Today we’d like to introduce you to Desiri Wightman.
Desiri, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
In February 2020, my neighbor worried about the potential of hospitals shutting down from Covid and not being able to deliver her baby there. She called me one day and asked, “If I can’t go to the hospital, will you deliver my baby?”
I felt flabbergasted! “Lisa, why are you calling me?”
“Well–you have all those animals and you help them deliver their babies.” We ran a Old-MacDonald type of farm at the time.
“Actually–I let them do it themselves.” But then a voice stated clearly in my mind: “She’s not going to be the last to ask you. You need to learn as much as you can as quickly as you can.” I about dropped the phone! I felt so stunned, and yet as I stood there in my kitchen, it felt so right! I wondered, “Why didn’t I do this 25 years ago?”
I then set about trying to figure out how to become a midwife. I have this precious little deaf/blind/mute/lame/palsied daughter, who is completely dependent and needs 24-hour care, and I needed to find a path of midwifery that would allow me to still be her primary caregiver. How could I ever do this?
I took a step of faith and then another and another until I found the path that led me to full qualification as a licensed certified professional midwife in the spring of 2024. I started my own practice in January 2025, under the counsel and mentorship of my employer Amy Olson, LDEM at Peaceful Birth Midwifery.
I’m passionate about supporting moms through their pregnancy and birth journeys. Physiologic birth is completely transformational. It’s one of those things that taxes a woman in every possible way but brings incredible family bonding and empowering confidence to women who traverse it. About 4.4% of women in Utah choose to give birth outside of the hospital. Midwives are there to support that journey. There’s a midwife for every woman, and it’s important that women choosing community birth find a provider they are comfortable with and trust. I recommend that mamas-to-be interview a few midwives to find the perfect fit. Additionally, many midwives limit the number of clients they take on monthly, so be sure to call early in your pregnancy to reserve your spot.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
One challenge of midwifery is perception. Generational propaganda has really marginalized midwives in the United States. It often surprises people to find out that midwives are competent, educated, and skilled experts in physiologic birth–meaning they know how to work with and guide nature’s design for bringing the next generation to earth. It makes me smile when a client meets us and says, “You’re so normal.” Yep!
The lifestyle of midwifery is grueling upon both the midwife and her family. They sacrifice a lot due to the unpredictable schedule. Holidays, vacations, or even simple quiet evenings at home can be interrupted by calls to the “labor-line.” It takes extreme flexibility and schedule adjustment to fit in spontaneous, physiologic birth. My husband is a rock of support; he picks up all the pieces when I rush out the door night or day. Recently, I left my teenage daughter standing in Petco with our dog, awaiting my husband to come pick her up, as I rushed to an unanticipated speedy birth. I made it by 5 minutes, but I wouldn’t have made it at all without a supportive family. I could not be a midwife without strong family support.
Other challenges come in the lack of sleep. When you pull an all-nighter with a laboring mom and then head to clinic the next day, come home and crash for a couple hours, and then another client calls, you start to wonder, “Why am I doing this?” I’m blessed to have a community of midwives to call upon to back me up if the need arises. Teamwork and collaboration is key to preventing burn-out from the arduous unpredictability of midwife-life.
As you know, we’re big fans of Motherheart Midwifery. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
I strive to practice classical midwifery, which means I invite God to work with me in bringing His children to earth. I trust in the divine design of women to bear children and seek continually to develop my intuition to guide mothers and fathers in my care. My practice promotes client-centered and holistic care. Since prenatal care sets the stage for a low-risk, uncomplicated, safe delivery, I work to help clients understand how vital nutrition and exercise is to ensuring the metabolic and mental health of both mom and baby. As a registered dietitian, I practice what I preach by growing, harvesting, cooking, and sharing a bounty of fruits, vegetables, and herbs from my garden. As an herbalist, I create my own pregnancy herbals to support my clients in all phases of their birth journey. Additionally, a mom’s spiritual and emotional journey really matter to her success with both birth and motherhood. I encourage clients in both their emotional and spiritual awakenings, so that they not only birth a healthy baby, but also a healthy mother.
Who else deserves credit in your story?
I stand upon the shoulders of generations of midwives who’ve passed on their skills through apprenticing students. Midwifery is as old as the world. Additionally, I’m grateful for my preceptors (Melody Dicken, CPM of Maple Mountain Midwives, Christie Bigham, LDEM of Heritage Midwifery, Dianne Bjarnson, LDEM of Call the Midwife Utah, & Amy Olson, LDEM of Peaceful Birth Midwifery), who’ve personally helped me learn the science and art of midwifery, along with many other midwives along the Wasatch front that I’ve been privileged to learn from. Amy, especially, encouraged me to start my own practice and continues to mentor and support me, not only in midwifery but also in understanding how to run a business.
I also am grateful for all the midwifery supporters, organizations, politicians, and individuals who help create or watchdog legislation to ensure women can choose both where and with whom to deliver their babies. We sometimes take for granted what freedoms we are blessed with, until those freedoms are restricted. The State of Utah deserves much kudos from the community for not constraining women in their birth choices and for all the support they lend to midwives and women in our communities.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://motherheart2mother.wixsite.com/midwiferyservices
- Other: https://www.callthemidwifeutah.com/
