"I have been a midwife for 35 years. Throughout this time, I have witnessed the impact and implications of childbirth. However, more recent events have encouraged me to examine childbirth experiences which have involved close family members. Heartfelt comments have ranged from desperate pleas such as 'nobody tells you the reality of becoming a mother ... I feel overwhelmed' to 'I feel abandoned'. Such observations have urged me to explore the concept of what it means to women and midwives to be 'with woman'. In addition, new standards for the profession were published in November 2019, one of which requires midwives to be able to provide and promote continuity of care and carer. This is not a new phenomenon but seen through the concept of being 'with woman' would provide a safer and more effective delivery of maternity care. 'With woman' is an old term in the English language from which the word 'midwife' is derived. The meaning and concept of being 'with woman' may be interpreted as providing care and support in a physical, psychological, emotional and spiritual sense. Hunter (2002, p. 650), explored this concept to focus on the 'presence and support by a caregiver as desired by the labouring woman'. Early on, nurse-midwife core competencies in America emphasised the importance of human presence with the childbearing woman as a therapeutic and professional philosophy (ACNM 1979). More recently, Bradfield et al.'s (2018a) integrative review of the literature explored the 'with woman' phenomena to present an understanding and perspective of this concept. The authors suggest that being 'with woman' is an evolutionary construct, which is dynamic and continues to develop, and is fundamental to midwifery practices and professional philosophy"--