Christine - Trained Doula

Monday, August 30, 2010

Old Forge Holiday


Being in Old Forge and camping for two weeks is my idea of "almost heaven". We all canoed the Moose River from North Street Bridge to Green Bridge. The river was very high and we only had one mishap. James, Katie, Tyler and Bob were all in one canoe and they bottomed out on a huge submerged log. It is times like that I wish we had a video camera. They just kept spinning around in a circle on top of the log. Tyler was super on his first canoe ride.

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Inductions increase Caesarean Deliveries

I love statistics, especially when they favor natural childbirth and back up what I've known all along. A new study published in the July 2010 issue of the medical journal Obstetrics & Gynecology links induced labor with a greater risk of cesarean surgery.

The study, which looked at 7,804 first-time mothers giving birth in US birth centers showed that women who had their labors induced were twice as likely to have a c-section than those women whose labors started naturally.

“Labor induction is significantly associated with a cesarean delivery among nulliparous women at term for those with and without medical or obstetric complications,” the authors noted. “Reducing the use of elective labor induction may lead to decreased rates of cesarean delivery for a population.”

— Ehrenthal, D.B., X. Jiang and D.M. Strobino. 2010. Labor induction and the risk of a cesarean delivery among nulliparous women at term. Obstet Gynecol 116(1): 35–42.

Of course, I realize that there are times when induction is absolutely necessary but to many physicians are doing so out of convience or worry or a number of other excuses. I figure that if a women can get pregnant, then God knows when that baby is to be born. Perhaps it is time for a hands off approach and wait to see method before rushing to intervene with inductions.

Thursday, August 12, 2010

Birth Plans

How to Have a Safe and Healthy Birth

1. Let Labor Begin on Its Own

2. Walk, Move and Change Positions

3. Have Continuous Support

4. Avoid Unnecessary Interventions

5. Get Upright and Follow Urges to Push

6. Keep Your Baby With You