“I Just Assumed That They Knew What They Were Doing”: Labor and Delivery Experiences of Indigenous Women in the Gulf Coast

Despite high rates of maternal morbidity and mortality among Indigenous women, little is known about their childbirth experiences. In this study, a qualitative descriptive methodological approach was used to explore the labor and delivery experiences of 31 women from one Indigenous state-recognized tribe in the southeastern United States. Findings highlight how institutional supports and barriers, in addition to family and community support, greatly impacted how women were able to navigate their childbirth experiences. We situate these findings within the frameworks of stratified reproduction and reproductive justice to underscore the settler colonial power relations that impact Indigenous women’s reproductive experiences.