Home Birth's topics - tribe.net

encourage Oprah to showcase Business of Being Born!

2008-07-13T16:06:06Z

http://www2.oprah.com/email/reach/email_showideas.jhtml

I got an email that they told one fan that BoBB doesn't have enough "mass appeal"... maybe if we flood them with glowing recommendations and ardent requests, we can convince them otherwise. Couldn't hurt!

Just think, the vast majority of their viewers are moms & grandmas- or will be moms soon.
Ricki Lake would make a great guest, and what a treasure trove of inspiring, tear-jerking clips to show!
They've gotta do it.
What a great way to get more people to see it. Likely the very people who would benefit from seeing it.

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

rH negative

2008-07-13T14:51:29Z

does anyone have experience or knowledge of home birthing at home when rH negative?

posted in Home Birth - 6 replies

AMA feels homebirth should be illegal

2008-07-12T18:22:25Z

The AMA this week put out a resolution toward creating legislation that would make homebirth illegal and any woman who has a homebirth punishable by arrest. They are equating it to child abuse. They have taken particular offense to Ricki Lakes Business of Being Born movie

http://cfmidwifery.blogspot.com/2008/06/grassroots-network-ama-resolution-to.html

Ricki, Abby's and Jennifer Blocks response
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ricki-lake-jennifer-block-and-abby-epstein/docs-to-women-pay-no-atte_b_107845.html

Another article
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2033135/posts

posted in Home Birth - 20 replies

How about Newborn DNA collection?

2008-07-12T02:18:41Z

I know that we are all concerned at the AMA's recent statement about home birthing...
But Newborn DNA Collection is legislation that HAS BEEN passed already...

**Described as a "national contingency plan" the justification for the new law S. 1858, known as The Newborn Screening Saves Lives Act of 2007, is that it represents preparation for any sort of "public health emergency."

The bill states that the federal government should "continue to carry out, coordinate, and expand research in newborn screening" and "maintain a central clearinghouse of current information on newborn screening… ensuring that the clearinghouse is available on the Internet and is updated at least quarterly".

Sections of the bill also make it clear that DNA may be used in genetic experiments and tests. **

http://www.infowars.com/?p=1896

This is scarier to me than the AMA trying to rattle the cages of CNM's and Insurance Companies...
Google it, there isn't too much exposure on this new "law"... hhmmmm? I wonder why that is?

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

Co-Creative Birthing

2008-07-09T01:14:12Z

Announcing the Co-Creative Birthing Circle: Online Natural Childbirth Education at the Maia Institute for Co-Creative Healing: http://www.MaiaInstitute.com!

The Co-Creative Birthing Circle features 7 extensive birth class modules, a special Birth Story Library, Birth Humor, and a Discussion Forum. The Birth Circle Deluxe also includes email and phone consultations, essential birth and parenting books, and more.

This is the culmination of 10 years of natural pregnancy, childbirth, and parenting research, study, writing, personal, and professional experience, and 2 months of website design. I am thrilled to be able to now offer conscious birthing education and consultation to parents all over the world with the help of 21st century social technology.

This is Birth Education 2.0!

The Birth Circle also has an Advisory Circle of expert midwives, doctors, childbirth educators, doulas, and mothers who are assisting to co-create exceptional childbirth education in alignment with the Mother-Friendly and Baby-Friendly Childbirth Initiatives by the Coalition for Improving Maternity Services (CIMS) and the Lamaze Institute of Normal Births, 6 Care Practices that Support Normal Birth.

Coming this fall, the Co-Creative Birthing Circle Facilitator Training & Sage Femme: Women's Healing Arts Circle, also at the Maia Institute of Co-Creative Healing: http://www.maiainstitute.com

Thanks for checking it out! Please share this information with your pregnant friends!

Why: Because Lamaze reports that attendance in childbirth education classes are dropping rapidly since 2000, and because taking natural childbirth classes significantly increases on chances of a normal birth and positive outcomes for mom and baby. Since more expectant families are looking to the internet for information, and so much of the information out there is inaccurate or hard to find, I have created a comprehensive, multi-media, class online with support from childbirth educators.

Blessings, Kara

posted in Home Birth - 3 replies

any suggestions?

2008-06-19T03:53:40Z

I'm expecting my second baby mid-late August... this will be my first home birth and I'm getting excited and all those jittery feelings about what will/might happen... is there anyone who has had their first birth within a medical facility and then second round gone home for the gold? what did you find easier, or wish you had had available...? I'm looking for tips and ideas of what helped all you loving mamas bring your babies into their own homes right out of their first home...

My midwife is amazing, and a great resource of info having been in this field for over 30 years... but I wanted to hear some other mama's perspectives...

Thanks!! :D

posted in Home Birth - 7 replies

home visiting midwives versus non home visitors

2008-06-17T04:37:26Z

does it seem to anyone that there is a difference in quality of care between the midwives
who visit homes and those who expect you to come in for visits? i was wondering if those
who had been in the business longer stopped doing home visits when their practices got
more busy -- or if it was just a philosophilcal difference. i'd certainly rather someone
come here than me shlep out, but i don't want to sacrifice quality of care for a home visit.
any thoughts?

posted in Home Birth - 8 replies

How do I convince my husband and family???

2008-06-10T11:37:11Z

I want a home birth....I've given birth a gazillion times in my dreams (babies have come out of me and gone back up into my uterus!) and know that when I'm in pain, the only place I want to be is at home, curled up like a cat, in my own bed.... My husband used to support this idea, until my family got involved and brainwashed him.

My mother, in a very accusatory way, pointed her finger at me and said" if anything happens to MY grandchild, it is all going to be YOUR FAULT....." -- to make matters worse, my dad is a scientist....ever since, my parents have whisked my husband away and told him how irresponsible having a home birth is, etc. and my husband is convinced home births are too dangerous.

Keep in mind, both my husband and I have an incredibly close and loving relationship with my family, who only live 30 minutes away. We all get along so well and hang out together a lot, and this controversy is really the only "issue."

My husband says that's he's the other half of baby-making and I absolutely believe that's true and respect him [he is not the controlling type or anything] and he totally wants the option of all the modern technology in the hospital [he grew up in a country with poverty and few medical options]. I doubt that I can convince my parents of anything, but if it's any consolation, I live in San Francisco and St. Lukes Hospital is 2 blocks away! It's one thing to do this without the support of my family, but I cannot do this without the support of my other half, my husband. We have a great relationship and this is the main thing we 100% disagree on.

posted in Home Birth - 16 replies

infant DNA collection -- wtf?!

2008-06-09T03:14:23Z

what the heck do we think this is about? and is home birth a way around it, i wonder...?

http://infowars.net/articles/may2008/020507DNA.htm

posted in Home Birth - 11 replies

HypnoBirthing Childbirth Education Class in North Oakland

2008-06-03T08:01:48Z

HypnoBirthing: The Mongan Method
A Celebration of Life
HypnoBirthing is a comprehensive childbirth education class focusing on pregnancy and birth that teaches mothers & their birth companions techniques for safe and satisfying birthing through guided imagery, visualization and special breathing. HypnoBirthing is taught in 5 two-and-a-half hour classes.

“My dream is that every woman, everywhere, will know the joy of a safe, satisfying birth for both her baby and herself—one she’ll not need to forget.”
-Marie F. Mongan, 1999

Terra’s Temple
654 Oakland Avenue, North Oakland
Tuesdays June 10th, 17th, 24th, July 1st & 8th
6:30-9:00 pm
With Carrie Flemming, M.A., H.B.C.E.
$250-300 sliding scale
Includes HypnoBirthing book & relaxation/visualization cd
510.907.0075
flemmica@gmail.com
(Private classes also available in your home)

About HypnoBirthing:
The HypnoBirthing Childbirth method is as much a philosophy of birth as it is a technique for achieving a satisfying, relaxing, and stress-free method of birthing. HypnoBirthing teaches you, along with your birthing companion, the Art and Joy of experiencing birth in a more comfortable manner. You will learn to call upon your body’s own natural relaxant and thus lessen or eliminate discomfort and the need for medication. When a woman is properly prepared for childbirth and when mind and body are in harmony, nature is free to function in the same will-designed manner that it does with all other creatures.

You will be fascinated as you view HypnoBirthing films showing laboring mothers, awake, alert and in good humor as they experience the kind of gentle birth that you, too, can know when you are free of the Fear-Tension-Pain Syndrome.

HypnoBirthing teaches you to release all prior programming about birth, how to trust your body and work with it, as well as how to free yourself of harmful emotions that lead to pain-causing fear and unyielding muscles.

HypnoBirthing will teach you the art of using your own natural birthing instincts. With HypnoBirthing, you will be aware and fully in control, but profoundly relaxed.

YOU WILL LEARN:

Everything you need to know to achieve safer, easier and more comfortable birth

To explode the myth that pain is a necessary accompaniment to labor

What’s wrong with labor as it exists with most other childbirth methods

Techniques of deep relaxation to help you eliminate the Fear-Tension-Pain Syndrome

How your body is naturally designed to conceive, nurture and birth your baby with ease and comfort

To create your body’s own natural relaxant, the only safe labor enhancement

Natural ways to bring your body into labor without artificial chemical induction

How you and your birthing companion can create a birthing environment that is calm, serene and joyful, rather than tense and stressful

Gentle birthing techniques that allow you to breathe your baby into the world without the violence of hard physical pushing

To use your natural birthing instincts to birth your baby in a way that most mirrors the way that nature intended

Carrie Flemming is a Certified HypnoBirthing Childbirth Educator, birth doula & visual artist. She studied birth with Elizabeth Davis, Felicia Roche & Marie Mongan, and has supported families in various settings for 6 years. She holds master’s degrees in Counseling Psychology from John F. Kennedy University and Women’s Spirituality & Social Change from New College of California, and is affiliated with The HypnoBirthing Institute.
Her support is compassionate, creative & from the heart.
posted by:

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

Joyous victory for PA midwife

2008-05-24T19:25:45Z

Here in Pennsylvania we are currently celebrating with Certified
Professional Midwife Diane Goslin in her recent victory regarding
the Commonwealth Court's judgement of her midwifery practice...

www.savehomebirth.com/newsandviews.html

GOSLIN WINS!
Cease and Desist Order Reversed!

"The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania today reversed
the September 2007 decision of the Pennsylvania Board of
Medicine to order Lancaster County midwife, Diane Goslin,
to cease and desist from the practice of midwifery.

In a surprising blow to the Board of Medicine, the
Commonwealth Court opined that, "...practicing midwifery
cannot be construed to be the same as practicing medicine
and surgery." The Board had contended that Goslin was
in violation of the 1985 Medical Practice Act by practicing
medicine without a license.

They further pointed out that the 1985 Act, "...authorizes
the Board to impose penalties only upon persons who
practice as a nurse-midwife without a nurse-midwife
license." Goslin is a Certified Professional Midwife."

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

favorite portland midwife(s) ....

2008-05-23T17:57:49Z

hi everybody! i just made an appointment to get my IUD taken out next week!!! its baby time!!! well, of course i have to get pregnant first but details, details.... :)

so i was wondering if anyone could recommend a midwife in portland, oregon? there are SO many its overwhelming. i would love to hear your amazing birth story....

thanks in advance!

jessica

posted in Home Birth - 8 replies

any luck with getting re-imbursed through Harvard Pilgrim health plan?

2008-05-21T00:27:57Z

My husband's insurance was just switched from Blue Cross Blue Shield (which re-imbursed us about 80% of the cost of our home birth) to Harvard Pilgrim (which states in its introductory packet that it does not pay for planned home births). Has anyone successfully submitted a claim to Harvard Pilgrim?

posted in Home Birth - 1 reply

being moved to the high risk clinic

2008-05-13T01:34:14Z

i was just hospitalized for a week. it seems a fibroid has grown large and is pressing into my bladder so painfully that i was screaming when i had to pee. i'd lost a lot of bladder control, too. and i'd begun having contractions. i was spotting. none of it too swell.

what i'd hoped for was a home birth. i'd like to be in this space.

the week in the hospital (it was a labor and delivery area) showed me that the hospitals are not necessarily as evil heartless and stupid as i think think they are. but i did bump into one evil, stupid, heartless doc, a number others i'd consider sub par, one stealar and kind doc, one good and trustworthy doc, an absolutely fabulous charge nurse and some other decent, okay, and the occassional crappy nurse. -- it was a teaching hospital, as are most in NY, so you get exposed to quite a range of characters. and it does seem like a crap shoot.

i don't know that i will be assigned a particular doc in the high-risk clinic or that that doc will be the person to deliver my baby. but what i saw was that while they may save my life, i might be stuck dealing with a cavalier asshole at the most vulnerable moment of my entire life. i do not like that. not one bit. i don't like taking a chance on it.

in a teaching hospital, you can get stuck with the kind of doc who thinks you are flouting their authority if you ask questions. i had this happen, even though i said over and over that i just needed info. one doc told me that it seemed i just wouldn't be happy with anything she said -- and i had to very carefully say i'm a bit of a slow processor especially when stressed and that i was indeed stressed at that point in the visit. once it was established the problem was with me, she calmed down a bit. as i tried to go over the game plan with the doctor who was discharging me, she kept saying things like "well, if you don't want to trust me...." mind you i'd tried a game plan for pain management with the previous day's doc and had wound up in such bad shape i was crying and could barely breathe. now this doc had gotten "too busy" to try out her game plan but thought i ought to trust her on it. i mean, this is A LOT of pain we are talking about.

i'm at about 21 weeks now and there will be time to see how the pregnancy goes and i may still be able to, but as the medical situations continue to pile up on me, i get more and more afraid to listen to the voice that keeps saying do it at home.

and i know that once you're labeled "high risk" the odds go way up of getting bullied into a c-section or having to fight like hell against it.

it has been heartening to read the encouragement (including my own) on the how do i convince my husband and family thread.

it really is hard not to get cowed into thinking you are doing something selfish if you want to give birth at home.

of course if there is a demonstrable need for me to be in a hospital, i will do it.

posted in Home Birth - 2 replies

I don't know who else to ask...

2008-05-11T00:25:27Z

Hello,
Pardon bandwidth and you can tell me that this is the wrong forum, I'll totally understand, but I don't know where else to begin my search. My husband and I have been trying for a several years now to conceive, it just seems like the natural way hasn't been very effective. I've been very disappointed in the past with the healthcare providers I have met with. So I'm wary of just going to any ole doctor. I need someone who is going to take my concerns seriously. If anyone has any names of people I should contact please message me on or offlist whichever feels more comfortable to you. I'm only asking here because I know some of you have worked with doctors and then just delivered at home with a midwife. And again if you feel like I am totally out of line just tell me, and I'll understand if the moderator decides to delete my post. If you feel there is a more appropriate forum to take this to please just let me know. I live in the Seattle area. Thank you.

posted in Home Birth - 9 replies

Time has come, and I have questions:

2008-05-05T14:18:00Z

Hello Mamas! Well my midwife came over today, and she says I'm 2 centimeters dilated, and %50 effaced, and something else. I don't remember. Basically, I'm ready to go! I know it could still be a week or something, but I really would like for it to be really soon. Especially since the midwife that I would LOVE to do this with goes off call tomorrow. Whatever happens, I can't see it being anything but perfect, I would just prefer the one midwife to the other. I also kind of think it's going to be soon. I've been feeling intense rushes of energy that feel like a combination hormones and brushing against the 'other side'. Also, I've felt slightly nauseated and times, and slightly crampy. All in all, I'm stoked and ready to go.

So here's my question, when you were in labor and the midwives checked how dilated you were, how dilated were you? How rapidly did you dilate? Of course it's different for everyone. I just want to hear all about it. Did you get all high on hormones? Is there anything else about your birth experience that you'd like to share? I'm looking more for the esoteric details of your experience, and they're more interesting, and harder to find! Sometimes I wonder if ANY women out there are experiencing the same other worldly, energetic sensations that I am.

Please do share! That is all.

posted in Home Birth - 9 replies

determining if it is possible

2008-05-03T22:48:00Z

i'm in the thick of all that testing stuff: genetic testing, testing for diabetes, testing testing testing.

after undergoing a level 2 sono, i seem to be at about the same down syndrome risk as other women my age. but the idea has been implanted in my mind that there may be a problem from the earlier bloodwork -- and i'm saying no to the amnio.

the next hurdle is the "slightly elevated" diabetes situation. i did the one-hour test. now they want me in for the three hour.

and slowly, slowly i am losing that mindset where i believe i will be able to birth safely at home.

i do believe flexibility is important. and just because I wanted to give birth at home doesn't, of course, mean that it will be safe or advisable to do so.

but a quiet, little place inside me feels it's getting screwed out of doing it my way, at home, the way that actually would be most peaceful for me and the little one.

i wonder how many moms to be get scared out of home birth.

i hope that after all this test is over, i will be able to recover my equilibrium enough to make a solid, informed decision about how and where to bring this baby into the world.

posted in Home Birth - 8 replies

Do you find birth erotic?

2008-04-30T16:41:04Z

I wonder if I'm the only one. When I watch homebirth videos on you tube, and it's what I consider to be a 'good' birth, a healthy and consious birth, I can't help but notice how incredibly sexual and erotic it is. Anyone feel that way?

posted in Home Birth - 7 replies

time to look for midwives in NYC

2008-04-28T02:12:57Z

i am getting ready to start my midwife search. i have one or two people i am going to ask for referals, but thought i'd ask here, too. i am planning on giving birth in NYC at this point. anybody have personal experience here or know somebody who has? anybody know what it costs to pay the full rate for a midwife here? i know it's possible to negotiate and such, but i'm trying to find out what the going rate really is. i've heard $3000, but i've also heard twice that.

posted in Home Birth - 3 replies

ani difranco ruffles some feathers

2008-04-26T05:25:33Z

a post from celebrity baby blog:
http://www.celebrity-babies.com/2008/04/ani-difranco.html#more

ani talks about her homebirth.

posted in Home Birth - 5 replies

Support a Family Healing Arts Center!

2008-03-25T22:51:11Z

Hello, please vote for my hoopdancing video "Gemini Hoops" and help me to win $10,000 to fund the creation of a healing arts center!

PLEASE VOTE FOR "GEMINI HOOPS" on CLIPSTAR!

http://www.clipstar.com/videopage.jsf?video=9_7002_159

My intention is to win this contest in order to have the funds to create a Family Healing Arts Center in Eugene, OR with craniosacral therapy, chiropractic, midwifery, and classes for fertility, pregnancy, babies, children, and families. I already have the space and practitioners available. I just need the money to remodel the space, buy furniture, signs, insurance, and the start-up costs. Your vote can help make this family healing space into a beautiful community center!

Thank you! Every vote counts! Feel free to pass this along!

Blessings, Kara

P.S. Voting continues until April 30th. You will need to register to vote, however when you register you can choose not to receive any other emails from this company or others, so your privacy is insured. THANK YOU!!!

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

confused about placentas

2008-03-25T18:26:03Z

well, i somehow manage to make it through life without knowing certain basic things. like when the placenta comes out. first comes the baby, then comes a cord, and then when does the placenta come out? i have been watching tons of birth videos on youtube and there's something i'm just not getting. none of the videos are showing the cord getting cut or what it's attached to. but i have read home birthing accounts where there is something to catch the placenta, presumably sometime not very long after the baby comes. you know how nervous we can get about the things we don't know. help a sister out with some life 101 info?

posted in Home Birth - 23 replies

Birthing Tubs

2008-03-24T15:20:08Z

From my observations, it seems that birthing tubs seem to be ideal for comfortability.
They have that edge you can lean on so you can squat as opposed to being on your back in the bathtub.
Anyone have experience giving birth in a tub and giving birth without one?
What are the costs to rent something like that?

posted in Home Birth - 7 replies

fear

2008-03-23T09:37:49Z

i find that i have an intuitive sense that unassisted birth would be best for me -- at least for most of my labor. and that at the same time, i have a number of fears:

* that i will be bleeding to death and not know it; that i will not know the difference between "normal" bleeding and danger.

* that something will happen to the baby and i will not be able to negotiate it -- for eg a cord wrapped around the neck or something difficult regarding positioning.

* that the baby will die and it will be my fault.

* that the pain will be too much and i will wind up at the ER with a baby's head hanging out of my vagina.

* that i will botch something in cutting the cord. or be too grossed out or tired to deal with it.

i have all kinds of fears, some of them quite creative, some of them having to do with that i still have a lot of learning ahead (someone just told me about "lotus birth" today), some of them perhaps based in reality.

there is so much coming from Culture, telling me it is not safe to give birth at home, just following my body's own wisdom.

there is so much coming from Culture, telling me women used to die and babies used to die routinely in this process.

and yet when i stop to do the research and reading, it seems clear hospitals can be far less safe than home for birth.

the most moderate and helpful thing someone has said to me of late was that she had been at several homebirths with midwives, and sometimes she did not even know what what she was looking at and it seemed to her the midwives had very valuable knowledge and that i might want to consider having one. i could find one who would leave me alone as much as i needed and help me through any complications where i might need her.

what has your experience been? if you've already had your child, what does your fear look like to you on the other side of it? was it real? was it reasonable? were you able to handle the birth on your own? do you wish you'd had a midwife? did you make it through without winding up at the ER with a baby hanging out of your vagina? what were the surprises and mishaps?

on the other side of all the fearful things i read, i read about orgasmic birth -- and find it almost incomprehensible. i've never personally heard any woman say birth was not painful, never mind orgasmic. has anyone enjoyed giving birth?

thanks for sharing.

: )

posted in Home Birth - 13 replies

the business of being born

2008-03-17T17:40:53Z

This is avaliable on netflix and it's instant gratification because of the "watch now" feature. I found this very inspiring and amazing to watch...so if you have netflix and your computer can do the video deal check it out!!!! it's worth it.

The Business of Being Born

"Director Abby Epstein's controversial documentary takes a hard look at America's maternity care system, juxtaposing hospital deliveries against the growing popularity of at-home, natural childbirths that many expectant parents are now opting for. Former talk show host Ricki Lake was inspired to produce this compelling exposé after a dissatisfying birthing experience with her first child left her with many unanswered questions. "

posted in Home Birth - 1 reply

fear continued...

2008-03-16T17:54:05Z

In my observations of the birthing process, no first hand experience here, it seems like when a problem occurs in a pregnancy there is usually at least one red flag before the actual birthing process begins or if there is a problem the birthing process may begin prematurely.
Like if the baby has the cord wrapped around it's neck, or isn't getting something it needs to be getting, the body/baby will begin the process of contracting as a red flag. Even at full term some red flags maybe a high blood pressure.

How many of you have experience Red Flags before having a complicated birth with and without diagnostic test. How many of you just knew there was something wrong and how many of you were told, for example, you have high blood pressure or diabetes during your births?

posted in Home Birth - 3 replies

birthing groups

2008-03-12T04:59:44Z

in reading the many stories of birth on the fear thread and in a couple of gaskin's books i'm currently reading, what hits me is i wish there were birthing groups. as a person who believes, more or less, in my body/spirit's ability to bring my child safely into this world, i am finding i really like the idea of a powerful group of other mamas and mamas to be in the room with me. not necessarily friends, even, but women who have a consciousness about birthing and have had experience with it.... to be there. i think it would be calming. i think there would be a lot of collective wisdom in the room. i wish there were a bunch of novice attendees and experienced mamas to be with me when i gave birth. enough of these stories of doulas that crap out and enough of my anxiety over how to afford a midwife. i think what i really want in there is good company.

posted in Home Birth - 3 replies

cutting the cord

2008-02-21T01:29:49Z

thank you all for continued informational support. i continue to think about the concrete aspects of birth -- the latest question is how the cord is cut. is it complicated? do you need to know anything special about clamping it and such? i understand there are different theories on how long to wait to cut it. the most amazing thing i've learned about it recently is that pulsation is observable in it for some time after birth. wow! okay, so anybody got any 101 level information on cord cutting? how was it done in your experience? what can go wrong?

posted in Home Birth - 6 replies

how much can i expect to bleed

2008-02-19T04:13:12Z

i am confused about how much blood to expect in the minutes, hours, days after the birth. how does one know how much is too much? what herbs have others used to slow bleeding when necessary?

posted in Home Birth - 5 replies

Baby Healing Project Needs Your Votes for Funding!

2008-01-23T08:43:33Z

Your Vote is Needed to Fund a Free Aquatic Baby Bodywork Clinic!

I am a Finalist in the www.IdeaBlob.com Contest to win $10,000 to fund a small business or project. Your support will allow me to create a free monthly clinic for pregnant women, babies, and children to receive Aquatic CranioSacral Therapy in the therapeutic, warm, salt-water pool at the Tamarack Center in Eugene, OR.

Please vote for the WaterBaby CranioSacral Therapy Project!!! Every vote counts!
http://ideablob.com/ideas/1225-WaterBaby-CranioSacral-Therapy-

Thank you!!!!!!

Here's what Mothering Magazine, www.mothering.com, has to say about my project:

Healer's Project Needs Your Votes for Funding

When it comes to bringing aid and comfort to mothers and babies, Kara Maia Spencer, www.maiahealingarts.com, has credentials galore—she is a Licensed Massage Therapist, Certified Birth and Postpartum Doula, CranioSacral Therapist, Holistic Childbirth Educator & Consultant, Homebirth Midwifery Assistant, Reiki Master & Energy Healer, and is Certified in Bodywork for the Childbearing Year.

Dedicated to providing gentle, non-invasive, effective healing—as well as creating community among new parents—Kara intends to facilitate a free monthly CranioSacral Therapy clinic for pregnant women, mothers and babies, at a community therapeutic pool near her home in Eugene, Oregon. She has entered a funding contest with the hopes of winning $10,000 with which to rent the Tamarack Wellness Center's, www.tamarackwellness.com, warm, salt-water, solar powered therapeutic pool (the most eco-pool in Oregon) each month to host the free community clinic.

Please vote here to support Kara's goal—each vote counts, and registration is very quick and free.
http://ideablob.com/ideas/1225-WaterBaby-CranioSacral-Therapy-

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

Business of Being Born on MSN

2008-01-17T05:37:50Z

Well, at least it made the front page...
http://www.slate.com/id/2181860/?GT1=10837

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

dancing out baby

2008-01-15T19:21:23Z

hello lovelies,
i am in the process of developing a dancing out the baby class which will be a part of my childbirth educator certification process. i am doing some independent research on birth dances, and would love to hear your stories if you are interested in sharing. specifically any stories involving dancing as you relate to it. please message me directly, and let me know if i could use examples of your story in the future. thank you so much.
jerushah

posted in Home Birth - 1 reply

patience

2008-01-12T19:30:34Z

I am due on January 30th, my midwife just came over for a prenatal and I asked her to check me. I am about 70% effaced, which is good news, but I could not help feel a little disappointed. I am so ready to have this baby. The baby has dropped, I am HUGE, and really uncomfortable, and I just want to go into labor already. I know I have three weeks until due date, but I sincerely hope I don't have to wait that long or longer. This frustration is eating me up. Just had to get it off my chest.

posted in Home Birth - 4 replies

vbac success!! three cheers for acupuncture!!!~

2008-01-11T03:02:23Z

born on 7-12, an 8 lb. 8 oz baby boy, approximately 40 hours after one acupuncture treatment and a bath in clary sage. That's a big boy, and healthy as a clam. His due date was July 24th but my instints told me now. Thanks for all the support. You can see him at peacehealth.org baby news. His name is Gabriel Francis Red Feather.

posted in Home Birth - 14 replies

Waterbirth International Needs our Help

2008-01-09T03:05:14Z

Please help Barbara Harper keep waterbirth alive

Waterbirth International may close doors. Here is a note from Barbara Harper of Waterbirth International

Barbara Harper wrote:.

I cannot yet imagine a world without the voice and work of Waterbirth
International - we get calls and emails every day from women who need help
convincing one hospital or another to let them labor or birth in water. If
we die - a big part of the movement dies. Waterbirth has shown us all that
women know how to give birth and babies know how to be born. Waterbirth
gave us "hands-off", sit back and let the baby out. I see waterbirth
mentioned on Blogs every single day, not to mention Baby Story on the TV. I
took Waterbirth International to ACOG two years in a row - and was the ONLY
booth showing birth films to obstetricians and especially to student
physicians. There were tears, laughter and outrage - just the thing to stir
up those young crop of doctors. I am finally realizing a life's dream.

But now I am faced with letting this dream go. Perhaps I have done enough.
Perhaps it is time to quit.

About 18 years ago, maybe it was longer, when Mothering Magazine was facing
bankruptcy Peggy did a heartfelt plea asking their readers to consider
ordering a Life-time subscription. I think the subscriptions were $1000 or
$1200, I can't remember now. I do remember that I couldn't imagine not
reading my Mothering. So, I bought two and gave one to my obstetrician's
office.

How can you help us stay open to take the next phone call? - to convince the
next obstetrician to incorporate waterbirth into his/her practice - to work
with the nurse midwives to install pools in their facilities? To educate an
entire hospital on the benefits of allowing women freedom of movement in the
water. How much is it worth to see waterbirth become the norm in the US,
like it is in the UK? I think we only need a few more years to make that
happen. Do women really want waterbirth to be an available choice in every
hospital? I think so.

Can you help us by getting the word out on blogs and lists? I had to let go
of all of the staff except one person to process orders. Miraculously, we
made payroll today, but we can't hang on much longer. We need a miracle.

If I need to call every single waterbirth parent personally, I will. I
don't want 25 years of work to end over a measly $200,000.

The work that we have done the last few years has been phenomenal. How God
arranged for me to teach in hospitals and medical schools around the planet
- Taiwan, Venezuela, Turkey, Mexico, Canada, Holland, Portugal, China,
Trinidad, Croatia - I'll never figure that out. I laugh out loud sometimes
when I get up in front of an audience of physicians in a medical school
overseas - who all want to hear about waterbirth and the incorporation of
Gentle Birth practices and principles into their routines.

Think about what you can do and call me if you want to chat or if you have
some great ideas on how we can quickly move into the black and keep
waterbirth alive and thriving.

We need your help. Barbara Harper needs your help. The waterbirth/gentle
birth movement needs your help.

Blessings,
Barbara
Barbara Harper, RN, CLD, CCE
Founder/Director
Waterbirth International
www.waterbirth.org
503-673-0026 -office (out of US or in Portland)
800-641-2229 - toll free
503-710-7975 - cell phone

We LOVE helping women get into Hot Water!!
And have been doing it for 24 years!!

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

beautiful homebirth montage (x-post)

2007-12-16T05:30:57Z

this was so moving, i'm totally hormonal right now...

http://www.onetruemedia.com/otm_site/view_shared?p=3c5b874ed95f8ea9bf9466&skin_id=1009&utm_source=otm&utm_medium=text_url

posted in Home Birth - 12 replies

Pregnancy/newborn Photography?

2007-12-11T04:27:27Z

Hello all,

I am working to develop a photography business that focus on pregnancy and newborns. I would appreciate your feedback and ideas. I have a few questions:

What would you like to see in pregnancy or newborn pictures?

Prefer a male or female photographer and why?

Where would you feel more comfortable having this type of photography done....in own home or a studio?

Any other ideas or thoughts are welcome.

Thanks.

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

YIKES!!! Just toured the hospital

2007-12-03T03:43:36Z

I have already chosen to birth at home, but also signed up for the hospital tour of the labor and delivery wing to be sure I am fully informed and making my choice accordingly. It was scarry from the very beginning. After some general info it seemed to be all about epidurals and c-sections. I don't know why I was so shocked, but I was. We watched a video on epi's explaining what they were and that it was okay to get one, you haven't failed by asking for one, they don't hurt the baby, and be realistic with yourself - labor is painful!!! They failed to mention the follow-up stufff like pitocin and increased risk of other interventions when an epi is used. Every woman gets an IV because when delivering because there is always the chance that you will end up having a c-section, so be prepared(emotionally too). And every pregnant woman is in a constant state of dehydration so we hook you up to a bag to rehydrate. More info about c-sections. Then we saw a birth room. Regular hopspital bed, no tub to labor in, and shared recovery rooms. More info about c-sections. And the security measures, whoa.! Specific colored badges for employees of the labor and delivery wing, a polaroid of your newborn, a security bracelet that will sound an alarm if you wander into the wrong area of the hospital with your baby. Fetal monitoring, no food or drink, blood tests, eye ointment, vaccinations - it all made me want to scream and run.
And to top it all off, my husband and I were the only ones to ask any questions. Such as c-section rates (which were 25%), unmentioned standard procedures - what are they, what is the eye ointment for and name of it, be more specific about these tests please, how long after my water breaks do I have before you induce (answer was 18 hours with 2 rounds of antibiotics), etc. Why were the others so apparently content with being treated as the average person with the standard procedures? I am not the average person, I will not be treated according to averages and standard practices, I will eat and drink as I please, and don't tell me what I need.
Thank you for letting me rant - I feel better now.

posted in Home Birth - 36 replies

looking for an at home midwife

2007-11-21T17:35:57Z

i live in the "southern tier" in upstate NY, about 30 miles east of Binghamton, 30 miles west of Oneonta.
having little luck so far, the few leads i've gotten have closed or moved.

posted in Home Birth - 2 replies

anyone looking to be a Doula? Labor Assist? Workshop here in San Diego, CA

2007-11-02T17:31:02Z

I am helping to hosting a Labor/Birth Assistant Doula training workshop at the end of this month. ALACE (Association of Labor Assistant and Childbirth Educators) the oldest Labor Assistant/ Doula training program in America, and they are having a 3 day workshop for anyone who has interest in Labor Assisting/Doula. This is a great course for anyone who wants to learn more about Pregnancy and Birth and how to support women and their partners during labor. This has been an amazing career choice for me, and everyone I know that has been able to move into this line of work.

The workshop is November 30th-Decemer 2nd at the UCSD Women's Health Center on the UCSD campus in La Jolla. The trainer coming out for this workshop has been a CNM (Certified Nurse Midwife) and Doula for over 20 years, and she is awesome! If you want me to mail you a brochure, or email you one give me a call or email me at SDAlaceWorkshop@Gmail.com or (619) 849-8708. You can also message me here on Tribe.

"An ALACE Certified Labor Assistant/Birth Doula is a professional care provider who understands and trusts the process of birth, who respects its transcendent and sacred aspects as well as its physical and emotional aspects, and who facilitates the birth experience for parents, baby and primary care providers."- from the ALACE website.

For more information on what a Doula does please also feel free to visit the ALACE website at www.Alace.org

Thank you!

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

Birth Arts Doula Workshop at Harbin Hot Springs

2007-10-14T02:50:21Z

BIRTH ARTS INTERNATIONAL
DOULA WORKSHOP

at Harbin Hot Springs in Middletown, CA
October 19th-21st, 2007

To Register and for more info: www.maiahealingarts.com/harbin...oct-07/

Join us for a weekend educational immersion into the science and spirit of labor support. Learn how to provide support for women and babies through pregnancy, labor, birth, and immediate postpartum.

The training includes an three days of class, extensive workbook, and on-going mentoring through didactic work to complete the program and receive certification as a Certified Birth Arts Doula.

Birth Arts offers a complete birth doula training integrating evidence-based maternity care research with traditional women’s wisdom and intuition. The workshop includes hands-on experiential practice in bodywork, rebozo, labor support techniques, and non-pharmacological methods of pain relief. We will go into detail about the practice of supporting women at birth at home, birth center, and hospital environments.

with Kara Spencer, LMT, CD
Harbin Hot Springs, Middletown, CA
October 19-21, 2007

Kara Spencer - Maia Healing Arts: www.maiahealingarts.com
Birth Arts International ~ www.birtharts.com
Harbin Hot Springs Retreat Center - www.harbin.org

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

illegal home births

2007-10-10T20:49:09Z

i have an aquaintance that just had an illegal home birth with a midwife down here in alabama, and it went smoothly (yay!), and she found an OB that said he would back her up. i'm in nursing school, and after witnessing the way women labor and give birth in hospitals here, i feel that it would be a happier, more relaxed, and safer experience if i have my baby at home when we decide to have one. my question is this:
when you are home birthing in a state where licenture of midwives is not allowed, and have an emergency situation happen (i know emergency situations usually don't happen and mamas are screened for risky pregnancies, but what if..), what is the course of action? call an ambulance and hope they don't notice the kiddie pool in your living room? just wanted to hear some of your thoughts :)

posted in Home Birth - 13 replies

Lotus Birth

2007-10-02T16:48:47Z

Hello All...

I'm generally pretty quiet in here .. I do very much enjoy the conversations and have appreciated postings of others. Just wanted to say that. :-)

My partner and I have decided to have a Lotus Birth. I'm wondering if any of you have chosen this path? I'd love to hear some personal stories and ideas. I am "officially" due this Sunday, June 24th, and am very excited about the whole experience.

Love & blessings,
AlyGirl xo

posted in Home Birth - 17 replies

Gentle Birth World Conference in PDX

2007-09-13T01:28:14Z

http://www.gentlebirthworld.com/mc/page.do

This is coming up in about a month here in Portland and i was curious if anyone from Tribe is going? I'm wanting to make the Sat/Sun part.

posted in Home Birth - 7 replies

free and easy way to help homeless children

2007-08-02T21:47:27Z

www.railwaychildren-friends.com/email.asp

place this web search-engine in place of your old one and raise 10p per search

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

what are your favorite hb videos?

2007-08-01T18:48:01Z

We are hoping to start a collection of natural birth videos, and hoping to get quite a few very soon since we are expecting a new little on in October and would like to watch them with our toddler as a kind of preparation.
What are your favorite videos and why?

Thanks! :)

posted in Home Birth - 4 replies

Birth Arts Doula Training at Lost Valley, Oregon - Aug 24-26

2007-07-17T08:37:12Z

Birth Arts International Doula Training
at Lost Valley Educational Center, Dexter, OR (near Eugene)
August 24-26, 2007
www.birtharts.com

facilitated by Kara Maia Spencer, LMT, CD

For more information see: http://www.maiahealingarts.com/lost-valley-oregon-august/
or contact Kara at 541-520-0681

Join us at Lost Valley for a weekend educational immersion into the science and spirit of labor support. Learn how to provide support for women and babies through pregnancy, labor, birth, and immediate postpartum.

The training includes a weekend workshop, lodging (dorm or camping), meals, an extensive workbook, and on-going mentoring through didactic work to complete the program and receive certification as a Certified Birth Arts Doula.

Birth Arts offers a complete birth doula training integrating evidence-based maternity care research with traditional women’s wisdom and intuition. The workshop includes hands-on experiential practice in bodywork, rebozo, labor support techniques, and non-pharmacological methods of pain relief. We will go into detail about the practice of supporting women at birth at home, birth center, and hospital environments.

Tuition: $350

Food & Lodging: $130 - dormitory lodging, $70 - camping in your own tent
includes delicious vegetarian meals from Friday dinner through Sunday lunch

For registration or inquiries contact:

Kara at 541-520-0681 or email kara@birtharts.com

Mail your registration form and tuition to: Kara Spencer, 2833 Willamette St, Suite B, Eugene, OR 97405

About Lost Valley Educational Center:

Lost Valley, www.lostvalley.org, is a permaculture school, intentional community, and workshop retreat center. Situated just 25 minutes east of Eugene, OR on a beautiful reserve of land, there are hiking trails, a creek with a swimming hole in the summer, and guided nature trails.

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

Stone Soup : homebirth in a comic strip!

2007-07-14T17:33:15Z

I never read the comic strips, but just happen to glance at this one and went *whoa! What!?* I think they progress day by day or something so this might make more sense in a couple of days?

I personally (no matter how ridiculous and NOT funny the comic strip is) think this is pretty damn cool that homebirth is in a national comic strip.

http://news.yahoo.com/comics/uclickcomics/20070704/cx_ss_uc/ss20070704;_ylt=Aq9MU.WqvzErf383ujc_6L2cocwF

posted in Home Birth - 12 replies

article: Unassisted births dangerous, doctors warn

2007-07-04T18:05:45Z

Thought I'd post this, see what people think

http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2007/06/21/free-birth.html

posted in Home Birth - 16 replies

MO Midwifery needs your help NOW!

2007-07-04T13:50:51Z

If you live in Missouri, or know people who do--contact govenor Matt Blunt at 573.751.3222 and ask him to support the midwifery legislation in HB 818 in the next couple of days (5/16 and 5/17) The session ends Friday.

The legisiation has passed both house and senate and is on his desk! Missourians need to call in support!

Thank you,
Dawn

posted in Home Birth - 1 reply

advice on getting him going

2007-07-03T07:47:16Z

Anybody have any word on how to get a baby going gently and naturally (please don't recommend sex because I don't have a partner and it's slightly depressing how many people have told me that it's the only way)... My last baby was overdue ad huge and I want this one to be a normal size. I had a previous c-section so it's also really important that it's a gentle method. I've heard black and blue cohosh can be pretty fast, and I don't want to rupture. I'm getting more nervous everyday the more I read about it. any input is great, thanks guys.

posted in Home Birth - 12 replies

Home birth veterans, some advice please

2007-07-02T21:43:32Z

I'm a newbie here expecting my first child in July and I'm starting to prepare for a home birth. I've seen that there are 'packages' available, but I was wanting to know from those of you that have already done this what the actual necessities are. What were the most helpful must-haves and what didn't get used? And what were your favorite comfort items? Any information is greatly appreciated.

posted in Home Birth - 17 replies

Birth Arts International Doula Workshops

2007-06-22T08:35:12Z

Upcoming Birth Arts Workshops in Vermont, Oregon, Texas, and California!
www.birtharts.com

Birth, Postpartum, and Advanced Doula Trainings integrating wise women traditions with evidence-based research.

Birth Arts Postpartum Workshop
Bennington, VT - July 28th-29th
contact: Helena Wu at helena@birtharts.com / 802-235-1512

Birth Arts Advanced Workshop - Vibrational Medicine for Birth
Chester, VT - August 25th-26th
contact: Helena Wu at helena@birtharts.com / 802-235-1512

Birth Arts Labor Doula Workshop
Lost Valley Center, Dexter, OR - August 24th-26th
contact: Kara Spencer at kara@birtharts.com / 541-520-0681
www.maiahealingarts.com/doula-training/

Birth Arts Labor Doula Workshop
Alma De Mujer, Austin, TX - August 24th-26th
contact: Patricia Couch at patricia@birtharts.com / 541-556-8415
www.pattycakebirthingservices.com/b...x/

Birth Arts Labor Doula Workshop
Harbin Hot Springs, Middletown, CA - October 19th-21st
contact: Kara Spencer at kara@birtharts.com / 541-520-0681
www.maiahealingarts.com/harbin...oct-07/

More dates coming soon. Contact demetria@birtharts.com if you are interested in hosting a class in your area or for interest in distance learning programs.

Birth Arts International
www.birtharts.com

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

Unassisted/autonomous birth

2007-05-27T23:19:26Z

I am looking to speak with women who have had or are going to have an unassisted birth. I am interested in your stories (respectfully!).

Anyone here doing so? Would love to connect!

Ondra

posted in Home Birth - 38 replies

Another Home Birth movie

2007-05-18T18:31:13Z

from Mothering magazine's website:
--------------------------------------------------------

The Business of Being Born 2007 NYC Tribeca Film Festival
By Wendy Ponte

New Yorkers had an opportunity to experience a real "birthing" week in Manhattan starting with the much-anticipated opening of the documentary film, The Business of Being Born, which had its premier at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 29th.

The idea for the film sprung from the personal experience of actress/talk show host Ricki Lake, Executive Producer for the film, after birthing her own children—one in a conventional hospital setting, and the second at home with a midwife. The film's message is clear and unflinching: modern medical practices have so distorted the process of birth that we have lost the natural beauty of this rite of passage. "If you really want a humanized birth, the thing to do is to get the hell out of the hospital," say Marsden Wagner, a physician and former Director of Women's and Children's Health for the World Health Organization, in an interview during the film.

Interviews with other experts, such as medical anthropologist Robbie Davis-Floyd, acclaimed midwife Ina May Gaskin, and French obstetrician Michel Odent, are contrasted with moving interviews from real-life women. We see these women before, during and after their homebirths.

But the best part of the film by far is the surprise twist it takes when director Abby Epstein discovers that she herself is pregnant. Both Epstein and Lake share their own personal experiences in such an open and giving way that the old cliché held true—there were very few dry eyes in the house by the end.

Two days later, on Tuesday May 31st, Childbirth Connection's event, Women and Childbirth: Choice, Control, Knowledge and Decision Making, was held in Manhattan's venerable Harvard Club. The organization presented the Carola Warburg Rothschild Award for outstanding contribution to the health and well-being of women and their families to Betsy Gotbaum, New York City's Public Advocate, and Choices in Childbirth, whose director, doula Élan McCallister, was also interviewed in the film, The Business of Being Born.

Gotbaum and Choices in Childbirth were chosen to receive this award for their collaborative effort to enforce the Maternity Information Act, originally written in 1989. The law directs that all hospitals that provide maternity services in New York State must provide prospective patients with a brochure that clearly outlines that hospitals track record. The brochure, which is provided to hospitals by the state's Department of Health, requires precise information about current c-section rates and rates of induction and episiotomies so that women can make informed decisions.

Over the past two years members of the two organizations actually visited 44 New York City hospitals posed as pregnant women in order to determine whether or not the brochures were being handed out. None of the hospitals visited, except one, complied with the ruling. This effort made it possible for compliance with the law to be enforced. Present at the event were doulas, midwives and birth advocates from all over the country—but when Childbirth Connections director, Maureen Cory, asked if any hospital administrators were present, no hands were raised. Also present was former Carola Warburg Rothschild recipient, Doris Haire, whose dedicated efforts had helped to get the original bill passed in the 1980's.

After taking in the poignant and provocative works of the film and award ceremony, New Yorkers also had an opportunity to laugh out loud at some of motherhood's more everyday challenges at the one-woman show, Mother Load, playing at the Sage Theater through June 16th.

Although purists might take issue with some of the commentary (i.e. epidurals are okay, and so is a bottle of formula or two), few could argue with the play's bottom line: our culture bombards mothers with such a high standard of perfectionism that just relaxing and enjoying your kids is nearly impossible.

Actress Amy Wilson wrote and stars in this lively production, which is based on her own life as the mother of two young sons—with a third on the way. The bewildering array of conflicting information that comes at most mothers these days is personified by the amplified voice of an astringent announcer whose commentary becomes increasingly distorted as the onslaught of information builds from television shows, magazines, pre-school applications and even that sacred old standby, What to Expect When You're Expecting.

Wilson's comedic timing is excellent, her bewildered and frenzied facial expressions are easy to both identify with and laugh at. One wishes for a few more of the poignant moments, such as when she describes the joy of finally getting the hang of breastfeeding. Still and all, though, this play is an hour's worth of entertainment that any mother will thoroughly appreciate.

For more information:

* The Business of Being Born; directed by Abby Epstein; Executive Producer: Ricki Lake; www.thebusinessofbeingborn.com
* Childbirth Connection (www.childbirthconnection.com) has a link to more information about the Maternity Information Act in New York State, along with a download link to the Public Advocate's report on the recent enforcement of this act.
* Mother Load; written by Amy Wilson; directed by Julie Kramer; produced by Hyde Park & Lafayette. Playing through June 16th at The Sage Theater. Order tickets at 212-279-4200 or go to www.motherloadshow.com

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

A movie everyone here will like. Pregnant in America

2007-05-17T05:35:02Z

Hi everyone,

I cannot wait for this movie to be released. I think all of you who feel strongly about the politics around birth might really enjoy it, and those who don't will find it fascinating all the same. http://pregnantinamerica.com/ The quote they have on their website says it best-

"Pregnant in America examines the betrayal of humanity's greatest gift--birth--by the greed of U.S. corporations. Hospitals, insurance companies and other members of the healthcare industry have all pushed aside the best care of our infants and mothers to play the power game of raking in huge profits. "

Some interesting facts-
The United States has the 2nd worst newborn DEATH rate amongst all industrialized nations.
98% of women have their babies in hospitals
66% of hospitals profits come from births.

Have a good weekend all! :)

posted in Home Birth - 12 replies

tribe ads

2007-05-15T03:47:09Z

anyone noticed thetype of ads that are located in between the the thread topics on our homebirth tribe? today i saw an ad that said, "research shows that home birth is not as safe as hospital birth". i understand that tribe has to make money to offer this free online community that we enjoy, however... the advertisers are definitely barking up the wrong tree with that one! i am sure they are computer generated ads, etc... but really.

maybe this is an old issue that everyone else is used to, but i thought i'd mention it!

posted in Home Birth - 5 replies

to know or not to know

2007-05-11T23:41:12Z

i'm just curious, did you or did you not choose to find out the baby's gender prenatally? it's interesting how this seems to be a dying mystery in life. i choose not to know, btw.

posted in Home Birth - 11 replies

baby blossom

2007-04-25T17:58:38Z

april23, in the wee hours of a deeply star-lit night, a beautiful baby girl was born, at home, in a warm tub.
all natural, gentle enterance into the world.
if only all babies had the possibility for this type of birth - no interference, a gentle acceptance of this powerful transformation, whatever that looks like- what would the world look like?
thankyou mama for being empowered and trusting in the perfect process of your labour and birthing experience.
may all women be empowered and joyful in their strength.
gracious thanks for the gift of being with this new being as she came through...
may all children be blessed with a gentle, beautiful birth.
welcome xox

posted in Home Birth - 1 reply

10 steps to be a mother friendly provider

2007-04-19T16:56:09Z

go to http://www.ingentac onnect.com/ content/lamaze/ jpe and download the booklet...give it to your midwife, ob doulas nurse etc...

posted in Home Birth - 3 replies

Healing the Birth Process: How to Maximize Your Baby's Developmental Potential

2007-03-23T05:13:08Z

HEALING THE BIRTH PROCESS:
How to Maximize Your Baby's Developmental Potential

95% of births in America result in some level of infant shock and trauma, ranging from the normal rigors of labor to medical interventions.
These imprints can profoundly affect a baby's full developmental potential.

Learn how to recognize and resolve any negative birth imprinting and dramatically increase your baby's:
Feeling of Safety and Well-Being
Intelligence and Ability to Learn
Ability to accomplish and persevere through difficult situations
Capacity for Empathy, Joy, and Love
Physical health and coordination

Tuesday, March 27, 12:30-2:00pm
Blossom Birth Services
299 S. California Avenue, Ste. 120
Palo Alto
650-321-2326

Jeremy Goldberg, C.M.T., is a Birth Integration Specialist and Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapist in Redwood City. He specializes in working with babies and families from the preconception to postpartum periods.

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

New film on hospital birth!

2007-03-18T23:38:05Z

A friend from my local AP group sent this to me-it looks amazing! Much love-Baby Tao's Mom (Alexandra)
http://www.pregnantinamerica.com/

posted in Home Birth - 1 reply

Spamming

2007-03-18T17:51:05Z

Hello everyone. I don't check in as often as I should and would like to enlist your help in keeping this tribe spam free. If you spot anything, please send me a message and I will contact the poster and delete the post. Thanks for your help!-Alexandra

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

Bay Area midwife recommendations?

2007-03-14T20:32:56Z

I am 21 weeks pregnant with my second child.

Although I am a new birth doula and a midwifery student(completed Elizabeth Davis' Basic and Advanced Heart & Hands Midwifery Intensives this year and hoping to continue with NMI soon) I had resigned myself to having my baby at Kaiser Walnut Creek because it made sense for us financially.

We are very tight on money right now, but the last couple weeks has brought a deep and renewed desire for a homebirth for this second baby.

The midwives that I used with my first baby are unavailable- one is in nursing school and the other has moved out of state.

Does anyone have any recommendations for good midwives in the Oakland area? Also, do you know their fees?

posted in Home Birth - 6 replies

2007 midwifery related legislation

2007-03-12T23:55:00Z

The following states currently have legislation or budget items pending in their legislatures:
* Alabama
* Illinois
* Indiana
* Missouri
* North Dakota
* South Dakota
* Utah
* Virginia

more info is available at http://birthpolicy.org/

posted in Home Birth - 1 reply

Baby Nutrition Advice

2007-03-08T22:51:15Z

My daughter is almost 3 months old. I believe in breastmilk only, however, I am having a hard time keeping enough pumped milk on hand, as I work fulltime, and also have another child....

Anyway, I am wondering about supplementing with rice milk, or soy, or other wholesome and organic vegetarian options....
Does anyone have any suggestions, and/or, is she old enough?

posted in Home Birth - 12 replies

4th degree tear

2007-03-03T16:11:38Z

anyone ever heard of, had, or seen a 4th degree tear at a homebirth with no episiotomy?

posted in Home Birth - 4 replies

My unassisted birth story

2007-02-20T04:11:41Z

I just posted my birth story on my blog - check it out!

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

spontaneous delivery and funky birth myths

2007-02-19T00:31:25Z

This news item about a birth caught my attention because the birth of my first daughter happened in a similarly quick and unexpected way, however, the lesson that I took away from the experience was exactly the opposite of this new dad's.

I wonder how many mothers wouldn't trade their own most recent labor and delivery experience for one like this.

February 16, 2007
http://www.sptimes.com/2007/02/16/Tampabay/Devil_Ray_s_new_assig.shtml

" ST. PETERSBURG — Infielder Ty Wigginton came through with a lot of big hits for the Devil Rays last season. But that was nothing like the way he delivered during the offseason.

...The unforgettable episode started around 3:45 the morning of Dec. 20, when Angela woke with contractions about seven minutes apart. “I asked her, 'Do we need to go?’ and she says, 'We’re all right,’ ’’ Wigginton said.

A couple of hours of more intense contractions later, Angela — who went through a 14-hour labor with Chase — changed her mind. She began getting ready for a trip to the hospital, though expecting the doctors would simply send them home. Ty was already up with Chase, giving him medicine for a flu that had him vomiting and preparing to drop him off at Angela’s parents’ house.

“About 6 o’clock she’s in the closet trying to get dressed, and I’m getting our son ready to go out the door and she yells, 'We’re having this baby now,’ ’’ Wigginton said.

“I think she’s kidding. Then I come around the corner and, sure enough. … I called 911 and told them to get somebody over there. And like a minute later, I’m holding the baby in my arms.”

It took about 10 more minutes for the paramedics to get there, though Wigginton said it seemed like an hour. Not that he had time to get too worried.

“The baby came out and he looked great,” Ty said. “The scary part was that he never really cried until the EMTs got there, but he was breathing. His tongue was moving in and out of his mouth. I could feel his heart beating. They just told me to keep wiping his nose and mouth and keep him wrapped in a towel.”

[THE SCARY PART WAS THAT THE BABY WASN'T TRAUMATIZED? --WHAT A SAD REFLECTION OF THE MEDICAL MYTHOLOGY OF CHILDBIRTH]

The baby weighed 7 pounds, 2 ounces . . .

[SO, WHAT DOES THE BASEBALL PLAYER LEARN FROM THE EXPERIENCE?]

“Next time, if she even sneezes or coughs, we’re going to the hospital,” Wigginton said. “I don’t care if she is only two weeks pregnant.” "

...SO EVERYONE CAN BE TRAUMATIZED :-)

posted in Home Birth - 1 reply

Birthing Freedom petition

2007-02-18T20:48:36Z

Hi Friends,

I have just read and signed the petition: "Decriminalize Birth & Midwifery - Support Birthing Freedom!"

Support Birth Freedom and join me in signing this petition on behalf of women's birthing rights. It takes just a few seconds, but can truly make a difference. Please sign here:

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/425908741

Thanks!

posted in Home Birth - 3 replies

I'm having a home birth

2007-02-12T03:13:53Z

I'm new to this tribe...hi.
I found a great house, a midwife, and I get to have a homebirth! I'm so excited. This is my second pregnancy, 5 months. With my first, I planned for a birth center birth but my daughter was 2 weeks and 1 day late causing me to be induced in the hospital. While being dosed with pitocin I tried my best to labor as naturally as I could...I did it without pain killers.
I know I can have a home birth.

posted in Home Birth - 6 replies

Art photographer seeks home birth to photograph

2007-02-06T08:18:54Z

Hi everyone,

I'm an award-winning documentary filmmaker who recently segwayed to still photography and is seeking a birth to photograph in the next month.

I'm looking to capture folks "in those moments of the pure essence of you. You without masks, without concealment, in your most unmoderated, unfiltered, true self." This is for a passion project: www.divine-eye.com/projects.html

If you are in the San Francisco Bay Area, due before mid-March, and would love to have your birth captured, please say hello. I'm particularly interested in nontraditional/home/waterbirths but all births welcome.

Thank you!
Antonia Kao, MFA

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

new tribe

2007-02-06T05:30:25Z

a tribe to join together birth professionals/educators and parents who would like to both learn from them and (inevitably) contribute to their education.

http://tribes.tribe.net/childbirtheducation

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

CIMS forum march 07

2007-01-27T13:50:41Z

CIMS proudly invites the national and international community to participate in this dynamic event.

The 2007 CIMS Mother-Friendly Childbirth Forum will feature the debut of Coalition for Improving Maternity Services: Evidence Basis for the Ten Steps of Mother-Friendly Care. The result of a precedent-setting research project, the review and guidelines summarize the findings of 15 years of international evidence on all aspects of Mother-Friendly care and provides professionals, advocacy groups, policy makers, and families alike with a powerful, new resource for improving the care of mothers and babies.

The CIMS Forum brings together research experts, professionals, advocates, and consumers of maternity care from the U.S. and abroad to learn and work side by side for three energizing days of collaborative education, networking, problem solving and sharing. Attendees will benefit both from formal presentations by leaders in the field, and from participation in workgroups of their choice addressing issues facing childbearing women and their families today. Attendees will gather a wealth of information, to bring home to their own practices, workplaces and communities while gaining inspiration and making and renewing connections with those who share a common interest in the health and well-being of mothers and babies.

visit the site to register and know their work

http://www.motherfriendly.org/

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

how to prepare our first for coming of her sibling?

2007-01-25T13:08:33Z

Hi, all! We just found out we are expecting our second child. Our first is now almost 16 months old, so she will be 2 years old when the next little one comes out. We had a home birth with our older daughter, and will be doing so again with the one growing inside right now.
Does any one have any experience preparing a little one the age of our daughter for her siblings birth and our pregnancy? Any resources to recommend? I've found a few things, but they are more to prepare slightly older children for their siblings, like 3yrs and older. (cross posted to a few tribes)

Many thanks!

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

Birth Ecology Tribe

2007-01-23T00:21:19Z

Hi there!

You are invited to join the new Birth Ecology Tribe at http://tribes.tribe.net/birthecology - it's a satellite discussion tribe for the Birth Ecology Project at www.birthecology.org

Be well, Kara

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

homebirth of triplets

2007-01-22T11:22:42Z

Tuttle parents get surprise of triplets
Associated Press
Published Wednesday, January 17, 2007

TUTTLE, N.D. – Lynette and Dusty Johnson expected to have another large baby, after their first two weighed more than 9 pounds. Instead of one large baby, they got three.

Triplets Marissa, Silas and Anna were born Nov. 14. A community benefit was held last Sunday to help with medical costs and living expenses.

“It touches our hearts that (our neighbors) put other people’s needs ahead of theirs,” Dusty Johnson said.

The Johnsons’ oldest child, Christopher, now 3, weighed more than 9 pounds at birth. His 1-year-old sister, Abigail, weighed 10 pounds, their mother said.

Lynette gave birth to the triplets at home, and her midwife quickly prepared for a multiple birth after Marissa, the first of the three, was born and she realized more babies were on the way.

The 2-month-old Johnson triplets: from left, Anna Marie, Silas Paul and Marissa Ann sleep on a couch in their home Sunday in Tuttle. Associated Press
The girls did well, but Silas was put on oxygen. When the canister ran out, he began to turn blue and Audrey Johnson, Dusty’s mother, called 911.

Silas was in the hospital for 17 days. He is home now and doing well, his parents said. He put on a few ounces in the hospital, and within the first week of being home after his hospital stay, he gained a pound, his father said.

Lynette Johnson said she was able to go into town

2½ days after the triplets were born, and it was reassuring to have her children at home.

“I wanted a quiet home birth,” she said.

While Silas was in the hospital, the girls gained more weight than he did at home, Dusty Johnson said. Now, the triplets all weigh more than

8 pounds.

About 100 people braved wind and cold to come to Sunday’s benefit supper. They got a chance to make donations, bid on a silent auction item and watch a computer presentation about Silas’ stay in the hospital.

Emergency workers Delila and Diana Larson and Denise Bickle, who went to the Johnson home to provide first aid after Silas was born, helped organize the family benefit potluck last Sunday.

Besides the Tuttle community, the Johnsons have heard from people in Harvey, McClusky and other communities in the state.

Some have donated clothes, diapers and other items for the babies. Sometimes, the Johnsons say, they get a box and they don’t even know the sender.

posted in Home Birth - 8 replies

Unassisted childbirth tribe...and then some

2007-01-18T19:27:10Z

I have enjoyed the thread discussing unassisted childbirth. I was surprised to see that there was not a tribe for UC. After the previous post on UC, I see there are those who have UCed or were interested in UCing. So I have created a tribe for UC, as well as for those who believe in the free choice of UC (but have not done so). It is also a tribe for those who choose to go different routes in mothering practices. It is similar to this tribe, but yet a bit different as well.

My purpose in posting this is for those who want a little more room to talk about their birth choices...specifically UC. I understand that some people on this tribe do not believe in UCing and I respect their point of view.

You can access the tribe at:
http://tribes.tribe.net/freethought

posted in Home Birth - 0 replies

how does one afford a home birth?

2007-01-14T14:34:06Z

I am on medicad which does not pay for home births.. my partner and I survive on one income so we have no extra money.. I feel like even if I wanted a home birth I would have to be in a different income bracket.. Are home births reserved for the wealthy and insured?

posted in Home Birth - 23 replies