Real support for real life with CP and motherhood
Pregnancy looks different when you’re a mom with cerebral palsy — and finding the right OB matters. This resource shares pregnancy and OB guidance for moms with CP, starting with Birmingham-area providers and expanding to how to find disability-informed care anywhere.
Inside, you’ll find what to look for in an OB, what questions to ask, and how to advocate for care that understands mobility, fatigue, spasticity, and real life with CP.
This resource exists to help moms with CP:
- Find OB providers who are more likely to understand mobility needs
- Know what to look for and what to ask
- Advocate for themselves — whether they’re in Birmingham or anywhere else
🩺 OB & Pregnancy Care — Birmingham, Alabama
These providers may not advertise “cerebral palsy” specifically, but they routinely care for patients with mobility disabilities, neurologic conditions, and medically complex pregnancies, which is what matters most.
⭐ Best Starting Point for Moms with CP
UAB Women & Infants Center
Why this matters for moms with CP:
- UAB is a large academic (teaching) hospital
- Familiar with non-standard bodies and complex medical histories
- Easier access to:
- Anesthesia planning
- Maternal-Fetal Medicine (MFM)
- Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation
- PT/OT consults
Many moms with CP report feeling more believed and better accommodated in academic systems than in smaller private practices.
🧠 Maternal-Fetal Medicine (High-Risk OBs)
UAB Maternal-Fetal Medicine
You do not have to be “high risk” to benefit from MFM care.
MFM providers:
- Regularly manage neurologic and mobility conditions
- Think proactively about:
- Positioning during exams and labor
- Spasticity, fatigue, and endurance
- Epidurals, spinal anatomy, and anesthesia access
- Are more comfortable coordinating with other specialists
👉 Many moms with CP choose MFM for planning, not fear.
⭐ Personal Recommendation: Brookwood Baptist (Orlando Health)
Brookwood Baptist Medical Center
Brookwood Baptist is a community hospital system that many Birmingham moms choose for pregnancy and delivery. In my experience, care felt personal, respectful, and flexible, which made a meaningful difference navigating pregnancy with cerebral palsy.
👩⚕️ Dr. Wendy Gregory
Hospital affiliation: Brookwood Baptist Medical Center
I delivered at Brookwood Baptist with Dr. Wendy Gregory as my OB and had a genuinely positive experience as a mom with CP. My care felt collaborative rather than cautious, and I was treated as a capable adult — not a liability.
What stood out most was:
- Feeling listened to and respected.
- Dr. Gregory sat with me, asked questions, and even took the time to return my call after hours when I left her practice a message about one of my concerns.
- Willingness to adapt care without making it a “big deal”.
- Dr. Gregory was flexible, knowledgeable, and compassionate. She checked on me several times after birth and always made me feel so cared for.
- A calm, steady presence during pregnancy and delivery.
- After birth, I was bleeding a lot, and it took them a moment to get it under control. I was scared, in excruciating pain, and almost delirious from an intense, unmedicated birth. She stayed with me, and I remember asking her several times, “Am I okay?” She held my hand and told me, “You’re okay. I would tell you if you needed to be scared. Everything is okay.” Despite how out of it I was, I remember that moment so clearly, and it made me appreciate her even more.
This kind of provider experience can be incredibly reassuring when you’re navigating pregnancy with cerebral palsy or a mobility disability.
This recommendation reflects my personal experience as a mom with CP. As always, individual experiences may vary — but shared experiences matter when formal resources are limited.
🏥 OB Practices Likely to Be Mobility-Aware
These Birmingham practices deliver at major hospitals and are accustomed to more complex care models:
Birmingham Obstetrics & Gynecology
- Large, established group practice
- More flexibility with:
- Longer appointments
- Modified exams
- Provider switching within the group if needed
Women’s Care Specialists
- Multi-provider OB practice
- Greater likelihood of finding one provider who understands disability-informed care
- Experience coordinating with hospital-based specialists
♿ Providers Who Understand CP (Not OBs — But Crucial)
These providers often become key advocates during pregnancy:
United Ability Ability Clinic
- Explicit experience with cerebral palsy
- Adult disability-focused care
- Can:
- Document functional needs
- Support accommodation requests
- Coordinate care with OBs
UAB Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation
Physiatrists specialize in adult CP and mobility.
They can help with:
- Pain and spasticity during pregnancy
- Mobility and transfer planning
- Postpartum recovery
OBs often take disability needs more seriously when PM&R is involved.
🔍 What to Look for in an OB When You Have CP
You are not looking for a provider who knows everything about cerebral palsy.
You are looking for someone who:
- Is comfortable with mobility disabilities
- Is willing to adapt exams and positioning
- Listens to your lived experience
- Collaborates with other providers
Green Flags ✅
- “I haven’t treated many patients with CP, but I’m open to learning.”
- Willingness to schedule longer appointments
- Comfortable coordinating with PT/OT or physiatry
- Delivers at a hospital with strong anesthesia support
Red Flags 🚩
- Dismissiveness or surprise that you’re pregnant
- Talking about you instead of to you
- Focusing on liability rather than care
- Refusing accommodations without discussion
📞 What to Ask When Calling an OB Office
- “Have you cared for pregnant patients with mobility disabilities?”
- “How do you handle positioning and transfers during exams?”
- “Are longer appointments available if needed?”
- “Are you comfortable coordinating with PT, OT, or physiatry?”
- “Where do you deliver, and what anesthesia support is available?”
A good OB doesn’t need all the answers — they need the right mindset.
🌍 Not in Birmingham? How to Find the Right OB Anywhere
If you’re outside the Birmingham area, these strategies matter more than provider names:
1. Look for Academic or Teaching Hospitals
Search for:
- “University hospital OB-GYN”
- “Academic medical center maternity care”
- “Maternal-Fetal Medicine near me”
Teaching hospitals see more diverse bodies and conditions.
2. Consider Maternal-Fetal Medicine
Even if your CP is stable:
- MFM providers are more familiar with complexity
- You can often self-request a consult
3. Involve a Physiatrist or Disability-Aware Provider
If you already see a provider for CP:
- Ask them to document functional needs
- Ask for pregnancy-specific recommendations
- Bring that documentation to your OB
4. Trust Your Gut
If an OB makes you feel:
- Infantilized
- Questioned
- Like you must “prove” your competence
It’s okay — and valid — to keep looking.
🤍 A final Note to Moms with CP with love
You are not “too complicated.”
You are not a liability.
You are not asking for special treatment.
You are asking for competent, respectful medical care — and you deserve it.
Have questions about pregnancy with cp?
I’m not a doctor, but I have been through this twice! If you need additional resources, support, or just need a compassionate ear, use this space below to contact me!
I’d love to hear from you.
