The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued new growth charts that use breastfed babies as the norm rather than formula-fed babies as was the case for the old charts. Because breastfed babies are leaner than formula-fed babies, for many years some breastfeeding mothers have doubted their ability to successfully breastfeed based on their babies' "insufficent growth" according to the old charts. Rather than rehash what others have written (professional journalists at that, no doubt doing the subject more justice than I could), I'll just pass along some good links.
Mothers Got Wrong Advice for 40 Years - out of Britain, but pertaining to the same charts
Read about the new charts - from WHO
Get the new charts - also from WHO
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Playing Catch-up
So it turns out that this blog is one of those ideas that I really, really love then tends to get overlooked for long periods of time. As a result I have quite the backlog of posts on the brain.
First I'd like to give a little review of my experience of this year's DONA International conference. This was all the way back in July (did I mention I'm behind?). The conference was in Denver this year, meaning a relatively short drive (yea!), but through the Tech Center (ugh!), and I was abloe to visit with many other Colorado doulas who I haven't seen in a long time. Here are the highlights:
* The first of my two favorite presentations was on the subject of baby-led latching, given by Christina Smillie, MD, FAAP, IBCLC, FABM. Dr. Smillie's presentation focused on the newborn baby's ability to find and latch onto the breast, requiring only skin-to-skin contact with mom and some physical support as the baby manuvers, on its own, into the ideal breastfeeding position. This is in stark contrast to the current approach, even practiced by most postpartum nurses and lactation consultants, in which the baby is put into a breastfeeding position and brought onto the breast, sometimes rather forcefully, by the caregiver. I absolutely must contact her to see if I can get files of the video she shared of babies self-latching and am most excited to incorporate these principles into my breastfeeding classes and doula work.
* My other favorite presentation came as a total surprise as it was on the subject of co-sleeping. I thought I was plenty current on the subject, with a good understanding of the "Rules of Safe Co-Sleeping". Certainly these guidelines do, in fact, exist and when taken into account, allow for very safe sleeping arrangements of babies in close contact with their mothers. The speaker was Dr. James McKenna, and in addition to his sarcasm-infused humor (my kind of guy), he did an amazing job defining exactly why babies are less prone to SIDS when sleeping in the same room as their mother and what we can take from the newest American Association of Pediatrics statement on co-sleeping. He also showed great video of how moms are very in-tune with and responsive to their babies while co-sleeping.
* I also had great fun helping staff a booth with Sheri Menelli. Sheri is a former hypnotherapist and Hypnobirthing& #0153; instructor, author of Journey Into Motherhood: Inspirational Stories of Natural Birth, and now birthing business expert. She has helped me hone my understanding of marketing and I look forward to great results as I continue to implement her ideas. (And her book is on my pregnancy "must-read" list - I loan it to all my doula clients.)
First I'd like to give a little review of my experience of this year's DONA International conference. This was all the way back in July (did I mention I'm behind?). The conference was in Denver this year, meaning a relatively short drive (yea!), but through the Tech Center (ugh!), and I was abloe to visit with many other Colorado doulas who I haven't seen in a long time. Here are the highlights:
* The first of my two favorite presentations was on the subject of baby-led latching, given by Christina Smillie, MD, FAAP, IBCLC, FABM. Dr. Smillie's presentation focused on the newborn baby's ability to find and latch onto the breast, requiring only skin-to-skin contact with mom and some physical support as the baby manuvers, on its own, into the ideal breastfeeding position. This is in stark contrast to the current approach, even practiced by most postpartum nurses and lactation consultants, in which the baby is put into a breastfeeding position and brought onto the breast, sometimes rather forcefully, by the caregiver. I absolutely must contact her to see if I can get files of the video she shared of babies self-latching and am most excited to incorporate these principles into my breastfeeding classes and doula work.
* My other favorite presentation came as a total surprise as it was on the subject of co-sleeping. I thought I was plenty current on the subject, with a good understanding of the "Rules of Safe Co-Sleeping". Certainly these guidelines do, in fact, exist and when taken into account, allow for very safe sleeping arrangements of babies in close contact with their mothers. The speaker was Dr. James McKenna, and in addition to his sarcasm-infused humor (my kind of guy), he did an amazing job defining exactly why babies are less prone to SIDS when sleeping in the same room as their mother and what we can take from the newest American Association of Pediatrics statement on co-sleeping. He also showed great video of how moms are very in-tune with and responsive to their babies while co-sleeping.
* I also had great fun helping staff a booth with Sheri Menelli. Sheri is a former hypnotherapist and Hypnobirthing& #0153; instructor, author of Journey Into Motherhood: Inspirational Stories of Natural Birth, and now birthing business expert. She has helped me hone my understanding of marketing and I look forward to great results as I continue to implement her ideas. (And her book is on my pregnancy "must-read" list - I loan it to all my doula clients.)
Monday, May 08, 2006
Midwives Day/Doula Month Picnic
We all had such a wonderful time at the first annual Midwives Day/Doula Month picnic last Saturday. The weather finally cleared after an unusual pattern of rain lasting several days, leaving the ground moist but suitable for sitting. A little sun was all it took and I would guess around 50 people turned out to celebrate, including local doulas, midwives and client families. Can't wait to do it again next year!
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
Neonatal Resuscitation With Karen Strange
Today I attended a fabulous training with Karen Strange, retired certified midwife. She's becoming quite renowned within the midwifery community for teaching neonatal resuscitation as it applies to homebirth. I have heard rave reviews from many local midwives and wondered what could be so fantastic about what I thought was basically a CPR class for neonates. Karen's class is so much more! I was rivited by the detailed description of the physiologic transition that takes place as a baby is born and takes its first breaths. Karen is so in tune with the experience of the baby during transition and how birth attendants can help babies process a traumatic birth or a resuscitation. I learned so much that will help me even when working "just" as a doula that I would absolutely recommend Karen to any birth worker, even those who are not required to certify in this area. Fantastic!
Those of us in Colorado are very lucky as Karen has just moved to the Boulder area. However, she also travels frequently to other states to teach this class and is always looking for people to sponsor one of her trainings. You can contact her directly for more information at: karenmidwife@yahoo.com.
Those of us in Colorado are very lucky as Karen has just moved to the Boulder area. However, she also travels frequently to other states to teach this class and is always looking for people to sponsor one of her trainings. You can contact her directly for more information at: karenmidwife@yahoo.com.
Sunday, February 05, 2006
Beyond "Healthy Mom, Healthy Baby"
There is a sort of game doulas sometimes play with clients as they work to discover the client's plan for their birth. The doula prepares index cards listing various birthing preferences and outcomes and the clients select several from the stack that are most important to them. Always amongst their selections is a card that says, "Healthy mom, healthy baby". And if the clients are asked to give up their cards one by one, with discussion along the way of choices, circumstances, and alternatives, when there is only one card left, it will be that card.
This is a position I see frequently among doctors, doulas, and mothers alike - a healthy outcome is the only thing that matters, and anything that must be sacrificed along the way has been given up for a worthy cause, the only cause. But what about those who do it all "right", perhaps give up their birth dreams for the sake of the cause, only to have a sick baby or worse, or a sick mother or worse, what is left? Surely something must remain. There must be a goal beyond the external that can be achieved no matter the outcome. True partnership with our partners, reliance on faith, life without fear, or living each moment to its fullest are all choices that are available to us and will always remain.
This is a position I see frequently among doctors, doulas, and mothers alike - a healthy outcome is the only thing that matters, and anything that must be sacrificed along the way has been given up for a worthy cause, the only cause. But what about those who do it all "right", perhaps give up their birth dreams for the sake of the cause, only to have a sick baby or worse, or a sick mother or worse, what is left? Surely something must remain. There must be a goal beyond the external that can be achieved no matter the outcome. True partnership with our partners, reliance on faith, life without fear, or living each moment to its fullest are all choices that are available to us and will always remain.
Tuesday, January 17, 2006
A day late and a birth short
For the first time ever as a doula, I missed a birth! To make a long story short, both the mother and I were lulled into believing she was not a far along as she was, and 20 minutes after I received a call to come because her water broke, their new baby girl was unexpectedly born at home into her father's hands.
While not technically my fault, as I had conferred with the mother frequently only to jointly decide that it would likely still be awhile, I feel terrible that I was not there for them when the baby arrived. I think all doulas look back on the births they attend and wonder what they may have done better or differently, and this is no exception. "I should have known she was getting close. If only I had left earlier. I should have... If only..."
My own frustration aside, I am just thrilled about their birth. I believe this was a wonderful healing experience for the mother after her difficult first birth, and the dad is rightfully proud of himself and has a great story to tell the guys at work. And of course their baby girl is their greatest reward.
While not technically my fault, as I had conferred with the mother frequently only to jointly decide that it would likely still be awhile, I feel terrible that I was not there for them when the baby arrived. I think all doulas look back on the births they attend and wonder what they may have done better or differently, and this is no exception. "I should have known she was getting close. If only I had left earlier. I should have... If only..."
My own frustration aside, I am just thrilled about their birth. I believe this was a wonderful healing experience for the mother after her difficult first birth, and the dad is rightfully proud of himself and has a great story to tell the guys at work. And of course their baby girl is their greatest reward.
Friday, January 06, 2006
The Birth Plan "Jinx"
I participate as a online helper on the Hypnobabies yahoo group, and yesterday one of the members reported hearing the following as part of her hospital tour:
"...birth plans are jinxed here so think twice about bringing one."
Sadly, this a common perception among some hospital staff. In my opinion, the notion that "women who have birth plans don't get what they want" is a sort of half-truth that can be accounted for by several factors:
1. The majority of women who have birth plans want less- or non-interventive births. One only needs to look at hospital intervention rates to see that unplanned interventions are overwhelmingly the result of modern maternity care, not the presence or absence of a birth plan.
2. The beliefs of the nurses have a tremendous effect on the outcomes of births they attend, which can lead to a self-fulfilling prophecy of sorts if the nurse believes that "birth plans never work out". I think this belief also reflects the fact that hospitals are accustomed to seeing highly compliant patients who don't bring a list of requests with them upon admission.
3. In a small number of cases I do see women who's birth plans are a reflection of their tremendous need to control a birth environment that they perceive to be hostile. In this case, fear can indeed derail a birth and ideally she would choose another birth setting or care provider.
All of that said, all of my doula client prepare birth plans and the vast majority go on to have unmedicated births. In fact, after my first Hypnobabies birth, the postpartum nurse was wheeling my client to her new room and when she saw the chart said, "Most women who have a birth plan end up with a c-section." I kindly pointed out that my client got everything on her plan, just as she wanted. So don't be deterred from making your wishes known!
"...birth plans are jinxed here so think twice about bringing one."
Sadly, this a common perception among some hospital staff. In my opinion, the notion that "women who have birth plans don't get what they want" is a sort of half-truth that can be accounted for by several factors:
1. The majority of women who have birth plans want less- or non-interventive births. One only needs to look at hospital intervention rates to see that unplanned interventions are overwhelmingly the result of modern maternity care, not the presence or absence of a birth plan.
2. The beliefs of the nurses have a tremendous effect on the outcomes of births they attend, which can lead to a self-fulfilling prophecy of sorts if the nurse believes that "birth plans never work out". I think this belief also reflects the fact that hospitals are accustomed to seeing highly compliant patients who don't bring a list of requests with them upon admission.
3. In a small number of cases I do see women who's birth plans are a reflection of their tremendous need to control a birth environment that they perceive to be hostile. In this case, fear can indeed derail a birth and ideally she would choose another birth setting or care provider.
All of that said, all of my doula client prepare birth plans and the vast majority go on to have unmedicated births. In fact, after my first Hypnobabies birth, the postpartum nurse was wheeling my client to her new room and when she saw the chart said, "Most women who have a birth plan end up with a c-section." I kindly pointed out that my client got everything on her plan, just as she wanted. So don't be deterred from making your wishes known!
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