A HypnoBirthing announcement--Shelby & Will's birth

Shelby & Will took my HypnoBirthing classes on Tuesdays in January 2011 at Babies by the Sea Boutique.

Here is their birth story:

Hello there! I just wanted to let you know that my baby is here!!! Her name is Tenly Lu. She was born March 24 and was 7 lbs 19 inches. She is the most wonderful, perfect, beautiful baby ever!!!! I knew how great motherhood would be, but really it is even better than I could have imagined! As I'm sure you know!

I ended up having to have a planned C Section with her. She was Frank Breech, and after a week and of going to see Dr. Jack Mawer (chiropractor) twice a day to get her to turn, I just decided to go that way. My Dr. offered to do an external version, but she told me that if she turned they would induce me right away, and if she didn't turn it would be an emergency C Section. I thought long and hard and decided it would be easiest and best on both of us to just do the C Section. That way, I could be calm, well as calm as I could be.

It turned out to be the best decision I could have made! Her cord was wrapped around her neck, and if she had be able to turn, or if my Dr. had done the version, she could have been very affected!

She came out perfect and extremely alert! She was awake with her eyes wide open for most of the day! She is just so unreal!! I still don't believe she is real or mine!!!
She is now above her birth weight!! And she is eating really well. She is getting about 2.5 - 3 oz per feeding. I was in New Beginnings Boutique yesterday, and they offered me to weigh her before and after feeding to see. She is latching on really well too!!!!

So hopefully next baby I will be able to do it all natural! At least I was able to make my own choice, come to terms with a C Section and stay as calm as possible!
I would love for you to meet her!!

Thank you for everything! I look forward to your class again in the future!!
Shelby
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Congratulations to you & Will! I'm so glad that even though you had to have a C-section, you felt that the classes helped you. My ultimate goal for my classes is to have all of my clients feel in control of their birth experiences no matter where their birth journey takes them. Continue enjoying your babymoon! I'm glad that you're both doing so well!
Thank you so much for sharing your story!
All my best--Carol
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For more information about HypnoBirthing classes in your area, please visit www.HypnoBirthing.com to find a practitioner near you. If you're in the San Diego area, please visit Carol's website at www.AWellLivedLife.Net to find a class time that work for you.
For more information about breech babies & ways to turn them, please visit www.spinningbabies.com.
For more information about Dr. Jack Mawer, chiropractor, please visit www.AreYouAdjusted.com.

A HypnoBirthing birth story

Alana & John took my Tuesday night classes in January 2010 at Babies by the Sea Boutique. Here is her birth experience:

My Birth Experience

On Sunday morning March 7th I lost my mucus plug so I knew I was on track since I was due March 22nd and all the books say that Labor will start within 24hrs to 2 weeks. I never thought that while I was at work Monday morning March 8th at about 11am that my water would break. I called my Husband, John, at his work and let him know that I had felt some water release but I wasn’t having any contractions yet so I was going to work another hour and then head home. I got home around 12:15pm and decided to try and take a walk to start getting some contractions going.

After an hour of walking nothing had changed. I went home to lie down and relax. I watched some TV while John gathered everything we needed and packed up the car. I had contacted my doctor’s office and let them know my water had broken and since I had tested positive for GBS they instructed me to go to the hospital as soon as I was ready. I decided to take my time since I wasn’t feeling anything yet. I took a warm bath and just thought about the process ahead of me and told myself to remain calm and focus although I was very anxious and excited all at the same time.

On the way to Scripps Encinitas I stopped by an acupuncture clinic to get an induction treatment to help progress my surges. The acupuncturist also showed John & myself some pressure points that would be useful to press on when I started feeling an intense surge. We arrived at Scripps at about 7:00pm, with our arms full of bags, exercise ball, a yoga mat and pillows. It was a strange feeling arriving there without feeling as if I needed to be there since I still wasn’t feeling any signs of labor.

I got lucky and it was a slow night so I had a nurse all to myself who was very supportive in honoring my birth plan and allowing me to voice exactly what I wanted to take place. She was in total agreement with me in allowing me to be free of being hooked up to anything. After my initial 20 mins of monitoring I was allowed to be unhooked. My initial measurement when I arrived was 1 cm. There were contractions that I was having but they were erratic and not consistent and I could not feel them. By 9:00pm my doctor came in and let me know that they were going to start Pitocin since it had been awhile since my water had broken and they were worried about risk of infection with the baby.

I stayed very firm with my ideas of having a natural birth without any drug interventions. The doctor insisted that something be done and after Pitocin was suggested she offered Cervadil to be placed on my cervix but she did explain that the disadvantage was that once the Cervadil was on it could not be taken off. I again stayed firm and asked if there was anything else or if we could please give my body more time since I was already on IV antibiotics. The Doctor then came up with an idea of what she called a Foley Ball and asked the nurse if they had the right equipment available for it. The nurse said they did.

The Doctor was then very thorough in explaining to me exactly what was going to happen. Basically it is a tube that at one end they fill with water to form a ball that is about 2 inches in diameter. The tube is first inserted in your vagina and then filled up with water. The ball then puts pressure on your cervix to cause it to contract. There are no real side effects for you or the baby and once you are dilated to anywhere from 4-6cm the ball becomes loose and is taken out. There is the discomfort of having the remaining part of the tubing hanging out of your vagina the nurse was able to tape it to the side of my leg so I was able to walk around easier.

As soon as the Foley Ball was inserted and filled with water and placed directly on my cervix I started feeling surges and they were becoming more frequent and consistent. The doctor did let me know that if I had not progressed in the time that she wanted that I still would have to get Pitocin, in my mind I just figured that we would talk about that if it came up but I was going to get through it without the Pitocin. By 12:00am midnight I had opened another cm and I was at 2cm so they let me keep going at around 3:00am John and I took a walk all around the hospital for about an hour. By then I had progressed to about 4cm. The doctor was happy with my results so she said there was no reason to administer Pitocin which I was very happy about.

Periodically I would take showers, which felt great. I would sit on the birthing ball in the shower and let the warm water fall on me having John or my Mom rub my back with gentle touch massage. I would walk around the room, sit on the ball bracing my arms on the bed and sometimes just laid in bed listening to my Rainbow Relaxation CD and at times felt so relaxed that I would fall asleep. Even while not listening to the CD I kept positive thoughts in my head and John was encouraging letting me know I was doing great. Also breathing helped a lot I took long slow relaxing breaths.

At around 10:00am I was at 6cm dilated and my surges were getting pretty close together and definitely intense. The Foley Ball was removed and it was nice to not have the tubing taped to my leg. This was the most difficult time for me with the intensity of the surges in my back, at one point I looked at John and told him I wasn’t sure how much longer I could do this for. He let me know with words of encouragement that everything was going great & that I was doing a great job. I got in the shower to help with the intensity of the surges. Again John and my Mom took turns rubbing my back and I also used some of the pressure points to help with the intensity. It felt so good in there and time had gone by that the nurse said it had been an 1hr and ½ and they needed to check me. I was in shock when she said that I was at 9 ½ cm and was looking good but still needed to go a little longer and she was going to let the Doctor know to come to the hospital. She also said not to push and she would be back. Of course as soon as she left & John had just gotten back from the cafeteria I felt as if I needed to push and I told John to call the nurse.

The nurse came back in because they had lost the fetal heart rate and I told her that I needed to push and the baby was coming. She let me know that I still had more time to go and that the Doctor was on her way. I said "no, I really need to push, can you check me again?". So she went ahead and did and within those few minutes I had already gone to 10cm and was ready so she said that I could go ahead and push. This was the easy part for me, it just felt like the urge you have when you need to go the bathroom. I could no longer feel the contractions...just the anticipation of seeing my baby for the first time and seeing if it was a boy or a girl. That was at about 11:50am and after pushing for about 20 minutes we had a beautiful baby boy.

Kai William was born at 12:07pm he was 7lbs. 9oz. and 21 inches long. Both the doctor and nurses were great at honoring what I had asked. John was able to announce the sex of the baby since it was a surprise, and cut the cord after waiting until it stopped pulsating. My placenta came out very easy with little effort on my part and the doctor said that I had torn just a little that there was really no need for stitches but put 2 small ones in.

Overall my experience was great. I really feel that taking the Hypnobirthing classes allowed me to find a state of relaxation to help cope with the discomfort of what I was feeling. When it came down to it the 2 things that helped the most were the warm water of the shower while sitting on the exercise ball and listening to the Rainbow Relaxation CD while laboring and also every night before I went to bed to help mentally prepare myself for the birthing process.

By taking your classes both my husband and I were able to feel very knowledgeable about what was to happen at our baby's birth. For me personally, much of what I was fearful about was the unknown since this was my first baby. The classes helped educate us in a calm and interactive way allowing us to ease into and inform us of what we were going to experience as opposed to being told what a scary and painful experience giving birth is. We went into it anxious and excited for it to happen and to meet our baby. The breathing and self hypnosis exercises allowed us to really prepare and envision what was going to occur, which I found very invaluable. Listening to the Rainbow Relaxation CD every night before bedtime really helped me stay focused and relaxed while in labor. I would definitely recommend taking Carol's HypnoBirthing classes and plan on taking them again next time we get pregnant.

I hope this information is useful to your new and prospective students!

Alana
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Thanks for sharing your birth story! I want to add that Alana called me after her water had released & nothing was really happening. I suggested to her that she rest, relax, have her husband read some hypnosis scripts to her while in the bathtub & that she see if she could get an induction acupuncture session in on her way to the hospital. I always suggest to my clients to call me if they have any last minute questions & am so glad when they do.

Congratulations Alana & John! Enjoy your babymoon!

All my best--Carol

www.AWellLivedLife.Net
www.AWellLivedLife.blogspot.com

A HypnoBirthing testimonial

Amy & Ian took my January 2010/Thursday HypnoBirthing classes. Here is their birth announcement & testimonial:

I wanted to let you know that Ezra was born on March 9th, at 9:31am. He was 7 lbs, 19.3" long, and entered this world via a beautiful, natural HypnoBirth.

Thank you so much for teaching such a wonderful, transformative class. You know that I wasn't convinced on the idea of natural birth before the class started, but I could never imagine doing anything else now. It was such a wonderful experience being fulling aware and in control throughout the birthing process, and Ezra so wide-eyed and alert after he was born. He is such a mellow, easy baby. (Takes after his dad!)

I can't tell you how many people are shocked when I tell them that Ezra was born with no induction, no epidural, and no tearing. I had stopped telling people how we were planning to birth because I didn't want to hear "This is your first? Talk to me afterwards!" anymore. It is as though people don't realize that it is actually possible!!!!

Just let me know if you ever need another testimonial or reference for someone who is not sure about the class. I would be happy to speak with anyone considering HypnoBirthing and sing it's praises.

~Amy

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Congratulations Amy & Ian! Enjoy your babymoon & thank you for allowing me to share your story. I hope that the non-believers are now believers after knowing that you had a natural birth!

Enjoy your babymoon!

All my best--Carol

http://www.awelllivedlife.net/

http://www.awelllivedlife.blogspot.com/

A HypnoBirthing C-Section story

Julia & her husband, Andrew, took my HypnoBirthing classes on Tuesdays in July 2009. Her birth didn't go exactly as planned, but she was still able to utilize the HypnoBirthing techniques to help her. Here is her birth story:

The interesting emergence of Eamon Andrew…

My guess date was October 9. Eamon’s emergence came on October 23, 2009.

Here’s his story! My husband and I had been trying for a baby for 8 months before we got pregnant. It took the flu with consistent high temperatures from a fever for our baby to decide to nestle in for the long haul. The passing of a good friend also ensured that he had a fierce guardian spirit to watch over him as he grew. I’m pretty positive about the date that he became the star of my universe, and was pretty sure about the approximation of the guess date. I suppose my baby boy enjoyed continuously tapping into the universal womb, because no amount of acupuncture, massage, Reiki, or supplements were going to ease him out. I kept saying to our doula, Linda Goldsmith, and friends of ours that our little guy had sticky fingers and toes!!

I am thankful to Dr. Biter and Dr. Cap (Capetanakis) for respecting my wishes for a natural birth. They let me wait it out as long as possible. Nonetheless, Thursday, October 22nd rolled around and Dr. Cap and I discussed induction. My husband and I headed for Scripps Encinitas Hospital that evening at around 6 to admit ourselves. At about 8 the nurse applied Cervidil, and left me to “sleep” until the next morning. To say that the process was extremely painful and borderline barbaric would put it mildly. (For some reason I didn’t think to listen to my HypnoBirthing cds during this time!!) The next morning, about 12 hours later, Dr. Cap checked my cervix, and I had dilated 2 cm, but our baby hadn’t descended at all. So much for natural birth!!? We began Pitocin. This is when I started listening to the HypnoBirthing cds. Despite my hesitancy with the whole medical process, it actually made for an enjoyable day with my husband and Linda. I was standing, swaying, talking – and I felt absolutely NO pain. We kept having the nurse increase the Pitocin slowly, and I still didn’t feel any contractions!! At 6 pm that night there still wasn’t any progress, and Dr. Cap had to discuss the inevitable with us: we were going to have a c-section that evening.

Having a c-section was not what I desired or expected for the birth of Eamon. However, I accepted the reality and continued to listen to the HypnoBirthing cds on my ipod throughout the surgery. I wouldn’t describe my mood as calm and relaxed, as I was terrified. I knew nothing about what happens during the c-section itself and never had surgery before. The different sensations were foreign and jarring to me. However, I would have to say that without the HypnoBirthing cds I would have been an absolute basket case and out of my mind the whole time. It’s not the most enjoyable thing to have the surgery and to wrestle with the recovery, but I couldn’t think of a more wonderful outcome. Our little butterbean was 9 pounds, 1 ounce and came out a’screaming!!

I am thankful to Carol for offering such an enjoyable class that my husband and I looked forward to each week. I am thankful to HypnoBirthing for helping me have the most enjoyable pregnancy that anyone could ever wish for. I am thankful to my son for teaching me that not everything in life can be planned, and that time frames are all an illusion. I am thankful to Dr. Cap for being so compassionate and for bringing our baby boy into this world. I am thankful to Linda Goldsmith for being a wonderful doula. I am thankful for the experience of being a mother.

To future HypnoBirthers out there: even if you’re not having your ideal birth, remember to listen to your HypnoBirthing cds and to trust your baby and your body. Your baby is there to teach you the most powerful lessons you will ever learn. Your body is the vessel that allows your baby to reach you. Much love and strength to all of you…

Thank you, Carol! :) Thank you again for being part of our support system throughout our pregnancy and birth!

Thank you Julia for sharing your birth story! I hope that for the moms who have taken HypnoBirthing classes and ended up with a birth that they hadn't planned for will find your story healing & inspiring.

If you are located in San Diego and are interested in learning more about Dr. Biter, Dr. Capetanakis or the doula, Linda Goldsmith, you can find their contact information on my website's resources page located at www.AWellLivedLife.Net.

www.AWellLivedLife.blogspot.com

Premature Release of Membranes at 32 weeks--success story

Premature release of membranes at 32 weeks--a HypnoBirthing success story

This is an inspiring story of a 2nd time mom whose amniotic sac released/broke at 32 weeks, was rushed to the hospital & told she would need to be induced. BUT her body & her baby weren't ready & she didn't go into labor! So she is currently home at 37 weeks & waiting for the natural progression of her labor to start. She advocated for herself & her baby & trusted her body & her baby.

(This story was shared by Kathie Dolce, Vice President of the HypnoBirthing Institute. I have permission from the mom to share it on my blog).

I've corresponded off an on for a year and a half with a mom in western Canada, who first posted to the Q & A Forum with questions about preparing on her own for a gentle birthing. There are no practitioners near enough for her to take the course. Her first birth in June 2008 was wonderful, and Stephanie hopes to become a practitioner one day. I next heard from her recently after she had been transported by air to a large medical center because release of her membranes at 32 weeks for her 2nd pregnancy. She was being told she would have to be induced within a few days, the baby would be in NICU, etc. I responded with some things to ask, where to look for research and reassurance that she'd do well with whatever turn her birthing would take, etc.

I heard from her just last night. She is now 37 weeks, home again, is looking forward to a gentle HypnoBirthing, after two days of oxytocin/pitocin that failed to do anything. I've attached her letters below. They are so inspiring and really a tribute to woman's wisdom when she trusts in her own body, her baby and natural birthing. I asked her if Icould share her story on our practitioner board, and she readily agreed. Here they are:

Hi Kathie! Not sure if you'll remember me or not, we were in contact last year after my daughter's birth because I was looking for somewhere to take a HypnoBirthing instructor course. We had one I was going to in Edmonton, Alberta and it didn't pan out. Anyway, I'm emailing you quickly because I'm in my second pregnancy and last Monday at 32 wks pregnant my water broke and I've been flown out to a hospital in Kamloops BC. Because we were flown out we didn't have a chance to pack a hospital bag...ie my HypnoBirthing book, my ipod with the Rainbow Relaxation hypnosis script cd on it. They stopped my labor before I was flown out and I am on complete bedrest until the baby is born at 34 wks. If I go into labor naturally before then, they won't stop it, but if not they will induce me on Monday, July 13 at 34 wks pregnant.

My birth with my daughter was completely natural and beautiful, no induction, no pain relief except HypnoBirthing breathing and no stitches or episiotomy, etc. Kathie, I am so anxious about this birthing experience. I don't have my book or rainbow relaxation cd. I don't have my doctor who was such an instrumental part of our natural birth with the perineum massage, the lights dimmed, did room control, kept the environment calm and respected our no drug 'policy'. I feel as though I've been stripped of all my resources and rights to a natural birth. This has quickly turned into a 'medical procedure' rather than a birthday party. I've been told I will be woken up Monday morning, told to shower, eat breakfast and then have an IV put in with oxytocin/pitocin, I will labor with the IV in and deliver with it in, the baby will be taken from my body and given to doctor's and nurses to assess, insert feeding and breathing tubes and an IV to the scalp and it will be taken to the NICU. I will be allowed to stay in the hospital for 48 hrs and then be discharged and sent to a hotel for however long it takes for the baby's lungs to develop and be strong enough to breathe on its own. I was told to buy a pump so that they can feed the baby at night when I'm not here. This turns my stomach. I don't want to labor with an IV. I don't want to stress my baby (they said preemies sometimes don't 'adjust' to the oxytocin so well). I don't want to have my baby ripped from me and I don't want to leave it for someone else to care for it.

Now I know some of this is necessary, like the assessment when its born so it can breathe and I guess my discharge afterwards but its compounding on top of the other things I can't control and do in my own time. I want to have a chance to start my labor naturally and assess the situation at each stage. I don't know how I will even sleep Sunday with my anxiety over the whole thing. Their answer was to give me a sleeping pill! So my question at the end of all this is have you had anyone else in this situation and how can I possibly avoid the drug induction and use HypnoBirthing to have my labor develop naturally? Or is this possible? I would like to try walking for a little while to induce but is there anything else I may not know about that could help? I don't want any risk involved with the age of this baby and oxytocin/pitocin is a risk to me and an IV is not a calming concept while I'm laboring and birthing. Any advice would help Kathie! This turned into a very long email but I hope you understand I have too much time right now!
Sincerely,Stephanie
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Just an update Kathie, we are back at home, I got a second opinion before I had talked to you from our doctor back home & he called a specialist in Vancouver Children's hospital who advised him that the best thing to do was go thru with the induction, so we did. I was 34 wks and 2 days and they put me on the oxytocin/pitocin for the whole day (about 8 or 9 hrs). Nothing happened. They put me on again the next day, and this time I was under the supervison of a different doctor (thank goodness) who after 9 or 10 hrs of being on the oxytocin/pitocin with the same result as the prior day, turned the IV off and started to question why we were forcing the labor if baby and I were so healthy and happy and there was sufficient fluid. He said many times in the conversation that if I had already had one baby and my water had truly broke, I would have delivered the baby the first day of oxytocin/pitocin. This made us again phone our doctor back home & he advised us to come home as I was almost 35 wks by this time and able to safely deliver at home.

The doctor overseeing my case the whole time we were there was not happy to hear I wanted to wait and go home. She advised us to stay and again try to be induced on the Monday after a break through the weekend. My doctor phoned her and she then talked to me again and tried to convince us he agreed with her. I know, of course, this was not the case. On Monday, she arranged for an air ambulance to take me home. I have been home now almost two weeks. I'm being monitored very closely. I'm not leaking fluid, which has lead the doctor's to believe that this was a hind leak. This can happen after the baby so much as scratches the membrane, causing a small gush of fluid and later healing over. I am still on low activity, but I'm at a very safe time in my pregnancy now to deliver. If there is a sign of infection from the blood tests they give me every second day, they will induce immediately. But according to all testing, white blood cell count is normal, baby's activity and heart rate is perfectly at ease and normal and I am as well. We're hoping for a natural labor and HypnoBirth just as it was with our first a year and a half ago, and we're sure this will happen! My doctor at this point is expecting me to carry to full term.

Also an interesting thing....the nitrizene (I think that's what they call it) test strip that they test me with to see if any fluid that is coming from me is amniotic fluid keeps testing positive. However, they do what is called a ferning test with that fluid after putting it on a slide and examining it under a microscope....if it forms a fern pattern, it's amniotic fluid, if it doesn't, it's just normal vaginal discharge or urine, etc. They did this ferning test at the time my water 'broke' or I 'leaked' & the ferning test was negative. They did it again when I came back, negative again. Either way, we are home safe and sound and now awaiting the safe arrival of number two...must be a boy with all this ;o) I will let you know what happens and thank you so much for the advice and counsel.
Sincerely, Stephanie
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Thanks Kathie! Yes, you absolutely can share with the board. I was 32 wks to the day when my amniotic sac first ruptured. When they were administering the oxytocin/pitocin, as crazy as it sounds, I could feel myself not releasing, I told my husband and my Mom before they even started the induction both days that it would not work. I can remember walking the halls on both days and telling my husband that I just couldn't let it go. When I labored with my daughter, I let my body labor, but this time, I could feel every part of me fighting it. After walking through their NICU it was something I completely felt like I had to hang onto and wait. I remember even reading in the HypnoBirthing book about the power of animals and how they are able to stop their labor if they feel they are in danger. I really felt like I understood my body and was able to work with it to keep baby where it would be safe. I completely and totally believe that! So I will be 37 wks on Monday (I may have mentioned that previously) and I will definitely keep in touch and let you know what happens!
Thanks so much again, Stephanie

Kathie Dolce
HypnoBirthing® Childbirth Educator
VicePresident, HypnoBirthing® Institute

Thanks, Stephanie, for sharing your inspiring story! I hope that you have a wonderful birthing experience & look forward to hearing how everything works out!

All my best--Carol Yeh-Garner, LCSW, HBCE

www.AWellLivedLife.Net
www.AWellLivedLife.blogspot.com

Babies know best

HypnoBirthing teaches parents to trust in the birthing process & the readiness of the mom's body & the baby. 42 weeks is the latest most U.S. medical care providers will allow pregnancies to go but in Europe (& sometimes with homebirth midwives in the U.S.), pregnancies are allowed to go until 43 weeks. HypnoBirthing encourages parents to allow birth to happen naturally & to realize that the normal gestational period of a baby is anywhere between 265 & 300 days. As long as the baby & the mom-to-be are healthy, the best place for that baby to be is growing in the safety of the mom's uterus. Here is one story of a couple that chose to allow birth to happen & resisted the pressure of induction.

Hi Sue,

Please find attached a slightly later version of our birth announcement - I'm happy for you to share it with other Mums and Dads. It doesn't really convey the pressure I was under to induce chemically or even to use natural methods to 'interfere' with Zac's timing.

It was really hard not to go on bumpy car rides/ eat pineapples/ have a curry etc., especially when we were being told that we risked Zac's death as a result. However, we really didn't want to intervene at any level and so, it was quite a tense time trying to prove to the rest of the world that Zac knew what the best timing was...

Zac was born at 6:06am on Friday 1st August – 19 days past his due date (he clearly failed to take note of the original project timetable!) Zac weighed 8lb 4oz and was born via a rather rapid home waterbirth. We were asleep in bed when, at 5:20am, it dawned on Isabelle that she might be in labour. Forty-six minutes later, Zac was born… Thankfully, we didn't have to have any medical interventions or pain relief.

We're overjoyed to have been able to give birth at home and are really grateful to everyone who supported us when Zac was defying the medical 'norms' by being so overdue. It wasn't an easy decision to leave Zac to choose his own timing for his arrival, but the payoff for us was having a magical, enjoyable and gentle birth, which we couldn't have had if we'd agreed to an induction of labour.

Shared by Sue McNally, HBCE

www.AWellLivedLife.Net
www.AWellLivedLife.blogspot.com

Great natural birth articles

Here are some great links to articles about pregnancy issues, how chiropractic can help during pregnancy & why home births are on the rise...

From the ICPA (International Chiropractic Pediatric Association) Family Wellness Newsletter
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Pregnancy Matters
Induction is Risky:
From Sydney, AU comes a recent study based on 50,000 births concluding that induction of labor leads to risks for both mother and baby.
Read the entire article here: www.newkerala.com

Pre-term births:
The rise in pre-term births a growing concern--mothers should be more informed of risks.
www.story.japanherald.com

Home Births on the Rise and in the News Again:
A great article showing the benefits of home birth, the support for home birth in UK Obstetrics and the bias of ACOG and the AMA in the US.
www.nytimes.com

Home Births Recommended in Scotland:
www.news.scotsman.com

Chiropractic and Pregnancy:
View a great interview with ICPA member, Dr. Caroline Von Fluegge on Fox TV. www.myfoxatlanta.com

Read more about chiropractic care for safer, easier births here: www.icpa4kids.org/research/pregnancy/chiro.htm

Read more about natural birthing here:www.icpa4kids.org/research/pregnancy/natural.htm

Pregnant women should avoid statins: www.redorbit.com

Six ways to reduce inflammation without statins: www.articles.mercola.com

Women who do too much: www.chealth.canoe.ca

To find a doctor of chiropractic in your area who supports your right to choose health care for your families, visit: http://www.icpa4kids.org/locator/index.php
To find a holistic practitioner in your area, visit: www.hpakids.org
Sign up for Family Wellness First here: www.icpa4kids.org/e-news.htm
Visit Family Wellness First archives here: www.icpa4kids.org/wellness/archive.htm
Family Wellness First comes to you as a courtesy of the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association in collaboration with the Holistic Pediatric Association.

www.AWellLivedLife.Net
www.AWellLivedLife.blogspot.com

Important website & petition regarding Cytotec

This is an announcement of a new website that has articles and links about birth interventions. It was in the latest Midwifery Today. At first glance it looks like a useful site.

Please go to the FDA petition & sign it & then forward the link to your friends. This mis-use of a drug & abuse of women has to be stopped! I know there is an OB here in town (San Diego, CA) that uses it standard for all of his patients at 38 1/2 weeks. Shocking, but true!

Because misoprostol ("miso," "Cytotec") is being used more and more—without informed consent for induction and without being FDA-approved for use on pregnant women, a mother, Maddy Oden—who lost her daughter and grand-daughter because of this drug—has developed this Web site for us all. Maddy started the Tatia Oden French Memorial Foundation after her daughter, Tatia, and Tatia's daughter, Zorah, died after being given Cytotec. The foundation is dedicated to empowering woman, specifically in the area of childbirth.

The Web site is www.tatia.org and the e-mail is zorah@tatia.org.

www.AWellLivedLife.Net
www.AWellLivedLife.blogspot.com

An analogy for birth

An Analogy for Birth-by Mickey Mongan, Founder of HypnoBirthing

There is a rhythm and a flow to each individual labor, just as there is for all of Nature.

I told of a lemon experience story in my last class that made me become even more aware that very little in Nature is synchronized to all happen at the same time and according to someone else's expectation with no consideration of time variation.

As the story goes, I went out to my lemon tree a few months ago to grab some lemons. Well, that's just what I did. The first just wouldn't release no matter how I pulled, so I reached up beyond the lemon and tore the stem from the limb. Yes, I damaged the bark on the limb, but the only thing that really counts is that I ended up with a healthy lemon and a tree that would mend. I next took another lemon and twisted it until it separated from the stem. I had a slightly bruised tree from all the pulling and twisting, but I had a healthy lemon, and I was happy.

I then reached up and cupped another lemon that immediately fell into my hands from the star-shaped end of the stem. I ended up with a happy tree, a healthy lemon, and I, too, was happy.

We need to be able to see labor as individualized as we would see other factors of Nature. For everyone to be happy, we need to wait for the clues from Nature that will come only when Nature is ready. If we trust birth and believe in it's perfect design, then we cannot expect to see everything happen in one time frame.

By the way, I apologized to the tree for attempting to approach the task with a one-size-fits-all mentality.

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