In this powerful episode, I sit down with Diane Ortega, a Certified Nurse Midwife and co-founder of the first nurse-midwife-owned freestanding birth center in Arizona. Diane shares her personal journey from being an office manager to becoming a midwife, a path inspired by her own "profoundly different" and empowering birth experience with midwives after a conventional hospital birth.Our conversation is a deep dive into the philosophy of midwifery as an act of "mothering the mother". We discuss the "medical-industrial complex" and how the current system often disempowers women through fear-based tactics, taking away their choices in a process that should be empowering. Diane challenges the "healthy mom, healthy baby" narrative, pointing out that it often dismisses the emotional trauma a mother may experience during birth, which she then has to process while navigating new motherhood.Diane also introduces her podcast and coaching brand, "The Midwife Life" , which expands the concept of midwifery beyond childbirth to support all women "midwifing something in their life" —whether it's new motherhood or a midlife career change. We explore the critical need for a "village," a community of support that is often missing for modern women, and how she is building programs to help women find that connection.You'll also hear about:<ul><li>(01:32) Diane's work making out-of-hospital birth accessible to more families by accepting almost all insurance.</li><li>(03:30) How she views midwifery and mothering as "very similar, if not the same".</li><li>(13:15) The fear-based culture surrounding birth and how it disempowers women from trusting their bodies.</li><li>(22:21) Why birth is "not a medical event until it is," and how hospital protocols are often based on tradition, not evidence.</li><li>(23:20) My personal story of choosing a home birth, which was sparked by the simple, primal desires to be able to eat and control the lighting.</li><li>(27:57) The loss of the "village" for modern mothers and the isolation that comes from being a "transplant" without family support.</li><li>(38:23) The one cultural mother code Diane would rewrite: the "ridiculous" expectation that women should "bounce right back" after giving birth.</li><li>(43:52) My update on my TEDx talk being censored for including information on the high U.S. maternal mortality rate and the "hostile takeover" of birth from midwives.</li><li>(49:43) Diane's final definition of "Rewrite the Mother Code": "releasing the societal norms" and "put[ting] our oxygen mask on first".</li></ul> Rate, Review, & Follow on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rewrite-the-mother-code-with-dr-gertrude-lyons/id1534581166" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a>, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/33vBvKPx6ChEOp5Ygijtny?si=3f6f8e5f12b04567" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@rewritethemothercode" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">YouTube</a>, or wherever you listen to podcasts!Learn more about Diane Ortega<ul><li>Learn more on her <a href="http://themidwifelife.co" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Website</a></li><li>Follow her on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/the.midwife.life.co/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Instagram</a></li><li>Listen to her <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/4sdhv4Fa7dOeqvWoQUnree" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Podcast</a></li><li>Learn more about her <a href="https://themidwifelife.kit.com/rebirth-journey" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Coaching Program</a></li></ul> Follow Dr. Gertrude:&nbsp;<ul><li>Learn more on Dr. Gertrude’s <a href="https://www.drgertrudelyons.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Website</a></li><li>Follow Dr. Gertrude on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/drgertrudelyons/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Instagram</a></li><li>Stay in the loop and sign up to Dr. Gertrude’s <a href="https://substack.com/@drgertrudelyons" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Substack</a></li><li>Order Dr. Gertrude’s new book “<a href="https://www.drgertrudelyons.com/book-rewrite-the-mother-code" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Rewrite the Mother Code</a>”</li></ul>

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203: Midwifing Your Life: Birth, Transitions, and Creating Your Village with Diane Ortega

Rewrite the Mother Code with Dr. Gertrude Lyons

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