Meet Miriam.
Founder/director
Endorsed midwife
Photographer
‘I want to hold your hand midwifery’ was a concept birthed long before Miriam was a midwife. Her desire to be with women stems back as long as she can remember, watching and listening to her mother and aunts talk about breastfeeding and birth. Miriam’s life-long friend and midwifery mentor invited her to the birth of her last child when Miriam was 15 years old (see photo of baby-faced Miriam holding baby Mitchell). It was here she witnessed raw, physiological, family-centred birth. This cemented her wanting to become a midwife. In 2008, and shortly after the birth of her first son, Miriam commenced a Bachelor of Midwifery. Miriam and her husband Steve have three sons - Harper, Ziggy and Scout. However, her favourite children (much to the human children’s disgust) are her fur-babies, Memphis Marigold & Gertie. Miriam has also been a professional photographer for over 20 years and has worked around the world photographing weddings, families, midwives and birth. She has been a registered midwife for 15 years and has worked in both home and hospital settings.
What is a midwife? A midwife is an autonomous health practitioner who promotes and specialises in physiological (normal) birth. They work with women in many different settings and care for women during pregnancy, birth and early parenting days. They form partnerships with women and work to facilitate choice and normal, safe birth. They are skilled to perform medical emergencies if complications arise. Midwives work collaboratively with other medical professionals when situations arise beyond their scope of practice. Endorsed midwives can order and interpret all your blood tests and ultrasounds.
Miriam’s formal qualifications:
Prescribing for Midwives 2021
Bachelor of Midwifery 2010
Diploma of Professional Photography 2000
Our philosophy
We believe in the normality of the childbearing journey and believe physiological birth is a rite of passage for women. We fundamentally believe in safe, respectful, women-centred maternity care and informed choice. We believe in aiming for more than just a healthy baby. Every woman should be given the opportunity to have a healthy and respectful pregnancy, birth, and early parenting experience. During our journey together we constantly strive towards a physically and emotionally healthy mum, baby, and family unit. Although we believe pregnancy and birth are normal functions of a woman’s body, we are experienced to recognise any deviations from the norm and work collaboratively with other medical professionals if circumstances go beyond our scope of practice. We will provide you with up-to-date evidence and information about the current maternity recommendations. You will always be given the space and opportunity to accept or decline any care we or any other health professional offers or suggests throughout your pregnancy, birth, and early parenting days. Our goal is to support women to cut through all the noise/courses/books about birth and look inwards - because we fundamentally believe that women know how to give birth and babies know how to be born. We just need to give women and babies the chance to do it.
‘It is important to remember that women have goals other than simply emerging from childbirth unscathed. Safety during labour is the floor of what women deserve. What we should all really be aiming for is the ceiling: care that is not just safe, but also supportive and empowering’
(Dr Neel Shah M.D)