As a doula I’ve been contemplating this question for awhile, attempting to evaluate whether I’m presenting my services appropriately. Ever since hearing Suze Orman declare that a doula is a need and not a want, I’ve tended to side with her argument. But lately I’ve been thinking
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Anyone who loves and appreciates a woman in their life – mother, daughter, sister, friend – ought to care about women’s rights, am I right? And the rights of childbearing women specifically include the right to know about the risks associated with anything that could potentially enter
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Questions to ask your doula If you’re nervous about what questions to ask your doula, fear not! What you should know first is that there really aren’t any questions about childbirth that bother us. We’ve been asked pretty much everything under the sun about birth before (plus
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There are so many different attitudes and perspectives swirling around the topic of birth and there seems to be a counterpoint for each. Some say you can’t have a positive birth story unless you expect to. Others say it’s foolish for mothers to expect anything in particular
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Sterile water injection for back pressure My Alternative Birth Options Series: Part 4 of 4 I’ve done a small amount of investigating to see if hospitals in the Atlanta area are offering sterile water injections for back pressure during labor. Unfortunately, they are not. Intown Midwifery reports
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Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulator (TENS) My Alternative Birth Options Series: Part 3 of 4 The TENS unit is a small device that emits pulses of electricity. The pads are placed on the birthing mother’s back or wherever else provides comfort for her; it is completely controlled by
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Using Hypnosis for Childbirth My Alternative Birth Options Series: Part 2 of 4 The picture is me relaxing at about 8 cm dilated (during very active labor). “Relaxing during contractions sounds great, but how does it work?” This question goes through the minds of many women who
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Trained as a journalist in college, I used to think the concept of a blog was silly. Now I spend way too much time reading them and I even write a few of my own. But not just any blogs: birth blogs. These posts can be very
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post-part-um: adj. Describes the period of time, or the person who has become a new parent, after a child is born One of the most difficult aspects of teaching childbirth class is knowing how to prepare an expectant couple for parenthood. The birth? A cinch compared to
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It can be difficult to articulate why practically every woman needs and deserves a doula serving and supporting her during the birth of her child. I say practically every woman because there may be some exceptional husbands/partners who do everything a doula does and more. (My husband
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