FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

A birth center offers an alternative to both hospital and home birth for families experiencing healthy, low-risk pregnancies.

TruLiving Birth Center is a freestanding birth center, which means we are not located inside or owned by a hospital. Our space was intentionally designed to feel comfortable, peaceful, and welcoming while providing the equipment and resources needed for birth-center care.

Care at a birth center is centered around the midwifery model of care, with an emphasis on individualized care, informed decision-making, supporting physiologic birth, and involving families in their experience.

TruLiving Birth Center is the only freestanding birth center in the Chippewa Valley, offering families an alternative to both hospital and home birth in a warm, welcoming environment designed specifically for pregnancy, birth, and postpartum care.

Our home has a long history of welcoming babies into the world. Dating back to the early 1900s, it was once the Molitor Maternity Hospital and later Morningstar Birth Center. Today, TruLiving continues that legacy while creating a place where families can feel comfortable, respected, and truly involved in their care.

We practice the Midwifery Model of Care, recognizing birth as a normal physiological process that, when mom and baby are healthy, should be given the time and space to unfold. We believe you deserve to understand your options, ask questions, and be an active participant in decisions about your body, your baby, and your birth. Informed consent isn't simply a form to sign. It is an ongoing conversation throughout your care.

Our experienced midwives, birth assistants, and providers take the time to listen, get to know you, and understand what matters to you. During labor, you are encouraged to move, eat, drink, use water, change positions, and follow your body's cues while you and your baby are carefully monitored.

Most importantly, TruLiving is about giving families options. You don't have to choose between the comforts of home and the support of a dedicated birth facility. Here, you can have both: a peaceful, intimate place to welcome your baby and a skilled birth team committed to supporting you throughout the experience.

At TruLiving, our goal isn't to create one particular kind of birth. It's to provide a safe, supportive space where you feel heard, informed, respected, and confident in the choices you make for yourself and your baby.

One of the biggest differences is the environment and approach to care.

At TruLiving, birth is treated as a normal physiological process while carefully monitoring the health and well-being of both you and your baby. Families are encouraged to move, eat, drink, rest, use water, change positions, and create an environment that helps them feel comfortable and supported during labor.

There are no routine interventions simply because you are in labor. Decisions about your care are made with you, based on your individual circumstances and the health of you and your baby.

The Midwifery Model of Care views pregnancy and birth as normal physiological processes while recognizing that every person and pregnancy is unique.

At its heart is a relationship between you and your midwife built on trust, education, individualized care, and shared decision-making. Your midwife takes the time to know you, understand what matters to you, and provide the information you need to make informed choices throughout pregnancy, birth, and postpartum.

It also means continually assessing the well-being of you and your baby and recognizing when consultation or a higher level of medical care is needed.

At TruLiving, this model shapes not only how we approach birth, but how we care for and support families throughout the entire maternity journey.

Birth-center care is designed for people experiencing healthy, low-risk pregnancies.

Your midwife will continually assess your health and your baby's health throughout pregnancy to make sure that birth-center care remains an appropriate option for you.

Eligibility isn't simply determined at your first appointment. Pregnancy changes, and your midwife will continue talking with you about your health, your baby's health, and your birth options throughout your care.

TruLiving is more than a place to give birth. We are here to support families throughout pregnancy, birth, postpartum, and the early weeks with a new baby.

Depending on your midwife and individual care plan, services available at TruLiving include:

• Prenatal appointments in a comfortable, unhurried setting

• Labor and birth with experienced midwives and birth assistants

• Postpartum care to support your physical and emotional recovery

• Newborn and infant appointments to help you and your baby get off to a healthy start

• Breastfeeding and feeding support

• Childbirth and parenting education

• Support groups, gatherings, and community programs that connect expecting and new families with information, resources, and one another

We believe maternity care should be about more than a single day. Our goal is to create a place where families feel known, supported, and connected from pregnancy through birth and into life with their new baby.

No. TruLiving works with midwives who provide maternity care in different ways.

Depending upon the midwife and care option you choose, your prenatal appointments may take place at TruLiving or through your midwife's practice.

We can help you understand the different options and connect you with a midwife who has privileges to attend births at TruLiving.

Your midwife will be at the center of your care throughout labor and birth. TruLiving works with independent midwives who have been credentialed and granted privileges to attend births at the birth center.

One of the benefits of midwifery care is the opportunity to build a relationship with your midwife during pregnancy. By the time labor begins, your midwife knows you, your pregnancy, your preferences, and what is important to you for your birth.

Additional trained birth staff may also be present to support your midwife and ensure that both you and your baby receive attentive care throughout labor, birth, and the immediate postpartum period.

Your partner, doula, and other chosen support people can also be an important part of your birth team. We encourage you to talk with your midwife during pregnancy about who you would like to have with you.

Our goal is for you to enter labor knowing who is caring for you and feeling comfortable, supported, and respected by the people in your birth space.

One of the unique benefits of TruLiving is that you have the opportunity to choose the midwife who feels like the right fit for you.

TruLiving is an open-model birth center, which means independent midwives who have been credentialed and granted privileges at TruLiving can provide care and attend births here. Each midwife has their own practice, personality, approach to care, and areas of experience, giving you the opportunity to find someone you feel comfortable with and trust.

If you don't already have a midwife, that's okay. We are happy to help you get started. We can introduce you to the midwives who practice at TruLiving and provide their contact information so you can talk with them, ask questions, and learn more about their approach to care.

Your relationship with your midwife is an important part of the Midwifery Model of Care. Pregnancy gives you time to build that relationship, discuss your preferences and concerns, and make decisions together so that when the day of your baby's birth arrives, you are being cared for by someone who knows you and understands what matters to you.

Anytime.

Some families contact us as soon as they see a positive pregnancy test. Others discover birth-center care later in pregnancy.

Reaching out earlier gives you more time to meet midwives, explore insurance coverage, tour the center, and decide whether TruLiving is the right fit for your family. Availability can also vary based on your estimated due date, so we encourage you to contact us when you begin considering birth-center care.

Absolutely. In fact, we encourage it.

A tour gives you the opportunity to see the birth rooms, learn how the center works, meet us, and ask questions specific to your pregnancy and what you are hoping for in your birth experience.

There is no expectation that you make a decision during your tour. Our goal is to help you understand your options.

Yes. Birth is a family experience, and we want you to be surrounded by the people who help you feel safe and supported.

Partners and chosen support people can be actively involved throughout labor and birth. Talk with your midwife about who you would like present so you can create a plan that feels right for your family while maintaining a comfortable and safe birth environment.

For many families, having older children involved can be a meaningful part of welcoming a new baby.

Whether having siblings present is appropriate depends on their age, comfort level, your preferences, and your individual birth plan. We encourage families considering this option to talk with their midwife ahead of time and make a plan for another trusted adult who can focus on the child's needs during labor.

Yes. At TruLiving, we encourage you to listen to your body throughout labor. For most healthy people experiencing a normal labor, eating and drinking can help maintain energy and hydration, while movement and position changes can support comfort and labor progress.

You are not expected to labor in bed. You may walk, eat, drink, rest, change positions, use the tub, sit on a birth ball, or find the positions and comfort measures that feel best to you.

Your midwife and care team will support you throughout labor and offer suggestions based on how labor is progressing and your individual circumstances.

Yes. TruLiving Birth Center offers the option to labor and give birth in water for families who are eligible.

Our birth suites have spacious tubs that allow you to move and find comfortable positions during labor. Warm water can provide relaxation, comfort, and a greater sense of privacy, and many people find that being in the water helps them cope with the intensity of labor.

If you choose to give birth in the water, your midwife will continue to monitor you and your baby throughout labor and birth. As with every part of your care, your midwife will assess whether water birth continues to be a safe and appropriate option as labor progresses.

You don't need to decide ahead of time. Some people plan a water birth and decide they would rather give birth outside of the tub, while others discover during labor that the water is exactly where they want to be. The tub is simply another option available to help you create the birth experience that feels right for you.

Birth centers approach comfort differently from hospitals because epidural anesthesia is not available in a freestanding birth center.

Instead, families use a variety of comfort measures such as water, movement, position changes, massage, counter-pressure, breathing techniques, heat, rest, and continuous labor support.

Your midwife can help you prepare for labor and talk with you ahead of time about the comfort options available to you.

Yes! TruLiving Birth Center supports VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean) for eligible families.

Research has shown that for appropriately selected candidates, VBAC can be a safe and reasonable option after a previous cesarean birth. Major professional organizations, including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), recognize VBAC as an appropriate option for many people who have had a prior cesarean.

Because every pregnancy and previous birth is different, the first step is to schedule a consultation with one of our midwives. Your midwife will review your medical and birth history, including the reason for your previous cesarean, type of uterine incision, your current pregnancy, and other factors that may affect whether a birth-center VBAC is an appropriate option for you.

We also understand that planning a VBAC can come with a lot of questions, especially if your previous birth did not go the way you had hoped. Our goal is to give you the opportunity to talk through those questions, understand the benefits and risks, and make an informed decision about your care.

If you are hoping for a VBAC, we encourage you to reach out early in pregnancy. We would be happy to connect you with a midwife to explore whether TruLiving may be a good fit for your next birth.

For healthy people with low-risk pregnancies who are appropriate candidates for birth-center care, research supports planned birth at an accredited freestanding birth center as a safe option.

Birth-center safety is built around careful risk screening, ongoing assessment of both you and your baby, skilled maternity professionals, appropriate medications and emergency equipment, and established plans for consultation or hospital transfer when a higher level of care is needed.

An important part of safe birth-center care is knowing when birth-center care is appropriate and when it is not. Your midwife will continually evaluate this with you throughout pregnancy and labor.

Birth can never be completely without risk, regardless of where it takes place. Our responsibility is to provide attentive, evidence-informed care, communicate openly with you, and continually evaluate what is safest for you and your baby.

Plans sometimes change.

If a health concern develops during pregnancy that makes birth-center delivery no longer the safest option, your midwife will discuss it with you and help determine the appropriate next steps.

Needing additional medical care doesn't mean that you have failed at birth-center birth. The goal has always been the same: thoughtful, individualized care for you and your baby.

Birth centers are designed for low-risk birth, but part of providing responsible maternity care is recognizing when a higher level of medical support is needed.

Your midwife continually assesses you and your baby throughout labor. If a concern develops, your care team will discuss what is happening with you and arrange transfer to the hospital when appropriate.

Many transfers are not emergencies. Sometimes labor simply isn't progressing as expected, pain relief beyond what the birth center can provide is desired, or you or your baby would benefit from additional medical support.

Emergency situations are handled according to established transfer procedures.

The first hours after birth are a special time, and when you and your baby are doing well, we protect that time and allow it to unfold without unnecessary interruption.

Your baby is placed skin-to-skin with you, giving you time to meet one another, bond, stay warm, and begin feeding when your baby is ready. There is no rush to separate you or move through a checklist.

Your care team continues to closely monitor both you and your baby while allowing you to rest, eat, feed your baby, and settle in together as a family. Newborn assessments and routine care are thoughtfully incorporated into this time, with as much as possible happening right beside you.

Our goal is for those first hours to feel calm, private, and centered around what matters most: your recovery, your baby's transition, and your family's first moments together.

Birth-center care is designed a little differently from a hospital stay. Most families are ready to head home within several hours after birth, rather than staying overnight.

There is no rush to get you out the door. The hours after birth are an important part of your care. You and your baby will be closely monitored while you rest, eat, begin feeding, spend time skin-to-skin, and settle in together. Your care team will complete postpartum and newborn assessments and make sure you are both recovering and transitioning well.

Before you leave, we want you to feel comfortable and confident going home. Your care team will review what to expect during the first hours and days, signs or symptoms that warrant a call, feeding and newborn care, and how to reach your midwife if you have questions or concerns.

Going home sooner doesn't mean your care is over. Postpartum and newborn follow-up are an important part of midwifery care. Your midwife will explain your follow-up plan so you know when you and your baby will be seen again and who to contact if you need support in between visits.

For many families, one of the benefits of birth-center care is being able to recover in the comfort and privacy of home while still having the reassurance of continued postpartum and newborn support.

Support doesn't end when you leave the birth center. The early days with a new baby bring plenty of questions, whether this is your first baby or your fifth.

Postpartum and newborn follow-up are an important part of the Midwifery Model of Care. Your first postpartum visit typically takes place in the comfort of your own home, allowing you to rest and settle in with your baby while your midwife comes to you.

Your midwife will discuss your follow-up schedule and provide ongoing guidance and support with postpartum recovery, feeding, newborn care, warning signs, and when to call or seek additional care.

TruLiving also offers postpartum and infant appointments, along with opportunities for new parents to find education, resources, support, and community.

Questions are expected, so please ask them. We want you to feel supported not only through pregnancy and birth, but as you recover, adjust, and settle into life with your new baby.

The cost of care depends on the midwife you choose and your individual insurance coverage.

Each midwifery practice sets its own fees for prenatal, birth, and postpartum care. We encourage you to contact the midwives directly to learn more about their services and fees.

TruLiving has a separate facility fee for the use of the birth center. This fee may be eligible for insurance reimbursement depending on your plan, or families may choose to pay the facility fee out-of-pocket.

We believe families should have a clear understanding of costs before making decisions about their care. TruLiving works with families regardless of insurance coverage and can discuss payment options that work for your family.

If you have questions about the facility fee, insurance coverage, payment options, or what is included, please reach out. We are happy to help you understand the financial side of choosing TruLiving.

Yes! TruLiving Birth Center works with many insurance plans. Because every plan is different, coverage for birth-center and midwifery care can vary.

TruLiving is an open-model, freestanding birth center, which means there are two separate costs associated with your care:

1. Your midwife's care package, which may include prenatal, birth, and postpartum care. Each midwifery practice handles its own fees, insurance billing, and reimbursement.

2. The TruLiving Birth Center facility fee, which covers the use of the birth center for your labor and birth. TruLiving handles insurance billing and reimbursement related to the facility fee.

To help you better understand your coverage, TruLiving offers a free Verification of Benefits. We encourage you to complete this early in pregnancy so you have a clearer picture of your insurance benefits and potential out-of-pocket costs.

If TruLiving is considered out-of-network, that does not necessarily mean birth-center care isn't an option. Depending on your insurance plan and the availability of in-network birth-center services in your area, you may be eligible to request a gap exception, which could provide additional coverage.

Insurance can feel complicated, especially when you're trying to compare maternity-care options. We are happy to help you understand your benefits, navigate the process, and explore the options that may be available to you.

TruLiving Birth Center does not accept Medicaid or Medicare for the birth center facility fee. However, this does not necessarily mean that you cannot choose TruLiving for your birth.

Because TruLiving is an open-model birth center, your midwife's care and the birth center facility fee are separate. Some of the independent midwives who have privileges at TruLiving may accept Medicaid for their prenatal, birth, and postpartum services. We encourage you to speak directly with your midwife about their coverage and billing.

Families using Medicaid or Medicare are responsible for paying TruLiving's facility fee out-of-pocket. Please contact us to learn more about the facility fee and available payment options.