TwoStones Midwifery / The Traveling Midwife (2025)

19/06/2025

31/05/2025

23/05/2025

Midwives are leaving. Not because the work is too hard. But because the boundaries are too soft.

We aren’t burned out from birth.
We’re burned out from everything around it.

From the student who says she wants to learn but never takes a note, never shows up early, never stays late—and posts selfies instead of questions. The one who isn’t ready, but insists she’s “called.” The one who confuses proximity with preparation.

From the client who ghosted the intake form for six weeks, paid in $40 chunks while shopping for photographers, then got upset when you didn’t jump to respond at 10 p.m.

From the woman who knew you just had a baby—but still asked, “Will you be back by October? I just really want you.”

From the chronic boundary testers. The ones who don’t mean harm—but still text too much, ask too little, book late, pay slow, and expect your availability to remain sacred while they treat it casually.

And you, the midwife, are trying to hold it all with grace.
Trying not to sound harsh.
Trying to be understanding.
Trying to be “accessible.”

But let’s be clear:

> The perception of midwifery has been diluted by this lack of clarity.

You’re not seen as a professional.
You’re seen as the help.
Flexible. Affordable. Personal. Bendable.
And quietly replaceable.

And when you finally crack—when you raise your fee, set your phone to silent, or say “this apprenticeship isn’t working”—you’re the villain.
Cold. Unavailable. Gatekeeping.

But the truth is, you should have said no months ago.

No to the student who isn’t ready.
No to the client who wouldn’t commit.
No to the emotional leakage that slowly turned your schedule into chaos.

Because when we don’t say no, midwifery gets cheapened.
When we let people treat our sacred work like casual service, it affects how every other midwife is perceived.

And it’s not sustainable.

This is why the turnover rate is so high.
This is why midwives disappear.
Not because of birth itself—but because we’re slowly extracted by people who say “I love your care” but don’t actually honor it.

Midwives—listen:

You are not selfish for protecting your time.
You are not rude for releasing a client.
You are not harsh for ending an apprenticeship that drains your spirit.
You are not “money hungry” for charging what this work costs you to hold.

You are the gatekeeper.
And when you forget that, everything spills out.
Not just your time, but your joy.

So tighten the gate.
Say it early.
Say it clearly.
Say it without shame.

Because your calling wasn’t meant to be handed over to indecision, performance, or passive abuse.

It was meant to be guarded.

And if no one else will say it—here’s your reminder:

You can be kind and still be closed.
You can be generous and still charge your full rate.
You can be called and still say:

> “You’re not mine. And I won’t carry what wasn’t assigned to me.”

That’s not unloving.
That’s holy.

15/04/2025

😲

When a pregnant woman had her blood sampled back in 1972, doctors discovered it was mysteriously missing a surface molecule found on all other known red blood cells at the time.