Crying babies, exhausted mothers and a waiting room full of pregnant women: welcome to the turbulent life of a midwife!

As a midwife, Elke Notebaert stands daily at the cradle of new human life, and unfortunately sometimes also at the end far too quickly. She supports women in their most vulnerable and desperate moments, but is at the same time their companion in intense joys and embarrassing questions.

In all these stories, emotions and scenes Elke takes us along in this book. She smuggles you into a birth, lets you listen in on her consultations and makes you gasp for air in emergencies. All this interwoven with her personal story and reflections as a (mid)wife, and the switch to her own motherhood.

Diary of a Midwife thus becomes both a confession and a declaration of love for this exceptional profession.

'A week in bed, a week on the bed and a week around the bed: that's the postpartum period in the first weeks. I couldn't even stand up and felt very abnormal. I devoured every book, but nowhere did I find my story. This book finally changes that!'

- Veronique Leysen

“When I hear other women say that they are going through pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period without a midwife, I wonder two things.
One: How so?
Two: why then?

Why would you rather go through everything alone, when you can have the chance to surround yourself with the pure luxury of wisdom, good tips and a seemingly inexhaustible source of peace and tranquility?

A midwife empowers you, she makes you laugh and cry, if necessary at the same time. And she will never find you, your emotions, questions or doubts strange."

- Linde Merckpoel, extraction from the foreword of Diary of a Midwife

"Elke clearly has enough material to write a book full of compelling stories. Skilled and empathetic, also in her writing. The experiences that Elke remembered are now stories that will also stay with me. Every mother, partner and environment deserves this Diary of a Midwife."

- Eva Tuytelaers about Diary of a midwife

"Elke prepared me mentally and practically for the birth and everything afterwards. In a very professional, accessible and loving way. A midwife ensures that you as a mother can grow in your role even before your baby is born. So glad that she guided me during this exceptional process of being pregnant, giving birth and breastfeeding."

- Dina Tersago