🌿 Episode Summary

This conversation explores the current state of midwifery, highlighting the wisdom of traditional practices and the importance of reconnecting with the roots of the CPM movement. Sophia and Lisa discuss how honoring elder midwives and learning from minority and LGBTQ+ communities can enrich the future of midwifery. Together, they reflect on the challenges and opportunities in integrating traditional, community-based care into modern models of practice — reminding us that the field is at a pivotal moment for change.

⸻

✨ What You’ll Learn

• How traditional midwifery informs and strengthens modern practice

• Why inclusivity and cultural humility are essential in midwifery care

• The unique needs of minority and LGBTQ+ birthing communities

• The wisdom elder and granny midwives bring to today’s birth landscape

• How the CPM movement is rooted in traditional, community-based care

• Ways to restore informed consent, autonomy, and choice in birth

⸻

👩‍🍼 Guest Bio

Lisa Rawson, LM, CPM, MA-MCHS has been serving families for over 25 years as an educator, midwife, and advocate for equitable access to midwifery care. She has worked in rural community-based home birth practices, unlicensed midwifery, and licensed birth centers.

Lisa is passionate about restoring informed consent and true choice through education, social justice, and equitable human rights. She views advocacy as a central part of her midwifery and social justice work.

A mother of eight and wife of 28 years, Lisa is also the proud matriarch of a multigenerational family. When she’s not catching babies, she enjoys cooking, swimming, playing games, exploring new places, and sharing her infectious sense of humor.

⸻

🌐 Connect with Lisa Rawson

• Instagram: @lisa_rawson_lm

• Facebook: Mountain Valley Midwifery

• Website: www.mountainvalleymidwifery.com

⸻

📚 Links & Resources Mentioned

• CPM Movement History – NACPM

• Midwives Alliance of North America (MANA)

• Granny Midwives: A Legacy of Community Birth Work

⸻

🌳 Connect With Us

Instagram:

@sophiabirth

@bayareahomebirth

@bornwildmidwifery

Stay Wild 🌳

149. Honoring Our Roots: Reviving Traditional Midwifery with Lisa Rawson