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A Recipe for Birthing Success

8/11/2013

4 Comments

 
Picture

​​Serves 1-2​ ​Serving size varies 1-2 or more


Preheat oven to 98.6* Bake about 41-1/7thmo.

1 (6-9lb) Baby, or more-less if preferred

1 Well trained, supportive Partner

2 Prenatal visits with a Doula, 1 postpartum

12 Weeks The Bradley Method®, of natural childbirth

10-15 Prenatal visits with a Doctor or Midwife

41-1/7th mo. Staying low risk

Dash of Parents, Friends, and/or Nurses (optional)

Garnish with lactation support

(Optional)

Add in a good place to birth, Hospital, Birth Center, Home, Car 

Directions:

1. To preheated oven, add in one baby and allow steeping; with the aid of partner. .

2. Select a well trained doula through one of the leading doula organizations, or a local doula program, such as Bella Birth Choices. (Doula comes from the Greek language meaning woman caregiver or servant) With a doula’s support research has shown women tend to result in shorter labors with fewer complications and the need for interventions and medications. With a doula mixed in a lot is relieved of the coach’s role as the doula is there as the assistant coach; though they are trained, if needed, to act as the main coach. They also, in the last step helps reinforce the garnishment, lactation.

3. Add in 12 informative weeks through The Bradley Method®. With this well incorporated; a nutritional diet and exercise routine will be established. Regular Labor, relaxation, and birthing practice will commence with the support of a well trained coach.

4. Incorporate throughout the baking process 10-15 visits to a supportive care provider, doctor or midwife. Choose one that shares the same view of a normal, natural, safe birth.

5. Stir in 41-1/7th months of staying low risk with good nutrition, exercise, education, avoidance of harmful substances (e.g. drugs, smoking, alcohol, mercury, caffeine, etc), relaxation, and avoidance of stress. (Adapted from“What You Can Do To Stay Healthy and Low Risk”. The Bradley Method® Teacher’s Manual. Pg60-62.1995/2001.) 41-1/7th month is adapted from Yale University’s study compiled in 1990 Mittendorf, et al., "The Length of Uncomplicated Human Gestation," "Obstetrics and Gynecology," vol. 75, no. 6, June 1990; not the 1800 study stating 40 weeks and the baby is fully done. This can cause under ripening of such a delicate dish.

6. Dash in a few parents, friends, and/or nurses during the final stages. Though added in at the end is so important to this process. They can help create the compiled atmosphere that the baby will be laid out in. The nurses often are the ones that determine the baby being placed directly on mom or in the incubator.

7. Once the baby has been plated on the mother’s 98.6* body garnishing can take place with good lactation support through the doula, training received in The Bradley Method®, attendance to La Leche League meetings, and hospital staff.

The place of birth is important, but more importantly are the support team surrounding the birth. Some hospitals may be more supportive towards the normal, natural birth process. Choose each element of your birth wisely, with much research, and subjectivity.

Store at skin-to-skin temperatures around 98.6*. When extra dressings, cloths, are required; baby should be dressed in accordance to the parent who leans to feeling the coldest.

*Choose quality ingredients wisely to help ensure success!

**Bella Birth Choices Labor Doula, Childbirth Educator, Belly and life Casting, Placenta Encapsulation, Tinctures, Salves, and Chocolates

(307) BABY-DAY {222.9329}; bellabirthchoices@gmail.com; www.bellabirthchoices.com

http://www.bradleybirth.com?C584

4 Comments

North Carolina Midwife is Arrested 3/27/2013

3/29/2013

14 Comments

 
Good Morning Sister Doulas, Fellow Birthworkers, and Parents

I am writing this morning with a heavy heart. One of our birth worker friends is in trouble and needs our help. I don’t know all the details, but I will share some of what I do know. There is a midwife in the state of North Carolina that has been arrested for the death of the unborn child by “acute chorioamnionitis and funistis and meconium aspiration.”
According to Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, “Meconium aspiration syndrome occurs when a newborn breathes in a mixture of amniotic and other fluid during delivery. It is a leading cause of severe illness and death in newborns and occurs in 5-10 percent of births.” As one respondent educatedly replied, “If meconium aspiration is one of the leading causes of newborn death according to John's Hopkins, then how is this the midwife's fault? Statistics show that 99% of births take place in the hospital, so are the doctors arrested every time this happens in a hospital and blamed for the death?” 
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North Carolina is a CNM midwife only state. A midwife must then adhere to what regulations the doctor sets before the midwife and in turn the parameters that a woman has in birthing her baby. (In Arizona midwives are not allowed to support a VBAC, a normal variation of birth. In Arizona the doctors do not support VBACs. Where does this leave a mom who has been cut and lives in Arizona?) Rowan Bailey was not licensed, but supported women in how they wanted to birth and were competent in choosing who to birth with. Being unlicensed does not mean a midwife is unqualified, uneducated or lacks skills, as Cindy has explained. Not many years back Virginia had unlicensed midwives and licensure has become a fight in Maryland, using it to take down midwifery as a profession. As we have witnessed here, in Virginia, our CPMs are more than competent to support moms giving birth, as well as our unlicensed midwives have been. Women and babies are capable in birth. Rowan was supporting a mom, who chose her as her support team, and the baby passed. Rowan is not being charged for not adhering to North Carolina’s midwifery
licensure law. She is being charged with murder of an unborn child through the  personhood law. “2011 N.C. Sess. Laws, Chap. 60 (HB 215) defines murder, voluntary manslaughter, involuntary manslaughter, assault inflicting serious bodily injury and assault of an unborn child. "Unborn child" is defined as a member of the species Homo sapiens at any stage of development, who is carried in the womb. These provisions do not apply to lawful acts that cause the death of an unborn child as defined in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 14-45.1, acts that are committed in the usual standards of medical practice or acts committed by a pregnant woman that result in a miscarriage or stillbirth. The law repeals N.C. Gen. Stat. § 14-18.2.” Mothers, doctors, and abortionists are exempt from this law. It was enacted to protect women from abusers, not their midwife. 
 
What can you do to help? We are raising money for Rowan’s bond, $15,000. When she appears back in court she will be given the money back to apply to her lawyer fees. Carla Hartley, the owner of AAMI, Ancient Art Midwifery Institute, has generously set up this option for donations. "I am working on a way to raise money for Rowan's bail... First .... If you send a check made payable to Rowan Bailey I will give you an AAMI shop credit in the
same amount....mp3s and more. Send to Carla Hartley 30223 Calle Belcanto. Menifee, Ca 92584. If you send $500 I will give you a $700 credit." I will tell you this is a great offer. The MP3s are invaluable in our birth work. There is knowledge from all over the world on them. Another offer is http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/help-for-rowan-bailey-midwife?show_todos=trueStephanie Dawn is offering some birth business goodies. This isn’t just a midwifery issue, but a women’s right to choose how she wants to birth and with whom. 

Gina Kirby will be hosting Rowan on her talk show today at 1:30pm (EST) The Witch Hunt:Midwifery & the myth of Freedom. “Today we are talking to Rowan Bailey, a birth advocate in North Carolina, where midwives are literally criminalized and Homebirth is virtually prohibited because mothers are forced to choose hospital birth or unassisted birth. Rowen is talking to us from jail, where she was taken because she assisted a mother in excercising her own human right to birth her baby where she chosen…”
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/progressive-parenting/2013/03/29/the-witch-hunt-lives-onmidwifery-the-myth-of-free

 Have a beautiful day!

Warm regards,
~Fern<><



14 Comments

How to Induce Labor

1/31/2013

0 Comments

 
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I have changed my views on induction! I am disgusted that I have created a trifold explaining how to induce even so called "naturally". There is no such thing as a natural induction. When I created my trifold I learned the risks of everything on there and added a clause for both "medical" and "natural" inductions, because moms can harm themselves and their babies by using any induction technique that is not a normal human function. When learning more about the labor process, we [I] actually cause more harm interfering, than good. I've contributed to causing more harm than good. This is my confession. I've shared it with others too. I am 100% guilty.

I have even learned that vaginal exams can cause the Ferguson's reflex; causing some of my clients to have PROM, prerupture of membranes, with no contractions, cramping and bleeding, or early births. I don't perform these exams, but I wasn't outspoken about the reflex that could happen prior to estimated due date. In my defense I didn’t know until 2012 and then began to put see the patterns of observation. These exams say absolutely nothing anyway. It has to make us wonder the cause these exams have on the births. In labor I have figured out why moms get the fancy sheet explaining infection signs. I have seen items go in that never EVER should have. 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferguson_reflex
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10380450 http://www.aafp.org/afp/2009/1215/p1405.html#afp20091215p1405-b21 

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quote"The effects of EFA [Essential Fatty Acid] supplementation during pregnancy and lactation remain largely unknown, and their use cannot be recommended. Extensive but transient petechiae and ecchymoses have been reported in a newborn infant whose mother took a...
total of 6.5 g of EPO [Evening Primrose Oil] during the week before giving birth. 20 The oral use of EPO during pregnancy may also be associated with a more protracted phase of labor and an increased incidence of premature rupture of membranes, arrest of descent, oxytocin (Pitocin) administration, and vacuum extraction. 21 Additional concerns have been raised about adverse effects of   EPO supplementation on conditions including platelet aggregation, cholesterol,  and blood pressure,22–27 although there is insufficient evidence to assess these concerns." EPO also passes to breastmilk: http://www.medicinenet.com/evening_primrose_oil-oral/article.htm

There was another article, but I can't locate it. 

RRL, Red Raspberry Leaf tea or supplements
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20220111

The best way to avoid an induction is to say, "No." The mother is responsible for the birth outcome, not the doctor. She has been blessed with the authority to look after this baby and do what is best for her and her child. For some moms that is drinking a bottle of Castor oil, others it's going in for an induction, and others it's even waiting till 44 weeks. Many of my midwife friends are seeing 42, 43, and 44 week moms. How many other babies are being taken too soon?

Instead of inducing labor the mother could hug 8 people a day to get oxytocin going. Be intimate with her husband, including his semen on her cervix, a natural prostaglandin, and her having an orgasm. Walking is a great way to encourage baby into a good birthing position and mom getting extra endurance for birth. Moms can stand in front or a mirror, looking at herself, saying, "I am made to do this. My body and baby will work together. My baby is healthy. I am healthy. We can do this when the time is right." Watch a funny movie or go to a comedy club and get dopamines flowing. Eat a potato a day, not fries, with anything on it that mom desires, load it up. That will help raise serotonin levels. Bananas can too, but it's not as nutrient dense or fibrous. Continue eating healthy and exercising. The baby will come. 

An excellent thread on this topic can be found http://www.facebook.com/groups/BirthPros/permalink/395028060519987/?comment_id=396378323718294&offset=0&total_comments=119
If you're not on there, it as some decent resources. Most times the normal,
natural, unhindered suggestions do get put down and you will quickly see
who they are through many threads, but they are very wise women speaking, if  you're willing to listen.


0 Comments

What do local hospitals, genetic testing, and homeland security have in common?

12/24/2012

0 Comments

 
Did you know local our hospitals are collecting your baby’s genetic data? It was brought to my attention in Sept. at INOVA Loudon when they asked my client if she would be okay with them taking some blood and putting it in a registry “in case her child were ever kidnapped”. They agreed and blood was taken via the left over cord blood after the cord was left on baby for a while. (I will add baby had 10 and 10 APGARS because of this) 

I went home and wanted to do some research on this “new”idea. It’s the first hospital I heard doing it. When talking with a sister doula in Southern VA she said the hospital there says the exact same thing. That was a bit odd to me. In 2008 there is a Bill that was enacted to allow genetic testing on your newborn’s blood AND that it is allowed to be registered with the Department of HomelandSecurity. AND they DO NOT need your permission to take it. Every hospital birth I have been too I have seen the provider fill up a very large vial of cord blood for “blood typing” the baby. Parents don’t see this happening and it’s often done once the placenta is delivered. To blood type a baby they need very little blood. A hospital in TX was caught taking and selling cord blood, without the parent’s knowledge. (They are under litigation) I have often wondered if our local hospitals aren’t doing the same.

To be a conspiracy theorist this could potentially make your child a case study, hinder future jobs, and have no say if they want to voluntarily give up DNA to a criminal investigator. Imagine if a criminal breaks in and gets hold of these DNA samples as well. I also wonder if this is why providers are against allowing the cord to pulsate. The cord can become very flat and it’s very hard to retain the amount of blood they want. The vial is  about 30-50ml, I can’t remember which. Hypovolemic shock for newborns is a blood loss of 20%, often 68ml, so we’re at ½ to 90% of that with not allowing the cord to pulsate and then add in circumcision the next day… (The Bible said the 8th day, when vit K is up, and this may be why as well)

If you follow reports on the homebirth circuit you will notice if a baby dies it has made national news, the midwife has litigations set upon her, often paying $100K in court fees, losing her rights to serve women, perhaps jail time, etc. Did you know a mother died at Reston hospital a few years ago? Around when they banned doulas. A nurse that was there told me she was in the room and mom went into arrest, and I believe hemorrhaged. She was on the floor surrounded by her blood. The nurse had another job that relieved her from the room and repercussion. (I won’t say what she was doing as I don’t want a trail following her) I have tried to find information on this mom and nothing has come up. A
mother died right under our noses and it wasn’t news worthy. In the US, all I could find was 2008 reporting is a 4.4 to 1,000 live birth mortality rate. Those babies are never heard about. It’s bigger news to report a woman given a cesarean, while not pregnant, than it is to report doctor’s mistakes in birth or a death. There were 4,247,694 live births in 2008, you can do the math. 

Back to conspiracy. I believe our government has pushed the issue for licensure of midwives so they can wait for them to have a natural occurrence of birth, a baby’s death, and then remove them from serving other women. If women are birthing at home, their baby’s cannot be accounted for/tracked. Some states demand the homebirth midwives report to them confidential patient information. I believe there is more to taking down the
midwives than genetic testing andhomeland security, but I do think it is a strong reason. 

Homebirth is the safest place for women, who desire it and have no physical anomalies during their pregnancy or medical history, to give birth. Ina May Gaskin’s, an internationally known midwife, cesarean rate is 1.7%. Around here 1 out of 3-4 of you reading will have a cesarean or has had one, it’s 30%. Maternal and baby death in hospital is rising, not dropping, with technology. Midwives are trained so well in the normalcy of labor and birth, that they know when things don’t look right and it’s time to seek medical
intervention. Not everyone will agree with homebirth. I thought it was the most scary, horrible, insane thought ever. I implore you to research and examine your findings to back up your birth choice(s) to ensure you are doing what is best for you, your baby, and your family. 

http://seattletimes.com/html/nationworld/2003038346_dna04.html
http://www.infowars.com/bush-signs-bill-to-take-all-newborns-dna/
http://www.doctorsopposingcircumcision.org/pdf/specialstatement.pdf
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/2011/019.pdf
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr59/nvsr59_01.pdf
http://www.inamay.com/article/medically-unnecessary-cesarean-section-births-introduction-symposium
0 Comments

Don't hat a newborn!

12/21/2012

3 Comments

 
The reasons for not hatting (adapted from Carla Harlty):
1.Hats can be very dangerous. They can cause moms to have postpartum hemorrhaging. As it turns out the experience of birth is what triggers the built in safety mechanisms. This is also true for third stage. Mom being able to smell her newborn’s head is the design for the reconnection of mother and baby (smell of baby to olfactory system to limbic system = initiation of “identification” biology) and release of Oxytocin signaling the uterus to release placenta and stop bleeding so necessary for mother’s health. The smell doesn't so much trigger Oxytocin as it is that the limbic system is waiting for that smell in order to tell the uterus it is ok to proceed to the next step; anything we do to inhibit that process is dangerous to the mamma.

2.In addition to hats interfering with bonding and safety of third stage, hatting restricts the unmoulding of the baby’s skull. Plus the head is extremely sensitive in those first hours.

3.The hats we use in the U.S. do nothing for maintenance of core temp according to the studies I have found, and in fact one study showed that a hat was detrimental to maintenance of core temp. Brain cooling may actually be good for all babies and not those who have potential brain damage. And studies show that skin to skin with mom is most effective way to stabilize core temperature and that in fact, her body will heat and cool as
needed for baby’s sake as it did when baby was inside. Even if separated from mom, a hat is NOT proven to stabilize core temp unless it is woolen these stockinette or cotton hats we use are useless if not dangerous throw them away.

Brilliant! We cannot improve on this design. Why do we keep trying?

I hope you learned. I sure did, when I first heard of this concept. It’s a part of
protecting moms and protecting babies.
3 Comments

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  • Home
  • About Me
  • What is a Doula
  • Services
    • Birth Doula
    • Childbirth Education
    • Placenta Encapsulation
    • Belly Casting
  • Contact Me
  • Resources
  • Local Resources
    • Resources in Bay, Walton, Escambia, Leon, and Okaloosa County >
      • Health Care Providers
      • Birth Centers
      • Pediatrician
  • Bella Blogings/pregnancy info
  • Documents
  • References
  • Web board
  • Videos