My name is Lindsey Stidham, and I am a community midwife in Dayton Ohio. I live in a home that was built in 1870 with my two cats and way too many plants. I have two grown children who have taught me more about myself than I could ever even imagine knowing.  

My midwifery journey began when I was a child and got to experience the birth of my brother who is eight years younger than I am. Watching my mother's body transform to accommodate his needs was fascinating to me. This desire to know more about how life can be so precious but resilient fueled me to learn everything that I could about birth, bodies, and how incredible the connection that all of these share with the most ancient of our Earth's natural rhythms. I wanted to be a midwife, or a botanist, or both.

After four years of studying nursing and biology, and 15 years filled with doula care, yoga certifications, and therapeutic herbalism courses, as happy that I was with the knowledge that I had gained, the idea of working in a hospital setting seemed less than ideal for the type of person that I am, and the quality of care that I feel everyone deserves. So after working in two busy practices under amazing preceptors and learning so much from other midwives who I have had the pleasure of calling my colleagues, I have made it to the primary midwife phase of my education through NARM's portfolio evaluation process and plan to license once it becomes available to Ohio midwives.  

I am an activist for human rights, reproductive justice for everyone, and the health of the planet that we share.  My community is important to me, and I feel that if we are able-bodied, then contributing to the well-being of the families within our reach, is the key to not only a healthy community but a healthy society.

While I am waiting for babies, I can be found volunteering at Daybreak as a perinatal coach for new parents and helping them to find resources that are available to them and their new families. Or at Good Neighbor House as a Lactation Consultant working alongside Dr. Greg Notestein who hosts a reduced fee or free clinic for babies and children with anatomical oral restrictions affecting feeding. 

And sometimes you can catch me teaching a yoga class downtown at Speakeasy. But when I'm not busy doing any of those things, I'm probably either gardening, eating something delicious, or playing Mario Kart with my grown children remotely.  

Nice to meet you,

Lindsey Stidham