Kat Barron - Midwife

12/17/2025

It’s about time this research came out - most of us mamas know it’s not natural to let a baby cry it out early but some have listened to supposed experts saying it’s ok.
You can tell the difference when babies get to be toddlers sometimes they just cry to cry and their reasons are a little ridiculous (sometimes), but babies don’t do that, babies only cry when they’re uncomfortable or truly need something (food, warmth, comfort)…..
hopefully this stance from such a large organization can help shift this practice!

And also, there are ways to encourage good sleep in babies so their stretches of nighttime waking are less and less.

The American Academy of Pediatrics now warns that sleep training before 12 months can disrupt attachment and nervous system regulation. The concern is not parenting style but biology. Babies’ brains are still wiring safety signals through proximity.

In the first year, infants cannot self-regulate. Their nervous system relies on co-regulation with caregivers. When stress rises, closeness to a parent helps settle the amygdala, lower cortisol, and signal safety. Room-sharing is a natural way to provide this support.

Sleep training too early teaches babies to manage stress alone before their brains are ready. Calm is not learned by isolation under stress. Instead, infants need repeated, responsive soothing so regulation becomes internalized over time.

Parents who previously sleep trained are not failing their children. They acted on the information available in a culture that often prioritizes independence over developmental readiness. Understanding the science changes how we view early sleep strategies.

This research emphasizes that proximity wires safety. Babies learn calm through closeness, not isolation. Early care that meets stress with support builds secure attachment, emotional regulation, and lifelong resilience.

12/16/2025

I want to talk about something near and dear to my heart. This morning I had a lovely prenatal visit with a new client where the topic of unassisted birth came up and as I've gone about my day, my thoughts keep coming back to all of the women over the years that I have supported in one way or another as they planned to birth their babies unassisted. I also recently spoke to a woman who lost a baby during an unassisted birth, and her grief and words are fresh in my mind.
Some people know this about me, I had our first 3 babies at home, their births I would call "unassisted with a safety net" (the twins were home births also, but monitored and caught by the midwife)... with my first 3 I wasn't monitored, the midwife was mostly in the other room, and I pushed out and caught my own babies without interference.
I felt like I would know intuitively if something was off and I needed help for my baby or me... somewhat recently I had a lovely message conversation with one of my favorite OBs and she said the term "radical ownership" of one's outcome in regards to unassisted birth, or something similar (I would have to go look at those messages and confirm her verbiage, but that is what I took it as). Those words stuck with me, what a beautiful term for it.
As a birthing woman myself, I felt that, if something happened I wasn't going to blame someone else, I knew I was risking it... even though I felt intuitively like I just knew everything would be ok. This is the beauty of autonomy right? Being able to choose what is right for you and your family.
Back to unassisted birth....
As a midwife I have seen many times where my presence and intervention prevented hospital transfer, prevented excessive blood loss, helped a baby breath who may or may not have been able to have been resuscitated by parents, and supported many many women when they felt like it was too hard and they couldn't go on. And as a midwife, I still hope at every single birth that we are completely unnecessary, unneeded, and get to be a non intrusive presence that only offers moments of reassurance to the birthing mama. I have seen first hand many times where unassisted birth could have been disastrous, and other times where it wouldn't have changed a thing. Thankfully, I’ve seen even more births where us midwives weren’t needed at all.

When I think about the women who have planned unassisted births, who I've told "you've got my number, don't hesitate to call if you need some guidance" and who have called me dealing with issues (normally bleeding too much or the placenta not coming out) I have loved it when just a few suggestions and words a reassurance have allowed them to get the bleeding stopped or the placenta out, and they haven’t needed anything further and that allowed them to stick to their plans and stay home. I also have ended up at an unassisted birth turned life-threatening emergency because they happened to be close enough to me, and I figured medics may not quite be able to do everything possible to keep them home or alive (we transferred in to the hospital anyway, my hands holding her uterus to prevent further blood loss en route).
I know in my being that birth is life, it’s not without risk…. Sometimes we walk the bridge of death.
Even birthing in the hospital, you are not risk free... life is, life.
Over the years I’ve had this conversation with many midwives, most have vehemently hateful feelings about unassisted birth. Although, I certainly don’t have feelings like that, I do want to give anyone considering it some food for thought.
First question to consider- if your husband is your only birth attendee, truly, how does he feel about being that if birth were to turn more difficult or emergent? Most don't, and some husbands are very equipped to handle if they do, but it's worth it to ask yourselves. I have had probably more than a dozen husbands call me stressed out while their wife was birthing, so I could reassure them that it all sounded ok, and they could take a breath and just be with her and love and support her the best you possibly can.
Second, there are many “birth keepers” - they normally don’t have medical experience and play the role of doula more (there are all variations- some are traditional experienced midwives that choose to be unlicensed). If you invite a birth “keeper” to your birth - are you still taking radical ownership over your birth, body, outcome? Or are you seeking to still have someone hold that space for you and be there in emergencies if needed? This is big, and only you can decide what you need to support you.
I’ve talked to a few moms after they lost babies during birth with “birth keepers” and their expectation of hiring that person was that they would have that safety net to avoid staying too long if birth became riskier. You truly need to know what the person you invite knows, and offers. A skilled midwife will monitor baby and hear when heart tones tell us it’s wise to get a baby out quicker, or wise to transfer to the hospital for more care. The same question I encourage for people choosing a midwife to hire, do they monitor non-intrusively but sufficiently to really have a good idea how baby and your health is (if you are ok with those things- there is still benefit to a midwife even if you don't allow monitoring).
Third, and arguably in my mind, one of the most important if you are considering unassisted birth, do you feel like you can truly let go of the medical concerns, be fully present and internalized enough to allow labor to progress if you don't have a fellow experienced woman to hold those concerns for you? Stress and worry prolong labor, being relaxed and feeling safe allows birth to happen. A good support will remind you that you are made to birth this baby and can relax fully because you are supported.

You are very welcome to comment opinions on this, or privately message me about this.

Source of this painting Amanda Greavette

09/05/2025

🩸 Did you ever wonder why midwives are called criminal in the land of their grandmothers?
Why women are told birth is “too risky” without a license from men who’ve never bled?
Why catching babies in your hands is punishable, while cutting them from the womb is praised?
It’s not just regulation.
It’s not just oversight.
It’s a war on the design.

👁️ They say it’s for safety—but the numbers say otherwise.
They say it’s for the mother—but mothers say they were never heard.
They say it’s for the baby—but the cord is cut early, the breath is forced, the moment is stolen.
This is not protection.
It is control dressed in sterile robes.

📜 “But the midwives feared God, and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but saved the male children alive.”
Exodus 1:17.
Shiphrah. Puah.
They stood in the face of genocide, not for fame, not for gold—but because they feared God, not Pharaoh.

And today? The decrees still come down from high.
"Do not attend without a permit."
"Report your sisters."
"Say nothing when they are dragged into court."
But we remember.
And we refuse.
🔗 We stand when told to kneel.
🛑 We speak when told to be quiet.
🤲 We catch life even when threatened with cages.

Midwives in Hungary. Shackled.
In South Africa. Charged.
In Pennsylvania. Investigated.
In New York. Erased from history.
In Australia. Jailed for attending what the mother chose.

Licensed or not, the threat is the same—because it’s not about safety.
It’s about sovereignty.

A woman, laboring in power, is dangerous to the powers. A baby born into peace instead of panic threatens the principalities.
And a midwife who says, “I answer to God, not your decree,” is their greatest fear.

Because we do not serve the gods of liability, nor the idols of compliance.
We do not offer incense to the state to be allowed to do what God has already called us to do.

So why do we fight?
Because birth is holy.
Because mothers are not property.
Because babies are not state commodities.
Because legacy matters more than law.
Because we were called for such a time as this.
We fear the Lord.

This is not soft work. This is a Holy war.

07/19/2025

Hello Bonners Ferry & Sandpoint!
I am a new Licensed Midwife to the area and I wanted to introduce myself and share that I am opening a small home birth practice here. I am new to the area, but not to midwifery... I actually started my midwifery journey over 18 years ago and have attended to ~800 women while they birthed their babies! I have also taught many dozens of students skills and have served in leadership roles for many years.
I believe midwifery changes the world because when women are supported in the way they should be, with respect for their own God-given autonomy, it strengthens families.

We recently moved from around CDA to Bonners Ferry and are building our homestead on land. I grew up in rural Montana adjacent to an Amish and Mennonite communities, this community reminds me so much of back home and I love it dearly. I don't know if I've ever felt more at home somewhere right away. We have 5 homeschooled boys, from toddler twins to teenagers, all born at home.
Through my years of midwifery practice I’ve served so many families in different walks of life. I am a calm presence at births, a bold woman of faith, and a very real person that will not judge you no matter where you are in life, my hope is only to serve and serve well.
I believe midwives should have incredible amounts of skills and experience, and most of the time not use any of them.

If you’re seeking midwifery care, I encourage you to reach out to me and let’s have a sit down meeting and see if we would be a good fit to work together.
If you are not currently seeking midwifery care I would love it if you could share this post to help spread the word.

07/19/2025

I am officially out of my sabbatical from having my own practice (I’ve mostly just covered other practices for the last 7 years ish) and I am opening a small home birth practice in Bonners Ferry Idaho.

I am still running my real estate business with my husband, we serve Spokane, CDA, Sandpoint and the entirety of north idaho, my team also still serves western WA But for midwifery, it will be a very small practice and hyper-local.
I’m so excited you guys ❤️ this feels like exactly what I’m supposed to be doing.

05/16/2024

04/27/2024

This is the biggest reason I cosleep is because if they do wake it’s a lot easier to quickly go back to sleep

Reshare of this poll I did about night waking and night feeds.

04/25/2024

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/BrEBuBudhAvmPHzc/?mibextid=ox5AEW

This photo is extremely special to me. Before I became a realtor, I was actually a home birth midwife. I served this beautiful family while the father was deployed in Iraq, you can see him videoing in on the iPad. This mom in particular really needed a support system nearby, and I was so grateful to be it. Being the calming presence in a room is something I have always been good at.

But, I am now in my 7th year as a full-time real estate agent. So why did I leave midwifery? I was very good at it, and most importantly, I loved it. Over my 17 years attending births, I witnessed more than 750 babies be born. I’ll be honest though, the burnout was real. Many births were 24-36 hours long (my record longest was 72 hours) and with a family of my own, I needed some real balance. So I sought to find a career I could love equally.

After 7 years of education to become a midwife, I knew I couldn’t commit to going back to school for a long period of time. I reluctantly decided to give real estate a try. I quickly found that I love it just as much as my former career, and I think it is because they are so similar.

At their core, both professions focus on helping people through big life transitions. Both are often times intense, stressful, and unpredictable. But the finish line is a beautiful, triumphant moment. The journeys for my clients in both professions are oftentimes the result of years of careful planning, praying, and well, love. Guiding people through these huge life moments is what “fills my cup.”

Not to mention most of my responsibilities in both careers were paperwork, the unseen part of the job. It is a good thing I don’t mind it. 😅

As a midwife, some of the calls I had to make were very real life and death decisions. I think a lot of that helps me keep perspective, and maintain my resolve at the negotiating table. I also realize that the financial decision many families make when pursuing homeownership can also feel…a bit like life or death. I hope that I help them keep perspective too.

I feel so grateful that I was able to find a career where I could be myself, and continue to serve others with integrity and honesty. I truly believe my experience as a midwife is what makes me different from others in this field. (I know some of the values I hold dear aren’t common in this industry.)

Even in my first year as an agent, I was considered a “top producer.” I think that’s because people can see how much I genuinely care and work hard for my clients.

So feel free to Call the Midwife…er I mean Realtor.

- Kat
(208) 699-8522

04/20/2024

I caught a few iud babies in my years 😂

03/21/2024

Love these. When I practiced midwifery I often heard from dads raving reviews about home birth….birth isn’t just different for moms, but very much so for dads also…. They get to be more involved, they feel less stress, it’s a beautiful thing.
Recently when we had our later in life twins (our oldest is almost 16), I got to see my husband hold our first twin in the rocking chair while I worked on birthing our second. And there were so many moments of him being completely there for me (I truly couldn’t have done this labor without him, it was so hard, and I needed him so much)…. it was a good reminder of how important dads are in the birth space 💗