Birth Made Simple

The fact of the matter is that birth is SIMPLE. It really is. With all of our modern technology, we have forgotten how simple birth can be. Our culture has created this fear centered perspective on birth. BUT there are ways to undo this fear. Educating yourself about the birth process is the first step. Changing the way you see birth can make a huge difference in your own pregnancy, labor and delivery. Helping yourself see birth from the perspective that it is a normal, natural, beautiful process can even help your labor and delivery go more smoothly. After all, your brain is one of the most important and useful parts of your body during birth.

BIRTH MADE SIMPLE

-Birth is NORMAL, NATURAL, and a true miracle
-Women (and many other mammals) have been giving birth vaginally forever
-You and your baby are made to birth
-Surrounding yourself with people who also believe you are a strong woman who can birth will help keep a positive attitude
-Connect with your baby; Pregnancy and birth are a team effort, you and your baby are both contributing to the process
-If you can create a beautiful being in your body, you can do anything
-Create a comfortable setting for birth, your body will be able to do what is it meant to do when you are in a safe, supported environment
-Support during labor is key: your partner, mother, sister, friend, doula, or anyone who believes in you will help keep you feeling safe and strong
-Eat, drink, use the bathroom during labor
-Use your body: moving around during labor will do wonders for progress
-Stay off your back unless it is the most comfortable position for you and baby
-Listen to your body - it knows what you need and what it's doing
-When things in labor change: work with it - stay in control of your mind

Educating yourself about how to make labor go as smooth and natural as possible will contribute to a positive birth experience. Pregnancy and birth is a miracle, and something we are LUCKY to have the opportunity to go through. It is not a burden, it is not scary, it is a blessing. Make it YOURS!

The Unnecesarean

The Unnecesarean

The Unnecesarean

waterbirth

Many people ask me about waterbirth and what it's all about.

If you're interested check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ljdn8qRbIw

"...this time belongs to the mother and baby..."

"The importance of uninterrupted birth is, scientifically, just beginning to be discovered. Michel Odent and others have written about the irreplaceable first hour after birth. This is the time when the love hormone oxytocin is highest, and meant for the mother and baby to meet and set the foundation of their lives together. It is irreplaceable, and even we midwives are often busy getting in the way. Unless there is an emergency, this time belongs to the mother and baby. We need to learn to safeguard this hour for motherbaby and not just talk about it."

~ Jan Tritten, Midwifery Today

US Maternity Care in crisis

Many articles about the Amnesty report stating that US maternity care is poor compared to other developed countries. Intestesting seeing as how we are supposed to have the most access to the latest and greatest technology.

Two of the articles:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/mar/12/amnesty-us-maternal-mortality-rates

http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20100312/hl_time/08599197163300

"NATURAL was the theme of the pregnancy"

By Julia M.

I always knew I would be a mother. Thinking back, I notice that I have spent much of my life following my mama around, wanting to be just like her. When my mom had her fifth, and last child, I was 14 years old. You might say that the new addition to the family was good birth control for a teenage girl. But her presence was also incredibly inspiring to me. I didn't know I could love someone so much, and dreamed of someday having a baby of my own.
About five years later, I fell in love with a wonderful man, who would soon become my husband. We shared a love of natural living and organic food that became even more important to us when we learned I was pregnant. NATURAL was the theme of the pregnancy - we were sure we did not want to proceed in any other way. We found the perfect group of midwives at a hospital in Cambridge, MA, and did not look back. We sought advice from the amazing yoginis, doulas and conscious mothers in our lives. I was sure that we had been blessed with a boy, but we decided not to learn the sex of the baby before his/her birth. The pregnancy was normal and healthy, but of course, often overwhelming. All in all, I felt like my body was a sacred temple for a beautiful new life. We could not wait to meet the soul which had chosen to be our baby.

I was due on November 28th. By the end of October, I felt that I was carrying the baby very low. My appetite slowed, and my energy soared. I felt joyful anticipation each day. I was nesting. On November 8th, I was feeling a unique and powerful energy surging through my body. We had a busy Sunday, and I was a bit more talkative than usual. Then, at around 8:30 PM, I felt a small gush of fluid. We were home, and I walked into the bathroom, thinking that maybe it was my mucous plug. Within a minute, I was experiencing bigger and bigger gushes of fluid leave my body - my water broke. I grabbed a towel, and yelled for my husband. Our hearts raced as we called the midwives. We heard from a midwife named Julia that I had tested positive for Group B strep, and would need to come to the hospital to receive IV antibiotics. We were too excited to be bothered by the news, however we had planned to labor at home for as long as possible, and felt somewhat rushed. My husband packed the car while I sat on a towel, on our bed, and continued to feel my waters leaving my body. I was nervous, but ready to go.

Ten minutes after my water broke, my contractions began. As this was my first child, we were prepared for a lengthy labor, but my body had a different plan. After nine months of being told not to expect a "Hollywood movie labor," we got exactly that. By the time we reached the hospital, my contractions were 2 minutes apart, and quite intense. The hospital was full, and we were put in an overflow room to labor until a delivery room became available. I was already 4 cm dilated, and my contractions were coming fast and strong. I barely had a break between each, and the pain was almost unbearable. I labored mostly leaning forward in a standing position, and on all fours. I was incredibly sensitive, refusing any kind of touch or sound offered (too bad for my husband who was prepared to support me through each contraction - I wouldn't let him near me). There in the overflow room, midwife Julia checked my cervix to find that I was almost fully dilated. I had made it through transition, and was preparing to push. I was sort of squatting when the pushing began, but the baby's head was not coming down. I did not want to deliver on my back, but after midwife Julia noticed that the baby's head was not able to pass my pubic bone in a squatting position, I laid back and was able to push the baby down. It was just after 1:00AM and I was struggling to push at all. Between each push, I felt I needed to fall asleep. But soon I was told to reach down and feel my baby's head. I could feel a hairy little crown, and got a boost of energy to finish the job. With a few more pushes, my boy was out. He was immediately placed on my body. I couldn't believe how beautiful he was. It was completely surreal. John weighed 7lb 11oz. He nursed well right away. I loved my birth experience with a midwife, and will absolutely seek the same care in the future.
The only unfortunate issue I had physically, was that I had been given 2 stitches which came apart. The day after the birth, I received many more stitches to repair the damage, and I was not entirely numbed for the procedure. Ouch! After having John, I experienced intense "baby blues." The weeks following his birth were manageable otherwise, but extremely difficult emotionally. As my stitches healed, and I was able to get outside to walk, my mood lifted. I began to enjoy my new baby and our love grew exponentially.

Taking Charge of Giving Birth

Taking Charge of Giving Birth is a story written by a Hypnobirthing instructor I know. It's her amazing birth story. Click here to go to her website, which gives a link to the story. It's a MUST READ for ALL women!

VBACs

An interesting article in the New York Times entitled Panel Urges New Look at Caesarean Guidelines addresses some of the issues surrounding VBACs. It talks about the need to further investigate the risks and benefits of VBACs to both mothers and babies.

There are both risks and benefits to choosing to attempt a VBAC. Instead of making the choice unavailable to women, we should work on informing them of the risk so they can make an educated decision. As with all topics related to pregnancy, labor, birth and parenting, providing information and options for each woman can help her make a decision that is right for her and her baby - after all, it is her body.

In the article called Lessons as Indian Hospital About Births New York Times examines the incidence of VBACs at a Navajo hospital in Arizona. Check it out, its interesting stuff!

Gisele's Birth in the news

This article is about Gisele's home, water birth and how she describes it as an amazing empowering experience. It "made headlines for its reported lack of pain." Interesting...

Read it here

Even though there are many amazing, empowering, homebirths, the celeb ones are usually the only ones that make the news. At least its good press about birth!