As Weymouth resident Esther Nganga sat holding her beautiful 11-week old son, Jabari, she laughed recalling her initial skepticism of having a midwife birthing experience. “Growing up in Kenya, I always heard tales of midwives—tales of women laboring and giving birth without the option for pain intervention,” Esther said.

We can’t plan for everything, but we can help manage life’s unknowns by talking openly about what matters to us and what we’d want most if we became seriously ill.