Ellis van Renterghem, Midwife
He who does good, meets good | reading | exercising | walking the dog | mother of 4 kids | sober | open | rummikub |.
How it began.
“I was 22 when I started as a midwife. Graduated in Belgium in 2002 and a year later in 2003 started working as a midwife in Tiel. In 2007 started working in the WKZ where I also met Daphne van der Putten at that time. When in 2013 child number 4 presented itself I left midwifery for a while. Running a family of 4 children was difficult to combine with life as a midwife. From 2015-2021 I worked as a midwife in Ede and at the UMC.
From practice support worker back to midwife!
In 2022, the position of practice assistant at Dana Center came my way. I still knew Daphne from the WKZ and pretty soon our collaboration was a done deal. I worked at Dana as a practice support person for a year. I was point of contact for the pregnant women, agenda management for the midwives, etc. That was very nice work and also to be able to close the door behind you and be home in the evening for my family. It was nice to take a step back during this period.
“But yes, my real love was in the waiting room anyway, with the pregnant women.” And they felt the same with Dana. Regularly then came the question, “Say Ellis, wouldn’t you like to join the midwifery team?”
It kept itching and after proper consultation with the home front, everyone favored my career again. “My children are now 18, 16, 14 and 10, so they manage a bit more happily by now. Although sometimes it still takes a bit of getting used to for everyone.”
“Actually, I’ve always been a Dana Midwife.”
What makes Dana Center so special?
“The time you have for the pregnant and their partner. When someone calls me I immediately know who it is, what she looks like, who the partner is. The clients here are anything but a number.”
“Actually, I have always been a midwife to Dana. But in the hospital or at a regular midwife practice, there just wasn’t the space to provide that extra care. I’m of the opinion: If someone needs me, I stay. Fortunately, with Dana, this is just standard. This is how standard birth care should be anyway in my eyes.”
Hot bath
“Also the cooperation among ourselves with the colleagues is so nice. It really is a warm bath, where you can be completely yourself. That’s wonderful.”
What is the best part of your work?
“What I find so special is the bond you build with the pregnant woman and the partner. I really love ‘my’ pregnant women. I am involved, open and dare to be vulnerable. In doing so, you also invite the other person to be vulnerable.”
“Especially during pregnancy, a time when you can feel incredibly vulnerable, it’s important to be able to tell your story, to express yourself. I think it allows you to respect your own needs and boundaries. By allowing yourself to be vulnerable, you can take better care of yourself and find the peace and relaxation you need.”
IPT in the future
Ellis is not currently an IPT Practitioner, “I definitely want to learn more about this to apply it in practice, so I’m going to do the training next year as well. Recently experienced an IPT session myself, despite experiencing little to no symptoms I was amazed at the impact the session had. From that moment on I was really changed. I felt the tension slide out of my pelvis and I was so much more grounded afterwards. Every woman should experience this.”
“IPT in my opinion can do a lot of things. First, to feel your pelvis and what possibilities it has. Many women experience anxiety, especially with their first child. Like, will my baby fit through my pelvis?
In addition, IPT can also do a great deal in the area of trauma processing. I have seen up close from practice myself what steps are made after IPT sessions. That is really special. I am convinced that these women start motherhood better, without the ballast of previous experiences.”
