At the heart of all life is motherhood. Every day, women create miracles within their bodies, carrying life for nine months and guiding them to maturity.
Yet the true weight of becoming a mother is rarely acknowledged; not only is it a physical strain, but also a transformative emotional and mental journey. Often overlooked is the support required throughout and after childbirth. Standing on the front lines of this vital care are midwives, professionals who specialize in guiding expecting mothers.
Unlike obstetrician-gynecologists, midwives don’t perform cesarean deliveries, focusing instead on low-risk pregnancies and holistic pre- and post-natal care. Valerie Caro, a midwife for almost seven years, recalls watching her mother practice the vocation at their community health center: “[I was inspired by] how she was respected by her patients and how she [motivated] them, and [they believed in] her or her health teachings.”
Compared to private hospitals, midwives in lying-in clinics are more affordable. However, this disparity exposes the greater issue of a critical staffing shortage: according to the United Nations Population Fund, there are fewer than seven midwives for every 10,000 Filipina mothers. Despite their importance in the safety of natal delivery and reproductive health, these health workers remain underappreciated and undersupported today.
Ins and outs
Midwives live between the rhythms of a newborn’s visceral cries and a mother’s quiet anxieties. In eight-hour shifts, they stretch themselves thin from prenatal checkups to postpartum visits, often seeing 10 to 20 patients each day.
Their responsibilities also extend into the invisible territories of emotional guidance. Gemma Ucab, a midwife of 39 years at a rural health unit in Mindanao, emphasizes the need for safe and trusting environments. Championing a holistic approach, she explains: “Our profession [depends] on the appreciation for motherhood and strengthening the role as a vital connector within the community.”
Thea Bryne, a property manager and mother of one, spotlights the attentive nature of midwife-assisted childbirth. “It’s more detailed, actually. It’s more catered to me. She knows you on a more personal level,” she reflects. This unwavering support is what drives many to prefer the experience. Despite uncertainties in the underlying processes, she narrates how midwives set benchmarks for each stage, explain usual birth procedures, and guide mothers beyond simple affirmations.
Unfortunately, midwives are constantly belittled by the misinformed. As Caro woefully relays, many still believe that midwives only assist in deliveries. “Many people overlook the broader role of midwives in prenatal care, family planning, reproductive health education, breastfeeding support, and postpartum care.” Ucab underscores this by rejecting the notion that midwife-led assistance is inferior to hospital care. “It is [a] regulated profession [focused] on the evidence based in holistic care,” she clarifies.
Midwives are also commonly mistaken for manghihilots, or traditional healers specializing in herbal remedies, spot massages, and spiritual rituals. However, Caro elucidates that midwives are trained alongside doctors and nurses in high-risk situations. Recounting a precarious delivery, she describes assisting a mother with absolute precision and care—all with bated breath. “While ensuring the mother’s and baby’s safety medically, I also [focus] on keeping the mother reassured and emotionally supported throughout the experience.”
The pull behind the push
From prenatal care to post-birth vaccinations, midwives perform a myriad of services regardless of personal adversities. “Deliveries do not follow schedules,” Caro reminds, emphasizing the urgent, on-call nature of their field.
In these cases, Ucab stresses the importance of reliable institutions to ensure the safety of infants and mothers, sharing that “[through] teamwork, peer support, [and] continuous training, we follow strict protocols for emergencies and maintain strong referral systems to the hospital.”
Beyond material challenges like lack of medical supplies and low wages, the profession is also strained by difficult working conditions, immense emotional pressure, and persistent public misconceptions. Caro laments that these gaps can lead to increased stress and anxiety, delayed diagnoses, and poorer outcomes for both mothers and babies. Painting a similar situation, Ucab recalls how, before receiving help from the Department of Health, deficiencies in transport and medical equipment made their labor significantly more difficult.
Yet intertwined with the physical demands is an emotional toll that makes the work both challenging and deeply fulfilling. Midwives not only safeguard patients’ well-being but also craft a protective haven for families during their most vulnerable moments. Recollecting her care for a frightened first-time mother, Caro describes how a woman’s confidence and overall birth experience improve simply through a midwife’s presence.
For many, fulfillment comes from witnessing healthy outcomes and anchoring a family’s journey into parenthood. As Ucab shares, “care is not just about the medical outcomes, but about the dignity, compassion, and honoring each family’s story.”
A labor of love
Though now medically assisted, childbirth remains one of the most natural processes of life. Demystified from medical jargon, Thea imparts that midwives helped her realize how simplified birth should be, leading her to pursue a home delivery. Even with the complications she experienced, she emphatically attests, “I would still choose the choice I’ve made because of the education that I got and the way [the midwife] also educated me.”
Caro hopes for midwives to receive “better pay, stronger support, more training opportunities, and recognition for the important role they play in caring for mothers and families.” If they were a strengthened pillar in local healthcare, the country could see lower maternal and infant mortality rates, especially in rural communities. More than deliverers, midwives are the mothers’ guardians and their bridge to the next chapter, offering invaluable support and knowledge to inform their shared futures.
Bearing witness to the dawn of new life is not a simple task. Midwives stand as a vanguard right where it all begins—with the mother. They are living testaments that even before birth, it takes a village to nurture life. Much can be learned from the efforts of midwives; it may not be easy to bear children, but extending empathy to those who deliver them should be effortless. Given how much love and care they dole out to mothers, they only deserve to receive just as much honor.