Full Well Midwifery

11/07/2025

You don’t have to birth at home to receive midwifery care.

If you’re planning a hospital birth but craving the kind of postpartum support that feels different - more personal, more holistic, more mama and family-centered - I’m here for you.

What Postpartum Midwifery Care Looks Like:
Instead of one quick 6-week appointment, imagine:

🏡 Home visits (or office visits if you prefer) throughout the first 6-8 weeks

Unhurried time to check on YOUR healing, not just baby’s weight

🤱 Real breastfeeding support - hands-on help when you need it most

Emotional support during the vulnerable fourth trimester

Holistic guidance on nutrition, herbs, and natural healing

Comprehensive newborn care - all the checks, none of the rush

You deserve more than:
-Waiting weeks for your first appointment
-Packing up a newborn to sit in a waiting room
-Rushing through a 15-minute visit, our visits are no
It an hour talking through all the ins and outs of postpartum and newborn care.
-Feeling alone in those early, tender weeks

How It Works:

Reach out prenatally to set up your postpartum care plan, or even contact me after your baby arrives. I offer a complete postpartum package or we can do per-visit pricing - whatever works best for your family.

Whether you’re planning your first baby or adding to your growing family, whether you’re birthing in hospital or just need extra support after a previous birth experience - this care is for you.

Those first weeks are sacred. You’re healing, adjusting, learning to breastfeed, navigating sleep deprivation, and becoming a mother all over again (or for the first time). You deserve support that honors this time.

Let me bring the midwifery model of care to your postpartum journey - wherever you choose to birth.
Because every mama deserves to feel well-loved, well-supported, and well-cared for.

11/07/2025

Hello local families! I wanted to share some exciting updates about Full Well Midwifery as we move into the new year.

We’re Moving!

As of December, Full Well Midwifery will have a new office location in Cave Spring! I’m so excited to welcome you to our new space for prenatal visits. More details coming soon! 🏡 God has been so faithful!

I’ll be welcoming my own little one at the end of 2025/beginning of 2026 and taking some time for maternity leave to soak up those precious newborn snuggles with my family.

Current Availability:

• Early 2026: On maternity leave - not accepting new clients

• Spring 2026: Currently full with amazing families

• Summer 2026: Some limited availability!

If you’re hoping for a summer birth and want Full Well Midwifery as your birth team, now is the time to reach out! I only take 1-2 clients per month to ensure each family receives the personalized, unhurried care you deserve.

A Note About August:

I’ll be taking a family vacation in August to rest and recharge, so if your due date falls in this month, I won’t be available to serve as your midwife. If you’re planning around this timeframe, let’s connect early to see if we can make it work!

If you’re dreaming of a homebirth with personalized midwifery care let’s chat! Book a consultation to discuss your birth and see if we’re the right fit for your family.

I’m so grateful to walk this journey with each family I serve. Thank you for trusting me and my team with your births, your babies, and your stories❤️

11/02/2025

Many years ago, women were routinely told that formula was better for their babies than breastmilk. Many were given medication to dry up their milk supply before they even left the hospital. It was the standard medical advice of the time.

Fast forward to today, and we now know that breastfeeding offers incredible health benefits, not just for baby, for mothers that extend far beyond infancy. Research shows that breastfeeding can significantly reduce a mother’s risk of breast cancer, ovarian cancer, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease. The longer you breastfeed, the greater these protective effects tend to be. It can also help with postpartum recovery and may reduce the risk of postpartum depression.

This is just one example of when the medical establishment got it wrong—and it’s far from the only one. Medical knowledge evolves, and what’s considered “standard care” today may be questioned tomorrow. Evidence is always being updated.

That’s why it’s so important to do your own research, ask questions, and find healthcare providers who welcome your curiosity rather than dismiss it. You deserve a provider who respects your concerns, explains their reasoning, and partners with you in making informed decisions about your health and your family’s wellbeing.

Trust your instincts. Ask the hard questions. And remember that you are your own best advocate.

11/01/2025

Today’s the day! I’m so excited to be teaching from my NEW curriculum for As Intended: Birth According to God’s Perfect Design!

This has been such a labor of love, and I can’t wait to share it with families who want to embrace birth the way God intended.

In our classes, we dive deep into:
✨ The hormones of labor and how they work together beautifully
✨ The stages of labor - what to expect every step of the way
✨ Comfort measures that actually work
✨ How your husband can be your rock and support you through it all
✨ Physiologic birth principles
✨ Breastfeeding foundations to set you up for success

Whether this is your first baby or your fifth, I believe every mama deserves to feel prepared, confident, and supported as she steps into one of life’s most sacred moments.

📅 Our next class is February 28th!

If you’re interested in joining us or know someone who might be, drop a comment or send me a message. I’d love to chat with you! 💕

10/22/2025

Lilias Amy Atha
October 8, 2025 – October 9, 2025

October is Infant Loss Awareness Month, and today I want to honor the beautiful and precious life of Lilias—and the parents who love her so fiercely.

So often, we shy away from sharing stories of loss, focusing only on the babies who remain in our arms. But Lilias’ story deserves to be shared. Her life deserves to be remembered.

When an ultrasound revealed that Lilias had a condition incompatible with life, my heart broke—for her, and for her parents. Yet in the weeks that followed, I witnessed something extraordinary. Bethany and Michael met heartbreak with unshakable faith. They chose to savor every moment with their daughter, to celebrate her life with a depth of love that transcends time. Their grace, courage, and devotion taught me what it truly means to walk by faith.

This is the sacred heart of midwifery—walking beside families through both the highest joys and the deepest sorrows. Holding space for the full spectrum of birth: the joy and the grief, the celebration and the letting go. It is always, always an honor.

When Lilias was born, she was met with love. Bethany and Michael held her close. They spoke her name. They poured a lifetime of love into each precious breath. I was there. I witnessed their love. And I will carry her memory with me always.

Lilias is loved. Lilias is wanted. Lilias’ life matters.
To every parent who has known this kind of loss—you are seen. Your grief is valid. Your love is everlasting. You are not alone.

And to Bethany and Michael: thank you for trusting me to walk this sacred path with you. Lilias is blessed to have you as her parents. And I am forever blessed to have known her.

10/18/2025

In hospitals, the first hours after birth are often filled with:

• Weighing and measuring
• Bathing
• Injections
• Eye ointment
• Moving to different rooms
• Multiple care providers in and out
• Exams and fundal massage

Whenever possible we protect these precious first moments. Here is what happens when baby and mama are left undisturbed:

✨ Baby remains calm and regulated by mama’s heartbeat and warmth
✨ Baby’s instincts guide them to crawl to the breast
✨ The first latch happens naturally, without force or struggle
✨ Oxytocin flows freely, helping mama’s uterus contract safely and control bleeding
✨ Baby’s temperature, blood sugar, and breathing stabilize through skin-to-skin
✨ Bonding hormones flood both mama and baby’s brains
✨ The microbiome transfer continues
✨ Baby imprints on mama’s smell, voice, and presence

All procedures can wait. Weighing can wait. Even cutting the cord can wait until it stops pulsing and the placenta is born. Because nothing - and I mean nothing - is more important than these first moments together ❤️

Research shows that protecting this time leads to:
• Better breastfeeding outcomes
• Improved temperature regulation
• Enhanced bonding
• Reduced infant stress
• Better maternal satisfaction

10/04/2025

These are my sweet clients, and I have had the honor of walking alongside them through this pregnancy. Now, I’m asking our community to come alongside them as well, to support them through this incredibly difficult time.

They are preparing to welcome their daughter Lillias into the world, knowing their time with her will be brief. Baby Lillias has received an incompatible with life diagnosis, Renal Agenesis, and her parents are choosing to cherish every moment they have with her—however long or short that may be.

In the midst of this profound sorrow, they are showing incredible strength and love. They will meet their daughter, hold her, speak her name, and say both hello and goodbye. It is beautiful, and it is devastating, and they need our support.

“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” - Psalm 139:13-14

Lillias is fearfully and wonderfully made. Her life has meaning and purpose, no matter how brief.

They are facing medical expenses, time away from work, funeral costs, and the emotional weight of preparing to welcome and say goodbye to their daughter. Every donation, no matter the size, will help ease their burden and allow them to focus on what matters most—loving Lillias.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/gift-for-the-athas

If you’re unable to give financially, please share this post and hold this family in your prayers. They need to feel surrounded by love as they walk this valley.

Our dear friends Michael and Bethany have received heartbreaking news about their precious baby gi… Leigh Anne Coble needs your support for Gift for the Athas

09/26/2025

We recently lost one of the most influential voices in modern obstetrics and midwifery on physiologic birth. Dr. Michel Odent, French obstetrician and pioneer of natural birth, dedicated his life to understanding the profound physiology of birth.

Dr. Odent’s groundbreaking work taught us:
-The critical importance of protecting the natural hormonal processes of birth
🧠 How synthetic oxytocin (Pitocin) differs from our body’s natural oxytocin and may impact the developing brain
-That undisturbed birth allows for optimal hormonal cascades that benefit both mother and baby

His research raised important questions about routine interventions and their long-term effects on human development. He reminded us that birth is not just about getting a baby out safely - it’s about protecting the delicate neurological and hormonal processes that shape our children’s futures.

“The goal is not to avoid technology, but to use it wisely and only when truly necessary.” - Michel Odent

At Full Well Midwifery, we honor this wisdom by protecting physiologic birth while maintaining the highest safety standards. I strongly encuourage you to research the information he shared about synthetic oxytocin to make informed decisions for your family.

Thank you, Dr. Odent, for teaching us to ask the deeper questions and trust birth’s ancient wisdom.

09/11/2025

✨There’s nothing quite like it…✨

The moment you birth your baby right in your own bedroom, surrounded by love and safety. You climb into your own bed, wrap yourself in familiar blankets, and snuggle your brand-new little one close to your chest.

That first moment—feeling their warm skin against yours, realizing you did it—is pure triumph. It’s joy and relief, strength and softness all in one. No rush, no bright lights, no strangers coming and going—just you, your baby, and that deep exhale as your whole world changes forever.

This is the beauty of homebirth: welcoming your baby in the comfort of your own space, where rest and bonding begin immediately.

At Full Well Midwifery, it’s our honor to walk beside families as they experience this sacred beginning—because every birth deserves to be full of joy, trust, and deep connection. 💛

09/06/2025

Sometimes I am asked about child spacing, and while this is going to be a very personal individual decision for each family, I love to chat about the history of child spacing and breastfeeding throughout time. Understanding how our ancestors naturally spaced their children offers fascinating insights into the wisdom of our bodies and the importance of allowing full recovery between pregnancies.

Research by psychology professor Darcia Narvaez and other scholars studying hunter-gatherer societies reveals that for most of human history—the 99% of our species’ existence before agriculture—women typically had only 4-5 children throughout their entire reproductive years, with natural spacing of 3-4 years between births. This wasn’t family planning as we know it today, but rather the natural result of extended breastfeeding patterns and attachment parenting.

In small-band hunter-gatherer communities, children would have grown up with few siblings, surrounded by playmates of various ages, making sibling rivalry less of an issue and allowing for lengthier breastfeeding with an average age of weaning of four years. Archaeological evidence shows that hunter-gatherers like the Gainj of highland Papua New Guinea had an average of 43 months between births, with Pennington calculating 39 months for hunter-gatherers overall.

What made this natural spacing possible was the continuous, intimate care that characterized hunter-gatherer child-rearing. Narvaez’s research on humanity’s “evolved developmental niche” shows that traditional societies practiced nearly constant carrying, extensive positive touch, prompt response to babies’ needs, and infant-initiated breastfeeding for several years. There were no bottles, pacifiers, or scheduled feedings—just responsive, on-demand nursing.

This pattern of extended breastfeeding wasn’t unique to hunter-gatherers. In biblical times, children would have been nursed for several years, with ancient Hebrews completing weaning at about three years of age. According to Jewish rabbinical traditions, weaning could take place anywhere between 18 months and 5 years of age. The celebration of Isaac’s weaning in Genesis 21:8 with a great feast indicates this was considered a significant milestone.

The 3-5 year spacing allowed for something crucial that modern fertility patterns often don’t provide: complete physiological recovery between pregnancies. Research shows that breastfeeding length is positively related to the development of children’s inhibitory control and conscience development in 3-5 year olds. Maternal social support, which was facilitated by this natural child spacing, positively correlated with child cooperation, social competence, and reduced aggressive behavior.

This extended spacing allowed for:

- Full restoration of nutrient stores, particularly iron, folate, and calcium
- Complete healing of reproductive tissues and restoration of core strength
- Hormonal rebalancing and return to optimal fertility
- Emotional and mental restoration from the intensive early parenting period
- Each child receiving intensive, individualized attention during their most crucial developmental years

This intensive caregiving in the early years wasn’t just about nutrition—it was about optimal brain development. Warm, responsive caregiving keeps the infant’s brain calm during the years it is forming its personality and response to the world. The constant physical closeness, immediate response to needs, and extended breastfeeding relationship created the neurobiological foundation for empathy, cooperation, and emotional regulation.

The wisdom of our ancestors reminds us that intensive, responsive caregiving in the early years—including extended breastfeeding that naturally spaces children—isn’t spoiling or indulgence. It’s providing the foundation for optimal physical, emotional, and neurological development that serves children throughout their lives.