By Lori Morris, CNM, certified nurse-midwife and women's health coach

Pregnancy isn't a sickness, so a healthy pregnancy doesn't need a doctor trained to find and fix problems. Obstetricians are surgeons, and the hospital system is built around protocols, screening, and insurance. When a well woman walks into that system, it tends to look for problems, and that often leads to unnecessary testing, labels, interventions, and C-sections. Choosing a provider who believes in normal birth, like a midwife, can change your whole experience.

There's nothing quite like pregnancy. It's the most normal thing in the world. It's happened over and over since Adam and Eve. God created a process that carries on the human race with essentially no help beyond one physical act.

Yet so many families choose a physician for this perfectly normal time without realizing what that choice can bring. Even Jesus gives us some insight here: "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick" (Matthew 9:12). He was talking about sin, not pregnancy, but the principle applies.

Nearly 90% of women in America give birth in hospitals under obstetricians, yet it's estimated that only about 10% of pregnancies need what a hospital provides. Obstetricians are medical doctors trained to find problems in pregnancy and to do surgery. They have valuable skills. But pregnancy itself isn't a problem.

When you bring someone trained to fix problems into a normal pregnancy, you often get unnecessary interventions, stress, and the feeling that something must be wrong with you.

Our maternity system is shaped by doctors and insurance companies. Doctors are trained to find and fix problems. Insurance companies protect their bottom line. Together, they've built a system where healthy pregnancies get treated as high risk.

When a well woman walks into that system, she's seen through the lens of what could go wrong. Tools made for sickness get used on normal life.

Cookie-cutter care. Hospitals run on protocols. Your diet, vital signs, monitoring, and labs follow set rules, not your needs. Short office visits, overworked nurses, and heavy patient loads leave little room for care that fits you.

Screening that creates labels. False positives and incidental findings can label a normal pregnancy "high risk." Once you have that label, birth center and home birth options can disappear, even though you were healthy all along. Read more in How Routine Prenatal Testing Can Derail Your Birth Plan.

Surgery as the specialty. Obstetricians are surgeons, and many see a C-section as safe, even preferable. A labor that's progressing normally can turn surgical over minor findings, exhaustion, or convenience. That's why C-section rates rise on weekdays and at certain hours.

Nurses do the work. In the hospital, the doctor (or hospital midwife) is usually only there briefly. Nurses manage your labor, monitoring, and procedures under a lot of pressure. I know, because I was one of those nurses. They carry immense responsibility to think like, operate like, and be the eyes, ears, and hands of the doctor or midwife, in their absence, without that level of training.

If you want a natural, God-led birth, who you choose to attend your birth and where you choose to give birth matters a great deal. Look for someone who trusts birth, believes pregnancy is normal, and respects your faith who works in a setting that leaves the autonomy for decision making in YOUR hands. Providers who rely on interventions, policies, routine testing, and monitoring will give you exactly that.

If you're not sure what to ask, start with 40 Questions to Ask Before Choosing a Birth Provider and Midwife or OBGYN?

Do I need an OB for a normal pregnancy?
No. A healthy, low-risk pregnancy should be cared for by a midwife because midwives specialize in normal birth. Obstetricians are trained surgeons and are most needed for true complications.

Why are C-section rates so high in hospitals?
Obstetricians are surgeons, hospitals run on protocols, and convenience plays a role. Labors that are progressing normally can turn surgical over minor findings, which is part of why C-section rates rise on weekdays and at certain hours.

What percentage of pregnancies need hospital care?
It's estimated that only about 10% of pregnancies need the interventions a hospital provides, even though nearly 90% of American women give birth in hospitals under obstetricians.

You have choices, and they matter. My online Christian childbirth course teaches prenatal care, labor preparation, postpartum, breastfeeding, and more from a faith-based perspective. You'll find all my services on my Menu of Services, or you can email me at lori@morriswellnessservices.com.

Pregnancy is normal, beautiful, and designed by God. You can listen to the full episode of If Mama Ain't Healthy (Ain't Nobody Healthy) at the top of this page.