancy and birth outcomes.
We are present at your birth to help monitor your and your baby's health and wellness during labor; to provide guidance, knowledge, experience, skilled risk assessment, suggestions, and sometimes specific midwifery skills or interventions that support a safe, joyful, and spontaneous birth.
The informed decisions you make and the actions you take in preparing for birth are not guarantees of a specific desired outcome but an acknowledgement of your inner wisdom, essential connection to your body and baby, and your right to self-determination.
Some very important things…
We are intentionally and firmly grounded in inclusive and trauma-aware care where every body and every family is valued and celebrated.
We believe in reproductive self-determination through fully informed consent.
We are committed to an ongoing understanding of midwifery’s roots globally and in the U.S. and the co-opting of midwifery and maternity care by systems of colonialism, capitalism, patriarchy, and white supremacy. We are committed to challenging these systems and to working toward equitable outcomes and access to midwifery care for all, but especially for members of historically marginalized communities for whom health outcomes are most negatively affected.