Chicago HypnoBirthing

2012 Class Schedule Now Available!

2011-11-10T15:29:00.000-08:00

2012 HypnoBirthing Class Schedule (Chicago northwest side) is now available!

HypnoBirthing® is a childbirth education method based on the philosophy that a birthing woman and her baby benefit most from a birthing environment that incorporates confidence, deep relaxation and focus, information, and optimal health.

I am certified by the HypnoBirthing® Institute to teach a series of 5 classes (3 hours each), where we focus on each mother's inherent ability to give birth as comfortably as possible and according to her own informed decisions. You will watch videos, learn and practice a comprehensive set of relaxation and self-hypnosis techniques, become familiar the process of labor and birth, and learn how to advocate for yourself and your baby to achieve the best possible birthing experience.

My classes are intentionally kept small, with an absolute maximum of 4 moms (and their companions) per class. Lots of chances for personal attention and questions!

Email me at nurtureandrelax@yahoo.com with your questions or to register.

Upcoming HypnoBirthing (The Mongan Method) Classes:

Classes are held in Portage Park (near Addison & Central) in Chicago

Sundays 4-7pm

December 11 - January 22 (No class December 25 & January 1)

Thursdays 6-9pm:

January 12 - February 9

February 16 - March 15

March 22 - April 19

Cost: $350 (5 Classes), includes includes HypnoBirthing textbook, 2 CDs, & all scripts/handouts.

*Private Instruction is also available--we can arrange the classes according to your schedule, in your home or at my location. Contact me for more info!*

New Birth Story!

2011-07-11T06:27:00.000-07:00

Hi Cindy,

It’s official. Baby L has arrived...We are all home and doing well. Adjusting to new life has had some bumpy moments, but all in all I couldn’t feel more blessed or grateful. I thought you would be eager to hear how things went:

I experienced a lot of practice labor during the month of June. Lots of Braxton-Hicks contractions and lots of cramping. Nothing that ever mounted to anything or had any kind of rhythm until Sunday night. I started experiencing lower abdominal cramping, felt like period cramps. These were different then ones I had experienced before because I could feel it in my lower back and they were coming and going. It wasn’t an intense cramp, very mild. I started timing them, Z came home and I told him he should pack his bags, this could be the night. However the contractions didn’t seem to be progressing it was getting late and we decided to go to bed and that was that. Skip forward to Tuesday. I had a midwife appointment at 7:30pm. I was experiencing some cramping and Braxton-Hicks contractions during the visit. It was kind of like a dull ache, nothing that was cyclical. My midwives don’t check to see if you are dilated or not, they let the baby come when the baby is ready to come. I told them about Sunday, they said to just keep doing what I was doing, things looked good and we set up an appointment for the following week.

Sunday night starting around 9:00pm. I started feeling the cramps again with the lower back pain and a cycle. Z and I timed them. They weren’t at the right intervals to call the midwives and they weren’t very strong. I could move around just fine through the contractions, I would be a little short on breath, but I could speak. So we monitored things, but it didn’t seem to be going anywhere, so we decided to get some rest. This is when things started to pick up. I went to bed around 11:00pm. Not long after l laid down, I started to feel a stronger uterine contraction and it was coming and going. I had already had it in my head that this was probably going to be like Sunday again, so it didn’t register immediately that this was something to pay attention to. I was tired and I just wanted to fall asleep. I was doing some breathing techniques to ease the pressure and I was getting irritated that the cramping was keeping me up. That’s when it registered that this was different, they are keeping me awake, I should pay attention to these. I took out the watch and started timing them. They were coming around every three to five minutes. Stronger, they weren’t painful, just uncomfortable, so I thought it would be a good time to get out one of the meditations and see if things would calm down or increase. I wasn’t but 5 minutes into the meditation when my membranes released, this happened at about 12:10am. Then it was on and it was on FAST. Z timed my contractions as I got into the shower to wash off. We then called the midwives to let them know what was going on. They said come on in. By this time the contractions had increased tenfold. I was trying to concentrate and get my body and mind calm, but it was difficult, because the task at hand was to get to the hospital. It was really starting to get painful. When a contraction hit, I was on the floor on all fours trying to stay with it. I told Z in between a contraction that this baby was coming fast. I was able to walk to the car between a contraction. We were on the road at about 12:50am.

The contractions only continued to increase and become more powerful. Somewhere between North Ave and Division Street while driving south to get to the highway I started to getting the urge to push and I yelled out to Z that my body wants to PUSH!!! We kept hitting every red light. It just happened to be that we pulled up to a police officer at the next the red light. Z rolled down the window and yelled out to them that I was in labor and we needed to get to the hospital fast and that he was just going to go through the red light. They let us go and then followed along next to us with their flashers on helping us through the intersections till we could get to the highway. I wish I could tell you that I was totally in control and staying calm through the drive, but I lost it a few times because I couldn’t fight what my body needed to do and we still had to get to the hospital. It was an extremely intense feeling, and I could feel the babies head trying to come down through the birth canal. Z was awesome though, he stayed calm. He told me to pull it together and stay with him. I was able to bring it back together, it took everything I had not to push the baby out in the car. I was doing the short, frequent breaths with a tone and that brought me back in control. We pulled up to the hospital. There just happened to be a wheel chair sitting outside close to the car. Z ran for that while I got out of the car. I got hit with another huge contraction and I was on all fours again trying to stay with it. We left everything in the car, we didn’t even bother to shut the passenger door that I had left open. Z got me in the wheel chair and we bounded for the ER. The ER nurse was a little slow to respond to the immediacy of the situation, but when I started yelling that I needed to push she moved real fast. I told Z he could push the wheelchair faster through the hallways. By some minor miracle our midwife was already at the hospital with another mom. She met us before triage and helped us bi-pass and get us to the room. It was not ready, but there was no more time left. They pushed me to the bed. I got up on all fours and surrendered to the urges. They had barely pulled my pants off, before the baby came sliding right out of me. It took two or three pushes and there he was. The relief of the pressure felt amazing, but my body and mind were in a state of shock due to how fast everything went. They helped me lay down and put the baby on my chest to hold. Z didn’t get his chance to announce the sex at first. I had to ask. I didn’t get to hold him very long, I had the shakes and they needed me deliver the placenta. Once things calmed down and I was all taken care of, they helped me sit up so that I could have L latch. He latched on like a pro and he’s been a greedy little guy ever since. We couldn’t be more happy or grateful for our little guy.

So that’s the story. I hope all goes well with your deliveries. It’s an incredible feeling to meet that little being that has been held inside of you for so long. I will say this, the breathing is really important. Although I did loose it a couple times, I was able to bring it back together and it was all about the mind and the breath. So if you loose your concentration or control during your labor, just know that you can get it back together. I can’t wait to hear from you and your stories and see pictures of you little ones.

Blessings to you,

S

2011 Class Schedule

2011-05-14T20:08:00.000-07:00

HypnoBirthing - The Mongan Method

Cost: $350 (5 Classes), includes includes HypnoBirthing textbook, 2 CDs, & all scripts/handouts.

Upcoming 2011 HypnoBirthing (The Mongan Method) Classes:

Classes are held in Portage Park (near Addison & Central) in Chicago

Sundays 4-7pm:

**Contact me for upcoming classes**

Thursdays 6-9pm:

**Contact me for upcoming classes**

*Private Instruction is also available--we can arrange the classes according to your schedule, in your home or at my location. Contact me for more info!*

To register, or for more information:

Call (847) 894-7737 or Email: nurtureandrelax@yahoo.com

Contact Information

2010-07-07T13:36:00.000-07:00

Cindy Unger, NCTMB, HBCE, CH
Phone: (847) 894-7737
Email: nurtureandrelax@yahoo.com

Testimonials - From some of my satisfied clients...

2010-07-07T12:52:00.000-07:00

"HypnoBirthing helped me to look at labor without any fear. Everyone kept asking me if I was nervous about labor and I answered them honestly with 'No, I'm actually very excited about labor.' The breathing techniques are wonderful and so helpful, not only during labor, but any time you need to relax. I used the breathing techniques in the beginning when breastfeeding was painful and I really think it helped Jack and I to bond more easily." -Emily (pictured with baby Jack)

"It was absolutely the reason I had such a calm, wonderful birthing experience...I think it's the best childbirth instruction out there." -Leanne (Professional Doula & HypnoBirthing mom, pictured with baby Adrienne)

"I had a great birth experience...I feel that the birth couldn't have been any better. I wouldn't change a thing. I really thank 'HypnoBirthing' for getting me through this experience. I used a lot of visualization techniques and I have to say that most of what I wanted and visualized came to be in reality." Wendy (pictured with baby Wyatt)

"Cindy brought a sense of peace and calmness with her which filled the whole room and made all my fears disappear...Cindy's mere presence and reassuring look was very comforting and was very encouraging to me...We are sure that we are going to have her as our Doula for the next baby." Hima (pictured with baby Milan) & Venu

"In total my labor was about 14 hours and honestly through most of it, I didn't even think it was happening since it wasn't bad or 'painful,' mostly uncomfortable. After Stephen was out I felt great and did not take any medication afterwards. So, big THANK YOU for the HypnoBirthing classes!!!!! I was really relaxed and confident through the whole labor and pregnancy. Thank you again and keep doing what you do!" (Julie, Summer 2008)

"The class was useful! The labor was pretty uneventful...not very long, so I made it through without medications. I think the most useful thing for me was actually doing the relaxation exercises in class...I would definitely use the techniques again...I feel that my recovery was faster because of the decisions I made." T.M. (First Baby)

"Thanks for thinking of us and thanks for your help! The labor was long, about 20 hours, but med free and either walking or kneeling which is what I wanted...The nurses commented that they were surprised by my control. That surprised me, since I was shooting for even more than I thought I had...The breathing was most helpful and I used the countdown method to help me relax, that and [my husband's] eye contact." T.M. (Second Baby)

"My birth experience was a really positive one. I have to thank you for the relaxation techniques that you taught me to help me get through the events of that day...The slow inhale breathing really helped a lot..." (Name withheld by request)

"We'd just like to reiterate how terrific Cindy Unger was during the class, and indeed during the entire pregnancy. We are very grateful to her. The breathing techniques, the visualization exercises, & Cindy's descriptions of the labor process [were] extremely useful. Cindy was also enormously helpful outside of class, by email, etc. We also feel that HypoBirthing made the pregnancy, not just the birth, a much better experience." (Names withheld by request)

"We are doing well and had a wonderful birth (unplanned at home!). Thank you so much for the great classes, I am convinced that it was the HypnoBirthing preparation that allowed us to have such a smooth, easy, beautiful birth." - Angie, December 2006

"Thanks, Cindy! I'm certain I couldn't have had such a great experience without your class. This was completely different from [my first baby's] birth!" - Summer '08

"I was SO HAPPY with our birth...I know that not everyone can say that their birth went exactly the way they wanted it to go, so I feel really blessed. Thank you for everything! I will refer you and Hypnobirthing to everyone!" - Summer '08

"The birth couldn't have been more beautiful--I labored almost entirely on the birth ball and was able to birth her without any pain medications. I really used the techniques you taught, and appreciated your class." - Summer '08

Praise for "Induction Massage":

"I had called you a few weeks ago...to do the prenatal massage as well as the acupressure...the very next day, at 4:30 in the morning, my labor started and it started hard and fast...the whole thing only lasted 10 hours, and our baby girl was born that afternoon, and she's gorgeous and everything has been great. Anyway, I just wanted to thank you, and let you know that it all happened about 14 hours after that massage, so 'Thanks!'" - December 2008

Local Childbirth Resources & Referrals

2010-07-07T12:43:00.000-07:00

Local Doctors & Midwives that I recommend:

**Note: I only list providers that have proven a high confidence in natural, low-intervention birth and HypnoBirthing. If your provider is not listed, this may be because neither I or my students have any knowledge of their care practices; it could also indicate that the provider has proven a high rate of intervention, lack of inherent trust in natural, normal, physiological birth, and lack of cohesion with HypnoBirthing.

Choosing your provider and environment is THE most important decision that will determine how your birthing unfolds. Choose wisely!

If you know of any natural birth-friendly providers, please tell me so that I can support them and list them here!

(Chicago - City)

Homebirth Providers:

A Woman's Place - Jennifer Gagnon, CNM; 4650 N. Rockwell, Chicago, IL 60625; (773) 539-9870; Offering home & hospital birth services.

New Life Midwifery - Sarah Simmons, CNM; (773) 588-MAMA (6262); Email: sadiejane58@sbcglobal.net.

Gentle Birth Care - Hillary Kaiser, CNM; 1024 North Blvd, Oak Park, IL; (708) 488-1004; Email: hillary@gentlebirthcare.com.

Childbirth the Way Nature Intended - Debbie Boucher, CNM; Libertyville, IL; (847) 816-4640; Email: midwife@yourbirth.com.

Homefirst Medical Center - Meyer Eisenstein MD, JD, MPH, et al.; (866) 395-1881 or (847) 981-1881.

Hospital Providers:

University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) Midwives - 1740 W. Taylor Ave., Chicago, IL; (312) 413-7686; Features Level III NICU, Tubs, VBAC-friendly, Evidence-based practices, Very familiar with HypnoBirthing.

Swedish Covenant Hospital - Nurse Midwives - 5140 N. California Ave., Suite 645, Chicago, IL; (773) 989-6200; Email: midwives@schosp.org; Great far northside location for low-intervention birth, w/ jacuzzi labor tubs.

(Chicago - Suburbs)

West Suburban Hospital's Alternative Birth Center (ABC):

West Suburban Midwife Associates; Gayle Reidman, CNM & Julie Marks, CNM. 715 Lake Street, Suite 273, Oak Park, (708) 848-3800. http://www.westsuburbanmidwives.com/.

West Suburban Midwifery & Women's Health - Shirley Moore, CNM; Mary Saracco, CNM; Elise Erickson, CNM; & Nancy Derrig, CNM. 7339 Madison St., Forest Park, IL. (708) 386-2400 or 386-6784.

West Suburban PCC Community Wellness Center Midwives - Ceal Beacom, CNM; Carrie Hanson, CNM; Mary Beth Waldorf, CNM. 14 W. Lake Street, Oak Park, IL. (708) 524-7679.

Associates for Women's Healthcare - Glenda Embry, CNM; Karen Wexler, CNM; Diane Smith, CNM. 915 Center Street, Suite 3003; Elgin, IL 60120; (847) 697-7722; Offering hospital birth services at Sherman & St. Alexius hospitals.

Rush-Copley OB/Gyne - Noreen Prokuski, CNM & Karen Barr, CNM. www.rushcopley.com/midwifery , www.rushcopley.com/obgyneassociates

Homefirst Medical Center - Meyer Eisenstein MD, JD, MPH, et al.; (866) 395-1881 or (847) 981-1881.

Find a Doula: (What is a doula?)

The Massage Doula Network

A network of Certified Doulas who are also Licensed Massage Therapists. This is the organization Cindy trained through, and a wonderful source for massage lovers!

HypnoBirthing-Friendly Doulas:

Rita DiRito-Surgal, Mother Me Inc. (Chicago) (773) 588-8440; motherme33@earthlink.net; http://www.mothermeinc.com/.

Natalie Evans, Mama Belly Birth Services. (Chicago) (773) 465-4337; natalie@mamabellybirth.com; http://www.mamabellybirth.com/.

Tara Brinkman (Chicago). Email: tarabrinkman@hotmail.com.

Victoria Reed (Chicago). (773) 301-3002; victoria@vdoula.com; http://www.vdoula.com/.

Acupuncturists/Chinese Herbalists:

Acupuncture is a suitable complementary treatment for many pregnancy-related issues: morning sickness, aches & pains, turning a breech baby and even as a natural induction method.

Jennifer Dubowsky, L.Ac.

Jenny specializes in women's issues such as fertility, menstrual difficulties, digestive disorders and depression/anxiety. She is a well-studied and confident practitioner.

325 W. Huron, Suite 308; Chicago, IL 60610; (312) 399-5098

Nicole Shea, L.Ac.

Nicole is a patient, nurturing practitioner. She is great for moms who are new to acupuncture, due to her gentle needling style.

985 S. Buffalo Grove Road; Buffalo Grove, IL 60089; (847) 541-4878

Other Resources:

HypnoBirthing.com - The main site for HypnoBirthing®, The Mongan Method.

Childbirth.org - Information for inquiring minds.

WikiPregnancy.com - Information about pregnancy, labor & birth in the "wiki" format.

The Brewer Diet - Joy Jones is a nurse who has assisted homebirth midwives for about 30 years. A little over a year ago, she created a new website about the Brewer Pregnancy Diet. Excellent Information for Pregnant Women!!

Prenatal Comforts - A wonderful site with products and resources for pregnant women.

HenciGoer.com - Author of The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth and Obstetric Myths vs. Research Realities, Henci is an invaluable resource for information on pre- and perinatal research. Great for truth-seekers.

La Leche League of Illinois - Lactation support & resources.

Chicago HypnoBirthing Network - HypnoBirthing class listings for Chicago & Suburbs.

Breastfeeding.com - The #1 Site for Breastfeeding Information, Support & Attitude!

CompleatMother.com - The Magazine of Pregnancy, Birth & Breastfeeding. A great source for red raspberry leaf tea.

Birthlink.com - Chicago-area resource for all things related to childbirth!

Lactation Associates, Inc. - Nurse Lactation consultants, Home visits; Phone: (847) 509-8302 Pager: (847) 479-2229

DoctorNancie.com - A fellow HypnoBirthing practitioner and author, Dr. Nancie Barwick. Dr. Nancie's book is entitled, Unstuff Yourself: Finding Joy on the Road to Wellness.

Waterbirth.org - Waterbirth International. "Waterbirth is a safe and gentle alternative to the standard high-tech approach associated with giving birth today and is completely compatible with HypnoBirthing®."

HeyAnyway.com - Hey! Who's Having this Baby, Anyway? "In her explosive new book Breck Hawk reveals how many pregnant women
can avoid serious repercussions from the drugs and unnecessary medical interventions that are pushed on them while in labor...
simply by being aware of their basic patient rights and options.
Hey! gives power back to moms-to-be and shows them how they can
make themselves be heard!"

Ican-Online.org - International Cesarean Awareness Network. A great resource for ALL expectant parents, including VBAC's.

Babiesonline.com - Free online birth announcements & so much more...Find a Baby, Free Baby Stuff.

DoulaNetwork.com - Doula listings

Wise-Woman-Center.com - "Herbal Medicine for Women's Health and Well-Being. Articles, links galore, natural health books, workshops. Subjects include menstruation, fertility, childbearing, breast cancer prevention, spirit healing and more ... Books include Wise Woman Herbal for the Childbearing Year, a confirmed favorite with pregnant women, midwives, childbirth educators, and new parents."

Hip-Chick-Pregnancy-Guide.com - "Natural Childbirth information for the HIP and MODERN mom. Find information about cord blood banking, read pregnancy articles, find pregnancy resources and don't leave without checking out our baby names section to help you find the best baby name for that HIP baby of yours."
BabyNamesTop100.com - "Your Source for the Top 100 Baby Names"

Baby-Names-Plus.com - More baby names!

ABCParenting.com - Partners with HypnoBirthing International; "Devoted to providing websurfers with reviews and ratings of the absolute best websites of interest to families and parents-to-be."

TheLaborofLove.com - A site for moms and moms-to-be.

Low Prices on MP3 Players; EParts & More. An MP3 player can be very handy during your labor and birthing - for music, self-hypnosis and tuning out the outside world.

GoodChildbirth.com - Good Childbirth by Dr. Steven Reid: "Over the last twenty years I have been working with expectant women, trying to establish why for too many the experience of labour does not meet hopes and expectations. Out of this work has emerged the book 'GOOD CHILDBIRTH' which can increase the prospects of your having the pregnancy and labour you deserve."

Pregnancy.miningco.com - This site is now the home of Robin Elise Weiss, the founder of Childbirth.org

BabyZone.com - a multiplicity of topics arranged from the beginning(wanting) to the neverending end(growth and development).

AttachmentParenting.org - Attachment Parenting International.

Cryo-Intl.com - Cord Blood Banking; personal storage & donation.

Inflatable tubs for labor: http://www.qualityinflatables.com/58480.html or http://www.albuquerquehomebirth.com/

Purple Thistle Tea Company - Jenny West (a HB practitioner & midwife); Herbal teas, remedies and tips.

In Touch with Elizabeth Pantley - Online Resources for Raising Children, free newsletter.

Hypnosis for Successful Breastfeeding - Sheri Menelli, CLC, HBCE, CHt

Articles & Misc. Info:

Animation of Normal Delivery http://www.medicallegalart.com/displayanimation.php?&A=delivery

Bonding with Your Newborn (by William Sears, MD) http://www.attachmentparenting.org/artbonding.shtml

Children Need Touching & Attention, Harvard Researchers Say http://www.news.harvard.edu/gazette/1998/04.09/ChildrenNeedTou.htmlhttp://

Hypnosis for Pain Relief in Labour & Childbirth: A Systematic Review http://bja.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/93/4/505

American Academy of Pediatrics Medical Library http://www.medem.com/MedLB/bufferpage_aap.cfm

More coming soon!

A New Perspective on Bonding with Your Baby

2009-10-16T10:15:00.000-07:00

This is a video from the UK about the challenges (yes, the challenges!) many moms face when first meeting and bonding with their babies after birth and in the postpartum period. I love that the instructor gives such a balanced view, saying that most moms do not instantly fall in love with their babies after birth. It takes time. And that is normal and natural!

The Today Show About Homebirth

2009-09-25T11:18:00.000-07:00

The Coalition for Improving Maternity Services (CIMS), a birth advocacy organization that I endorse, has issued the following statement in response to The Today Show's recent story about homebirth.

I hope you will help me to spread this information to as many people as possible. Research shows homebirth to be a safe alternative to hospital birth, and The Today Show's story was biased, untrue, and emotion-driven...not based in empirical evidence.

Sept. 22, 2009

Dear Producers of The Today Show,

The Coalition for Improving Maternity Services (CIMS) and the undersigned organizations are disappointed with The Today Show’s misrepresentation of midwives and home birth that aired on Sept. 11, in a segment titled “The Perils of Midwifery,” later changed to “The Perils of Home Birth.” This biased and sensational segment inaccurately implied that hospitals are the safest place to give birth even for low-risk women and mischaracterized women who choose a home birth with a midwife as "hedonistic," going so far as to suggest that these women are putting their birth experiences above the safety of their babies. Neither could be further from the truth.

Unfortunately, The Today Show did not do its homework on the evidence regarding the safety of home birth and midwifery care. The segment featured an obstetrician who presented only the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists’ (ACOG) position in opposition to home birth, but it did not make any attempt to present the different viewpoints held by the many organizations that are committed to improving the quality of maternity care in the US. We are deeply saddened that the show did not take the opportunity to note that both CIMS and The National Perinatal Association respect the rights of women to choose home births and midwifery care, and that the respected Cochrane Collaboration recommends midwifery care because it results in excellent outcomes.

There is no evidence to support the ACOG position that hospital birth for low-risk women is safer than giving birth with midwives at home. What the research does show is that the routine use of medical interventions in childbirth without medical necessity can cause more harm than good, while also inflating the cost of childbirth. However, the current health system design offers little incentive for physicians and hospitals to improve access to maternity care practices that have been proven to maximize maternal and infant health.

“Birth is safest when midwives and doctors work together respectfully, communicate well, and when a transfer from home to hospital is needed, it is appropriately handled,” says Ruth Wilf, CNM, PhD, a member of the CIMS Leadership Team.

That is why the national health services of countries such as Britain, Ireland, Canada, and the Netherlands support home birth. In those countries, midwives are respected and integrated into the maternity care system. They work collaboratively with physicians in or out of the hospital, and they are not the target of modern day witch hunts. These countries have better outcomes for mothers and babies than the US.

Childbirth is the leading reason for admission to US hospitals, and hospitalization is the most costly health care component. Combined hospital charges for birthing women and newborns ($75,187,000,000 in 2004) far exceed charges for any other condition. In 2004, fully 27% of hospital charges to Medicaid and 16% of charges to private insurance were for birthing women and newborns, the most expensive conditions for both payers. The burden on public budgets, taxpayers and employers is considerable.

As US birth outcomes continue to worsen, it should come as no surprise to The Today Show that childbearing women are seeking alternatives to standard maternity care. After all, American women and babies are paying the highest price of all—their health—for these unnecessary interventions, which include increasing rates of elective inductions of labor and cesarean sections without medical indication.

To the detriment of childbearing families, the segment “The Perils of Midwifery” totally disregarded the evidence. Although the reporters acknowledged that research shows home birth for low-risk women is safe, that message was overshadowed by many negative messages, leaving viewers with a biased perception of midwifery care and home birth. CIMS makes these points not to promote the interests of any particular profession, but rather to raise a strong voice in support of maternity care practices that promote the health and well-being of mothers and babies.

One of the ten Institute of Medicine recommendations for improving health care is to provide consumers with evidence-based information in order to help them make informed decisions. The Institute recommends that decisions be made by consumers, not solely by health care providers. The Institute maintains that transparency and true choice are essential to improving health care. We remain hopeful that the medical community will soon recognize the rights of childbearing women when it comes to their choices in childbirth and will respect and support these choices in the interest of the best possible continuity and coordination of care for all.

We urge The Today Show to provide childbearing women with fair and accurate coverage of this important issue by giving equal time to midwives, public health professionals, researchers of evidence- based maternity care, and especially to parents who have made choices about different models of care and places of birth.

Sincerely,
Coalition for Improving Maternity Services
Academy of Certified Birth Educators
Alaska Birth Network
Alaska Family Health and Birth Center
American Association of Birth Centers
American College of Community Midwives
American College of Nurse-Midwives
Bay Area Birth Information
Birth Network of Santa Cruz County
Birth Works International
Birthing From Within, LLC
BirthNet
BirthNetwork National
BirthNetwork of Idaho Falls
BirthNetwork of NW Arkansas
Choices in Childbirth
Citizens for Midwifery
DONA International
Doulas Association of Southern California
Evansville BirthNetwork
Harmony Birth & Family
Idaho Midwifery Council
Idahoans for Midwives
InJoy Birth and Parenting Education
International Childbirth Education Association
International MotherBaby Childbirth Organization
Lamaze International
Madison Birth Center
Midwives Alliance of North America
Motherbaby International Film Festival
Nashville BirthNetwork
National Association of Certified Professional Midwives
North American Registry of Midwives
Oklahoma BirthNetwork
Perinatal Education Associates, Inc.
Reading Birth & Women's Center
Rochester Area Birth Network
Sage Femme
The Big Push for Midwives Campaign
The Tatia Oden French Memorial Foundation Triangle Birth Network Truckee Meadows BirthNetwork

About Us
The Coalition for Improving Maternity Services (CIMS) is a coalition of individuals and national organizations with concern for the care and wellbeing of mothers, babies, and families. Our mission is to promote a wellness model of maternity care that will improve birth outcomes and substantially reduce costs. The CIMS Mother-Friendly Childbirth Initiative is an evidence-based mother-, baby-, and family- friendly model of care which focuses on prevention and wellness as the alternatives to high-cost screening, diagnosis, and treatment programs.

References:
1. The Perils of Home Births, http://www.facebook.com/l/cdfc4;www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/32795933#32795933
2. Birth Can Safely Take Place at Home and in Birthing Centers, http://www.facebook.com/l/cdfc4;www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/picrender.fcgi?artid=2409129&blobtype=pdf
3. Offers All Birthing Mothers Unrestricted Access to Birth Companions, Labor Support, Professional Midwifery Care, http://www.facebook.com/l/cdfc4;www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/picrender.fcgi?artid=2409134&blobtype=pdf
4. ACOG Place of Birth Policies Limit Women's Choices Without Justification and Contrary to the Evidence, http://www.facebook.com/l/cdfc4;childbirthconnection.com/article.aspClickedLink=790&ck=10465&area=27
5. Ratifiers and Endorsers of The Mother-Friendly Childbirth Initiative, http://www.facebook.com/l/cdfc4;www.motherfriendly.org/ratifiers.php
6. Choice of Birth Setting, http://www.facebook.com/l/cdfc4;www.nationalperinatal.org/advocacy/pdf/Choice-of-Birth-Setting.pdf
7. Position Statement on Midwifery, http://www.facebook.com/l/cdfc4;www.nationalperinatal.org/advocacy/pdf/Midwifery.pdf
8. Midwife-led versus other models of care for childbearing women, http://www.facebook.com/l/cdfc4;cochrane.org/reviews/en/ab004667.html
9. Evidence-Based Maternity Care: What It Is And What It Can Achieve, http://www.facebook.com/l/cdfc4;childbirthconnection.com/pdfs/evidence-based-maternity-care.pdf
10. Lamaze Healthy Birth Practices,
http://www.facebook.com/l/cdfc4;www.lamaze.org/ChildbirthProfessionals/ResourcesforProfessionals/CarePracticePapers/tabid/90/Default.aspx
11. Millennium Development Goals Indicators, United Nations, http://www.facebook.com/l/cdfc4;mdgs.un.org/unsd/mdg/Data.aspx
12. National Vital Statistics System, Birth Data, http://www.facebook.com/l/cdfc4;www.cdc.gov/nchs/births.htm
13. Induction By Request, http://www.facebook.com/l/cdfc4;www.marchofdimes.com/prematurity/21239_20203.asp
14. Cesarean Birth By Request, http://www.facebook.com/l/cdfc4;www.marchofdimes.com/prematurity/21239_19673.asp
15. Crossing the Quality Chasm: A New Health System for the 21st Century, http://www.facebook.com/l/cdfc4;www.iom.edu/CMS/8089/5432.aspx
16. The Mother-Friendly Childbirth Initiative, http://www.facebook.com/l/cdfc4;www.motherfriendly.org/mfci.php

Coalition for Improving Maternity Services 1500 Sunday Drive, Suite 102 Raleigh, NC 27607

Tel: 919-863-9482
Fax: 919-787-4916

http://www.facebook.com/l/cdfc4;www.MotherFriendly.org

Making Mother-Friendly Care A Reality
CIMS is a not-for-profit organization recognized as tax-exempt under Internal Revenue Code section 501(c)(3). Our mission is to promote a wellness model of maternity care that will improve birth outcomes and substantially reduce costs.

Rapport & Continuity of Care

2009-07-14T10:16:00.000-07:00

I just stumbled upon a very important reason for having a well-known, and yet skilled, attendant or companion present during your labor and birth.

I love to pet cats. I love to pet animals in general. I remember lying down next to our family dog (a "schoodle," schnauzer/poodle mix) as a child and just stroking her and trying to find the way she liked to be petted. Unfortunately, she was my mom's dog, and she didn't really like anyone else to pet her. I tried so hard to pet her in a way that she liked, so she didn't just get up and walk away (which she frequently did)! However, this was likely a foreshadowing of my desire to be a massage therapist--work that continuously challenges my ability to soothe others through touch, to find the way that feels best to that client. My senses were attuned during those early interactions with our dog.

Just now, I sat next to one of our cats, petting him in the same way I used to pet our family dog. Fortunately, our current cats love to be stroked and petted (with a few exceptions--they are cats, after all!). This particular cat loves to be rubbed. His eyes light up when I enter the room, he starts to blink, and he very subtly moves along with my strokes, often moving in such small ways that I can tell where he wants me to focus. I know he likes his lower back to be rubbed and he also frequently directs me to focus on his chin and cheeks. All without saying a word.

His purrs, body movements, and snorty-breathing tell me that he loves it. (It means he is in what we call, in HypnoBirthing, the healing room--endorphins are flowing and he feels safe and comforted.) And I respond appropriately, by following his lead.

What if your labor and birth was accompanied by someone who knew just what to do when you gave even the subtlest hint--a movement, a blink of the eye, a light murmur of approval?

This is why it is so crucial to get to know your birth attendants and companions. It is why I like to schedule massages with my doula clients, so that I know their cues, their peaks and valleys, how they respond to certain types of touch. For both of us, it foreshadows the interaction we will have during labor--the mother associates my touch with feeling good, and I know where I should be.

For the record, I am the type of person who is enormously sensitive, and I would want a sensitive person around me during such a vulnerable time, as well. Too often, birth companions and attendants take a "coach-like," bossy, or directing/managing role of a woman's labor, and they don't really listen to her subtle cues. This is often because of burnout--to many births and too much work to really have the energy to care deeply. It could also be a lack of sensitivity or empathy, and a lack of training in the subtle cues of their client/patient.

Think about that as you plan your birth. A medical provider often does not have or need these sensitive skills, as their job scope does not require it. A doula, friend, partner, or (sometimes) a nurse is more likely to fill that role.

Birth Choices

2009-07-10T13:16:00.000-07:00

In celebration of a recent HypnoBirthing mother, in one of my recent classes, who switched providers at 38 weeks, I have some inspiration for you. Yes, you read that right--she switched at 38 weeks, and gave birth between 39 and 40 weeks. What's more, her baby was breech at 37 weeks and she was told by her previous provider that she should schedule a c-section. Well, that wasn't good enough for this mama. She worked on turning her baby with many methods, switched to a more appropriate provider and hospital, had an External Cephalic Version (ECV or "version", for short), and gave birth naturally to a perfectly healthy little girl after about 12 hours of labor. That mom feels like a million bucks right now!

So, I ask you: What is keeping you from the most incredible birth experience you can imagine? Are you settling for a provider who is cool or luke-warm about your birthing plans? Do they fail to discuss the particulars of your birth preferences, or doubt whether you can actually give birth naturally?

There ARE providers out there who are ECSTATIC about natural birth, who witness it daily, and who are passionate about letting your body follow its own natural course. But you won't know this until you interview them. And when you meet them, you'll know!

Lamaze International just released this video clip about making good choices in preparation for childbirth:

HypnoBirthing Conclave Presentation

2009-06-05T19:38:00.001-07:00

I received the official notification that I will be presenting my proposed program at the 2009 HypnoBirthing Conclave in Deerfield Beach, Florida in September.

This program came about as a result of my attendance at the Chicago Birth Summit in November 2008 and, subsequently, my attendance at the Coalition for Improving Maternity Services' (CIMS) Forum in San Diego during March of 2009. I informally became a representative of the HypnoBirthing Institute as a result of these advocacy-based organizational get-togethers, and I have so much to report!

Here's the specifics of the proposed outline for my 90-minute program:

Title:
HypnoBirthing: Not Just a Method, But a Mission - Becoming a Leader and Promoting Evidence-Based Care

Description:

Is HypnoBirthing just a method or are we really involved int he promotion of better care practices? HypnoBirthing has taken several key steps to join with the wider birthing community in promoting evidence-based, mother- and baby-friendly care. Learn how HypnoBirthing is joining forces with the wider birthing community. Discover how crucial your involvement is as a private educator and the ways you can be involved in advocacy and promotion of better maternity care.

Objectives:

Participants will be able to:

Explain why involvement in birth advocacy is vitally important as a HypnoBirthing Childbirth Educator.

Identify 3 ways HypnoBirthing is working to promote the wider evidence-based birthing community.

Name at least 5 major organizations and movements that advocate for evidence-based maternity practices and how each is involved in this goal.

Name 5 sources that can be used to identify and investigate evidence-based care for your own knowledge and practice.

Name 10 ways that HBCE's can be involved in advocating for better maternity care in the wider community and by representing the HypnoBirthing Institute.

New HypnoBirthing Birth Story

2009-05-27T17:39:00.001-07:00

This is a story from a new first-time mom who took my class.

Cindy:

Sorry it has taken me so long to thank you for the HypnoBirthing class. I wanted to share my amazing birthing story with you. I delivered an eight pound boy with absolutely NO pain medicine.

My labor was 18 hours and was filled with a lot of excitement. It all started when I went to the hospital at 1 AM because I thought my water broke and my contractions were like 4 minutes apart. I soon found out there are different kinds of contractions and my urine was leaking it was not the water breaking and I was only one cm. So I went home and woke up at 7 AM feeling a lot more intense contractions.

I returned to the hospital at 10 AM and was 3 cm. Seeing how we were in the middle of massive renovations I decided the hospital was the best place to labor. I was lucky to have an awsome nurse who gave me a silicone hep lock and didnt evaluate me unless I requested it. She even let me go outside and eat too! The only pain I felt was at the beginning before listening to my HypnoBirthing cd. The CD helped me breathe through the contractions and suddenly the pain dissapeared. I got tired of the hospital and decided to try the nipple stimulation and thanks to my husband, my water broke probably 10 minutes later.

I was breathing down the baby until my doctor said if I didnt start pushing I would not be able to have my baby vaginally (how rude). So I pushed the baby out in 15 minutes. I delivered only 2 hours after my water breaking! Thanks for everything I loved giving birth so much I wanna have another baby soon! I love being a mom too!

P.S. - During labor I enjoyed rocking back and forth holding onto my husband, the bed, on the birthing ball, on the toilet and also enjoyed showering a few times and walking. Another thing I forgot to mention, resting when I got tired was really really important. I just popped the tape in and went to sleep.

HypnoBirthing Giveaway!

2009-05-22T16:28:00.000-07:00

Rachel East, a blogger at Life More Simply, has a very novel idea. She wants to know what you think about HypnoBirthing, by visiting the main HypnoBirthing website, and then comment on it on her blog. Then, she will give a FREE HypnoBirthing Textbook, Rainbow Relaxation CD, and a "Please Only Happy Birth Stories...Baby is Listening..." button to the winner of the contest!

Here's what you need to do:

"To enter, you need to head over to the HypnoBirthing website and then come back here and leave a comment with one interesting thing that you learned from their site. You also need to tell me your expected due date or when you hope (in an ideal world) to have your next child. Be sure to leave your email address in your post or it won't count! This contest will end at 12:00 pm EST on Sunday, May 31, 2009."

I hope you will visit her very interesting blog to learn about some interesting topics and support her efforts to help moms learn about HypnoBirthing. And, thanks to Rachel for laying it straight about our birthing method!

Good Example of Suggestibility

2009-05-11T18:01:00.000-07:00

In my HypnoBirthing classes, I love to talk about how suggestibility can affect the labor and birthing process. Plainly stated, suggestibility is the openness to language and predictions that is prevalent when someone is hypnotized--hypnosis is a state of being suggestible and vulnerable to others' predictions about our experiences. Since hypnosis utilizes the altered state of consciousness that is experienced by all of us throughout the day, (we are most familiar with this concept when a commercial makes us feel hungry for a certain food or when the first song we hear in the morning sticks in our heads all day long), it is a normal and natural response.

During labor, suggestibility goes hand-in-hand with the natural trance state of the laboring women. It doesn't matter if you took HypnoBirthing. You will naturally go within and become more focused on your body...and more suggestible to what others predict about your labor. In class, we talk about how laboring women often feel exactly what they are told to feel or have the labor length they are told they will have. THAT is suggestibility. And it is important to be aware of what is being said around you, during your labor, because it can have serious consequences.

As I was sitting on the couch watching TV the other night I came across this episode of Family Guy. Watch from 8:14-8:55 in particular. Summary of the clip: Brian, the dog, arrives at a woman's house and she throws a white powder on his face. He is shocked, but not bothered by this. She promptly predicts that "it's gonna burn like hell in 30 seconds," and continues to banter with him. He notices nothing else until she soon reminds him, "By the way, it's been 30 seconds..." and he suddenly responds by screaming, grabbing at his eyes in pain, and running around the room in a panic.

Interesting! Sounds like a lot of labors where mom was doing just fine, until she was told that she would feel one thing or another, or that labor would progress in a certain way--usually a negative, rather than positive, suggestion. Lo and behold, it happens. And we wonder why!

Well, some of us wonder why. Some of us are not surprised at all.

Thought-Provoking Video Clip

2009-05-11T16:23:00.000-07:00

Childless Doula - Radical?

2009-05-11T10:23:00.000-07:00

I am starting to think that I am a radical doula & childbirth educator, of sorts. What does that mean? Miriam, author of the Radical Doula Website/Blog, claims that she is a radical doula because she is 1) Pro-choice, 2) Queer (a.k.a. LGBTQ, not heterosexual), and 3) Latina. In other words, she is different than the majority of birthing professionals, who are typically identified with a heterosexual, two-parent family, and who have children of their own.

My main "drawback" as a doula and educator is that I haven't had children. This may seem obvious, but there is quite a bit of debate out there among women and their choice for birth attendants--i.e., would they hire a midwife/doula/doctor/instructor who has never had children? Those who say "No," argue that there is no way a childless man or woman could relate or empathize with a laboring woman, because they could not possibly know how it feels. Those who say "Yes," argue that one is not hired based on their experience, but rather on their skills and sensitivity, which is certainly not gained solely through the experience of giving birth.

Of course, I believe that any birthing experience I may have had could not possibly teach me as much as I have learned as an educator and doula in the last 5 years. What if I had a traumatic experience? What if I had a short, painless birth? If our births were completely different (which is highly, highly likely), wouldn't I also lack the personal experience that a childless doula has? I often say, at least I have no baggage with me, whatsoever. I am not there to recreate my own birthing experience, I am not there to make up for what I personally missed, I am not there to project my experience onto that laboring woman. I am present. I am in the moment. Nancy Romanello RN, CLDT, CCCE, CLE, a CAPPA trainer, has this to say about a good doula:

What, then, makes a good doula? One of the most important qualities of a good doula is the ability to put aside her own feelings about what is a "good birth" and support the mother and her partner in their decisions...Another important quality is a caring and compassionate heart. It is also important that the doula have physical strength, good listening skills, a calm demeanor, and a good knowledge of childbirth.

Nancy also implies that there are, in fact, advantages to hiring a childless doula:

Some people believe that to be a good doula you must have given birth yourself. There are many childless doulas with wonderful skills and very kind and caring hearts. Sometimes they find doula work easier than others as they have fewer commitments than women with children.

Nancy has a good point! As a childless (actually, I prefer "childfree") doula, I am able to jump in the car and go to a birth without having to worry about finding childcare, caring for sick children, or conflicts with attendance at my children's activities. I am also fresh and well-rested as a result.

I have felt the sting that this "outsider" label has given me for the last 5 years of being a birthing professional, as it hangs around, often unspoken. I know the judgement exists about my qualifications, whenever someone asks if I have had children and I say "No." I know what they're thinking. However, I know that I have helped, literally, dozens and dozens of mothers have wonderful births, through both my HypnoBirthing classes and my attendance at births. I know I can help. And it's okay if a mom doesn't want to hire me for that reason.

In fact, I think that I want to focus on serving alternative families--single moms, lesbian couples, surrogate & adoptive families, and teens. So, let's get the word out. Moms of ALL kinds need the support of a doula, not just the ones with loving husbands. A doula can also help normalize the ambivalent feelings that go along with birth for moms who face other challenges during this crucial time period. THAT is where the skill comes in!

Kismet

2009-05-03T09:17:00.000-07:00

I had the most interesting random meeting today. If you follow my professional profile on Facebook (find me as "Cindy Unger HBCE"), you saw my status update yesterday. Here I'll tell the whole story, save identifying details in order to preserve the privacy of those involved.

As a massage therapist, I occasionally perform fill-in work at a spa in the city of Chicago. Yesterday was one of those days. My last client proved to be a talkative one, making small talk about relaxation music, which lead to me talking about music used for hypnosis and a conversation about my involvement with hypnotherapy. This occasionally comes up in my client sessions, as clients are curious about how I got into massage therapy, how long I've worked at that location, and what I do with my life outside of massage. This time was different.

As I talked about my work with hypnotherapy, I said my main focus was working with women who were preparing to give birth. This often intrigues my clients (but not always!), and this client was intrigued, asking how it worked, etc. I said the major premise is that childbirth shouldn't be painful, as every other normal body function happens without pain, and the source of that pain is fear and tension in the mother's body. He was very, very interested and said it made sense.

The next thing I remember is my client telling me he was an anesthesiologist. I thought (and said), wow, that's interesting. I asked if he worked in Labor & Delivery. Yes, he said. The room started spinning! Automatically, I thought, this guy must be an advocate for drugs during labor, and I probably have a lot of explaining to do!! Why did I say all of that simple language about birth without even thinking about who my audience was?? I was most definitely talking down to him! The thoughts were racing.

But he was surprisingly easy to talk to and accepting of everything I said. (I also felt kinda bad that we were talking through his massage, but neither of us could resist!)

Then, the most interesting part was revealed: He works for one of Chicago's most interventive, epidural-laden, non-natural-birth-friendly, "baby factory" (I won't reveal the name to preserve privacy on this public forum, but ask me personally and I'll tell you)! Without blinking an eye, he tells me how that hospital just works on getting women in-and-out, actually using the phrase "baby factory," and he doesn't quite agree with the rushing of all of the births. After all, he said, what would happen if we just see how things progress on their own? He says (and I know this well) that so many women are given oxytocin (a.k.a., "Pitocin" or "Pit"), even without any idea of what unknown effects it has, and it is clear that he is frustrated by the machine of this hospital.

Then, he says something very interesting. He mentioned that electronic fetal monitoring (EFM) has never been shown to improve outcomes--a clear, indisputable fact from scientific literature. I was shocked that he knew this--more specifically, I was shocked that medical doctors knew this fact so well, even though it is standard procedure. Clearly, the frustration is felt by those working on the "front lines" and not just us doulas and childbirth educators!! He made it clear that malpractice was the driving force for the use of EFM. I knew this, but clearly the validation was priceless.

We then talked about the specifics of epidural use. In particular, the fact that this hospital does not use "walking epidurals" (which would, essentially, give the mother more mobility and ability to work with her body--a very good thing) because of liability issues. This means that the hospital could be liable if the mother was a little unsure of her footing and slipped while walking, moving, sitting on a birth ball, etc. So, even though a lower dose of anesthetic would be helpful in so many ways, it is looked over in the name of liability by this hospital (and, I'm sure, many others).

He also described why IV narcotics are used. I won't go into that here, but he clearly stated that this type of anesthetic needs to be removed 2 hours before the birth because it can cause serious, life-threatening breathing problems in the baby--causing a need for resuscitation and intubation (and, of course, the requisite stay in the NICU, away from mom & dad).

He said his instructor was trained in the use of acupuncture and he is personally interested in alternative approaches to pain relief in the hospital--including hypnosis--in order to prevent the obvious side effects of medical anesthesia. He asked about other, less interventive hospitals and what they offered that helped mothers. I mentioned the use of water. And, not just water, but permanent tubs, like at West Suburban, since the moveable tubs seem to annoy the nurses who have to take the time to fill them (and so they often don't). He asked why water was helpful. He was truly interested and intrigued in the alternatives.

In the end, I learned a valuable lesson (one that was validated by one of the comments on my Facebook status): Even medical professionals are frustrated by the state of maternity care!! Interestingly enough, though, it takes more than just one frustrated person, even if a medical doctor, to change the state of hospital policy and procedure. In some ways, this is frustrating. In other ways, it is encouraging--because it means that those of us who are frustrated are not just daydreaming or full of fantasy about care.

Speaking of fantasy, I'm hoping to arrange an in-service where I can go and talk to the residents about the use of hypnosis during birth. In particular, I would love to emphasize the benefits of relaxation (and the Fear-Tension-Pain cycle) and the reality of hightened suggestibility during labor.

Scare Tactics and Advocacy

2009-04-02T16:37:00.001-07:00

If you have taken my class, you will remember a popular phrase that I often repeat (and if you are going to take my class, you will hear me say this):

There is a bias towards short labors and labors that start earlier (i.e., right at the due date, and not too long after).

Who holds this bias? Pretty much everyone! Moms want short labors (and dread longer labors), friends and family want to know when you're giving birth and tell horror stories of long labors, doulas and childbirth educators brag about short labors, and most importantly--medical professionals and hospitals want you to have a short labor that starts right around your due date.

Statistically speaking, it is impossible for all labors to start right at the due date, especially with a median gestation length of 41 weeks/1 day (1 week + 1 day PAST the due date) for first-time moms and 40 weeks/3 days for moms who have given birth before. It is also impossible, statistically speaking, for every mother to have an exceptionally short labor, when the normal distribution always peaks around the average and tails off at either extreme.

The first problem with this is assuming that a long labor is a bad thing. That's a topic for another day--particuarly when short labors come on (guess?) very fast and can stop you in your tracks when you least expect it!! Long labors give you time to get used to the idea of your baby arriving soon. And they are not necessarily as intense as short labors--they creep up slowly and give your endorphins a chance to kick in, kind of like a long walk that builds gradually into a jog (rather than an instant sprint!).

The next, and most troublesome, problem with this bias towards slow labors is the medical response to such labors. The problem is that there is no open admission about this bias. It is a silent secret.

How do you know that the bias is creeping into your birthing room? Likely, you will hear threats of great harm being done to your baby, perhaps even death, declarations that your body is not working properly, or predictions of neverending labor and suffering, in the complete absence of any signs of distress or trouble (including the fetal heart rate), if you continue laboring as you are.

Here is a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean) story that illustrates this--it is long, but well worth reading:

http://thefeministbreeder.typepad.com/the_feminist_breeder/2008/05/jules-michael-birth-story.html

You might think, Wow! How can something like that happen? How can doctors threaten a mother like that? Surely it must be a fluke!

No. It's not a fluke. In fact, it happens with virtually every mother that goes past her due date or experiences a longer-than-average labor or longer-than-average birthing (i.e. "pushing") phase. I see it all the time. About the only time it doesn't happen is with homebirth midwives or certain infamous non-interventive providers. And some providers are more subtle.

Folks, it has nothing to do with you or your baby. If you think your doctor or midwife just wants to go home and go to bed, you're probably right. If you think he/she just wants to get it over with by the weekend, you're probably right. If you think he/she is being pressured by hospital policy, you're probably right. If you think that there must be some kind of arbitrary time limit for your labor in general or for pushing your baby out, you are most certainly right (most hospitals want the baby out within 24 hours total, with a maximum limit of 2-3 hours of pushing/birthing beyond the 10cm point).

Don't let anyone talk to you like that. Ask for clear evidence (the heart rate is ok, but those monitors are extremely unreliable). Take a lesson from Jules' mama--stand up for yourself and your baby. If you don't, who else will?? Your doctor/midwife will probably forget about it by the time they are getting their full night sleep that night or vacationing with their family. But you won't forget.

Better yet, hire someone to attend your birth who will show you the utmost respect.

Birth Story

2009-04-01T10:55:00.000-07:00

Another wonderful birth story from a 3rd-time mom who took my class:

Cindy,

Here's our GREAT birth story!

Last Wednesday night I dozed off after listening to Rainbow Relaxation on my ipod. Between midnight and 3 am, I realized that birthing waves were waking me up every few minutes. They weren't strong, and I'd had a few nights like this, so I didn't think much of it.

By 3 am, the waves were coming every 4 minutes, so I was no longer falling asleep in between them. I decided to throw our last minute items in the suitcase, but I still thought it was just practice labor. The waves were short and not at all painful, so I didn't wake up X or call the midwife until 6 am. The waves at that point got closer together and stronger, so I asked X to get our daughters ready for daycare. We decided to leave for the hospital around 7:15 am. I felt like we were leaving home much too early, but I didn't want to get stuck in rush hour, which might lengthen our drive from 15 minutes to an hour.

When we got to the hospital, I was still smiling and chatting between waves, although now when the waves came I needed to go silent and limp in order to stay relaxed. They monitored the baby for twenty minutes before checking me and announcing that I was at 6 centimeters. WHAT?? I wasn't even sure I was really in labor up until that point! I hadn't experienced a second of pain, and after two previous unmedicated births, I didn't think I could possibly progress that far without any discomfort! But there I was.

So they sent us to the alternative birthing center room as we'd planned, and I got into the shower for 15 minutes while X and our midwife filled the tub. I climbed into the tub, and after one contraction my water broke. Suddenly, the contractions changed, and I started shaking and feeling a lot of pressure. I ought to have recognized it as transition, but it seemed far too soon for that! Still, my body (and midwife) knew that it was time for the baby to come. After two incredibly powerful contractions, he was in my arms! And he was perfect.

He was born at 9:15 am, so it was a VERY good thing we didn't get stuck in rush hour! I'm pretty sure we'd have had him in the car.

[Baby] was (and still is) calm, bright eyed, and alert at birth. He didn't even cry, he just looked at us all as though a bit surprised by his new surroundings.He nursed well immediately. At our request, we were discharged just 12 hours after we arrived at the hospital, since baby and I were both healthy and ready to roll. It was wonderful to spend [baby]'s first night in our home.

Our fast, easy, peaceful, beautiful waterbirth was not only everything we'd hoped - it was more than we hoped. My two previous births were empowering, wonderful experiences, but there was pain and at least a few moments of fear. This time, I felt in control and confident throughout, and I felt wonderful afterwards. X and I are thrilled that we were able to have such a fantastic experience during our third, and likely our last, birth.

Thanks for telling us about West Suburban Hospital and Gayle and Julie's midwife practice. As you know, they are wonderful midwives, and West Suburban is a great place for families seeking a natural, positive birth experience. We are so glad that we learned about HypnoBirthing, and we're grateful to you for your instruction and support throughout the pregnancy! Please let us know if there's anything we can do to help you once you're back in Chicago. We'd be thrilled to act as references for your class and to share our great experience with other couples.

A pic of the little guy at less than an hour old is attached. Thank you again-- so much -- for everything!

New YouTube HypnoBirthing Videos

2009-03-28T20:44:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of new videos that poppped up on YouTube recently. Enjoy!

A Glimpse into Traditional Efe Pygmy Birth

2009-03-20T10:28:00.000-07:00

Jean Pierre Hallet spent years with the Efe Pygmies and witnessed their lifestyle, including their traditions in birth. Here is an excerpt.

This text is an excerpt from the following page: www.primal-page.com/pygmy.htm

Hallet described Pygmy labor as being very short, natural, and easy, even for afirst-time mother. And this is in spite of the fact that Pygmy babies are,proportionally, the biggest babies in the world. For example an 80-pound Pygmymother typically gives birth to an eight-pound baby, about one-tenth of her bodyweight. This would compare to a 130-pound woman birthing a 13-pound baby.

When the mother's membranes rupture, she notifies her two midwives, who thenwalk with her to the river, one on either side. "At the time of the pain,"Hallet said, "she will walk and sing, sing and be joyous."

Once at the river, the pregnant woman squats on a flat rock. The midwives holdher on each side, and breath deeply with her in what Hallet referred to as "atremendous feeling on oneness." When they feel the time has come, the women holdtheir breath. "They pause together," said Hallet, "and then you see the babycoming out."

One of the midwives briefly holds the baby upside down, washes the upper part ofthe body to make sure the baby is breathing well, and then returns the child tothe mother for nursing. The other midwife works her teeth down the umbilicalcord until she finds the narrow part, a few inches from the infant's abdomen."This is the place where, if a baby were dropped from the womb of a standingmother, the weight of the child would be enough to break that cord at thatpoint," said Hallet. The midwife bites this narrow part very slowly, and thengently squeezes the cord with her fingers. There is usually very littlebleeding.

To celebrate the birth of her child, Hallet noted, a mother will sing this song:

My heart is so joyous,
My heart flies in singing,
Under the trees of the forest,
The forest, our home, our mother.

In my net I have caught
A little bird,
A very little bird,
And my heart is caughtIn the net with my little bird.

During the birth, the father stays away. Birth is considered to be women'sbusiness. After birth, when the mother and baby have returned to their leafy,dome hut, the father comes to them and asks permission to enter. Then the fathermight clap his hands and thank his wife for their very wanted child.

Newborn Care

According to Hallet, there is no bonding ritual, but there is a bond — "like afruit to its branch" — a physical attachment for the first year or so. Duringthis year, the baby is "never separated from the mother." In Hallet's view, thisconstant contact is one reason why Pygmy infants rarely cry. Pygmy babies appearto feel good. "They are satisfied in all of their requirements," he stated. Onthe rare occasion when a baby does cry, it is only for a moment, because thebaby's need is immediately taken care of. Often this means nursing, whichsatisfies the baby's necessity for close contact and attention, as well as fornourishment.

Hallet remarked that the baby is usually carried in front, although sometimes onthe back. In either position, Pygmies feel it is essential to maintainskin-to-skin contact, with the child naked against the mother's bare skin. Ifclothing is needed for warmth, the mother wraps a clothe around both herself andher child, not between them. This constant skin contact continues for at leastthe first six months. Thereafter, the mother continues to provide plenty oftouching as well as baby-led nursing
....
The father takes great interest in his baby. He plays, holds and hugs the childas much as the mother does. Men and women equally manifest love and care. Infact, fathers will sometimes hold their babies for very long periods of time.Hallet recalled, "The most beautiful time for a father is when he holds his babyfor the very first time. He will hold his newborn with great . . . tenderness.And usually he will cry, because he is so touched by his baby."

New Homebirth Option in Chicagoland

2009-03-18T17:54:00.000-07:00

Today, while reading some posts on the Mothering.com Discussion Forums, I discovered that a wonderful change has occurred in homebirth in Chicagoland.

Hillary Kieser, CNM, formerly with West Suburban Midwives at West Suburban Medical Center in Oak Park, has left to practice homebirth. This is wonderful news! It means that Chicagoland has one more option for gentle, homebirth, with a practitioner who is well-versed in non-interventive, natural birth.

Here is a link to her website: http://www.gentlebirthcare.com

As you may know, West Suburban Medical Center is infamous for its Alternative Birthing Center (ABC)--two special rooms on the Labor & Delivery floor that cater to low-intervention birth (there are big, queen-sized beds, permanent tubs, intermittent monitoring, and lots of floor space for walking, crawling, etc.). Since Illinois does not have any freestanding birth centers (yet!), West Suburban is truly the gold standard in hospital birth in Chicago.

As Hillary says on her website, though, "Birth in a hospital is a recent cultural phenomenon, not based on research." Homebirth is such a great option, for those who truly want the best birth experience. If you are pregnant, you owe it to yourself and your baby to at least consider and investigate your options for homebirth!

Lamaze: Evidence Increases for Risks in Cesarean Surgery

2009-03-18T13:50:00.000-07:00

WASHINGTON (March 18, 2009)—As research continues to mount for the risks of cesarean surgery, the Centers for Disease Control released new, staggering statistics reporting that 31.8% of women endure birth by cesarean in the United States (2007). This announcement comes after the release of significant findings from the New England Journal of Medicine reinforcing that birth by cesarean surgery before 39 weeks of pregnancy causes increased complications in newborns.

Despite the latest advances in medical technology, health care providers cannot determine a baby’s due date with 100% accuracy. Therefore, cesarean surgeries scheduled before a woman’s estimated due date could result in a baby born as early as 36 weeks to a few days before the baby is actually due. During the last few weeks of pregnancy, a baby’s lungs mature and a protective layer of fat forms, both of which are vital developments for a healthy baby. In addition, babies need time for their lung cells to shift from being fluid producing to fluid absorbing cells. Without time during labor to prepare the baby to breathe, lungs cells may not be ready. Thus, babies born by cesarean surgery, even when they are full-term, need to go to an intensive care unit more frequently than babies who were born vaginally to get help breathing.

Photo by Paul Calhoun

Research published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) supports earlier findings that cesarean surgery performed prior to 39 weeks of pregnancy increases poor outcomes in babies. Of the babies in the NEJM study born before 39 weeks, more than 26% had complications, including the need to be on a ventilator, respiratory distress syndrome, low blood sugar and severe infection (sepsis).

“Overuse of cesarean surgery complicates the otherwise natural process of birth,” says Lamaze Institute Chair Debra Bingham, LCCE, MS, RN, DrPH, “Allowing the natural process to occur not only reduces risks for mothers in this and future pregnancies, but also reduces health risks for her baby.”

Spontaneous labor is almost always the best indication for a baby’s physical readiness for life outside of the womb. As one of the key steps to a healthy birth, Lamaze International recommends that women let labor begin on its own. Allowing labor to begin naturally increases the likelihood that a baby is healthy and ready for birth. When a birth outcome is good, mother and baby can bond and start breastfeeding immediately after birth—both of which provide the best start for a baby’s growth and development.

Lamaze International President Pam Spry, PhD, CNM, FACNM, LCCE says, “Maternity care in the United States is at a crossroads. The most commonly used practices don’t align with the best evidence for a healthy birth.” The Milbank Report’s Evidence-Based Maternity Care: What It Is and What It Can Achieve reveals that several routine maternity care practices, including cesarean surgery, contradict best evidence and are overused in the United States.

Cesarean surgery—a major abdominal surgery—also carries risks for women, such as blood loss, clotting, infection and severe pain, and poses future risks, such as infertility and complications during future pregnancies such as stillbirth and placenta problems like percreta and accreta, which can lead to excessive bleeding, bladder injury, hysterectomy and maternal death. The research is clear, however, that when medically necessary, cesarean surgery can be a lifesaving procedure for both mother and baby, and worth the risks involved.

Two of the most important decisions a woman can make are where she gives birth and who she chooses as her care provider. Lamaze International has developed tools to help women with these decisions, including the questions to ask and other reference material.

Visit http://magazine.lamaze.org/ to learn more about the Lamaze during pregnancy, birth and beyond.

Update on Homebirth Safety Act

2009-03-03T17:11:00.000-08:00

Well, folks. Here's the update.

I heard, through the grapevine, that the much-coveted bill to legalize and license midwives for homebirth in Illinois has not passed.

Thanks so much to the deep pockets of doctors and hospitals who don't care about the dignity, safety, and choice of birthing women and would rather pay their money to limit choice than actually work to improve outcomes.

This is what your high-priced hospital births pay for, folks: To pay lobbyists to convince politicians that a building with machines and surgical equipment is the only safe place to give birth to your baby...Maintaining the status quo...which is increasing your chance of a cesarean and unnecessary procedures in the name of malpractice and ticking clocks.

A sad, sad day for Illinois.

Important Illinois Legislation

2009-02-26T17:23:00.000-08:00

I am not a mother. In fact, I make my living helping women to advocate for a better birth--mostly in hospitals. So, in some ways, this post is promoting a movement that just may put me out of business.

Bring it on! I'll find other work if women no longer need my services, because they are fully supported in having a normal, safe births that respect them as special people and fierce mothers with dignity. I'll be happy to be forced out of this profession for that reason.

There are two very important bills moving through the Illinois legislature right now, and they need your help:

1) Illinois Homebirth Legislation & Licensing for Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs)

Click Here to learn more about this URGENT legislation that will be heard NEXT WEEK in Springfield! This is the last chance that Illinois has for many years to license midwives and increase the availability for safe homebirth and normal birth for Illinois mothers!

http://chicagohypnobirthing.blogspot.com/2009/02/illinois-homebirth-legislation.html

2) Written Collaborative Agreements (WCAs) for CNMs (Certified Nurse Midwives)

Click here to learn more about SB 1600, a bill that will give CNMs the ability to really practice homebirth independently in Illinois (and read about why that is really not possible right now).

http://chicagohypnobirthing.blogspot.com/2009/02/illinois-sb-1600.html

Illinois Homebirth Legislation

2009-02-26T17:18:00.000-08:00

To all home birth supporters!

This is an extremely urgent message from Collette Bernhard. PLEASE DROP ALL YOUR PLANS AND HEAD TO THE STATE CAPITOL NEXT TUESDAY, MARCH 3, 2009!

I cannot overstate how important this is.

The Home Birth Safety Act (HB 226), which will license Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs) for home birth, is going to be heard in the Health Care Availability Access Committee next Tuesday, March, 3, 2009, at 4pm. This will either be the beginning of a great era or the final chapter in our decades long efforts to pass a CPM licensure law. The next time after this year to introduce a viable bill will be years from now, so we must make our best efforts now.
We have gone down every possible avenue over the past few years, to get as much support as possible, and even reached agreement with our state's nursing groups. We have built a strong coalition with many state groups including Illinois Public Health Association, Illinois Maternal Child Health Coalition, Health and Medicine Policy Research Group, and Health and Disability Advocates, among others. We've even managed to get our bill placed in a better committee. So it all comes down to this: will we make it out the House Health Care Availability Access Committee, or will our bill die?

We have just received word from our people on the ground in Springfield that individual doctors have been traveling to Springfield to lobby against our bill. A lot of them. And they are making an impression. This is unprecedented in Illinois and even across the whole country that large numbers of individual doctors are actually going to the state capitol to lobby against a CPM licensure bill. So please PLEASE if you value home birth and want the option available for your future pregnancies or for your daughters in the years to come, then make it your number one priority to come to Springfield, Illinois next Tuesday, March 3, 2009!

We need EVERYONE to take a vacation day or call in sick, pull your kids out of school, and bring your sister, your best friend and your mother to Springfield that day to pack the hallways and the hearing room! We have to show Illinois legislators that the people of Illinois need access to licensed midwives!

Just a little while ago, the Illinois General Assembly's website posted that our bill, HB 226, the Home Birth Safety Act, has been assigned to a different committee, Healthcare Availability Access. This is a good sign, but we still have an uphill battle.

Please look over the list of the targeted legislators at http://homebirthishealthy.blogspot.com/2009/02/targeted-action-alert.html to see if you or anyone you know lives in these districts. Make sure that you and your family and friends immediately contact their state representative to support HB 226, the Home Birth Safety Act. Then let us know what you hear!

You can contact Colette Bernhard on facebook or via email at birthnews@earthlink.net or Pat Colet at colefam@gmail.com.

The Healthcare AA committee usually meets the first session day of the week in the afternoon, so we will most likely call the bill NEXT TUESDAY, March 3, 2009. Assuming we (along with our sponsors and lobbyist) believe that we are ready, and soon as the General Assembly's website posts the hearing notice, we will pass on the final details of the hearing time.

Please pencil in the date and plan to attend with your QUIET children. Children are very welcome so long as they are quiet, but due to the legal nature of the proceedings, you must be prepared to exit the room immediately if your child starts to make any sound whatsoever. That said, we hope that you will be able to attend to show your support! We will post more details later.

Please forward this message to everyone you know and ask them to do the same!
-----------------------------
See our latest updates at http://homebirthishealthy.blogspot.org !
Colette M. Bernhard

Illinois SB 1600

2009-02-26T16:59:00.000-08:00

The following information was provided by Debbie Boucher, CNM, a nurse-miwife who provides homebirth services in Lake County. It provides great insight into current homebirth practices in Illinois, currently only available through CNMs and MDs who are able to provide these services.

The current Nurse Practice law in Illinois requires Advanced Practice Nurses (APNs) to have a written collaborative agreement (WCA) signed by an MD. Without a WCA, we are not allowed to practice. This law applies to Debbie because as a certified nurse midwife (CNM) I am also an APN, which is how she is licensed. She is asking you to call and/or send a letter to your Illinois senator, asking him/her to support SB 1600, which is a new bill to eliminate the WCA requirement.

The Nurse Practice law was already amended recently to allow hospital-based CNMs to practice without a WCA, so it is only fair that independent CNMs be allowed to practice without one. SB 1600 also affects all other types of independent APNs, like Family Nurse Practitioners, Women’s Health Nurse Practitioners, Geriatric Nurse Practitioners, and the APNs providing medical care at Walgreens, Walmart, etc.

Click here to find your senator and his/her phone number.

When you make your phone call, here is what you could say:
Hello, my name is __________, I live in __(town)__, and I’m a constituent of Senator _________. I am calling to ask the senator to please support SB 1600. I appreciate the comprehensive and cost-effective healthcare provided by Advanced Practice Nurses. I understand that many APNs find it difficult to find doctors to sign their written collaborating agreement. SB 1600 will empower APNs to work within their scope of practice without a collaborator restricting their professional role as safe and effective healthcare providers. Does the senator plan to vote yes for this bill?

Here are more details about how this bill affects the practices of CNMs and the health of women and families of Illinois.

Midwives like Debbie Boucher spend around 6 years in school to become a licensed midwife, so they can legally offer midwifery services to the women of northeast Illinois. Debbie is currently the only full-scope CNM in Lake County. She also serves parts of McHenry and Kane counties, where there are no CNMs, and Cook County where there are only three CNMs providing home birth. The midwife who works with her serves the women of Dupage, Cook, Kendall, and Will counties also.

After Debbie graduated, she met with individual MDs and groups of MDs, totaling over 36 MDs to find one to sign her WCA, so she could start her practice. Most of the doctors said that they would have no problem providing back-up to her, but none of them would sign her WCA. They did not want to have any kind of agreement in writing.

Debbie finally found one MD in Cook County to sign the WCA, but he has stated on numerous occasions that this should be considered a temporary agreement until she finds an MD in Lake County to sign it. He is also subject to the whims of the hospital administration where he practices, who may decide that they don’t want to support home birth midwives, even as indirectly as that relationship would be.

Thus, Debbie's (or any other CNM providing homebirths...only four in the Chicago area!) ability to practice could be gone tomorrow if her collaborating MD were to change his mind or if his hospital administration were to find out and exert their control.

That is why SB 1600 is so very important to Debbie Boucher and to the women she serves in Lake, McHenry, Kane, Cook, Dupage, Kendall, and Will counties. It is one of the best ways to ensure the ability for women in the Chicago area to birth at home and away from a hospital.

After you make your call, please contact Debbie Boucher through her website (www.yourbirth.com) or call her at 847-816-4640 to let her know how it went and if the senator plans to support the bill. She’ll forward your comments to the ISAPN people who are working on the bill.

If you have time to send a letter you can say the same things as above, and also add text from the email below.

Hypno/Waterbirth

2009-02-23T12:06:00.001-08:00

Yet another beautiful Hypno/waterbirth on YouTube:

Amazing birth video!

2009-01-16T20:03:00.000-08:00

Naitre_enchantee
Uploaded by magalidieux

HypnoBirthing Story from New Mexico

2009-01-16T15:12:00.000-08:00

This is a story passed on from a HypnoBirthing practitioner in New Mexico.

Here is a great HB story from a woman who had a very interventionist first birth. She expected her 2nd birth to be even harder and worse than the first.......Not so with HB!

My water broke at about 12:30 am on the morning of Dec 20th (10 days before “due date”). This was nice since I then had some warning before going into labor. I was not able to go back to sleep right away because I was excited about the baby coming. I was not having any surges yet. I sent some e-mails and closed up some things for work that night while I waited for the surges to start. Finally I went to bed about 3 am and deeply relaxed. As soon as I achieved deep relaxation I had a strong surge (around 3am). I continued to have surges as long as I was relaxed, but only about every 30 min or so. I slept a little between surges.

At 7am I woke my husband and called a neighbor to keep our 3-yr-old daughter. We dropped her off at 7:45 with our neighbor and headed for the hospital. (When I called my midwife the night before she said I could come into the hospital in the early morning—she suggested 6am but I didn’t want to call my neighbor that early if I didn’t need too).

On the way to the hospital I suggested we stop at the grocery store. My husband said, “are you serious?” but stopped for me anyway. We shopped for snacks for the day. A sandwich for him, yogurt for me, and doughnuts for both of us. I got my favorite doughnut to celebrate after the birth since I should no longer have gestational diabetes then. Before we got to the checkout, I informed my husband that I had 4 or 5 surges since we arrived at the store. He raised his eyebrows and with wide eyes said, “then they are coming every few minutes! We better get going!” I told him, “I think we still have time, I’m still pretty comfortable”. I am amazed now at how calm I was. I would walk around the store and just stop and breathe and relax whenever I had a surge. I called my doula, Joleen, and she said, “I guess we’re going to have a baby before Christmas after all” and I thought, “We’re going to have a baby before noon!”

We arrived at the hospital and got checked in. I think I got to my room about 9am. The midwife offered to check my cervix, but said she didn’t have to yet, so I declined. About 10:00 I ate some of my yogurt and about half of Dan’s sandwich. After that the surges got stronger. I really felt it in my lower back. Dan put pressure on my lower back and that helped.

I felt like I was having trouble relaxing, but Dan and the nurse assured me that I looked very relaxed. Dan offered the iPod, where we had the relaxation recordings, but all I did was put the earphone on my ear and I did not turn it on. It seems the sensation of that on my ear was enough to help (I had practiced with the iPod at home). The surges were very intense by then and were coming closer together. I asked Dan to run a bath for me. I needed his help getting out of bed and walking to the bathroom. I got one foot in the bath and decided I’d better sit on the toilet first. I sat on the toilet and felt the baby descending.

Dan said I looked scared at that point, but I just remember being surprised and thinking, “I have to get back to bed!” Dan helped me back to the bed and I crawled in on my hands and knees and ended up staying in that position. I started to breath the baby down. I was aware that the room was filling up with people, but I tried to stay focused on breathing. I would rest between contractions so I ended up more in a position of elbows and knees, but my knees were tucked up kind of close to my elbows and the head of the bed was raised, so that I was pretty horizontal.

For about 15 minutes I think, I breathed the baby down. That is when the midwife checked me for the first time. She said I had a tiny bit of cervix left. After that I felt an uncontrolled need to push and I did. I groaned and might have yelled a bit, but I also spoke to myself and my baby. I remember saying, “get out!” and “You can do it!” and “almost there!” After his head came out I rested. I was glad at that point to remember some of the videos from the hypnobirthing class where the women had rested at this point. I needed to rest, and I also needed to know it was okay to do this.

I still had to push very hard to get his shoulders out after that and he did have some bruising, but I think this is just because he was such a large baby. He was born at 10:45 am. The midwife passed him between my legs so I could look down and see my baby crying. I remember thinking “he looks healthy” because he was crying well. I rolled over with help and held my baby on my abdomen and we waited for the cord to stop pulsating. Then I cut the cord. This is something that I had wanted to do with my first child, but by that time I was too tired to do so. This time I remember being so glad that I actually had some energy left after the birth! I told everyone in the room “wow, that wasn’t so bad!”

I also realized at that point that my husband and I were able to do this largely on our own. Because things happened so fast, our doula arrived at the end while I was already pushing. We were not alarmed by this or concerned. I felt very prepared. I could tell immediately after that my recovery would be easier and swifter than it was with my first child (and it has been!) .

HypnoBirthing Story from Australia

2009-01-15T21:41:00.000-08:00

Here is a birth story just passed on from a HypnoBirthing practitioner in Australia. Enjoy!

It all started about at about 3.30am when I woke up feeling crampy as if I had some food poisoning. I had eaten an omelette at a new cafe the day before so I thought it might have been disagreeing with me. If you've ever had bad food poisoning, you'll know the pains come in waves so I didn't even think that I was in labour. The cramps literally weren't any more uncomfortable than food poisoning.

I thought I'd put on my ipod and listen to the Rainbow Relaxation to try to get some more sleep. I should have known something was up though.......I actually made it through to the end of the Rainbow Relaxation without falling asleep FOR THE FIRST TIME!!

After about an hour of trying to get back to sleep, I thought I'd move to the couch and watch some bad TV to try to make me sleepy. At just before 5am, I went to the loo and had some diarrhoea. Still thinking I had food poisoning...but starting to wonder if perhaps this was the first signs of labour. Our doula mentioned that for each of her three births, she had diarrhoea beforehand.

My state was decided though when I discovered some blood. "Oh no", I cried....."I'm in labour!"I then (now don't laugh)....logged on to my work emails and sent a message to the management to consider me on leave from that point. Yes, seriously!

At this point, I thought maybe I should start seeing if those food poisoning cramps were coming at certain intervals, but I didn't try too hard as all the info you read and all the mid-wives tell you not to get pedantic about it as it stresses you out. I figured they were coming approx 2-3 mins apart.

To figure out when I needed to call the Birth Centre, I started to read through their info booklet that they gave us at the info night only 2 nights before. They mentioned to call the Birth Centre if the blood was a rich, bright red. Mine was, so I called them at about 5.30am. The mid-wife asked how I was feeling and I said I was feeling quite good, and experiencing cramps every few minutes or so but I wasn't really timing them. I was starting to have to breathe deeply through them at this stage to make the cramps more comfortable to deal with. She asked me to keep them updated and try to get some rest.

S woke up with the sound of me chatting to the Birth Centre. I told him I was in labour and he wondered why I hadn't woke him up before then. Everyone tells you to let the hubby sleep as long as possible so they can get rest, so that's what I was doing. Since he was now awake though, I asked him to help me pack a bag for the Birth Centre. I know, I know......I should have had the bag packed already! In my defence, I was a week out from my due date and the midwives kept telling me that first times mums 85% of the time birth late. I did have a list though, and the bag ready ;-) Just before 6am, I couldn't help S any longer with packing the bag.

I was curled up on the bed trying to concentrate on my breathing. I was using the count to 20 and then count backwards to 1 to get through the surges and really concentrating on going "lucy limp" in between every surge. I tried to help S in between surges to tell him where things were to pack the bag. It didn't help that the clothes I wanted were waiting to be washed! As well as sending him all over the house finding things, I was starting to get annoyed at him because he wasn't helping me to relax in between surges or helping me with any of the hypnobirthing techniques. I think I yelled at him "you seriously have forgotten EVERYTHING you've learnt, haven't you!" Side Note - to help your hypnobirthing partner during this 'exciting' time, print out reminder signs of all the techniques that can be employed.......and pin them to the bedroom wall and the bathroom wall!!

The dogs started to get worried about me now as I was starting to get quite cranky. K (our 2 year old), jumped up on the bed and was trying to kiss me all better. I barked at S to "give me the phone now!" I then called my mother and calmly announced that I thought I was in labour, and could she come around and get the dogs as K was starting to get freaked out by me. I said to S that I was going to have a shower now and he should call our doula to come around. In the shower, I shaved my legs in between surges and chatted to S. By the end of the shower though,I was shivering, feeling nauseous and I curled up on the floor repeating "have you called D?"(D is our doula).

My mum poked her head in at this stage and tried to perk me up by saying that I'd soon meet my baby. It probably would have helped to listen to the Birth Affirmations at this stage as I wasn't even thinking of the baby, I was lost in the feelings I was experiencing.

I managed to get back to the bed and the surges ramped up at this stage. They were about a minute apart. The surges started to feel quite different now, I think it was after 6.30am. During some of the surges, my body was starting to 'push'. My waters released during one of these. I started to get a little panicky now as I didn't feel that I should be progressing quite so fast. I was also sounding like Rain Man with my counting to 20! I suggested to S that I thought we should leave for the Birth Centre. He thought it was too early and to wait for D, who thank goodness arrived soon after that.

D's gentle suggestions to let my body do what it needed to do, and her support were just what I needed....someone who knew what they were doing! She asked if I wanted to have a bath, but I told her I wanted to go to the birth centre as I was pushing. S called the Birth Centre to tell them we were coming and that I was pushing. They suggested we leave immediately or head to the nearest hospital.

We went in D's car as I was too nervous to be without her for the car ride. After about 10 mins or so, I announced that I could feel ahead. D calmly asked me how I felt about X Hospital. S responded by driving faster as he kept thinking 'L doesn't want to go to a hospital, I've got to get her to the Birth Centre'! By that stage, I felt perfectly fine about X Hospital.

So we detoured.....

D kept me focused on the baby now by announcing that our baby had a beautiful head of hair!

At the hospital, D ran in and found the midwives and four came running out to the car. After determining that I was not going to move from where I was, and checking the baby's heartbeat (which was a little low), the midwife told me that they needed me to birth the baby as soon as possible. After two or so more surges, I had my beautiful little boy on my chest. It was 8:01am.

What a sight.....four midwives standing at the car door holding up sheets so I could have some privacy...D was in the car boot taking photos of me...and proud Daddy S was in the driver's seat crying with happiness....oh, and the garbage man was moving his garbage truck out of the way as he was trying to collect the garbage at that particular moment!

After shimmying out of the car into a wheelchair I was wheeled through the ante-natal clinic past a room full of expectant mothers waiting for their appointments. I could have died of embarrassment ifI had been at all with it. Apparently they all thought I was a hero.

I birthed the placenta about 10 mins later, and was resting comfortably soon thereafter. Just a few stitches were necessary, but they weren't a problem at all.

So much for my desired water-birth! I firmly believed that I did make this kind of birth happen though. Every person upon asking me which hospital I was booked into commented that Y [another hospital] was so far away. My standard response (which I must have said about 20-30 times) was that if I was going to have a baby that fast on the side of the road, that the birth would be so normal and fine that I wouldn't even need a hospital!!

Without even realising, I visualised the birth I was going to have. I felt so great that we were home relaxing on the couch by 2pm.

Hypnobirthing helped me immensely to relax in between every single surge. I believe everything happened so fast because I was so relaxed and was letting my body do what it was supposed to do. I didn't use the breathing towards the end as it was in my head to try to slow things down, so I was using a Lamaze style blowing-out-the-candle type breathing to cope with the baby coming down so fast which D suggested to me.

Dunstan Baby Language

2009-01-10T17:05:00.000-08:00

Learn another language – Baby Language!
By Mary Cay Cavanagh, LMT, CEIM

Listen! Your newborn is trying to tell you something! Dunstan Baby Language is a breakthrough system that teaches parents and caregivers to understand the meaning behind their babies’ cries. Parents know intuitively that a baby’s cry sounds different depending on the baby’s needs. But, until now, no one has taught specifically what to listen for in each cry so the meaning would be clear. The Dunstan system does just that! It works universally, regardless of language or cultural background, because the sounds babies make are based on physical reflexes that are an inherent part of every baby everywhere. In late 2006, Priscilla Dunstan, founder of the system, appeared on Oprah to introduce her findings to the United States and kick off sales of her DVD. In response to demand from the public, at the end of 2008, parent educators began to be trained in the USA so classes could be offered. As an infant massage educator, I was invited to attend the first training session in Chicago and one of only five in the United States. I am thrilled to be able to help parents and caregivers to learn this very valuable system of communicating with their babies. This knowledge greatly enhances parents’ confidence while producing a calmer baby whose needs are heard, recognized and quickly met. I wonder if there could be anything more welcome and meaningful in a household with a newborn…Did I mention this class is really fun too??

For more information, see my website http://www.sistersbabymassage.com/ and follow the link to Dunstan Baby Language information. If you’d rather talk about it, or arrange a brief presentation, give me a call – it’s one of my new favorite topics of discussion!

Mary Cay Cavanagh is a Licensed Massage Therapist, Certified Pre/perinatal Massage Specialist, Certified Infant Massage Educator, Certified Educator of Dunstan Baby Language. Mary Cay practices in Oak Park, IL and happily serves individuals and families throughout the Chicago area.

Orgasmic Birth on 20/20

2009-01-04T21:58:00.000-08:00

In the professional birthing world, there was a lot of anticipation over last week's episode of 20/20. That's because 20/20 talked about the movie Orgasmic Birth, and they have been planning to show the episode for quite some time. There were a lot of rumors about when it would air. And many were shocked (and happy) that it finally did.

You can watch the episode here.

There are other bloggers who are focusing on the public's response to the 20/20 episode. Kim Wildner's is one of the best. I'll leave that commentary to the others.

I want to compare HypnoBirthing to what 20/20 highlighted. Is it really such a "secret"?

"This is childbirth," announced the reporter, while showing movie clips of women huffing, puffing, screaming, cussing, and suffering through (acted) childbirth. Interesting--that really isn't childbirth, 20/20! It's dramatized. Fake. As we teach in HypnoBirthing, both women and men come to believe that it is real because it is portrayed that way in movies. If this is all we see, how do we know that it can be different?

The director of Orgasmic Birth, Debra Pascali-Bonaro, says that the same organs involved in sexual intercourse, and female orgasm, are stimulated during childbirth. So, why is it pleasurable for one of those acts, but not the other?

Dr. Christiane Northrup, author of Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom, agreed. She added that all of the hormones involved in the female sexual response, namely prolactin, oxytocin and beta-endorphins, are involved in labor, and in much higher amounts!

Dr. Northrup also spoke of the importance of the expectation of pain, a concept that Dr. Grantly Dick Read brought into consciousness (when he coined the Fear-Tension-Pain Syndrome) and HypnoBirthing continues to talk about. Dr. Northrup said that when pain is expected, muscles get tense (obviously!) and stress hormones increase, which creates and increases pain!

Of course, I was also very happy that one of the orgasmic birthing moms used hypnosis during birth, and she spoke of how she experienced sensation rather than pain. If you have taken a HypnoBirthing class (or, in particular, my HypnoBirthing class), you know that we choose many different words to interpret and describe what women feel during labor.

In fact, the message left by this show is that a birthing woman needs to prepare her body with breathing and relaxation, establish an environment of open expecations about labor sensation, have the opportunity to move and be upright during labor, and MOST IMPORTANTLY--create an environment that is sensual where she can lose her inhibitions...not unlike one where she would plan an intimate, romantic evening.

I guess HypnoBirthing isn't that special afterall! We really do have so much in common with what so many others know to be true about creating a birth experience that equals bliss and comfort. We aren't reinventing the wheel here, folks. We are just communicating it in an ever-so-slightly different way.

I am Lamaze-Certified!

2008-12-19T09:23:00.001-08:00

After a long, long process, I am very happy and proud to say that I am now a Lamaze Certified Childbirth Educator (LCCE). I took the certification exam in October and I just received my results--Pass!

In October, I wrote of my intentions for Lamaze Certification and how it will impact my birthing career, my HypnoBirthing practice and what it means as a professional credential.

As a HypnoBirthing practitioner, I have always felt a little under-qualified. I think we all know what it is like to feel like an imposter, like we are doing something that we just barely have the qualifications for. It is actually a very common sentiment--The Imposter Syndrome (see it described here on Wikipedia). The reasons I felt this way were complicated. I do not have children myself (I have never given birth), which seems like a standard among childbirth educators! Also, teaching HypnoBirthing came out of my interest in childbirth as a specialization of my hypnotherapy training. And HypnoBirthing is not recognized, for example, as a complete childbirth education class by some (including DONA, Doulas of North America). So, pursuing Lamaze Certification was a step in gaining knowledge and respect within the professional birthing world.

The process for becoming certified through Lamaze is complicated. Since I already teach HypnoBirthing, and have been teaching for quite some time (and for hundreds of hours), I was able to be certified through documentation of these teaching hours and by examination.

The examination was intense! The study guide for the exam, as provided by Lamaze, fits snuggly into a 1.5" binder. It is chock full of bullet points, references (especially websites and research studies) and important articles that emphasize the Lamaze philosophy. The test itself was conducted at a testing center, took about 1.5-2 hours to complete, and really challenged my thinking about birth. Unlike HypnoBirthing (which is solely focused on birth), Lamaze discusses physiological & psychological aspects of pregnancy, postpartum, and breastfeeding, in addition to labor and birth.

What I will do as a Lamaze instructor is still up for debate! I hope to offer supplemental classes to my HypnoBirthing childbirth classes (because I still think that HypnoBirthing is the best childbirth preparation program), such as Comfort Measures and Breastfeeding preparation.

Of course, I am now also offering Infant Massage instruction, because I am certified in this modality, too.

Google Video: The Circumcision Decision

2008-12-18T12:02:00.001-08:00

Waterbirth Cake

2008-12-16T20:09:00.000-08:00

Okay, I have to admit, that this one got me:

http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com/2008/11/oh-mama.html

Thanks to Tammi the midwife (and HypnoBirthing practitioner) for posting this link so that I can share it with you.

I advise you to check out the rest of the site, too...just make sure you have emptied your bladder and are ready for a good time.

Geography DOES Make a Difference...Right?!

2008-12-15T17:39:00.000-08:00

I am sure you have heard of Facebook. Recently, after joining and browsing the many groups that exist on the website, I heard about a group for L&D (Labor & Delivery) nurses. The group contains dozens of pages of comments by L&D nurses. One of the comments caught my attention.

I'll preface this story by saying that I am so blessed to be connected with a network of birthing professionals from many parts of the country and, indeed, the world. I am connected to an international network of HypnoBirthing practitioners, a national network of professionals from various disciplines and modalities working towards choice and mother-friendly care in birth (formed as the Chicago Birth Summit Task Force, at the November '08 Chicago Birth Summit), and the wonderfully abundant birthing community of San Diego, where I am blessed to spend my winters. Because of this, I am aware that Chicago is highly, highly medical compared to other areas. We are not a good place to give birth.

Back to the story--the L&D nurse on the Facebook group talked of the differences between her current community, somewhere in PA, and her old community, somewhere in NY. Apparently, she had just moved from NY to PA...and emphatically expressed her happiness about the move! She said that docs will "section" a mother after just a half-day of laboring through an induced labor, whereas in PA they will actually wait 3-4 days!! (Chicago tends to be around 24 hours, at least with the mothers I teach.)

The nurse went on to explain that these NY docs just didn't want to be there all night and wanted to be home for dinner. And, by the way, the reasons given for c-section were suspected macrosomia (a.k.a., a "big baby," who was only 7lbs) and, of course, failure-to-progress (yes, with only a 1/2 day to labor).

Another nurse chimed in to say that PA isn't necessarily so great. Where she works, she says, docs will "section" because they want to get to the golf course or they want to avoid a call in the middle of the night. Maybe it's not about geography.

Maybe it's the providers; because moms give birth just fine when the doc doesn't just "section" them. Babies aren't always on the verge of doom during labor, like some providers make it seem. But they can say that and no one questions them.

Remember THAT when in labor at 4pm on a Friday night or on a beautiful Chicago summer day. What IS the urgency, here?

Chicago-area C-section Rates

2008-12-14T13:20:00.001-08:00

The C-section rates for local hospitals have been reported for 2007. Here they are, ranked from lowest to highest:

West Suburban: 20%
Swedish Covenant: 23%
Sherman Hospital - Elgin: 24%
St. Mary of Nazareth: 26%
University of Chicago: 26%
Northwestern/Prentice: 28%
Illinois Masonic: 32%
Highland Park Hospital: 33%
Good Samaritan - Downer's Grove: 34%
Good Shepherd - Barrington: 35%
Lutheran General - Park Ridge: 37%
St. Alexius - Barrington: 37%

No data was provided for:
Alexian Brothers - Elk Grove
UIC Hospital

Please note that the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that a safe c-section rate should be around 15%, with the goal of reaching the optimal cesarean rate of 5-10%.

The Chicago area's cesarean rates are embarrassingly high! 37%??! That's more than one out of every three. And those are hospitals in well-to-do suburbs, not inner city facilities seeing moms with lack of access to healthcare.

Mason's Birth Story - 2008

2008-12-09T07:29:00.000-08:00

A beautiful birth story, passed on from another HypnoBirthing practitioner:

My pregnancy was wonderful and enjoyable from the start: no morning sickness, absent was unbearable fatigue and crazy cravings never found me! All of the things I had been told by many to expect. Throughout my pregnancy, in addition to the congratulatory excitement from family, friends and strangers also came the ‘doom and gloom’ birth stories. I would politely listen but would never let them get the better of my positive outlook.

Positive attitude is what I believe created my pregnancy and birth outcome! That is how I knew HypnoBirthing was the right choice for my husband, my baby and me. Growing up, I was always fascinated by pregnancy and birth. From a young age, I would ask my mom what labor was like for her and what it felt like to be pregnant. I have never forgotten her responses. She shared with me that she never felt more beautiful or amazed by her body then when she was pregnant. She also told me that the pain you feel in childbirth can’t be described because it is the only discomfort where there is a joyous outcome!

My midwife thought that I would go earlier than my guess date (a Thursday). At my appointment a week beforehand, she said the baby’s head was at a zero station and I was dilated 1 cm. My parents rushed in from out of state a few days earlier than planned but the baby did not! My husband and I enjoyed the next week + with my parents; walking, watching movies, walking some more, eating great meals outside in the backyard and enjoying each other’s company!

My husband decided to take the few days around my guess date off from work in case anything should happen. It ended up being a great time to prepare for the baby and relax! He decided over the weekend that he would return to work on Monday. On Monday morning, around 5:30 AM, I woke up for my third or fourth usual bathroom trip of the night. When I returned to bed and tried to fall back asleep, I felt a small ‘gush’ of fluid and thought, “Oh great, I AM going to experience that part of pregnancy when you can’t hold your bladder from acting on its own!” It happened a second time and this made me return to the bathroom where I stayed for the next 20 min or so trying to decide if this was indeed my water breaking. Still not 100% sure (my mom never had her water break with the three of us and since I had replicated her wonderful pregnancies, I was not expecting this to happen!), I returned to the bedroom and woke up my husband saying; “I think my water broke”. He told me he thought something was going on when I did not return to bed right away. As I stood there, a more noticeable gush of fluid happened and we were both sure at that point this was indeed my water breaking!

I told him that he wasn’t going to work that day! He told me he had a feeling that this would be the case! My first thought was, “what do we do now?!” I suggested to my husband that we try to get some sleep since my surges didn’t seem to have started a regular pattern yet and we were up for a long day ahead of us. Of course, that didn’t happen! We were too excited to sleep! I thought maybe we should wait to wake my parents but my husband reminded me that this was what they were here for and he went downstairs to tell them they would be grandparents that day! When he let them know what had happened, my mom said “Thank god!” and gave my husband a high five! My dad was still half-asleep but was still able to say, “Cool!” in an excited voice! I started to have some surges shortly after my water broke and Mark timed them, although still inconsistent, at about 10 minutes apart.

It now made sense why I was hungry before going to bed. My body must have been preparing for the big event! I told Mark we should eat breakfast before I might not want to eat anymore and he left to go and get bagels. My dad made breakfast while my mom continued to time my surges. They were happening about 8-10 min apart at this point but they were tolerable and not bothering me. We enjoyed a wonderful and relaxing breakfast outside in the backyard and I noticed my surges start to gain some intensity and get closer together. Something in my mind told me I should take a shower. This is when my mind/body connection started to take over!

My surges continued to get closer and at about 10:15 AM, Mark asked me if we should call our midwife. I spoke to her and she asked me how I was feeling now that the surges were getting stronger and closer together. I told her I was doing well and that the surges were still inconsistent but some were coming as close as 6 min apart. She said to call back when they were under 5 minutes apart or if the intensity went to the next level, whichever came first. I then decided I wanted to lie down in my bed and listen to my affirmations and Rainbow Relaxation. The surges started to become more and more intense and I needed to focus inward to get through each one. This still wasn’t really difficult to do though! During the time when I was listening to my HypnoBirthing exercises, I relied more and more on my labor support team (Mark and my mom!). Mark was applying counter pressure on my hips and my mom held my hand or helped with the counter pressure.

At this point, I was listening to a CD my sister made for me to relax (I asked her to do this so I could save it for ‘birth day’!). My surges quickly became 2-4 minutes apart and Mark said he thought we should call the midwife back. Time distortion was beginning to happen at this point for me; things seemed to be happening quickly but I still didn’t feel like it was time to go to the hospital. My biggest fear was getting to the hospital too quickly. Especially knowing that my water had already broken, I knew in the back of my mind that induction could become a reality if I was admitted too soon. Mark spoke to our midwife and she said she would meet us at the hospital. I started to cry because I said it was too soon and it didn’t seem “bad enough yet” (although I wasn’t sure what I meant by that)! My mom reassured me that it wasn’t too soon, my surges were coming so close together. I decided it was time to go.

We had a 25-minute ride to the hospital. Mark drove my car with me in the front seat and my mom behind me pressing on my shoulders every time I signaled, “OK!” with another surge. It was a bit more difficult to stay focused in the car but I tuned into my sister’s CD and we all began singing the closer we got to the hospital. We arrived and were checked into the room at about 2:00 PM. Donna, our midwife, was there and right away I was at ease with her calming spirit. I told the nurse I wanted to keep my own clothes on and she looked at me as if she didn’t know what to do with that answer. Donna let her know it was okay for me to wear my own clothes, as long as I knew my pants had to come off eventually! 

They monitored me for the required 15-20 minutes and Donna watched me as I relaxed through my surges. We talked about her checking me but she didn’t want to do the one exam she would probably end up doing too soon because it would “start another clock” now that I was in the hospital with my water broken. She said by observing me, she would guess I was still in early labor but then decided we would see where I was at. After checking me, she said I was open about 2 cm. (and then ‘stretched’ me a bit closer to 3 cm). Thinking back to this, I wonder why I wasn’t extremely upset upon hearing this news. I was in early labor, I could be possibly facing induction- the awful pitocin and then EPIDURAL?!?! Donna had me try the chest down, butt up position to encourage the baby to move into the best position. This was the most uncomfortable part of my birthing and when I do remember feeling pain. When Donna said, I only had to try it for three surges, that made all the difference for me. I was out of that position immediately after those three surges passed and my body told me I wanted to go into the shower.

My body was telling me exactly what I needed. At times, it was almost as if I was hearing a voice in my head commenting on what was happening to me and around me but it never took my focus away from my body or my baby. It is something that is difficult to explain but it was truly amazing. Mark sat on the bench in the shower with me and provided counter pressure and support the entire time. The water felt so good. All of a sudden though, I said I have to get out now. I just knew I was done with the water but I didn’t know why, the thought came up pretty abruptly! I got out and wanted to lie on my side in the bed. I thought I had been in the shower for about 20 minutes but I was in there for almost an hour!! After getting out, I remember having a wavering moment when I told Mark I wasn’t sure if I could do it. When he told me I could, I said adamantly- “No! You have to say, I AM doing it!!”. I realize now that I was telling this to myself, it was the first, and last time I had a slightly negative thought cross my mind.

Lying in the bed, I told my mom to turn on “Rainbow Relaxation”. The powerful surges rushed through my entire body and forced a low grunting sound that ‘pushed’ my energy downward. This feeling really embodied the word ‘surge”. At that point, I had no control of my body but I felt so IN control of what was happening and what my baby was doing at the same time. Donna came into the room and I remember hearing her say to my mom, “Is she pushing?!” My mom told her I had been responding to the last several surges this way. Donna asked me if I felt like I wanted to push and I told her I didn’t know! I just knew that my body was doing what it needed to do. She decided to check me again- it was only 4:00 PM at this point but when she checked me, I was completely open and ready to have the baby!

I pushed for just under two hours. It was extremely tiring but so empowering at the same time. I lost all sense of time and place at that point but I was still tuned in to “Rainbow Relaxation”. It had played a couple times already but as focused inward as I was, I always became aware of when it was about to end. I would say, “Again!” to my mom and she quickly realized I needed the CD re-set to make “Rainbow” play again. I focused on the ritual of it playing. Every time Jessica Porter’s voice was ending the relaxation, it was only then that I consciously heard her voice and knew to tell my mom to press play again. I remember opening my eyes at one point and seeing a few nurses just standing at the foot of the bed watching. I didn’t know when they got there or that they WERE there! Every single person who came into the room whispered and never disrupted me. I still have no idea when or for how long the nurses came into the room! The lights were kept low the entire time. They ASKED for my birth preferences, which pleasantly surprised me. They read them and followed my requests from beginning to end. These were all things I really noticed afterwards but I KNOW they made a huge difference in the success of my birthing experience.

It was wonderful to touch my baby’s head as it was emerging. I decided in the moment to not use a mirror as I thought I would want to but it didn’t matter. I could hear and listen to each word Donna said to me in her low and calming voice. Near the end, I remember feeling tense and telling my body to relax and noticing how much easier it felt after that. Donna told me to give her my hands so I could bring my baby to me. This was something I wrote in my birth preferences and I am so glad that I did. It was unbelievable to feel my baby under the arms and bring him onto my chest. Another preference and a memory I wouldn’t trade for the world was when Mark leaned over and said to me, “It’s a boy! We have a son!”

Mason came into the world at 6:07 PM on Monday. His birth was the most wonderful, powerful and incredible experience I have ever had. It still is hard for me to believe sometimes that my birthing experience was what I dreamed it would be. However, I know this is what made it a reality.

I believed in my body, and myself,
I trusted my baby and knew he had an active part in his birth,
I remained positive from the start of my pregnancy through the birth,
I relished in the amazing support of my husband and my mom,
I was comforted by my midwife’s presence and
I used all the lessons learned in Hypnobirthing to maintain all of these feelings during this most wonderful time.

Beyonce is "Terrified" of Childbirth

2008-12-06T20:53:00.000-08:00

Nothing is more honest than admitting the fear that causes fear-tension-pain.

In this interview of Beyonce, she admits that she is "terrified" of childbirth, that she was "traumatized" after witnessing the birth of her nephew. Kinda makes you wonder what she saw that was so terrifying.

In reality, she is expressing what so many women silently feel--that birth is a scary event that women want to avoid in order to prevent becoming traumatized themselves. The negative birth stories that we hear from family and friends, the dramatizations on television...they all speak to that silent dialogue that says, "Be afraid. Be very afraid."

Personally, I am traumatized when I see a woman's instincts and feelings ignored during the intimate moments of labor. I am terrified when I think that she might have her baby pulled out of her, her perineum carelessly stretched or her confidence rattled by the fear-based predictions of medical staff. That is scary.

But birth itself? Nah. I've seen uninterupted births, calm births. They're absolutely beautiful! They give the observer a sense of hope, of inspiration. It makes you feel that you are suddenly hooked in to the magic of the universe. It's a high like no other.

And, in the words of a midwife who attended one of these calm births (after mom expressed her gratefulness that the birthing was over)..."My dear, some would say that the hard part has just begun!"

45 Minute Labor - Start to Finish!

2008-12-05T15:16:00.000-08:00

Here is a fabulous birth story, passed on from another HypnoBirthing practitioner in Canada...

(Comments from the HypnoBirthing instructor: "It is rare for me to share a birth story with you all. This one was so comfortable, quick and the parents so wise is knowing what was best for their family, wiser than the 911 and emergency workers, that I had to share. It is their second birth, 45 minutes total:")

I still can't believe how it all happened. It seems like a dream. When I started to feel like things were starting, I told D to put the hose on and fill up the pool. He made me a milkshake. I sipped it in the bath. It was past midnight and I said something along the lines of "I hope the baby is born before our son wakes up in the morning." The midwives told me to take his labour and cut the time in half, and that would be a rough estimate. So they were predicting 6-12 hours start to birth.

After my bath I sat on the couch and watched the pool filling up. We called the midwives and I told the student midwife that things had started but that I had not seen any "show" and also still had the water intact. She asked me if I had felt three "good" contractions. I said, these are very intense but I only feel the tightening in the lowest part of my abdomen, where I normally feel my period cramps. I told her that my balloon breathing exercise was not working to help, because I couldn't get my breath down low enough, and that the upper part of my uterus didn't seem to be engaged in the process. But the surges were coming really close together, like 2 or 3 minutes apart. She told me to call back when things start to get more intense. I thought things were already pretty intense, but I was also starting to feel nice and space-y and so I just shrugged my shoulders and said I would call back.

As I sat on the couch I felt that great sensation of floating and (this should have been a hint!) so I asked D to escort me to the bathroom because I wasn't too secure on my feet. Sure enough, on our way back from the bathroom I felt a really big surge in the hallway and had to stop to catch my breath. I kept trying to fill up my balloon but to no avail. D helped me into the tub and put on some relaxing music, and I asked him: Why can't I fill up my balloon? He saw the look on my face and called the midwives right away, and left a message for them to come.

As soon as he hung up the phone, my water released, and out with the rush I suddenly felt a head. I said to D, "you are going to have to receive her yourself." I'm pretty sure there was some adult language used at this point, when we realized we were all alone. Then, with the next surge the head popped out. I looked at D and said, you better dial 911 and ask them how to best receive the baby so we don't hurt her. D dialed 911, but the lady on the other end was obsessed about me getting out of the pool, and not helping D figure out how to deal with the birth, so he dropped the phone and got behind me.

The third surge brought the rest of the baby out, and then we just sort of sat there in shock. I was totally stoned from the endorphins. Here I had this perfect little girl in my arms, and it was so quiet in the house, we were all alone. D covered her up with some receiving blankets, and she started to root right away. So I put her to my breast and she started nursing. That's when I heard the footsteps of all the emergency workers ( EMS, fire and Police. 2 of each).

The 911 operator had D running around looking for a shoe lace, and I kept telling him, don't worry about the cord, it can stay for a long time, the baby is already breathing. The EMS people didn't agree and wanted D to cut the cord right away and to wipe off the vernix. I remember saying to the six men standing over me in the pool, while I sat there naked, "hey, thanks so much for coming but you can go now, our midwives are on their way." D was trying to coax at least 4 of the 6 guys to go back downstairs. The midwives arrived last, and couldn't believe what had happened. They said they would never have picked me for the rush delivery, given the length of my first labour.

In retrospect I now realize that when I called the midwives the first time, I was already probably fully dilated. That's why the surges were so low down in my abdomen, and if I had been aware of it, I would have tried to breathe her down. But, it's funny how blindly we believe in the "textbook" version of labour. I just assumed I was in prelabour because that's what I've been told happens first. I never dreamed it could happen in my sleep or without my knowledge!

M

YouTube: Waterbirth Baby Born Underwater in the Sac

2008-11-22T15:00:00.000-08:00

This is a clip from the upcoming documentary, produced by the HypnoBirthing Institute, called Birth Bliss. It shows a birthing mother breathing her baby down and out, while the membranes remain intact. This is called born in the caul.

Notice how the midwife opens the sac as the baby's body emerges and quickly peels it off! Also notice how slow and easy the birth of the head is.

Chicago Birth Summit

2008-11-09T06:34:00.001-08:00

Yesterday, on Saturday November 8, I was honored to represent the HypnoBirthing Institute at the historic Chicago Birth Summit. The summit gathered together members from major birth organizations that support mother-friendly, evidence-based maternity care. Most importantly, the group met as a response to AMA/ACOG's public resolution against homebirth--a resolution that stands flatly in opposition to current research regarding its safety.

A collective statement made by the group is as follows:

On November 8, 2008, The Chicago Birth Summit came together as a representative group of over 40,000 birth professionals who are committed to the improvement of maternity care. This group, under the direction of the Coalition for Improving Maternity Services (CIMS) will serve as a catalyst for change to advocate for birth choices within obstetrical care, including VBAC, homebirth, waterbirth, midwifery care and evidence-based childbirth education.

You can read the PR that preceded the Summit at any of the following links: Official Press Release, Birth Source (the hosting organization), Childbirth Today Blog, Giving Birth Naturally Blog, and ILCA's website.

The following groups were in attendance:
Birth Network National (BNN)
American College of Nurse Midwives (ACNM)
Midwives Alliance of North America (MANA)
Birth Matters International
Advanced Birthing Concepts & The Bohen Center for Women's Health
Doulas of North America (DONA)
The Coalition for Improving Maternity Services & The Mother-Friendly Childbirth Initiative (CIMS & MFCI)
Lamaze International
Birthing From Within
Waterbirth International
International Cesarean Awareness Network (ICAN)
International Childbirth Education Association (ICEA)
and, of course...The HypnoBirthing Institute

The coalition, formed at the summit, seeks to unite all birth professionals in a cohesive force that will work to promote evidence-based birth choices through such actions as a PR team to respond to anti-homebirth resolutions made by such groups as ACOG, a Rapid Response Task Force, presence at major national obstetric conventions and legislative advocacy within the new Obama administration.

Additional programs may include interactions with Childbirth Connection, educating nursing schools and residency programs about normal birth, increasing the internet presence of informed consent and patients rights information, and interaction with insurance companies to promote the lowering of costs by decreasing interventions in labor and birth.

I feel truly honored to be a part of the Chicago Birth Summit and the resulting coalition of birthing professionals that formed on this historic occasion. I look forward to the work that will be accomplished in the name of normal birth and mother-friendly care!

Infant Communication & Bonding

2008-11-01T10:30:00.001-07:00

Last week, I had the pleasure to meet a wonderful advocate for babies and families, Mary Cay Cavanagh. Mary Cay is a Licensed Massage Therapist (LMT) and Certified Educator of Infant Massage (CEIM and CIMI), and we met on the occasion that I was to complete my own certification as an Infant Massage Instructor--Mary Cay agreed to proctor my exam, for which I am most grateful!

Mary Cay & I spoke of the significance of infant massage instruction as a tool for parental learning. Infant massage isn't just about giving your baby a spa-worthy indulgence. It's about getting to know your baby's cues and learning to communicate with each other. Of course, touch is one of the greatest gifts that a new parent can give their infant, because it is arguably one of the most important needs of a baby. From just a physiological standpoint, the brain and skin are deeply connected. The ectoderm, one of the three layers of the original zygote's (the fertilized egg) cell layers, grows to develop into both the skin, the brain and the nervous system--so the brain and the skin are essentially one in the same! Another way to say it is:

"The skin is the outermost part of the brain, and the brain is the innermost part of the skin." (J. Koch, 2007)

Because this is true, touch influences every part of brain development in the infant. Of course, we know that touch and closeness with a parent or caregiver is essential in developing trust and self-esteem. However, the link to intelligence is undeniable--touching your baby, skin-to-skin, abundantly will serve to help their brain to develop. It's one of the many benefits of infant massage.

My discussion with Mary Cay about the benefits of Infant Massage Instruction led us to talking about Mary Cay's training as an instructor of the Dunstan Baby Language. It's the program that teaches parents how to interpret the sounds and cries made by babies, because they do have a distinct meaning. Mary Cay is pursuing her certification right now, and she is on track to be one of the first (if not only) instructors in the Chicagoland area.

Please pass along the information on the Dunstan Baby Language classes to any new or expectant parents you know! Her classes will be very reasonably priced and make a great gift. I hope to refer many of the parents I teach to Mary Cay for this valuable education.

Mary Cay can be reached through her website at www.massageisagift.com, by email at marycay@massageisagift.com or by phone at 630.452.1527. Her classes and services are offered in Oak Park (and will likely be held all over the Chicago area!).

New Postpartum Depression Survey!

2008-10-23T12:01:00.000-07:00

If you know a first-time mom who has been diagnosed with Postpartum Depression, please take a moment and complete this survey:

Click Here to take survey

It is a survey that I am directing in order to acquire more knowledge about this disorder. It is anonymous and very short. It will help me greatly in my academic research! Thank you!

Lamaze Certification - Here we go!

2008-10-13T19:52:00.000-07:00

You may have heard me say/write that I am pursuing certfication as a Lamaze Childbirth Educator. And you may wonder what that means. So, I want to describe my intentions for achieving this credential and what impact it will have on my teaching and birthing work, HypnoBirthing and otherwise.

Lamaze is arguably the oldest and most well-known childbirth education organization. It is now known as Lamaze International or the Lamaze Institute for Normal Birth. Although Lamaze is known as a sort of standard in childbirth education, present in hospitals in numerous forms and infamous for its huffing-and-puffing breathing that was characteristic of its form, it has really opened up during the last 20 years--some might say that it has become generic. I agree with that in some ways, because Lamaze trains its instructors to teach what THEY decide to teach. See, it is not like HypnoBirthing (where everyone teaches the EXACT same curriculum). There is no "standard" Lamaze breathing anymore, etc.

However confusing or disappointing this might be, what this means is that Lamaze is an organization that has moved more towards advocacy, it is not a technique anymore. This is actually a really great thing.

Henci Goer, author of The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth and Obstetric Myths vs. Research Realities, is a Lamaze Educator (as well as a doula) and an advocate for the Lamaze organization. I highly respect her work. She is basically an interpreter of research about childbirth; a normal birth advocate, of course, who knows enough about how to read the medical research in order to determine where there are flaws, and where there is meaning (and where there is not). She represents Lamaze's philosphy that birth should stay "Normal" and as physiological as possible; in other words, intervention-free and hands-off. Women should be trusted as nature intended. Sound familiar?

Lamaze advocates Six Care Practices that Support Normal Birth:

Labor Begins on Its Own
Freedom of Movement Throughout Labor
Continuous Labor Support
No Routine Interventions
Spontaneous Pushing [Birthing] in Upright or Gravity-Neutral Positions
No Seperation of Mother and Baby, with Unlimited Opportunities for Breastfeeding

These Care Practices are just one main example of my support for the Lamaze philosophy. In fact, it is my belief that they are so basic and essential to normal, physiological birth, that they are the baseline from which all birth should emerge. Pardon the pun.

HypnoBirthing, in my opinion, simply springs from Lamaze's principles and explores more thoroughly the quality of pregnancy and the birth experience. What could be better than that?!

Once certified, I will continue to teach HypnoBirthing just as before. That won't change. I have simply chosen to add it to my certification repertoire in order to increase my credibility in the birthing field.

Oh, and I may just add more types of classes to my roster, such as Comfort Measures for Labor. Infant Massage is another addition that is coming soon, but that is seperate from Lamaze.

It is my hope that Lamaze will enable me to be more involved in advocacy and research.

So, I embark on the certification process for Lamaze. I take the exam on October 24th, so wish me luck =). No, luck has nothing to do with it. Wish me rest, brain power, presence and skill.

"In Support of Baby's Choice"

2008-09-23T08:59:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Marie Mongan, who found this excerpt taken from “Emergency Childbirth”, a manual written for Chicago’s fire and police departments, by Dr. Gregory White:

Note: Italicized text indicates a note or emphasis by Marie Mongan.

Perhaps the most important thing for the lay assistant to know is that labor and the delivery of a child are normal functions, which Nature always tends to complete successfully. Statistics show a loss of less than one mother in three-thousand, less than one baby in a hundred—and these statistics are for all deliveries, including those in large hospitals, and, therefore, include mothers who have been ill for years and premature babies too tiny to live. An attendant without medical training, called upon suddenly to assist at a birth, should have results at least as good, if not better, as those of the hospitals because he/she is usually dealing with the least complicated cases. Mothers who have been ill for some time are ordinarily hospitalized.

The women who deliver in taxicabs, ambulances, and police squad cars (or, unexpectedly at home) are usually those with short labors, and these are nearly always easy, normal deliveries. Since the babies in these circumstances are not suffering from the effect of anesthetics or pain-relieving drugs given to the mother, they rarely require resuscitation.

Generally speaking, mechanical assistance is rarely needed, but psychological or emotional support to the mother is almost always in order. This is usually given by means of a calm and confident manner and the frequent assurance that all is going well. Such moral support is given to the mother, not just because she is a fellow human being undergoing a trying experience—worthy as that reason is—but because calmness on her part and confidence in Nature, in herself, and in her attendant make it possible for her to do her part of the job better. Giving birth, at its best , is something a mother does, not merely something which happens to her (or is done to her).

Reassurance and moral support are actually the major contribution of the attendant in most cases. This point should be stressed. (Complications) must be considered here (in the manual) because they sometimes occur in emergency childbirths. But they are rare—very rare. In over 95 percent of the cases of emergency childbirth, the emergency attendant will be overwhelmed with gratitude and widely praised as a hero or heroine, he or she can smile within themselves at the knowledge that their simple tasks could have been performed by any bright eight year old.

On Birthing Phase of Labor
The Second stage is Easier: When the mouth of the womb is completely open, the baby begins to slide into the birth canal. The mother begins to feel heavy pressure on the rectum, as though she were about to have a large bowel movement.

The mother appears to be markedly indifferent to and withdrawn from what is going on around her, although she is not unconscious; she hears everything that is said. Usually, the mother is calmer and more purposeful during the second stage. She feels the progress. . .of the baby’s moving. . .and she becomes more satisfied that she is accomplishing something. (This is the amnesiac state that we refer to. She remains in a comfortable, quiet state and just gently breathes her baby down.)

At this point, the mother desires to help along by bearing down. . .and she should be allowed, but, not in the normal case, urged to do so. She should begin this work only when she feels she must, not because she or the attendant thinks it is a good idea.

While not painful, the feeling of tightness around the external genital, or vulva, can make her tend to hold back. . . .if she is intense with fears about the birth, she may become distressed at this time more by the fear of the imminent birth rather than by pain, which has actually decreased. The chief role of the attendant is to make the mother as comfortable as possible, physically and mentally. The latter is accomplished by his/her calm cheerfulness and by frequent encouraging words, such as, “Everything is fine;” “You’re doing a good job.”

"The Doctors" on Home Birth

2008-09-13T09:38:00.000-07:00

On September 10th, a new show called The Doctors (on WCIU, Channel 26 here in Chicago) featured a segment about home birth. This showed stirred up a bit of controversey before it was even recorded. Dr. Phil (who apparently sponsors this new show) ran an advertisement on his show's website, asking for opinions and experiences from viewers who had a home birth or who at least felt strongly about it. Word spread quickly throughout the birthing community. Birth advocates hammered the website with stories and opinions. We worked on getting Mickey (Mongan) on the show. I asked Henci Goer to lend her research expertise (she refused), because the research says that home birth is just as safe, if not safer, than hospital birth.

And then something changed. The site began to ask for stories from people who regretted having a homebirth. It appeared that they wanted to stir up the drama and discourage home birth, just as the AMA and ACOG desperately want. I heard they turned away some great people with great things to say. Many were getting pissed off.

So, I watched the show. The doctors admitted that OB/GYNs want to ban home birth; although they said that it was "not about banning for our sake" but in the interest of safety (a common claim). Dr. Sears, a prominent pediatrician, said that he and his four siblings were born at home--to which the OB commented, "They were lucky!"

The show featured an expectant couple, 24 weeks (6 months) pregnant, who were considering a home birth. They said they wanted a natural birth and they were considering all different methods of childbirth preparation (including hypnosis). The couple were introduced to a mom who did have a homebirth, 3 weeks ago, who said it was wonderful and lasted 2 hours. The pregnant mom asked how she prepared for the birth--prenatal yoga, she said.

Of course, the show had to highlight a negative story (to give it a "balanced" view, right?). The story they chose to tell was an interesting one, in that it was far from common or having anything to do with the birth itself. This mom had a tragic birthing experience at a birth center. Her baby had an undetected, rare kidney disease that necessitated a hospital transfer.

The OB on the show was clearly VERY impatient to talk about the dangers of birth up until this point. So far, through the show, she said, "Anything goes with obstetrics!" and that "OBs are interested in your safety," as well as, "It is important to hear all the things that can happen." This OB was encouraging an environment of fear and of impending doom at any given moment. We know that complications in birth are actually worsened by such a perspective; problems do not just happen with the flip of the coin! There is always time for a well-trained provider (read: midwife) to conservatively help a woman or baby in need.

The OB, as part of her fear-mongering, showed a video of a special circumstance called shoulder dystocia, where the baby's shoulder does not have the room to move past the pubic bone. She spoke of the cutting, uterine pushing (on the woman's abdomen) and bone-breaking (of the baby's shoulder) involved in typical obstetric intervention of this circumstance. BUT...at NO TIME did she mention the change of positions that easily help resolve it; namely, the Gaskin Maneuver (i.e., hands-and-knees), that is supported by the research. It was probably not mentioned because she was never taught to do such a thing in her OB/GYN training.

The segment ended by saying that two major circumstances that often cause problems in birth are umbilical cord issues and postpartum hemorrage. Did you know that both of these issues can be resolved easily and effortlessly by trained birth attendants, including midwives?! These are not necessarily emergencies, and when they are, mere presence in the hospital is unlikely to mean the difference between life and death, folks. In fact, with a provider who is skilled in hands-on maneuvers and position changes (and noninterventive birth, so that these are possible), the baby is able to turn easily and bleeding resolves. Home birth is not at a disadvantage here.

The show also spoke highly (and at length) of the use of hypnosis during labor and childbirth! What a wonderful validation of the work HypnoBirthing is doing!

A final note: Remember that OBs are very well-trained, highly skilled surgeons, with a vested interest in hospital birth--their livelihood depends on it. They are also often slaves to their malpractice insurance. They are surrounded by fear. And they guarantee their livelihoods by intervening as much as possible. Is this the way you want your baby to be born? Is this how you wish to travel through this life passage?

Quote from Midwifery Today

2008-08-14T14:27:00.000-07:00

We must relearn to trust the feminine, to trust women and their bodies as authoritative regarding the children they carry and the way they must birth them. When women and their families make their own decisions during pregnancy, when they realize their own wisdom regarding birth and its place in their lives, they have a foundation of confidence and sensitivity that will not desert them as parents.

There is an inverse relationship between the amount of technology used in a woman's birth and her subsequent self-esteem: The greater the number of interventions, the less well she regards herself postpartum. On the other hand, women happy with themselves in birth eagerly go on to embrace the responsibilities of mothering. The triumph of birthing on their own terms leads to new depths of self-love and self-respect, emotions readily translated to their babies.

— Elizabeth DavisExcerpted from "Autonomy at Work: Woman-Centered Birth and Midwifery," Midwifery Today, Issue 42

Forwarded to me by:
Jennifer West, LM,CPM,HBCE,TBMP,CST,CH, www.tubsntea.com, Albuquerque, NM

Deeply Ingrained - Even for an MD

2008-08-12T06:47:00.000-07:00

The following is a series of emails that was shared with us by Lorne Campbell, MD--you'll recognize him as the Family Physician who wrote the Foreward to our book, HypnoBirthing: The Mongan Method. He is the doctor with the "Take this hand, put it in your pocket, take this hand, put it in your other pocket, now step back and watch," method of teaching new doctors to attend births. Notice how even this well-trained doctor/mom has a hard time releasing her previous conditioning about birth.

Also notice how Mom's disbelief about the reality of labor and how thoughts about how "breathing down didn't work" are very similar to what I hear from many of YOU! It's very deeply ingrained in our culture. Very deep.

Note: Names, Dates and locations have been intentionally eliminated to allow anonymity.

This is a series of emails that IHave exchanged with X, a Family Physician in [city]. I trained her to attend at births and X taught to HypnoBirth. She had a successful HypnoBirth on Sunday.Pay attention to her language to see how dificult it is to release old beliefs that are deeply held. Remember this when working with medical people.
Lorne

[From the Mom:]

X was born Sunday August X at [time] to X and X! Labor was induced by pitocin for X's high blood pressure but there were no problems or complications. We planned for a water birth and decided to get in the tub around 8 cm, 6 pm Saturday night, but X became so relaxed in the tub with the pitocin off that labor stopped completely so we had to get out of the tub and birth on "dry land." We used hypnosis for relief of pain which was very effective, and I really only experienced a low back ache. The final half hour or so of pushing was unbelievable hard work, but the reward was great with a healthy 9 pound 7.4 ounce 20 inch baby boy! (Wow thats alot of baby).
Pictures attached.
Love,X, X & X

Campbell, Lorne wrote: Congratulations[Baby] is beautifulI posted his picture here and everybody says her looks like you. I think he looks like a baby. Now you know why I said that birth does not hurt. There was no pain relief. You just did not cause abnormal labor.
Lorne

[From the Mom]:

Youre right. It never even occured to me to ask for pain medication, and until the final pushing stage which was relatively short, I do not even recall feeling anything like a "contraction" even though they apperared on the monitor.I kept asking if the pitocin was expired. I didnt even need any cues for handling "surges" because I never felt any until the very end.

I requested induction friday because my two best friends were in town through Sunday and I really wanted them present to support me and X while I was in labor. I am so glad I did because it made a huge difference in my ability to relax and enjoy the process. They brought music and we spent most of labor dancing to the soundtrack of Hairspray which was hilarious, and when I needed help getting to the bathoom or backrubs, they were able to help so X could get some periods of sleep, allowing him to enjoy it so much more. X was amazing, she stayed at the hospital with us from Friday night when we arrived all the way to delivery Sunday midnight and my postpartum check Sunday morning. The only thiing I would have done differently would have been to let her break my water Saturday midnight when she offered instead of waiting till Saturday 11 am, since I probably would have finished about 12 hours sooner. I did not go into active labor until she did that Saturday.

The principles of de-programming all the incorrect things I had learned in training about pain, and doing fear release was really all I needed, not the actual hypnosis. I hadnt fully released the fear of tearing, and as a result I struggled to push effectively near the end. I think "breathing down" is good but probably did not work for me because I was not fully relaxed by that point. In the last few minutes I could read the body language of my nurse and midwife. I could see without looking at the strip that there were deep decelerations on the monitor as I tried to help the baby past the symphysis pubis and she was doing scalp stim. At this point I got determined, let go of my fear of tearing, and brought out some much more effective pushes.

Had I not had the fear of tearing in my mind beginning the pushing stage it probably would have required alot less pushing altogether as my perineum would have stayed more relaxed. The most helpful thing [the doctor] said to me then was that it was not how strongly I pushed, but how long I pushed that mattered. With this I was less afraid of tearing and able to hold the push twice as long with great results. I had a very minor 2nd degree tear which took no time to sew, I didnt notice the lidocaine or sewing and was able to bond and nurse while it was done. I have had no continence issues, no discomfort with bowel movements, and have only taken motrin 2-3 times for perineal soreness. I did feel like I had the crap beat of of me the next two days. I think this was intercostal/oblique muscle soreness from my initial ineffective pushing. By day 4 I started feeling like myself again and am feeling better everyday. We are really enjoying our "babymoon". We spent almost on hour last night laughing in bed hysterically at all the faces he makes in his sleep. Leaving the phones off was the best advice also.

Thank you so much for introducing us to hypnobirthing in residency. I am already looking forward to my next birth. After delivering my almost 10 pounder, next time I want a 7 pound girl in the birthing tub ;)

Please send us your new email in the fall when you get to [city] so we can keep in touch. Hopefully we will make our way up north again in the next 2-3 years.
X

Campbell, Lorne wrote:

Next birth do a fear release around the issue of pushing. There is no need to push. It actually slows the birth down. Pushing involves the pelvic floor muscles tightening. This impedes the movement of the head along the birth path. Next time breathe the baby down. Give up all of the residual bad things you learned about birthing. You are too smart to believe the crap you were taught. I would like to forward this email to other HypnoBirth practitioners so they may learn.
Lorne

[From the Mom]:

ok. You are welcome to forward the email. I will probably type it into a 1 page story to give to X to keep for her collection of stories also. I will forward you that sometime.Thanks again.
X

Campbell, Lorne wrote :

Do Not answer my email. Get off the computer and enjoy being a mom. Happy Babymoon. Thank you
Lorne

"Anya's home/water/hypno birth" on You Tube

2008-08-10T07:40:00.001-07:00

Look at this fabulous HypnoBirthing video that just popped up on YouTube:

Notice the loving, gentle support ("just ease the baby out") that her companions are giving to her--so patient! It looks like the provider pulls the baby out a bit at the end, but otherwise, this is a beautiful birth!

Isn't it funny how her provider tells her to "catch" her baby--not quite a "catch," though, is it?? ; )

"Baby's Choice" Story

2008-08-09T14:32:00.001-07:00

A "Baby's Choice" story from early July:

One of the many couples I taught HypnoBirthing to (this one took the class this past spring) didn't have a doula. I was already contracted with the other couple from the same class, so after their baby was born (before their guess date), I said, as I say to most of the couples in my classes, "Call me when you're in labor. If I'm available, I'll come." That was the arrangement. I was thrilled because they planned to birth at the West Suburban Hospital ABC, one of the most natural-birth-friendly environments in town and only about 20 minutes from my new home.

So, they called one night around 6:30pm. Labor was starting; Dad said, "We're either experiencing some really intense practice labor, or things are starting," and surges were about 7 minutes apart. He said they didn't quite want me there yet, but we agreed that we should touch base by 10/10:30 if not before.

So, Dad called at 9pm. Things were really intense, he said--surges 2 minutes apart. TWO MINUTES APART??! There was blood. Okay, I said, that's totally normal, what has the midwife said? He said the midwife told him that she was in early labor and it could take a while. I suggested he talk to them again and said, "You should probably start thinking about going to the hospital". I asked if Mom was staying calm, and he hesitated. I saw this as a sign that things were intense for this normally very laid-back couple. I assured them that it can be very intense when things start happening fast (as it sounded like they were). I told him to help her focus on her breathing, relax her belly, take a shower, take it step by step. We hung up as Dad was going to call the midwives.

20 minutes later, another call...Dad said they were headed to the hospital. I agreed to meet them there.

Exactly 7 minutes later, while I'm in the car with my sweetheart (who agreed to give me a ride), heading to the hospital, Dad calls and says he can see the baby's head (and he said it was pointy). He's definitely nervous. Wow! I said, that's fine, just stay calm--it's normal for the head to be "pointy" (it's the molding, of course). At some point he put me on speakerphone. I say to mom, "Just keep doing what you're doing, you're doing great!" Next thing I know, he says something about the baby's eyes. She says the baby is coming out. I say something about "just let him come" (all I could think to say), and while whispering expletives ("The baby is being born right now!") and slapping my chauffeur on the arm, I hear mom grunting and the baby being born. I hear, "What is it? It's a boy! Oh, baby..." and then I hear the familiar cries of a newborn baby. Dad asks what to do, is he okay? I said as long as he is breathing and crying and turning pink, he is fine. We talked briefly about what to do next (Call 911? Call midwives?) and I told him to call his midwives. This was a 5-minute conversation!

Since we didn't get far from home, I dropped my chauffeur and went directly to their house--a 20 minute drive. Baby looks amazingly good (pink, calm, cozy), still connected to the cord, and mom is lying in bed in a mess of blood and tissue! And all I can think about is getting a bowl for the placenta (which had not appeared yet)--I was obsessed with getting a bowl. I found a pot. About 5 minutes after I arrived, the paramedics arrived. Mom & Dad went to the closest hospital (not where they were planning) and the placenta was soon born, breastfeeding initiated...and all was well.

Wow. Really, there are no other words.

I am in total awe of this amazing woman who felt her own baby emerging between her legs and was able to follow her body and birth the way she & nature intended.

And I just can't express fully how much joy I feel when I realize that this wonderful man was this Mom's sole birthing attendant...and that he received his own baby!

Now, I just want to add that, after speaking to this couple a few weeks after the birth and reminiscing together, that Mom now knows that she was laboring all day long. As is common with HypnoBirthing moms, she just chilled out and didn't think much of it. When they called me, things really started getting intense. Their midwives did not believe them, that labor was really moving as fast as it was. They assumed their calm demeanor and lack of discomfort or drama could only mean very early labor. Boy, were they wrong!

HypnoBirthing in the Media

2008-08-05T09:45:00.000-07:00

A very nice news story about HypnoBirthing has just appeared on the Comcast Network. Click here to view the clip.

Notice the mom who shows her birthing video. She is moaning, bearing down, working with her body--she says that it is work, that it feels good to push, and yet...no pain.

See, folks. You do not have to lay there like a beached whale to be comfortable. This is for all of the moms who tell me, "Well, I didn't look like those moms in the HypnoBirthing videos," because you are remembering the scenes of moms just lying there, still. Reframe the experience of sensation! Feel everything that nature/God/the universe (whatever you want to call it) gave you and work with your body in a primal way. What a gift!

And, in class, when you see a HypnoBirthing video, focus on the woman's body...her sounds...her movements...and, of course, the baby emerging! If you want to see it again, ask me. I'll show it as many times as you need to program that information into your psyche.

Chocolate May Reduce Pregnancy Complication Risk

2008-08-03T09:46:00.000-07:00

Let's all yell a collective "Yey!" for this article:

http://uk.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUKCOL86039220080428

Chocolate is rich in nutrients, including iron. I personally love it and I eat dark chocolate daily. I eat a brand of chocolate called Chocolove, which makes an organic variety of 73% cocoa content. Each bar has 100% RDA of iron! I usually eat 1/3-1/2 a bar each day, which means that I'm getting a huge amount of iron from that little sweet treat. I can usually find it at Whole Foods (both in Chicago, especially in Lakeview, and San Diego, in Hillcrest), and it looks like this:

So, eat away. It's good for you!

A New HypnoBirthing Story - Baby Stephen

2008-07-28T06:25:00.001-07:00

A story from a mom who just took my class this spring:

Hi Cindy,

Yes, we had our baby on July 24th at 4:46am. He was 6 lbs 8oz, 19.5 in long and just a little early. The birth went great! Hypnobirthing helped a lot! I was in denial about labor the whole time.

It started Wed afternoon. I was feeling some low back discomfort but that's all I thought it was and I had been having braxton hicks for a while so I didn't think anything of it. Slowly though it started to get stronger and I could feel surges coming on starting from the back and moving it way forward but like I said I was in denial and it wasn't bad enough for me to think it was time.

That evening John and I went to the hospital for a baby care class. The whole time I was have surges but just slow breathing through them like I had with the braxton hicks. I started to realized they were 5 mins apart but still didn't think it was time. We got home around 9:45 that night and I decided to just take a shower and go to bed and see what happens. We went to bed around 11pm, I must of slept for about 10 mins when a surge woke me up. I started to walk around the room and breath through the surges and watched the clock. They were 3 min apart so I decided to call the midwife.

After talking to the midwife I decided to wait another hour and see what happens. The surges were still 3 mins apart and a little after 1am John decided we need to head to the hospital which was probably a good idea. When we got there around 2am, I got examined first and when I took my underwear off there was blood so I finally realized this could be it. My midwife checked me and I was 6.5cm dilated, yay! I really didn't want to show up and be told to go home or show up too early and have to stay there for hours.

They got me in a room, monitored me for a while and at 3am my midwife said I was doing great and said she would be back in an hour. I was slow breathing through my surges and when I started to feel the need to push, I tried to relax through the urge but that actually made it worse. Around 3:45am I yelled at John to get somebody cause I had to push. As he left to get the midwife, my membranes released in this gush. The midwife came in, checked and I was ready. After an hour of breathing down/pushing, Stephen was born.

In total my labor was about 14 hours and honestly through most of it, I didn't even think it was happening since it wasn't bad or "painful," mostly uncomfortable. After Stephen was out I felt great and did not take any medication afterwards.

So, big THANK YOU for the hypnobirthing classes!!!!! I was really relaxed and confident through the whole labor and pregnancy. My midwife, Patty Schneider was totally impressed. She has experienced other hypnobirthings and loves them...Thank you again and keep doing what you do!

-Julie

So Much Ado About Pushing!

2008-07-12T20:13:00.001-07:00

As a HypnoBirther, all of this Broo-Ha-Ha about pushing babies out really makes me mad. It makes me mad that the 2nd stage of labor (the birthing phase) is called "the pushing phase" or "time to push." It makes me mad that providers tell HypnoBirthing moms that babies can't be born without pushing. And it really, really makes me mad that providers and nurses YELL at moms to push while she is birthing. That one makes me so mad that it affects me physically, viscerally.

But who am I to tell parents what to do? Who is Marie Mongan? Who is the HypnoBirthing Institute? Especially when your highly educated doctor or midwife (who is supposed to know the research and the biology of birth) is so untrusting.

Well, consider this:

Henci Goer suggests that moms think in terms of breathing their babies through the birth path, rather than pushing, in her The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth.
Laura Shanley, author of Unassisted Childbirth, wrote an amazing article about this same topic called "Don't Push the River, It Flows By Itself." It includes some amazing advice from professionals such as Ina May Gaskin.

So, what is a mom to do? It sure is tough. Not birthing, I mean. It is tough to do what your body wants to do, to follow your instincts, when everyone around you is advising (or yelling at or guilt-tripping) you otherwise.

Babies are born beautifully and calmly if mom just lets her body do all the work. Trust the process. Follow this advice: "Purina's Handbook of Cat Care advises owners to pet the laboring cat reassuringly and leave her on her own. She may stay in the box; on the other hand, don't be surprised if she doesn't. The best thing to do at this point is to do nothing. Keep quiet and do not attempt to help her - it's her problem. Mother nature usually takes over at this point and it is amazing to see how she goes about doing what comes naturally."

Breathe your baby down. I know you can do it. And I know you will LOVE IT!

And, after you do, please...TELL ME ALL ABOUT IT!

Marie Mongan in Chicago

2008-06-30T18:27:00.000-07:00

Mickey (a.k.a. Marie) Mongan came to town this weekend to lead a training workshop for HypnoBirthing practitioners. I had the opportunity to teach an Introduction to Hypnosis class for the new practitioners, as well as attend the actual training seminar again as a "B-Back" (the Institute's affectionate name for a certified practitioner who attends again, taken from the acronym "VBAC," or Vaginal Birth After Cesarean).

One thing that I learned from Mickey is how wonderful birth can be (and is) in parts of the country and the world where birthing environments and providers support the process. And I don't just mean tolerate the process. I mean, they leave women to labor on their own, in the calm quiet of their own intimate spaces, with nothing but quiet encouragement and respect.

The next thing I learned is how unapologetically direct she is about insisting that women breathe their babies down (and don't push), resist all medical intervention (unless there is a blatant reason not to), and stay calm and quiet during labor.

The next (related) thing that I learned is that not only should pushing prompts from outside sources (staff, etc.) be ignored; the "urge to push" must be ignored too! Because, when pushing (even from an internal urge) occurs, it causes a reflex in the body where it demands more pushing. Then, pushing cannot be stopped. And, any pushing causes the pelvic floor to close and resist. So, when the urge to push is felt, it is to be breathed through, so that the baby can move down.

The third thing is this: Labor and birth are inherently not painful, unless the woman is interfered with. This interference is brought on by fear, distraction, intervention, hospitals, negative suggestion and many other things. A woman in labor is to be left alone, except for a close companion or two! Pain is not any kind of positive signpost in a laboring woman. It is a sign that something is not right.

Mickey said she never felt pain in any of her four labors. I wonder...what does she think of all of this pain that women are experiencing?? She must think it is just ludicrous.

Jennifer Block - Pushed

2008-06-09T11:33:00.000-07:00

Do you think that birthing in a hospital is the safest way to give birth? Do you think that hiring a midwife or a doula will inherently make your birth better? Do you think that birth is safe in this country...that women and babies are better off now than they used to be? Do you think that medical professionals will automatically respect your decisions and trust your body to birth the way nature intended? Think again.

Jennifer Block (author of Pushed) is in Chicago, and I had the opportunity to hear her speak last night. She read exerpts from her book, Pushed, of which I had already read and was eager to learn more about. Jennifer wrote this book as a journalist, investigating the rights violations of laboring women and the ridiculousness of cascading interventions and a lack of trust in what she coins "normal, physiological birth."She has become a homebirth advocate, as well as an advocate of direct entry midwives.

I highly recommend this book. Jennifer is in a unique position to communicate the current birthing climate as an outsider, as she is not a birthing professional in any capacity--she is not even a mom. She has a firm grasp on the research and is a very intelligent ally of normal birth.

This book certainly co-exists well with the movie, The Business of Being Born, as it promotes the same movement. However, it does seem that gentle birth (the quality of birth, not just the physiology) is getting lost in the shuffle. Block really validates that so many moms are just so busy saying, "No...No....No..." to interventions, it is difficult to even consider the quality of the experience, particularly in the hospital (the only choice for most women here in Chicago).

The reality is that most women, even if choosing a midwife and birthing in a more "mother-friendly" hospital, will spend their labors either refusing intervention after intervention...or giving in just to be left alone. I get that. I know laboring women want to just be left alone. And I also get that you are 500% invested in the safety and health of your newborn baby.

But the truth is that you will probably get the message, at some point during late pregnancy and labor, that you or your baby might not be safe just as you are. And so you are likely to agree to interventions (such as induction, fetal monitoring, membrane rupture, assisted birth or surgical birth) in order to "save" your baby. When, in fact, that is just what every other mother experiences within our current system...and you probably would have been fine without any of it.

The lesson is: Pick the right provider, pick the right birthing environment (preferably a homebirth), and make the choices that will give you and your baby what you truly deserve out of this birthing experience. YOU make the choices. Don't depend on others.

Mom singing through labor - Beautiful!

2008-05-17T14:55:00.001-07:00

A beautiful video of a laboring mom singing through her surges. The essence of self-soothing and peace:

Birth Story

2008-05-15T16:10:00.000-07:00

Here is a birth story from a 2nd-time mom in one of my recent classes. Notice her description of the sensations of Nearing Completion (*) and the power of suggestion by the OB (**).

(Of course, we are glad that the OB suggested that the birth would take 15 minutes with one birthing option, but my HypnoBirthing side doesn't applaud the doc about the suggestion for a 5 hour birthing phase with breathing down! Sounds like it definitely would NOT have taken that long...!)

Our “due date” was March 25, but I avoided telling people that date like the plague. I would just say “the end of March” in an attempt to avoid having everyone ask me why I was still there if the date passed with no baby (my son was 5 days “late”). I went to work on Monday, March 24. I had been having practice labor off and on for weeks. I had declined all internals since they had no medical purpose for me, and also so that I wouldn’t obsess about something that had no bearing whatsoever on when I would give birth. I finally got an indication that something was happening when I noticed a tiny bit of mucus on one of my dozens of trips to the ladies’ room. With my son, I lost the uterine seal all at once, so this was something different for me.

We got home that evening, and went to bed around 10:00. As we lay down, I said that maybe we should call our friend who was going to watch our son when we went to the hospital – just to give him a heads up. I almost didn’t say anything since I would have felt foolish for bothering him if this weren’t really it. So my husband called him, and we went to sleep. Between 10:00 and 1:00, I woke up twice feeling the surges, but was able to just go the bathroom and go back to sleep. At 1:30, I finally got up. I didn’t want to wake my husband just yet, so I got onto ContractionMaster to gauge how far apart and how long they were. I didn’t want to obsess over it, but since it was my second baby, I also didn’t want to wait too long. I was also positive for Group B strep, and wanted to make sure I was able to get the antibiotics in enough time. I timed for about an hour, and they were 4-6 minutes apart and about 1min 10sec each. I was also having a lot of “show”. The contractions were strong enough that I had to breathe through them, so we called our doula around 2:30 a.m. to let her know that we were in labor.

I called my OB around 6:00 to let her know that we would be coming in. I actually work for the hospital, and our daycare opened at 6:30 and was right next to the hospital, so I really wanted to wait to leave so that at least I wouldn’t worry about our son getting there.

We dropped our son off at daycare around 7:00, parked the car and walked the 4 blocks to the hospital. When we got there, I was checked in triage and found to be 5.5 cm – I forget how effaced I was, but the opening was enough to get us up to L&D around 8:00. Our doula met us there, and I spent the next 7.5 hours mostly on the birthing ball with my husband sitting on the bed behind me to steady the ball and our doula sitting in front of me holding my hands. My husband talked to me almost nonstop the whole time, which I needed in order to stay relaxed. He didn’t use the exercises really, but he recited a lot of the birthing prompts over and over, and added his own encouraging words. When I would break out of it, to go to the bathroom or answer questions from the nurse, etc. the surges were much harder to manage. When I would have a surge while my husband was speaking to me, I was able to ride it out much more easily. I was even nodding off in between them.

By about 2:00, I was starting to get tired, both from lack of sleep and from the surges. They still weren’t completely unbearable, but despite hypnobirthing suggestions, they were getting painful. I had not admitted to anyone (including myself) but I think a part of me was still convinced that, like my first birth, I would use the techniques to get to a certain point, and then get the epidural. Now that I was getting to that point, I was starting to lose my Happy Thoughts. My husband and doula were so encouraging. I laid on the bed for a while and listened to Rainbow Relaxation – and I actually dozed in and out between surges. I agreed to be checked again around 3:30, and was 8.5 cm. They offered to break the membranes to hurry her along, but I declined. Partly I was worried about feeling even MORE pressure, even though knew that I’d have to go through that pressure in order to get her out.

They left the room, and I rolled on my side in the bed and listened to the Rainbow Relaxation again, and that’s when my waters released. WOW! I felt a HUGE gush and actually thought I’d pooped all over myself. *At that point, I told them I wanted the epidural. I was just crying and shaking all over and saying how I’d tried but I’d had enough. They called everyone back in and my OB checked me. She said that she knew how much I wanted this and how great we had done, and then she said…. If I didn’t get the epi, I would probably have the baby out in 15-30 minutes. I had wanted to use the Breathing Down techniques we learned in our Hypnobirthing class, but the OB said that she had a mother the day before use that technique and it took her 5 hours to birth the baby**. Whether it was true or she just wanted to go home, I don’t know, but that’s all I needed to hear – I was going to push. Also, the baby had passed the meconium and I wanted to have her taken care of.

They got ready, and I felt a surge coming, and started to push. I could feel her beginning to move down the birth path, but I was having trouble focusing. I didn’t want to listen to anyone, I just wanted this to be done and over. I got to the point where her head was almost out, and thought, “There’s the ring of fire!” I barely noticed that though, because now the pressure was incredibly intense. Somewhere in my mind I thought I had better take a break so I had time to stretch and not tear. I stopped pushing for a second, and then resumed with the next contraction. I think it was at that point that I was yelling pretty loudly at my daughter – I’m not proud of it, but I was ready to be DONE, so I kept shouting “CLAIRE!” much to everyone’s amusement. I guess most women yell at the father, not the baby! She was finally born at 4:50 p.m. – after 15 minutes of pushing. Her head was actually round, not cone-shaped, since she came out so quickly. Claire Alethia weighed 8lb 2oz and was 19.5" long.

I had two tears – one very small near the perineum and one about 1 cm long on the upper side. Yeah, not fun (especially getting stitched up!), but I actually haven’t had any pain from them. Claire is a great nurser once she gets going, and we are so glad to have our family all together at last.

Donna

Movie - The Business of Being Born

2008-05-10T12:09:00.000-07:00

Thanks to the wonderful generosity of a mom that I am teaching (; thanks!), I got a free trial Netflix membership and I was able to watch The Business of Being Born this afternoon. This is the recent documentary by Ricki Lake which chronicles the current problems with the medical management of childbirth in our country. It is only available for purchase and via Netflix rental.

Here is the link to the trailer on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DgLf8hHMgo

Here is the link to the movie's website: http://www.thebusinessofbeingborn.com

Here is a link to a very interesting clip of Ricki Lake on The View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EVW5ZEVKdA

The whole movie had me either 1) Crying out of pure emotion for the process of birth (which is the reason why I am involved in this field) or 2) Going "Yes! Yes!" because it validates everything that I've learned in my informal education about childbirth. More on that later.
There are some mixed feelings in the HypnoBirthing community about this film. I tend to agree with all of the sentiments that exist, but I do think that EVERY woman in my classes should watch this film. It is an honest, factual, blunt rendering of the reasons why folks like us are advocates of natural, midwife-attended, home births. It explains, in a way that is difficult for little ole' me in my classes, why certain interventions do not exist in a vacuum and why agreeing to one intervention can spell the end of a woman's dream for a natural birth...otherwise known as the "Slippery Slope" (see my entries with that title) or the "Snowball effect" (as stated in the movie).

The one thing that I will warn is that the movie does tend to imply, at times, that the pain of birth is necessary and unbearable (although, they imply that it is well worth it). If you know HypnoBirthing, you know that this does not match our understanding of birth. In fact, we know that birth is not necessarily painful. When it is painful, we know there is a reason for it, we know why.

If you've seen the movie, I'd like to hear your comments. All comments on this blog must be approved, so please submit them and I will post them if they are appropriate (i.e., not spam).
FYI, Marie Mongan is coming out with a new video that WILL highlight our philosophy of birth, taking this concept of natural birth one step further. Keep an eye out.

Cindy

A Letter from Searle (manufacturer of Cytotec):

2008-03-10T19:02:00.000-07:00

The following is a letter from the manufacturer of an increasingly common induction drug--Cytotec. Note that this drug is not approved by the FDA for induction of labor.

August 23, 2000 -- Important drug warning concerning unapproved use of intravaginal or oral misoprostal in pregnant women for induction of labor or abortion.

Dear Health Care Provider:

The purpose of this letter is to remind you that Cytotec administration by any route is contraindicated in women who are pregnant because it can cause abortion. Cytotec is not approved for the induction of labor or abortion.

Cytotec is indicated for the prevention of NSAID (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, including aspirin) - induced gastric ulcers in patients at high risk of complications from gastric ulcer, e.g., the elderly and patients with concomitant debilitating disease, as well as patients at high risk of developing gastric ulceration, such as patients with a history of ulcer.

The uterotonic effect of Cytotec is an inherent property of prostaglandin E1 (PGE1),of which Cytotec is [a] stable, orally active, synthetic analog. Searle has become aware of some instances where Cytotec, outside of its approved indication, was used as a cervical ripening agent prior to termination of pregnancy, or for induction of labor, in spite of the specific contraindications to its use during pregnancy.

Serious adverse events reported following off-label use of Cytotec in pregnant women include maternal or fetal death; uterine hyperstimulation, rupture or perforation requiring uterine surgical repair, hysterectomy or salpingo-oophorectomy; amniotic fluid embolism; severe vaginal bleeding, retained placenta, shock, fetal bradycardia and pelvic pain.

Searle has not conducted research concerning the use of Cytotec for cervical ripening prior to termination of pregnancy or for induction of labor, nor does Searle intend to study or support these uses. Therefore, Searle is unable to provide complete risk information for Cytotec when it is used for such purposes. In addition to the known and unknown acute risks to the mother and fetus, the effect of Cytotec on the later growth, development and functional maturation of the child when Cytotec is used for induction of labor or cervical ripening has not been established.
Searle promotes the use of Cytotec only for its approved indication. Further information may be obtained by calling 1-800-323-4204.

Michael Cullen, MDMedical Director, U.S.Searle

Efren's Birth

2008-02-05T10:55:00.000-08:00

This is a beautiful birth story from a mom who took my HypnoBirthing class in 2007. Enjoy! -Cindy

I woke up on my birthday (September 27th) thinking about how nice it would be to have the whole day off, to relax and run some errands, and especially about the delicious mac & cheese I was going to have for my birthday dinner at the fancy French restaurant. When 10 am rolled around and I was still in the house with no interest in leaving the house I started to get suspicious that something might be happening. My due date was the day before, but for some reason (mainly wishful thinking daydreaming of having a few days off) I really thought my baby would be coming on Saturday. At any rate, around 11am the contractions started, nothing too intense, but consistent at about 10 minutes apart. I remember thinking how I was supposed to eat up and drink tons of liquids to have energy for labor, but I wasn’t hungry and didn’t really feel like food (another sure sign something was happening). I forced down half a bowl of pasta, ate a Cliff bar, drank lots of water, and called Armand to let him know what was going on. At this point I had no real idea of how long the labor would last (a pediatrician at work who gave birth the week before was having contractions every 5 minutes for two days before giving birth!), but knew I wanted Armand with me so when he asked if I wanted him to come home I said yes. I also gave Bethany a call letting her know, the plan was that she would hop on a plane from San Francisco when I started labor so she could make it here in time for the birth. She was driving to work when I called and she turned around, went home and grabbed a bag and hopped on the first flight to Chicago. When Armand made it home I was still having contractions every 10 minutes apart, and he made sure I had plenty of fluids and helped me as I tried various labor positions trying to find a comfortable position. I had him play one of my favorite calming records – an old National Geographic album “Music of Hawaii.” Soon the contractions were 5 minutes apart, and after about 20 minutes of this I called Jen Benson, a friend and a midwife in the practice I had been going to for prenatal care. Jen said she could come check me after she finished seeing patients at the clinic, I said great. The goal was to labor at home for as long as possible to be comfortable at home and to avoid showing up at the hospital at only 3 or 4 centimeters and then having a long hospital labor with possible unnecessary interventions. Initially we had hoped for a homebirth but after finding out that my insurance wouldn’t cover it we decided the next best option would be a hospital birth center with a great practice of midwives.

When I spoke to Jen on the phone I told her I was starting to have a lot of low back pressure with the contractions and she suggested a hot shower with water pressure on the low back. I tried this, which helped some. Armand and I had taken a great hypnobirthing class with the goal of training my body to go into deep relaxation through breathing and visualization techniques among other things. He was trying to help me visualize being at the Laguna de Apoyo in Nicaragua (one of my most favorite places in the world - calm, peaceful, beautiful), floating in the laguna surrounded by tropical forests, blue skies and the howler monkeys. For some reason as hard as I tried I couldn’t picture myself at the laguna, it seemed too abstract, and my mind kept coming back to one of the visualization exercises in our hypnobirthing class that I honestly thought was pretty corny – “picture your uterus as blue satin ribbons”. So that is what I did, and I think because it was something easy, direct and tangible the blue satin ribbons helped after all!

At a certain point in labor all I wanted to do was get in bed and play the hypnobirthing CD we had been listening to (or more appropriately falling asleep to) for the past two months. We laid in bed and listened to the CD which had the birth affirmations and rainbow relaxation exercise. I asked Armand to push on my low back to provide counterpressure whenever I had a contraction. He asked how he would know I was having a contraction (I wasn’t very verbal at this point, mainly focusing on breathing and relaxing), and I told him I would lift my hand up so he would know. Sometime during the rainbow relaxation I felt the counterpressure Armand was giving stop – Armand got too relaxed and fell asleep so I had to wake him up in order to get him to push on my low back! Close to 6:30pm I had a few contractions which felt completely different than the contractions up until that point. It felt like my baby was trying to push itself out. As we were still at home and the plan was to go to the hospital I was a little nervous and asked Armand to call Jen and find out how close she was, it turns out she was only two blocks away, hallelujah! She luckily found a parking spot right in front and came upstairs to check me. When she walked in the door I told her “I think this baby is coming.” She checked me and I was fully dilated and +2 (I learned that +2 means the baby’s head is right at the gate ready to come out). Jen said, “We have two options, we can either go to the nearest emergency room or have this baby here.” I voted for the second option, there was no way I was leaving my bed at that point. I knew Jen had never attended a home birth (although she had caught many many babies in the hospital), but I felt calm and secure and knew I was in great hands. And as luck (or manna) would have it, Jen being the super prepared person that she is (she says she aspires to be the ‘Sydney Bristow’ of midwives) had packed a little kit of the most essential home birth items and had been carrying it around in her car for the past three weeks ‘just in case’.
Jen decided to call Carrie, another midwife in the practice, who lives in Evanston just a few minutes away, to see if she could come assist as backup. When Jen was telling her the situation on the phone Armand overheard Carrie say “It’s that damn hypnobirthing!” as to how fast the labor progressed. She was eating dinner with her family when Jen called and arrived at our place 15 minutes later. Armand gathered some plastic, clean towels for the bed and a metal salad bowl for the placenta.

I was on my side in the bed with Armand and Carrie helping to support my leg. With each contraction I focused on breathing and relaxing (and trying not to curl my toes under) and letting the process of birth happen. Jen and Carrie asked if I wanted to touch my baby’s head and I immediately had a huge smile and the excitement of anticipation of finally meeting the baby who had been living and growing inside of me for so long. It didn’t occur to me to push with the contractions because no one was telling me to push, and I thought “I’m sure they will tell me to push when I need to.” Once Efren’s head was halfway out Jen said “Okay, you need to push, come welcome your baby into the world.” It seemed like I got about two good pushes in and he came squirming out! What an intense rush of overwhelming emotion and excitement incomparable to anything else you can think of. If I recall correctly the only thing I could verbalize at the moment was a very loud “Baby!” Armand’s hands caught him with Jen’s assist (yes, we discovered for the first time then that it was a boy) and put him on my chest. They cleaned him off with a towel and I got to snuggle with him on my chest, overcome with awe and amazement and love for this little creature Armand and I had been blessed with.

Soon after Armand got to cut the cord and not too long after that the placenta came. Everything was healthy and normal and was on a wonderful natural high from the birth. Words are inadequate to describe the whole of the experience, but it was beautiful and peaceful and perfect and I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

Within an hour after the birth Bethany arrived, as did Armand’s mom Sue and sister Consuela (Armand had to call everyone and tell them to come to our house instead of the hospital!), and Gwen came with a portable baby scale she borrowed from her clinic so we could weigh our new little guy, Efren Gabriel Rogers Esai, born at 7:18pm, 19 inches long and weighing 7 lbs 5 oz. We spent the rest of the evening at home surrounded by the abundant love and care of family and friends.

"Painless Childbirth: The Lamaze Method" (Lamaze); A book review

2008-01-01T20:38:00.000-08:00

If Dr. Grantley Dick-Read is the father of natural childbirth, then Fernand Lamaze is probably the uncle. He is arguably our society's most recognized expert and forerunner on the subject, and it all started with the book, Painless Childbirth. I recently picked this book up for the first time and I was surprised at the depth of knowledge that it contained, both from a physiological and philosophical perspective. Being trained as a HypnoBirthing instructor, I was always taught that painless childbirth was inherently natural and normal, although the promise of such an experience was beyond the scope of an instructor such as myself. That said, Lamaze was presented as a hopeless optimist, one who indeed brought useful ideas, techniques and outcomes to many women and families, but who varied slightly in his approach--as one would who started a movement, but did not see it through to complete fruition. This book has given me a new and different perspective on Lamaze, one that presents his philosophy and life's work as nothing less than extraordinary.

This book talks about several pertinent topics in great detail and frequency--hypnosis, the nervous system's role in pain and the physiology of childbirth. First, hypnosis is mentioned by Lamaze several times throughout the book (particularly at the beginning in Chapter 1, where hypnosis is presented in the traditional sense as an analgesic technique for relieving pain. Hypnotic concepts, similar to those taught in Hypnobirthing classes, are also mentioned, although not given names. This content was most fascinating! He describes how the brain works with the nervous system to create conditioned reflexes (such as that discovered by Pavlov's salivating dogs) and a concept called reciprocal induction (also by Pavolv). Conditioned reflexes can be likened to the practice that Hypnobirthing moms use for relaxation, so that by the time labor comes, she knows exactly how to breathe and to move her body, and her body responds in-kind. Reciprocal induction is similar to what I understand to be pacing (focusing on a present-moment visual, auditory or kinesthetic reality). According to Lamaze, this activity in the body/mind "distracts" the mind from focusing on one sensation (e.g., surges) or one mind-set (or thought process) such as an assigned meaning that is given to that sensation (e.g., surges will hurt). He also describes the neurology behind the focus on typical Lamaze "distractions"--the purpose of focusing on other sensations and thoughts is not to take the mind away from it, per say, but to initiate the function that allows all other thoughts and functions to fade into the background.

This function is the physiological mirror to "The mind can only hold one thought at a time." According to Lamaze, when a mom in labor chooses to focus on the physical sensations of her breathing, and the thoughts that accompany that action, the brain automatically puts more energy into that one function, while all other functions, though still happening, are allowed to proceed without undue attention. In the case of labor, those "other" functions would be the surging uterus, resulting in the brain's lack of ability to register pain.

That is a great start, but that isn't all. There's more to it. Lamaze also talks about the effect of words and emotion in the presence of pain, and spends a chapter discussing the contributions of Grantley Dick-Read to the philosophy of painless childbirth experiences. According to Lamaze, Dick-Read's work (presupposing that pain in labor and birthing is a cause of a macrosomic devergence from more primitive, animal-like birthing practices, caused by fear and creating fear-tension-pain) was important, but lack's the attention to the modern day woman who lives in a civilized world where pain in birth is real. I think it's an important distinction, because Lamaze goes further to say that there are other reasons why moms in labor are uncomfortable, and that all of these reasons need to be addressed. In my mind, HypnoBirthing is a perfect blend of these two approaches, in that it does address all of the contributing factors to discomfort.

Lamaze's book goes on to describe the actual labor and birthing process, with very detailed physiology. Please keep in mind that this book was written in the 1950's, which makes it a bit dated as far as birthing techniques go. It reminds me of Bradley's work in some instances, because it teaches techniques such as valsava's manuever (a.k.a., purple pushing, forced pushing, closed-glottis pushing), which have found to be unnecessary and even harmful (to the pelvic floor) in modern studies. Without the help of the most modern science, these early natural birth advocates can be seen only as early pioneers or contributors--although, they are great ones, at that. Our modern practices are riding on the coattails of these amazing early philosophies.

Refuse an Ultrasound??

2007-10-26T22:47:00.000-07:00

This post will appear in two phases: First, I will introduce this topic; Then, I will follow-up with some articles and information for you to gather your own decision about this intervention. Intervention? Yes, ultrasound really IS an intervention. And, I hope that through this particular post, you will reconsider whether having an ultrasound is the best choice for you. I don't intend to convince you to NOT have an ultrasound, just to ask questions, do research, and decide for yourself.

The truth is, ultrasound does have risks. Even though it is used routinely during pregnancy, and can be a valuable bonding tool, it is worthwhile to weigh the risks and the benefits. To do this, you must consider how this procedure will help you to bond with your unborn baby...how it will inform you of his or her health...what this information will influence you to do as a result...and whether this procedure is a 'Rite of Passage' or a medical non-necessity.

What would your pregnancy be like without an ultrasound, its resultant pictures and the information it provides?? How would your peace of mind be affected? How can you justify the potential negative "side-effects" to your baby, in light of these considerations?Follow the links below to learn more about what the experts say about ultrasound...

LINKS:
Here is a document detailing the American Academy of Family Physicians' Indications for Ultrasound: (According to the AAFP, these are the reasons an ultrasound should be performed.) www.comfortablebirthing.com/aafp_ultrasound.doc

"FDA Cautions Against Ultrasound 'Keepsake' Images," By Carol Rados: http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2004/104_images.html

Ultrasound of Early Pregnancy (Creighton University Medical Center): http://radiology.creighton.edu/pregnancy.htm

Ultrasound Scans - Cause for Concern (Dr. Sarah Buckley): http://www.birthlove.com/free/ultrasound.html

Ultrasound - More Harm Than Good? (Marsden Wagner / Midwifery Today): http://www.midwiferytoday.com/articles/ultrasoundwagner.asp?q=ultrasound

HypnoBirthing Birth Stories - Digest #1

2007-09-20T17:58:00.000-07:00

In my quest to offer a glimpse into the births of other HypnoBirthing moms, I have decided to post several beautiful birthing stories, which I have received from other HypnoBirthing instructors. Note: These stories have not been edited, with the exception of names, which have been changed.

1. First, a birth story from the UK; a wonderful account of the many sensations of labor...

Like most pregnant women, during the last trimester of my pregnancy I'd nervously read as much as possible about the signs of labour. All the books told me about mucus shows experienced days and possibly weeks before active labour; about worsening Braxton Hicks;about waters breaking. Most of all about how, if you're not sure whether or not you're in labour, you're almost certainly not. After completing the Hypnobirthing course, you'd have thought I'd be more cautious about blindly believing everything the pregnancy books tell you.

The night before the birth at 36+5 weeks pregnant, my husband Dan and I had gone out for a meal with one of Dan's colleagues, to a trendy new restaurant in town where I'd had prawn and salmon salad and a couple of incidences of backache which I put down to the restaurant chairs. Nothing unusual or untoward was happening – certainly nothing to suggest a baby might be arriving soon.

After a lovely night out, Dan and I tucked ourselves up into bed with the "Parenting" relaxation track on the Hypnobirthing CD, and I fell into the comfortable sleep I always experience when I'm listening to any of those self-hypnosis scripts. I slept on, uninterrupted, until about 4.00 am when I was drowsily aware of some period-like cramps in my lower belly. Too drowsy to think about it, I shifted about for a while to try and get comfortable and drifted in and out of sleep. The drowsiness didn't last though; as the crampy feeling got more intense over the next half an hour, I became more and more convinced that I had an upset stomach which I immediately put down to the fact that I'd eaten dodgy seafood at therestaurant. I had a sudden, desperate urge to go to the loo (which fed my conviction that I'd had some kind of reaction to the food) and began a relentless, unvarying cycle of trying to find a comfortable position in bed, shifting about impatiently, getting up to go to the loo yet again, before returning to find some comfort in bed. I considered just shutting myself in the bathroom and having done with it, but I was longing to curl up in the warmth of bed as well. In any case, I tried hard not to wake Dan – he had to get up for work in a few hours anyway, and it was pointless interrupting him for nothing. Besides, judging by how he was last night, he'd be grumpy with a hangover.

At 6am, Dan finally responded to my restlessness and woke up. "My tummy feels really uncomfortable low down", I explained "and I keep needing the loo. I'm getting so frustrated with it – I wonder what's wrong". "It's probably just down to a bad prawn", he reasoned. Earlier, about an hour into this little episode, I'd briefly entertained the notion that I might be in labour but discounted it immediately, surmising that it was far too early (I was going to go on till at least 41 weeks), and anyway I'd had no show and no waters had broken. I was with Dan on this one - the damn restaurant hadgiven me a bad prawn.

Ten minutes later during yet another visit to the loo, I noticed there was a tiny bit of blood when I wiped. Now I was angry. "This stress of this stomach upset has made me bleed so it must be affecting the baby. I'm going to sue that bloody restaurant if anything happens" I vowed, and went to tell Dan what was going on.

"I think we ought to call someone and ask for advice", he said. "Bleeding can't be good. I'll find someone to call". I continued pacing back and forth, rubbing my tummy and listening to the one-way conversation on the phone:"…crampy pains low down…yes…well no she's not in a lot of pain at all, but she's obviously uncomfortable… not a lot of blood, just spotting, but we'd like to get it checked out…no, no contractions… no show or waters breaking, no…ok, we can be there in twenty minutes".

"Right, we have to go now, they want to look at you and see what's causing the bleeding", he said. Having something to do took my mind of the discomfort. "I'll just have a quick shower then".
Dan looked at me in disbelief then, while I showered, dashed round the house chucking stuff in an overnight bag in case I had to stay in. In a moment of blessed lucidity, he chucked the iPOD and earphones in while I faffed around trying to find some clothes that were comfortable enough.
In the car, things got more uncomfortable. Had I known what was happening I'd have lain on the back seat, but as it was I strapped myself into the front and regretted it for every bump we encountered on the road.

We arrived at the hospital and Dan dropped me off at the entrance. "I'll just park the car – go to Reception, they'reexpecting you". I didn't think to ask which Reception was expecting me. Instead of going to Delivery, I set off for the Fetal Assessment Unit. Luckily, Dan found me before I disappeared and steered me in the right direction. The midwife who checked me in led us to a spare delivery room where I could be examined. She was obviously overworked and in a hurry soI explained that I had some crampy pains and had to take my time. "Oh, I thought it was just bleeding. Ok, I'll tell the doctor".

A midwife came and sat with us, but explained that they were very short-staffed and she couldn't stay. She'd sent in a student midwife when one was free, and the doctor would be with us shortly. At this point I was in a world of my own. The room had a rocking chair so I sat and rocked myself gently back and forth, nodding drowsily to anything anyone said, not really caring. I decided that it was a good time to try some 20-20 breathing in practice for the birth in a couple of weeks' time. The breathing helped ease the crampiness, and I felt pleasantly dozy. Suddenly I felt sick. As I was throwing up in the sink, a midwife walked in. "Ah yes!" she said cheerfully, "that's a sure sign of labour!". I looked at her bemused, thinking "no, it's a sure sign of food poisoning", and went back to my chair to continue rocking sleepily.

A student midwife and her colleague arrived to tell me the doctor would be with me shortly, and asked me to describe how I was feeling. I tried to give some brief details, aided by Dan. I just couldn't be bothered to speak. Between us we relayed the message that I had an upset stomach with constant cramps low down like period pain, but that cramps didn't really come and go much so probably weren't contractions, and that I'd had a tiny bit of blood loss. "Ok", said the midwife, "well it could be that you're in the very early stages of labour, but we'll let the doctor see what the bleeding is about before we do anything else" "They're all insane", I thought. "They'll soon realise I've got food poisoning and send me home once they've sorted out the bleeding".

Although I have to admit that reality was slowly starting to dawn. Deep down I think the certainty was there - I know that if they'd tried to send me home I would have refused to move. At about 8am the doctor arrived and asked me to get onto the bed. My cramps had got worse, so I serenely held my hand up to signal "please wait", and continued to rock back and forth, breathing calmly. After asking me twice she started to get tetchy. "I can't examine you in the chair, you need to get on the bed", she snapped. "She understands" , said Dan, "but she's a bit uncomfortable so if you could just wait for it to pass".

The doctor huffed for a bit but waited. The cramp started to ease and I did as I'd been told. "Right, I'm just going to examine you with this", she said, waving a speculum in front of my face. "Uh huh", I mumbled. A few brief moments later, and with slight surprise in her voice, I heard her exclaim, "oh – umm – that's the head". There was a rapid movement around me as the two midwives darted to the end of the bed. "Where? Are you sure?" "Yes of course I'm sure. Look, that's hair" Some more fumbling ensued.

"Err, I'd say she was at least seven centimetres. Actually, make that eight". There was a sudden flurry of activity as people dashed in and out of the room bringing equipment, a cot, blankets. At least, that's what Dan tells me happened. I was still sort of dozing. The doctor, now more conciliatory, kindly asked me if I'd be more comfortable in thechair. I sat and rocked again. That chair was bliss. The midwives, now back in the room, were thoroughly disconcerted. "How on earth did you do that?" one asked. "How did you get to eight centimetres just by sitting there breathing?" I didn't answer. Again, I just couldn't be bothered. Dan mumbled something about Hypnobirthing and the midwife replied "ah ok. I'll just let you get on with things".
Oddly enough, as soon as the doctor had confirmed I was in labour, the cramps felt more intense. After all, I'd had stomach upsets plenty of times before, but I'd never been in labour. I was excited but nervous. This was it. Oh my god, I was having a baby. I lent on the bed and asked Dan to rub my back, while the midwife asked if I'd like gas and air. Overwhelmed, I nodded. I didn't feel that I needed pain relief, but now I knew I was in labour I wanted something there, just in case.

I knew that relaxation was the key. I'd been extremely successful so far – the Hypnobirthing was working – and I knew I just needed to maintain my relaxation. I asked Dan to plug me into the iPOD at the same time that the midwives were plugging me onto the monitor, and I switched to the Rainbow Relaxation. It had been sending me to sleep nightly for the past two months. Immediately I started to relax again. The rest of the labour is pretty much a blur. It's not that I'veforgotten it, it's that I just wasn't fully aware of what was going on around me. The time whizzed by – I'd glance at the clock every now and then thinking that five minutes had passed, to find that it was more like twenty-five. The "few minutes" I thought I'd spent leaning on the bed having my back rubbed by Dan later turned out to be three quarters of an hour. During that time the cramps became more intense then eased, on and off but with no rhythm and no discernable pattern. I remember feeling it mostly in my back, and thinking that if I could just get in a comfortable position, my backwould feel better. The wires on the monitors were impeding my movement, and I felt frustrated. In my birthplan I'd requested no continuous monitoring, but I was together enough to realise this was a slightly premature birth and that the rules might have to be different. Besides which, making the request would entail stringing a sentence together and I wasn't sure I wanted to. The midwives were buzzing round behind and underneath me with a torch. They were taking to Dan but with the iPOD on I couldn't make out what was being said and although I was curious, I didn't really care. He told me later that they were telling him a blue line had appeared on my lower back which indicated I'd reached 10centimetres. I was beginning to want to bear down. "Do you feel a little bit pushy?" asked the student midwife"A little" I mumbled.

"That's fine, just go with what your body tells you". I continued making teeny little pushes. Disconcerted, I took myfirst suck on the gas and air, partly to distract myself and help with the breathing, partly just to see what it was like. As pain relief it was useless and made no difference whatsoever to the way I felt, but that was ok. I wasn't really in much pain; it was just intense and uncomfortable. I kept hold of the tube anyway. For some reason I found it's presence comforting. Eventually the spasms in my back became more uncomfortable. "I want to kneel on the bed", I said to Dan. They all helped me up, but the position didn't ease things. "We'd just like to examine you again", said the studentmidwife. "Sometimes you can want to push before the cervix is totally dilated and it can cause swelling, so we'd just like to check".

"I'd rather not actually", I replied. "I'll just go with what my body is doing – it's worked so far". Dan took the time to explain politely that I wanted to be left alone. The urge to push was getting stronger, I turned over – half on myback and half on my side (I couldn't stand having all the weight on my back) and I started to bear down. The midwives obviously had a good view and were encouraging me along. One of them started rubbing my back. It was bliss. I don't know how long that stage lasted for, although on my notes it's recorded as 53 minutes. It felt more like quarter of an hour.

Every so often I'd want to bear down, so I did. In between I rested. The feeling got more and more intense and I could feel that the baby was making her way down. The midwives became more encouraging. "That's it! That's a really nice push! Keep going!" At one point I asked what was happening – where she was. "We can just start to see the head coming – it won't be long now, keep going. Use the pain. Every time you feel the pain use it to push, don't waste it". I glanced at Dan. I wasn't feeling any pain, I was just feeling very full and needing to push. I ignored them and carried on. The intensity peaked as she started to crown. I took more sucks on the gas and air, trying to keep my breathing deep, but I noticed mybreaths were very shaky. "How much can I stretch?" I thought. I'd turned off the Rainbow Relaxation (I'd had it on loop three times) and was just listening to the music. I reminded myself that my body was built to do this, and that it would open for my baby just as it should. "She's doing very well, this is amazing" I heard someone say. "What on earth is it she's listening to?" As she crowned I could feel myself stretching more and more. I started to make a noise. It wasn't down to pain although it WAS uncomfortable and my back was hurting – it was down to determination; I was nervous of how far I could stretch, but I knew I had to keep pushing and I was longing for her to be born. I tried to use the J-breathing but kept forgetting and ended up doing a weird combination where I'd take a breath, hold it and push, thenrealise I shouldn't be doing that and turn it into a J-breath. It seemed to work anyway and the deep breaths were relaxing.

"That's it – she's crowning now so it'll feel a bit stingy" said the midwife in response to my shouts and growls. "Use the pain – don't waste it – when the pain comes, use it to push". Again I looked at Dan and rolled my eyes at him in an attempt to tell him that there wasn't any pain. I wasn't feeling contractions, I was just feeling the need to push, coming in waves. Driven on by the encouragement the midwives were giving me ("just a couple more big pushes!"), I gave it everything I had and her head was out. The midwife told me excitedly that I'd done the hard bit now.

"Ok, now just rest till you feel the next contraction and then give me a couple of little pushes to get her shoulders out".Well ok, I thought, although I still wasn't feeling contractions and the urge to push had passed, so I rested and waited. Nothing happened. "Do you want to reach down and feel the head?" someone asked me. "No thanks, that'd freak me out" I said and giggled. "I'd rather just concentrate on doing this". They laughed nervously, disconcerted by my sudden communicativeness perhaps. Or maybe by the giggle. "What IS she listening to?" the midwives asked for the umpteenthtime. "It's a Hypnobirthing relaxation thing" Dan tried to explain again.
"We'll have to find out more about this", came the reply. I'd still had no urge to push and I could feel a slight impatienceemanating from the opposite end of the bed. "Ah well" I thought, "I'd better just get on and do it". Without waiting for the surges I gave a couple of little pushes, and felt my baby's body slither out. She was plopped down on my chest and I finally got to say hello to my daughter. "Oh Callie, we've got a girl" said Dan through a sudden burst of tears. I looked at her and cried. I was totally elated. "A bad prawn indeed", I said to Dan. "She's not a bad prawn, she's a lovely prawn".Pink and wrinkly, she was beautiful. After the third stage had been completed (a managed delivery – again not on my birthplan which was a disappointment, but again something I wasn't "together" enough to communicate) the midwives turned their attention to getting me to talk. "How the hell did you do that? What were you listening to, what wasit all about?" In my drowsy state I cuddled my baby and tried to briefly explain the Hypnobirthing theory. They looked slightly bemused.

"We'll have to find out more about this", they said. "In any case, that was a brilliant birth to start the day with – we've never seen anything like it. You can come again. When you have your second one next year, can you ask for us?"I didn't have the heart to tell them that my husband and I had only ever planned to have one. Although who knows - after such a positive, profound experience I might be dying to do it again. It was 10.45. From the start of my "upset stomach" to delivery, labour had taken six and a half hours - exactly the time I'd thought of when we'd done the visualisation exercise during the Hypnobirthing class. The baby was 6lb 12oz, my pulse had never gone above 70 throughout the entire labour, and my blood pressure and the baby's heartbeat had stayed relaxed and constant. Downstairs I was the talk of the ward for a short while. Dan, who, in genuine awe, had told me several times throughout the labour how amazingly I was doing, filled me in on the details that I'd missed while I'd been in my own head-space.

Apparently I'd not made a sound until the crowning stage, when I'd given a few mild shouts. A couple of midwives on the ward popped their heads round the curtain. "We've heard about you!" they said. Before the birth everyone had told about the "amazing and wonderful way" the mind has of forgetting childbirth, and I can only conclude that this theory is a load of nonsense. You don't forget childbirth, you forget a traumatic experience. I might have been in my own zone during labour, and I might not have noticed what everyone else in the room was saying or doing, but I can certainly remember every feeling and every sensation I had when I was birthing my daughter.

And I can say with all honestly that my experience is one I'll want to remember and treasure forever.
********************
2. This is a story from NM:

"I want to share a birth story from one of my Moms who had a 'Big Baby' (10 lbs. 3 oz)totally natural. Perhaps it iwll be an inspiration for other Moms who have GD [Gestational Diabetes] and big babies.

"I am so pleased by my hypnobirthing experience. I did not want my baby to be drugged at birth. I learned alot during the class. Throughout my pregnancy I was seen by prenatal development doctor and nutritionist due to gestational diabetes. ( I was originally referred because I mistakenly told my midwife I have a family history of down syndrome, so they sent me there for genetic testing. I do not have any relatives w/ DS, they have cerebal palsy) These specialists informed me they would induce at about 38 weeks. I informed my midwife I was strongly opposed to induction, and she agreed I could go to term due to the gestational diabetes being at a mild level, and only a low dose of medication was being used to control it. I was scheduled for a Thurs AM. I decided not to go.

"I had worked full time up until Tue of that week, and decided it was time to stop working so I could get a couple days rest before baby was born. I had seen an acupunturist about 4 times in the preceeding few weeks to help so I would not need to be induced. She informed me she would have like to see me more rested/stronger for the birth, but worked to get the birth started. I saw her Tue or Wed and she thought I would start surges within the next couple of days. Well again, Thurs I did not show up for the inducement: I tried to weigh a) my desire for a natural birth and b) the medical advise I was given. So I decided to give the baby a couple days more...the weekend. If he was not born by Mon, I would go in for induction. Early Sun April 1, I thought my water released - (it was really the "plug") surges began. OH NO - I did not want him born on "april fool's day".

"I had surges for most of the day, they stopped that evening. Then Early Mon AM the water did release...I then knew the difference. Surges began again. I did not want to go to the hospital. My husband finally convinced me to go in (I had called the hospital earlier, and the suggested I come in to be "checked" - to make sure my water really did release - like I didn't know.) I already knew if I went in they would keep me, so I took all my gear and reluctantly went to the hospital. They admitted me around 5pm. Husband goes home - we had planned on him not being there. Called Brenda to let her know I was there...don't rush I'm okay (had been keeping in communication the last two days) .

"Surges proceeded thruough the night...Brenda was right there with me every move I made. I was so impressed and thankful. She did an outstanding, wonderful job, I can't say enough about the support she gave me during my birth. At times the surges were pretty intense, but I wouldn't say painful. They were pretty uncomfortable, and I got tired of feeling them, so when they slowed down I did not mind. My midwife was wonderful also. I lucked out that the midwife I saw throughout my pregnancy was on duty during my birth. She knew my wishes and was very good about letting me do it my way.

"Because over 24 hrs passed from water release, and irregular, far spaced surges, midwife informed that doctor was pushing for induction. I told her we were going to try some natural stimulation first. I told Brenda 'let me rest for a few minutes, then we'll go for it.' And we did. I positioned myself on the bar and began nipple stimulation which immediatley caused surges to start. These were strong surges that caused a strong pushing urge. My son was very large, and my first child. I was determined to push him out. I took alot of pushes squatting and pushing with everything I had. surge stopped, stand, wait, next surge, squat, push and push and push. Finally Midwife said he's almost under the bone. A few more pushed and down he came. She helped with warm compresses and we slowly brought him down the birth canal to the opening. We slowly worked to make sure there was no tearing, and she did a good job manuvering him out - he had broad shoulders too! Of course Brenda was by my side through it all. What a wonderful birthing experience!

"Today my son is 4 months old. very alert, healthy 22 lbs 26 inches 2 teeth, friendly as can be, and tough as nails. I beleive my relaxation, as well as his birth helped him be the good baby he is. He sleeps well, and does not cry for anything really. (I was so proud of him too...he was so strong throughout the long birth - no problems at all with heart rate etc) I knew it could be different, and no one around me beleived I could have and plan a positive birth. They thought because it was my first child, I was dreaming, didn't know what I was talking about...you'll see when you go through it... take the drugs etc...all the stereotypes were there, but I did not let that stop me, and I did have the birthing experience I wanted. It's funny how things happen because I only heard about hypnobirthing when I happened to read an article in a magazine in the doctor's office waiting room when I went with my husband to his appointment. If it wasn't for that article, I may have had to endure a 'typical' birth experience. Boy am I glad I didn't!"
**************
3. This is a story from Singapore:

"It was shortly past midnight when I woke up because of regular surges. I knew immediately that that this was the day for our first child to be born. Having waited for almost 42 weeks for him to arrive, I was so excited that I couldn't get back to sleep anymore. I knew it would be sensible to save my energy for the actual labour and birth. Still, I got out of bed, listened to my Hypnobirthing relaxation cds, and regularly checked the time that elapsed between surges. Having heard from a friend of mine that she had just given birth to her first child after only four hours of labour, I felt a bit nervous about how fast things would progress in my case. At 3am my contractions were about 6-8 minutes apart, and I thought I'd better inform Helen, my doula. While speaking to her on the phone, I became aware again that things usually don't happen that fast. So I went back to my relaxation exercises, slowly breathing through every surge, and at some point got up to prepare some snacks to take to the hospital. I called Helen again at 6 o'clock, and she came to our place to see how I was doing. Two hours later the surges had become more intense, and I felt that we should go to the hospital.

"My husband, Helen and I arrived at the hospital shortly past 8 o'clock. I settled myself in the bathtub as soon as it had filled up, not knowing then that I was to spend more than 5 hours in the water. While in the tub, I was breathing throughmy surges and relaxing in between. We had brought along some soothing music that was playing in the background. I felt very calm and focused on what was going on within my body. I didn't feel any pain, but experienced the surges as tension in my pelvis and later in my lower back. I was most comfortable kneeling in the tub, because my tailbone would start aching as soon as I tried to sit. The only sensation of pain that I felt during labour resulted from cramps in my legs. My body was just not used to kneeling in a bathtub for a long time. During the last couple hours of labour I felt the urge tobear down. When it was time for birthing, I found myself in a rather strange position for a water birth. Because of my sore tailbone I was not able to sit or lean against my lower back, at the same time I was trying to avoid another cramp in my leg. Thus I supported myself on my arms, hips raised up almost horizontally and legs braced against the side of the bathtub. Sensing that I could stay neither in this position nor in the tub much longer, I pushed rather hard for the baby to emerge. Finally, he was born, and my doctor passed him to me.

"Looking back to that day, I'm still amazed at all the little wonders that life holds for women when giving birth. It is amazing how a woman's body opens up naturally to let a baby pass out into the world. When giving birth I found it very easy to go deep within my body, forgetting about time and people around me. I'm glad that with the antenatal Hypnobirthing course that I took, I had learned to focus on the positive aspects of birth, expecting a naturally easy,calm and safe birth without pains. My husband, Helen, and my doctor all helped me to create exactly this experience, for which I'm verygrateful."

4. This story is from Florida (a 2nd time mom):

"I just had to share the amazing birth I attended earlier this morning...

"I met mom at the hospital at 12:30 AM, she was 4 cm and 100% effaced. Mom was chatting, rarely even stopping to breathe through her surges. We went for a long walk around 1:30 AM. She finally stopped talking through her surges, but did not stop walking. She kept telling me that she was feeling really GREAT, really in touch with the process. When we would pass by the nurses station, I kept getting the impression that they didn't think she was really active yet ;)
"At 2AM her water bag released with a BIG gush. She wanted to shower as she felt really messy from the big splash. In the shower she whispers that she feels the need to change her breathing. I assist her back to the bed after the shower and onto her hands and knees.? The husband goes to tell the nurse (who by the way is pregnant, just took the HB course AND is now having a homebirth!) that we think she is close, to please notify her midwife who was already in the hospital.

"Mom is quiet, still on her hands and knees, and whispers "a little something is coming out"...I pull back the towel expecting more fluid/show to find her beautiful baby girl's head born!? Midwife slides in, no gloves and catches. Baby born at 2:13 AM, 13 minutes after SROM [Spontaneous Release of Membranes). Perfect in every possible way!

"Our expectant nurse was tearful, and kept repeating 'a little something coming out...oh my gosh...I'm doing it this way...HB is great!'"

5. This is a story from Utah (a natural breech Hypnobirth!):

"MY BIRTH STORY
"This was my second baby—with my first birthing being a wonderful experience using HypnoBirthing. After becoming a HypnoBirthing Practitioner during this pregnancy, I was excited to birth my second son. After my 40 week appointment, I began to have surges throughout the day. I was already 4 cm (almost 5 cm) open at the office but I continued using HypnoBirthing imagery and relaxation throughout the day.

"Later that evening, my surges became more intense and we decided to head over to the hospital as I listened to music and more imagery in the car. We arrived at the hospital a little before 7 p.m. "When the nurse checked me, I was 6.5 cm. She proceeded to admit me and then the midwife came into the room and checked me again. I was then 8.5 cm, but...she wasn't sure it was a head that she felt. So they got the ultrasound out which showed that the baby was, indeed, breech.

She called the attending doctor as we decided what we wanted to do. I was, of course, worried…especially since (being a labor and birthing nurse), I knew that usually, a breech presentation will mean a cesarean section. However, my doctor was one of the few in that hospital who will actually deliver a breech baby and gave me the option to decide (a live example of how important choosing your provider is). The midwife asked me what I wanted to do and I told her I would like to try delivering vaginally.

"They took me to the Operating Room and I was progressing so rapidly, that by the time the doctor arrived, I was completely opened with bulging membranes. They released my membranes and I breathed down about three times before our beautiful baby boy arrived—bottom first! It was 8:05 p.m. The midwife, doctor, and nurses were allamazed that I did so well through it all, using HypnoBirthing, and despite the disturbance in my ideal situation (the OR was quite bright and I didn't bring in my music or anything that I had practiced). "This was the first unmedicated vaginal breech delivery at this hospital in TEN years! It was a beautiful experience, with absolutely no complications—not even a tear! I couldn't have done it without HypnoBirthing!!"

The Slippery Slope - Why is This Important? -Part Two

2007-06-17T09:41:00.000-07:00

Today's Topic: Pain Medication & Epidurals in Labor

Let me make one thing clear--I want you to be comfortable. I also want you to make your own decision about your baby's birth. That decision should be yours, and yours alone, informed by the knowledge of others who provide you with science-based information. Today, I'll outline the pros & cons of pain medication and epidurals in labor, so that you can make an informed decision for yourself.

The Benefits of Pain Medication & Epidurals in Labor:
1) Epidural: Provides relief when relief is needed (this is an obvious one)--while you remain awake and alert.
2) Narcotics: Provide relief for some women; i.e., they "take the edge off"; they don't require total numbness (you can still move and respond to your body's signals), monitoring equipment or catheter, as with an epidural; administration is quick.
3) In a difficult labor, pain medications help some moms to relax, thereby allowing labor to progress.

The Drawbacks of Pain Medication & Epidurals in Labor:
Epidurals:
1) Epidurals are widely known to slow labor--resulting in use of Pitocin to speed it up again. (Pitocin has its own risks to mom and baby). Use of epidurals are correlated with higher C-section rates due to "failure to progress".
2) Require continuous monitoring of surge activity and baby's heart rate (EFM). This increases the odds of assisted and surgical birth.
3) Requires an IV and a catheter.
4) Can cause: blood pressure problems, maternal fever, severe headache, fluid in mother's/baby's lungs, anemia, nerve injury, and many other side effects.
5) Increases the likelihood of an episiotomy; because of increase in assisted births (i.e., forceps) AND moms with epidurals cannot feel what their bodies are doing, and cannot help to nudge their baby to crowning. Also, many caregivers with a high-epidural rate also have a high-episiotomy rate--bottom line, it saves them time.
6) Babies DO experience effects from anesthesia--research has found babies to be disoriented and have trouble suckling. In addition, babies are likely to be whisked away, while you lay in bed, incapacitated. This is potentially traumatizing to them.
7) The procedure is very uncomfortable and takes about a 1/2 hour.
8) Some women experience negative psychological effects--such as feeling out of control, lack of confidence about birthing abilities or feeling like a failure.

Narcotics (Additional Drawbacks):
1) Can cause breathing problems for mom and baby.
2) Can cause nausea and a "fuzzy-headed" feeling.
3) Narcotics don't eliminate pain.

In Conclusion:
Obviously, when it comes to medications, the safest solution for both mom & baby is to "Just Say No." There are special circumstances that benefit from an informed decision to use pain medications during labor. I always encourage the use of a doula. And, of course, choose to work with professionals that support your goals, who communicate with you respectfully. They will help you make the best decision, should a special circumstance arise.
Also, remember my motto about this topic: Discomfort in labor is a sign that you are not feeling fully relaxed and safe. Ask yourself, "What do I need to do to feel more relaxed right now?".

And remember to become very familiar with what relaxation feels like, so that you can apply this wonderful practice.

Reference:
Goer, Henci. The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth (1999). New York: The Berkley Publishing Group. ISBN 0-399-5251713.

Your Caregiver's Statistics--Important or Misleading?

2007-06-03T20:55:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, during a conversation about childbirth, I was reminded of the importance of caregiver statistics. I have always reinforced the importance of asking a doctor/midwife about the total inverventions they do: "What is your C-Section rate?," "What is your induction rate?," "What is your episiotomy rate?" are all good examples of the questions I recommend asking.
But, for some reason, lately I have been suspicious of the numbers I see. For example, a midwifery or OB or family practice might boast a C-section rate of 10-15%--ideal by most standards. However, when I hear from moms who birth with that particular practice, I don't hear stories of natural, non-interventive births! Quite the opposite--these moms have labors that are just as medicalized as the standard AML birth (starting with induction and proceeding to assisted or surgical birth).

So what's happening here? Thinking of all the possible factors that were at play, I thought maybe my teaching style was to blame; or perhaps it was just bad luck or a fluke; maybe I'm confusing the stories of 2nd-time moms who come to HypnoBirthing in order to avoid the interventions they faced at previous births; or, maybe the statistics are skewed...
Although it's possible to have a skewed luck-of-the-draw, I doubted it. I often change my teaching style, in order to investigate better ways of delivering the material, but the outcomes are similar. And, the moms who took my classes were reporting similar stories as the experiences of the returning moms.

What I believe is actually happening here, is that caregivers' statistics are misleading. For example, claiming a 10-15% C-section rate is great, but does that count the moms who were "officially" transferred to an OB's care? It's possible that this transfer could happen at the time of induction, which may be initiated for unclear reasons (i.e., low amniotic fluid or postdates). For example: When a first-time mom is transferred to an OB & induced for going a week or so past her due date, and since her body was not ready to birth, she does not progress "fast enough" and undergoes a C-section...that might not even be counted in that practice's C-section rate. Even though it is worthy of note for any expectant mom!

In conclusion, I must state that even the numbers don't mean much. Parents must take their fate into their own hands, and DECIDE that their birth will take a natural course, in the absense of a clear medical emergency. This is encouraged by refusing an induction for non-medical reasons (suspected large baby, postdates/past due date, one-time test results showing borderline results), laboring at home as long as possible, and making your intentions clear.

Remember to TRUST...

-Cindy

My Current Statistics

2007-05-31T18:53:00.000-07:00

As of today's date, I have currently taught the HypnoBirthing curriculum to 32 moms and/or couples. While this is a small sample (and constantly changing due to the small number), I wanted to provide information on the birthing outcomes for the moms in my classes. Provided in percentages, this information will be kept confidential, and is for informational purposes only.
Percentage of moms who are still pregnant (not included in stats): 22%
Percentage of moms (2+ months past EDD) reporting outcomes: 81%
Percentage of reporting moms who reported a home birth / hospital birth: 10% / 90%
Percentage of reporting moms who reported a natural birth: 48%
Percentage of reporting moms who reported induction of labor: 29%
Percentage of reporting moms who reported receiving epidural anesthesia (includes C-section moms): 48%
Percentage of reporting moms who reported receiving epidural anesthesia (no C-section): 29%
Percentage of reporting moms who reported receiving other pain medications: 10%
Percentage of reporting moms who had a cesarean section: 19%
Percentage of reporting moms who reported episiotomies: 10%
Please note that the C-section rate in IL is between 30-40%! All intervention rates are, likewise, much higher than those seen in the moms who have taken my classes. There are MANY factors that determine the outcome of a birth--choice of provider, choice of birthing environment (homebirths are generally less-interventive than hospital births), participation in & dedication to the practice of HB techniques and the degree of personal committment to a particular birthing outcome. True medical circumstances comprise between 5-15% of interventive births (depending on the particular sample being studied).
I will try to update my statistics every few months, as I receive more birth reports!

The Slippery Slope - Why is This Important? -Part One

2007-05-31T18:20:00.000-07:00

This is Part One of my series of posts intended to inform parents-to-be of the truths and pros/cons of medical interventions related to the birthing process.

One of the most important tools you can bring with you to the birthing room is your knowledge. It is an unfortunate reality that medical personnel tend to take advantage of a laboring woman's vulnurability (sometimes without even realizing it). This, combined with tradition and good, old-fashioned "daily routine" (it's a job for them, right?) create an environment that is not necessarily supportive of personal choice. I'm here to arm you with the education you need to make the right decsions for you.

Today's topic is: Induction

According to Henci Goer in The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth, medical literature tells us the following about induction of labor:

Natural methods (nipple stimulation, castor oil, acupuncture, TENS, sexual intercourse) are effective at inducing labor.Synthetic oxytocin (Pitocin) has risks (see cons below).Prostoglandins (cervical ripening agents, such as Cervidil) have not been shown to reduce cesarean rates, as compared to Pitocin.Induction of labor for reasons OTHER than medically indicated reasons increases the risk of C-section and fetal distress.Inducing labor for a suspected large baby, based on ultrasound results, increases risk of C-section--WITHOUT improving outcomes.Waiting at least 24-hours after release of membranes is safe--as long as there is no sign of, or actions (i.e., vaginal exams) that may cause, infection...In fact, inducing too soon has been shown to increase C-section odds.Induction for first-time moms greatly increases the risk of a C-section. (Goer, pp. 73-74)

Pros/Cons of Common Medical Induction methods:

Pitocin...
Pros: Has a short half-life (does not stay in the blood long), so it can be slowed or stopped easily. (Goer, p. 65)
Cons: Causes intense, sometimes fast surges; Requires an IV and continuous fetal monitoring; Can cause uterine hyperstimulation (leading to fetal distress--meconium, heart rate concerns, which may lead to surgical or assisted birth); Increases postpartum blood loss and newborn jaundice; Generally increases risk for C-section. (Goer, p. 65)
Also, Pitocin (unlike your body's own natural oxytocin) does not cross the blood-brain barrier, which deprives you of the emotional benefits of oxytocin (i.e., the "loving feelings" produced by this hormone), as well as what I call the "feedback loop" of information that tells your body to produce endorphins in response to the oxytocin release--in other words, less endorphin production.

Stripping/Sweeping/Artificially Rupturing Membranes...
Pros: May initiate or intensify surges, thereby helping labor to progress; may provide an alternative to Pitocin induction. (Goer, p. 64-65)
Cons: Increases risk of infection; increases risk of fetal distress (no amniotic fluid = less cushioning for baby and umbilical cord); may increase risk for umbilical cord prolapse. (Goer, p. 64-65). Stripping or Sweeping (a.k.a. stimulating) the membranes may cause premature release of membranes, in which case the previously-mentioned risks apply.

Prostaglandin Gels (Cervical Ripening Agents, such as Cervidil or Prepidil)...
Pros: Some forms (Cervidil only) can be removed if needed; shows somewhat lower C-section risk than Pitocin.
Cons: Possible uterine hyperstimulation and fetal distress (Not unlike Pitocin).

Other Methods (& my general advice about them)...(Goer, pp. 62-64)

Mechanical Dilators: Consider infection risk; cheaper than prostaglandins.

Misoprostol (Cytotec): AVOID THIS INDUCTION METHOD! It's cheaper than prostaglandin gels, but it is NOT approved by the FDA for induction of labor! It is dangerous, as it can cause extreme uterine hyperstimulation, fetal distress and even uterine rupture.

Herbs: Can be effective, but there is little to no research on it. Consult an herbalist that you trust!

Acupuncture/Acupressure/TENS: Not a lot of research done on these methods, but the good news is that they can be stopped easily, and are relatively noninvasive. I've personally seen acupressure work very well.

Castor Oil: Traditional method to initiate uterine surges via movement in the large intestine; not a lot of research done on this method; easy to use at home; may cause undesirable effects (i.e. diarrhea).

Nipple Stimulation: One of the best supported methods for oxytocin production; easy & free to use; supports your body's own natural process; *can cause intense surges--use conservatively, one nipple at a time, sporadically throughout the day.

Sex: It's fun, it feels good, semen contains prostaglandins (to ripen the cervix, see above), orgasm stimulates uterine surges (as it does normally, anyway), nipple & clitoral stimulation produce natural oxytocin.

Spicy Foods, Enemas: These methods help stimulate uterine surges, via stimulation of the digestive/intestinal system (in a similar way as castor oil, but perhaps gentler).

Walking, Relaxation, Fear Release: All natural ways to feel good (produce endorphins) and give your body a way to naturally release stress; thereby allowing labor to happen.

In Conclusion...
As a proponent of natural childbirth, it is my assertion that a healthy mom & baby are best left to start labor on their own. Medical inductions are intended to rescue a mom or baby who is clearly ill or in trouble. Inductions put a first-time mom, especially, at risk for a c-section for failure to progress. It is important to weigh ALL of the benefits and risks when considering induction.

Remember that you are DESIGNED to birth your baby naturally & comfortably! Trust is crucial in this process.

Links to Research Articles

2007-05-15T07:30:00.000-07:00

Here is a link to a study about the use of herbs and supplements for women...

The Use of Herbs and Dietary Supplements in Gynecology: An Evidence-Based Review; Cathi E. Dennehy, PharmD:
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/551014_print

Welcome!

2007-05-14T11:28:00.000-07:00

Began in mid-May, 2007, my intent is to create a space for discussion, presentation of research & birthing-related articles, real HypnoBirthing birth stories, and questions about HypnoBirthing & natural childbirth. As I always say, I will work hard to find answers for you--if I don't have the answer (it happens--I'm only human!), I will search through my available resources to find it.

Please note, I openly admit to having a bias towards natural birth as being the safest, most satisfying, healthiest choice for women and their babies. Although I do try to just present information, in order for you to make the choice yourself, sometimes this bias slips out. I encourage you to use the information I provide as a springboard for your own research. Since, inevitably, there is at least a small amount of bias in every piece of information, it is your duty to evaluate the facts fully, and to your complete satisfaction!

If you have a birth story to share, please do! I am interested in reading ALL stories, not just "perfect" HypnoBirthing stories (although those are certainly needed & welcome!). Please post your story in the spirit of learning & reflection, i.e., without insulting people, techniques or places, or you may experience removal of your post. This way, we can all learn from your experience.
Enjoy!