Guest Post: American Childbirth Culture

I am pleased to have a guest post today from blogger and activist, Anna Guthrie. (I am accepting guest posts for this blog while I'm on maternity leave--feel free to email me with your ideas!)

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American Childbirth Culture

A couple of months ago, Molly posted some great thoughts about “why” all of this (childbirth/midwifery education) is so important, especially considering that so many people don’t seem to want to change the way things are. That’s the number one question I’ve pondered in all my years of “activism” for normal, natural, or “physiological” birth (as I’ve heard it called most recently).

The next most interesting question I’ve heard is one that has been asked me by many women: “What is so wrong with the [medically dominated] way I gave birth?” The first couple of times, it took me by surprise since I had never said that nor was meaning to be offensive at all in expressing my opinion. I also had no good answer-I’d think, what’s wrong with what’s considered “normal” childbirth in our country? Everything! Where should I start?! But, then I realized that these women were not just asking a question, they were on the defensive…immediately, without even hearing a word I said and they were the ones who had asked me. They had initiated the conversation about birth with a sincere desire to know what I had to say, but couldn’t get beyond their own births. That’s when it hit me…

This is all about our American childbirth culture-it goes deeper than all the statistics and conferences and symposiums. (Although I realize that those things are essential, and thank goodness there are so many people out there doing their part to create a change). I realized I’m interested in the psychological aspect of a woman’s relationship to birth, how the dynamics of our cultural history has shaped that, and how that can be changed.

The medical world that dominates childbirth in this country as well as the social and cultural environment we are born into teaches us from a young age to trust it without question. I just saw a billboard on the side of the freeway in Emeryville, CA (the first of many similar ones now being used by different hospitals). It features a picture of a happy, carefree woman, dressed in a flowing blouse, half-reclined in the grass so that her pregnant belly is obvious, and smiling at her little toddler on her lap. It reads, "Kaiser Permanente...DELIVERS". I couldn’t believe it-anyway, I thought MOTHERS delivered babies J-it’s almost as if they are purposely launching a counter-attack on any recent progress in childbirth education, natural birth, home birth, and midwifery! This is the hold the medical world has on our society. There is so much damage to undo here that it's hard to know where to start.

A woman’s birth is so personal to her and that’s one thing that drives many women to question and reject the status quo; but, it also works against those efforts. So many women give birth without ever hearing anything about this and they never have the opportunity to make a different choice. So that personal relationship to their birth is so sensitive-even more than they comprehend-that they don’t want to know what they are missing, or missed. So, we need to come full circle: instead of girls growing up within this false belief system of “medicalized” childbirth and then trying to shift their paradigm as adults, we need to work to change our culture from the ground up. Girls (and boys) should grow up understanding birth from the healthy perspective of natural, physiological birth being the ideal and medical intervention as merely the benefit of living in the 21st century and out of necessity or personal choice. So, that brings us back to the ultimate question, “why?”… So that the joy of childbirth can be fully experienced by everyone in our society because it is naturally woven into the fabric of our culture.

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Anna Guthrie is a mother of three, homemaker, artist, and childbirth education activist. http://americanchildbirthculture.blogspot.com/

Book Review: Survivor Moms

Book Review: Survivor Moms: Women’s Stories of Birthing, Mothering and Healing after Sexual Abuse
By Mickey Sperlich & Julia Seng
Motherbaby Press, 2008
ISBN 978-1-89-044641-3
245 pages, softcover
http://www.midwiferytoday.com

Reviewed by Molly Remer, MSW, CCCE
http://talkbirth.wordpress.com

Past sexual abuse is an unfortunately common experience for women. Anyone who works with women of childbearing age should be mindful and informed of the effects of an abuse history on the woman’s experience of pregnancy, birthing, and mothering. Indeed, I consider this awareness to be a fundamental professional responsibility. Enter Survivor Moms, published by Motherbaby Press. This book is an incredibly in-depth look at the experiences and need of survivors of sexual abuse during the childbearing year.

One of the best and most unique features of the book is the “tab” format used for much of the clinical, research-based, or fact-based content in the book. Rather than lengthy chapters reviewing research and analyzing the phenomenon, textboxes containing quick facts and reference material are printed in the margins of many of the pages. The bulk of the narrative information in the main body of the text is then in the voices of mothers themselves, interspersed with commentary by the authors linking concepts, explaining ideas, and clarifying essentials. This is a powerful format that makes information readily and quickly available for reference as well as making the overall book very readable and approachable.

As someone with no personal abuse history who is currently pregnant, I did find the book to be a very emotionally difficult, intense, and almost overwhelming read at times. This is not a criticism in any way—sexual abuse is not a light or cheerful topic and it can be one that many people prefer to avoid. This is all the more reason for birth professionals to make a specific effort to be educated and informed.

Written both for mothers themselves and for the professionals who work with them, Survivor Moms is an essential part of any birth professional’s library. As noted in the book’s introduction, “We need to understand the impact of childhood abuse on birthing and mothering deeply, from hearing women’s stories. We also need to understand it broadly—from looking at the impact on samples and populations, on the body and on the culture.” Survivor Moms offers an accessible way of hearing those critically important stories and developing the necessary understanding to care compassionately for birthing women.

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Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes.

Resources from Other Organizations

I have connections with a lot of wonderful organizations. While I've thought recently that perhaps I need to "throw my hat in" with one organization only (i.e. focus my efforts/energy), I also enjoy being a part of, and supporting, multiple organizations. I feel like each has something unique and valuable to offer and I have no problems networking with and being a member of--for example--almost all of the major childbirth education organizations, as well as multiple doula organizations, and others as well. I don't think it makes sense to be "exclusive" or competitive with each other--all of them wish to improve maternity care and birth choices for women and I like to help as much as I can! I also just love collecting information and resources and so it is delightful to be on all these e-newsletter mailing lists and so forth. Among many, here are a couple of resources that caught my eye this week:

1. Choices in Childbirth has a new service--a provider network (free for consumers to search and use, fee for professionals to list services). "Choices in Childbirth is an excellent tool for both mothers and mother-friendly care providers. We have hundreds of listings of midwives, doulas, acupuncturists, and more--everything a mother could need to create a mother-friendly birth experience that's right for her. For providers, it's a great way to advertise their services and promote the many options available to expectant parents." Speaking of Choices in Childbirth, one of my most favorite resources in the world to share with with parents in my birth classes is the Guide to a Healthy Birth.

2. The Family Violence Prevention Fund is hosting a free webinar called Building Health Care Leadership: A Systems Advocacy Approach to Addressing Domestic Violence in the Health Care System, July 29, 2010, 11am-12pm PDT. Considering that many women experience domestic violence for the first time during pregnancy and that pregnancy is the most common reason for women to be in the medical care system, this is a quite relevant webinar topic for maternity care activists!

3. One of my very favorite "basic" pregnancy and childbirth books, Pregnancy, Childbirth, and the Newborn by Penny Simkin is coming out in a new edition this month. I'm so excited! New with this edition is a really helpful looking companion website.

Enjoy!
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Molly
CfM Blogger

Medical Control as Acceptable

Still going through my saved-things-to-blog-about and want to share these thoughts from the book Brought to Bed: Childbearing in America 1750-1950 in the epilogue:

Many of birthing women's successes in increasing their powers over childbirth procedures have depended upon women reeducating themselves about childbirth. The enormous proliferation in recent decades of popular literature about giving birth, much of which advocates decreasing routine medical interventions, is evidence of women's attempts to reclaim knowledge previously more commonly held within women's world. When birth moved to the hospital and became dominated by technical interventions, women lost their understanding and familiarity with the processes of labor and delivery. Many women, realizing that their lack of knowledge distances them from their own bodies, are trying tor recover some of that lost knowledge through self-education in normal functions...

In addition to the women who completely challenge medical authority and those who want to find ways to work in cooperation with it, there is a third group of American women today who find medical control of childbirth as practiced in most hospitals perfectly acceptable. They find the prospect of delivering babies frightening or uninteresting, and they wish to experience as little of it as possible. They want to be assured of a healthy outcome, but they do not feel the need to participate actively in bringing it about. They, like many women of the 1920's and 1930's, eagerly turn over their decision-making power to their doctors, who, in turn, readily accept it. The women hope that medicine can provide a streamlined and easy experience and that they will not have to suffer too much either in the process of labor and delivery or in its aftermath. Many women enter the hospital and emerge from it with their babies without having given the experience itself very much thought. (emphasis mine)

This third group (as discussed in the second paragraph) is a conundrum to me and I think it is the main reason why the birth culture in the U.S. ISN'T changing rapidly in response to evidence-based information, great books, informative publications and websites, helpful doulas, awesome childbirth classes, etc. How do you reach women who just don't care? And, why as advocates, do we care if they don't? :( And, is it any of our business if a large subset of the population finds medical control of birth perfectly acceptable and even desirable?

I'd like to explore why I think it is our business in a later post, but first I have to clarify why exactly that is...

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Molly
CfM Blogger

Continuing Education Resources for Birth Professionals

I love how the internet brings such a wide variety of wonderful educational resources right to our fingertips! Earlier this week I posted a link on the CfM Facebook page to some great presentation downloads from the 2010 CIMS Forum. Then, check out all these free podcasts from MIDIRS (Midwives Information Resource Services). Site registration is required to listen to the podcasts.

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Molly
CfM Blogger

Women's (Birth) History Month

Birth Activist is having a blog carnival in honor of Women's History Month this month. The theme is about women in history who have changed pregnancy and birth. I immediately knew that Ina May Gaskin's name would probably appear in every post writing about this theme (go Ina May!). So, that led me to think about the other "classic" authors who have had a profound influence on my own ideas about birth. This thought, coupled with the fact that for some time I've wanted to write a post about "older birth books" that are still excellent reads today, has brought me to this moment: a list of my favorite "old" birth books and the lovely women who wrote them. When I first started out in birthwork, I wanted to read "new" stuff--stuff that was "up to date" and "current." After I read almost all of the "new" books, I started to cast my eye around for more and guess what I discovered? No surprise to many of you, but many of those "out of date" books with the retro-looking covers are still just as good and just as relevant as they were 20-30 years ago. Since medical information and science/evidence changes fairly rapidly and a pregnancy and childbirth 101 type book from 30 years IS more often than not completely inappropriate today, I had made the mistake of thinking ALL "old" birth books would be similarly irrelevant. Instead, many have a power and passion that is not easy to come by in any decade and that rouses the activism spirit or stirs the heart or challenges the psyche just as effectively today. Here are some of my recommendations (and of course, Spiritual Midwifery is a good choice too, I just want to add some less usual recommendations!):

• Transformation through Birth by Claudia Panuthos (also known for writing another great resource: Ended Beginnings: Healing Childbearing Losses). Written in 1984, this book "goes beyond" the scope of traditional birth books and really gets into some deep topics and insightful ideas.
• Special Delivery by Rahima Baldwin (another good, less well-known one from her is Pregnant Feelings). Revised in 1986, this book is one of my favorite homebirth resource books. Though some segments are in fact, "outdated," I find this to be one of the very best ("old" or new!) resource books for women planning to give birth at home.
• Open Season by Nancy Wainer (Cohen) in 1991 (how can 1991 be called "old"? Well, it was nearly 20 years ago and considering that many women giving birth today were born only a couple years prior to that, it IS old!). Nancy has a lot of FIRE and I love it. Some people have been known to call her "angry" or "bitter." I call her...amazing. Her writing lights you up and calls you to action. She has incredible passion, fire, brightness, drive, and enthusiasm. Recently one of her newer articles in Midwifery Today has been making the Facebook rounds: VBAC and Choice.
• Birth Book by Raven Lang (available in a limited edition from Citizens for Midwifery). This is the original counterculture birth book written in 1972 at the launch of what would become the modern movement to return birth to the hands of women.
• Childbirth with Insight written in 1983 by Elizabeth Noble, is another one of the birth books that I say "goes beyond." As a childbirth education, I especially benefitted from her exploration of some of the failings of traditional approaches to childbirth education.
• Lots of older books from Sheila Kitzinger are very good also. I particularly enjoy The Experience of Childbirth and Giving Birth: How it Really Feels.
• My last recommendation for today is Mothering the New Mother by Sally Placksin (revised in 2000, which again sounds fairly recent, but in reality is ten years ago--how is that possible?). It is classic must-read for doulas as well as any other birth companions. It is wonderful and I wish I would have read it before my own first child was born.
  

There are many more excellent books out there, both modern and "historical," but I'll leave you with these treasures for now. I'm grateful for each of these birth activists whose words and spirits helped deepen and refine my own passion for birth.

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Molly
CfM Blogger

Book Review: L’Mazeltov: Your Personal Guide to Jewish Childbirth Education

L’Mazeltov: Your Personal Guide to Jewish Childbirth Education
By Pamela Nadav
L’Mazeltov, Inc. 2008
Softcover, 248 pages, $18.00
ISBN: 978-097786610-6
www.lmazeltov.org

Reviewed by Molly Remer, MSW, ICCE
http://talkbirth.wordpress.com

The title of the new Jewish childbirth education book L’Mazeltov combines “two important Jewish symbolic expressions—L’Chaim (To Life) and Mazel Tov (Good Fortune).” The first half of the book consists of basic childbirth education and preparation. The second half is about "Jewish Life Cycle Education." The strength of this book is the fusion of the two.

The childbirth education section was very conventional and conservative. I was surprised by some of the advice offered such as, “Always follow your doctor’s advice in all matters related to your pregnancy, labor and delivery” and in the section about anesthesia, “All of these modern technologies are designed to assist you in having the best possible birthing experience, and are considered to be relatively safe.” Personally, I feel like an important piece of childbirth education is encouraging pregnant couples to be informed birth consumers. There was no element of this perspective within L’Mazeltov.

The book includes some population-specific pregnancy information such as a short section on Jewish genetic diseases and testing.

There is a nice recipe section at the end of L’Mazeltov. I was inspired to make some delicious Challah bread for my family! There is no index, resource list, or glossary of terms (as a non-Jewish reader, many words were unfamiliar to me—the author does a good job defining many within the body of the text, however).

Despite my wish for a more creative and evidence-based approach to the birth education portion, this book is a one-of-a-kind contribution to birth literature, covering both the “oys and joys” of preparing for parenthood. What a resource for Jewish couples expecting their first baby! “There is such a special sweetness in being able to participate in creation.”

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Disclosure: I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes.

Review first published in The CAPPA Quarterly, January 2010.

Maternity Care Allegory

Have I mentioned recently that I love Childbirth Connection? Well, I do! What a wonderful organization offering so many helpful maternity care resources.

I recently wrote a long post on my other blog about "choices," listening to other women's stories, and thinking about how we tell stories of our own. As synchronicity would have it, one of my Facebook birth advocate friends shared a link this week from the current CIMS Childbirth Forum going on in Texas. The link was to a maternity care allegory by Childbirth Connection illustrating differences between current and envisioned maternity care systems. I thought the allegory was a very good illustration of an effective use of story--the stories spoke for themselves, no need to identify some choices as "better" or "worse," right or wrong.

Then, in another synchronous moment, I saw this Superbowl ad clip for the movie The Back-Up Plan. I do not have TV, so I am mercifully spared most advertising, but I conicidentally came across the clip AS I was writing this post--what a dramatic example of another kind of story and message about birth :(

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Molly
CfM Blogger

Book Review: Birth Day

Book Review: Birth Day: A Pediatrician Explores the Science, the History, and the Wonder of Childbirth
By Mark Sloan, M.D.
Ballantine Books, 2009
ISBN 978-0-345-50286-5
370 pages, hardcover, $25

Reviewed by Molly Remer, MSW, ICCE
http://talkbirth.wordpress.com

Written in a fast-paced journalistic rather than academic style, Birth Day is a biological, historical, and sociocultural look at birth in our species, highlighting the experiences and skills of the fetus and newborn infant. The focus of Birth Day is on childbirth, but as a pediatrician, the emphasis of the journey in this book is on the baby and its development, skills, and remarkable adaptations to the womb and to life on earth. The book contains frequent references to evolution, which is not a concern to me, but may be to other readers.

The author’s personal experiences and observations are interwoven skillfully throughout the book lending an engaging “human” component—I loved his wry and occasionally self-deprecating honesty and realistic sharing. We read about the births of both of his children (one a very long labor eventually with an epidural and the second a scheduled cesarean due to placenta previa), his experiences as a medical student, and his observations as a hospital and clinic pediatrician. Dr. Sloan has been present at over 3000 births as a hospital pediatrician and 20 births as the baby “catcher” (medical school OB rotation). There is no real mention of homebirth, but occasional, supportive references to CNMs and to doulas.

The author has a healthy respect for the process of birth, noting in his conclusion that “…the most striking thing to me after all these years is how often such a complicated process goes right.” As a breastfeeding counselor, an element that I loved in this book was the author’s complete acceptance and integration of the importance and normalcy of the birth-breastfeeding continuum as well as the assumption of breastfeeding present throughout (bottles and formula do not make a single appearance throughout the 370 pages). This presentation was both very refreshing and completely appropriate.

The content of Birth Day was reminiscent of Birth by Tina Cassidy, with the primary difference being the emphasis on the infant’s experiences. There were occasional instances of questionable data such as, “An unattended breech birth, for example, is nearly always fatal to mother and child.” (?!)

Fast paced and often very funny, the author of Birth Day has a knack for explaining complicated concepts in simple terms and using effective analogies. I learned some new facts about the history of birth and was pretty captivated by the whole ride.

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Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes.

Book Review: Dance of the Womb

Book Review: Dance of the Womb: The Essential Guide to Belly Dance for Pregnancy and Birth

By Maha Al Musa, 2008
ISBN 978-0-646-48705-2
260 page hardcover book, $49.95 (AUS)
http://www.bellydanceforbirth.com

Reviewed by Molly Remer, MSW, ICCE, http://talkbirth.wordpress.com

Some books simply feel good to hold in your hands. Dance of the Womb is one such book: it is beautiful, both in content and appearance. While priced a little higher than some birth books, I cannot emphasize enough what a high quality book it is—-it is not a traditional trade paperback, it is of textbook quality and size. Hardbound with a lovely cover and endpapers, Dance of the Womb is packed with full color, detailed, step-by-step instructional photographs leading the reader through a “belly dance for birth” journey.

Dance of the Womb is divided into several segments. The first section summarizes the benefits of belly dance and explores the physiology of birth. The next section walks the reader through a series of gentle warm-up exercises while the following sections progress through a variety of different specific belly dance movements. Nearing the conclusion of the text is a segment about labor movements with positions. Each section of the book is lavishly illustrated with very clear, easy to follow, step-by-step photographs.

The author’s own journey through pregnancy, birth, and mothering is skillfully interwoven throughout the text as well as her own feminine passage into understanding herself as a complete woman. Interspersed with the photographs and belly dance instructions, is the exploration of the author’s pregnancy and birth experiences, her relationship with her own mother and her parents’ culture. The book contains her personal birth stories as well as perspectives on belly dance for birth from three midwives.

The author, Maha Al Musa lives in Australia. Her interest in Middle Eastern Dance was sparked by her Palestinian/Lebanese roots and birthplace as well as her pilgrimage to explore her heritage and reconnect with her long-separated mother. Maha has also developed a Dance of the Womb step-by-step instructional belly dancing DVD (sold separately, review to follow) that includes a video of her own homebirth journey with her third child. She is also developing a one day foundation course in “bellydancebirth” for birth professionals with a plan to go international in 2011.

Dance of the Womb is a great introduction to not just the basic physical elements of prenatal belly dance, but also to the spiritual aspects of giving birth and life as a woman. It is written with an intimate tone that makes the reader feel as if the author has reached out across the miles to form a direct, personal connection. This book feels like a rich treasure to hold and is a gentle, nurturing, encouraging, and enriching voyage for pregnant women or the people who serve them.

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Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes.

Laboring Under an Illusion update

In October, I posted my review of the film Laboring Under an Illusion by filmmaker and anthropologist Vicki Elson. I really enjoyed this film and my birth class students love it too--it is one of the most frequently checked out videos from my lending library and they all say the same things after watching it, "it was funny" and "it really brought home some good points." Humor should not be underestimated as an important teaching tool. It can really help important messages sink in and "stick" in a way that other mediums may not. I'm a fan!

Anyway, I wanted to post that I'd received an update from the filmmaker and to increase access she's lowered the price. So now, $39.95 is for ANY use (except broadcast): personal, public screening, classroom, etc. And, an order of 5 or more DVD's is $19.95 each.

Check it out here!

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Molly
CfM Blogger

Grassroots Network: Great deal on Childbirth Connection's Birth Atlas and more

Dear Friends,

I am passing along a notice from Childbirth Connection (see below) for your benefit!

Sincerely,
Susan Hodges, "gatekeeper"

Note from Molly: This is a great deal! I just called and ordered my package of materials. Make sure to dial 7 as the extension to get to the right person to place the order :)
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For years, Childbirth Connection's publications have been a trusted source for childbirth educators, health professionals, women and their families. However, effective immediately, Childbirth Connection is discontinuing publication of The Birth Atlas and The Growing Uterus Charts.

To help clear out our existing inventory, we are offering a package deal to our childbirth advocacy colleagues and their members:

* The Birth Atlas: A Childbirth Connection international classic since 1940, this childbirth education resource contains life-size, high-quality, classic photographic reproductions of Robert Latou Dickinson, MD, and Abram Belskie's famous sculptures with explanations of the baby's development.

* Growing Uterus Seven Chart Set and Guide: A must for educators, this full color set of poster-sized charts beautifully illustrates the stages of pregnancy.

* The Rights of Childbearing Women: Brochures enumerating a 20-point list of rights of childbearing women, most of which are legal rights that women are entitled to. These rights are supported by the best research and are based on the principles of consideration and respect for every woman under all circumstances.

The Birth Atlas + The Growing Uterus Charts + 100 copies of The Rights of Childbearing Women brochure, a $150 value, packaged together for $50, including shipping within the United States.

Clearance orders may be placed by faxing in the attached order form to 212-777-9320, by phone (212-777-5000), or email (info@childbirthconnection.org). If ordering by phone or email, please
include the following promotion code: CC2009.

We sincerely appreciate your continued business and look forward to hearing from you soon!


Jess Larsen
Executive Assistant
Childbirth Connection
281 Park Avenue South, 5th Floor
New York, NY 10010
T 212-777-5000 x7, F 212-777-9320
larsen@childbirthconnection.org
www.childbirthconnection.org
Please join our Maternity Quality Matters Campaign! Add your name to our
list of supporters:
www.childbirthconnection.org/joinmaternityqualitymatters

Effectiveness of Childbirth Education

A recent study has been picked up by the media as proving that childbirth education "doesn't work" and this has been popping up in my Google Alerts all week. The BJOG study compared two groups of women--one group had 8 hours of childbirth classes that also included information about natural childbirth. The other group had classes that did not include natural childbirth information. The epidural rates for the two groups were the same and the couples' satisfaction levels with their births was also the same. Several birth bloggers have addressed the study in depth. The Science and Sensibility blog in a post titled Do Breathing Exercises Work? and The Family Way Publications in Natural Childbirth Class Not Useful?

What stood out to me in the article was the emphasis on breathing techniques. There is a lot more to childbirth education than "the breathing" and if that is all the “natural birth” classes had to offer, no wonder the results were what they were! As was noted in one of the blog cited above, it is also significant that the women were randomly assigned to either group, indicating that they did not have a strong interest in natural birth (if they did, why risk being assigned to the non-natural birth classes!), so that perhaps the personal investment element was missing. A woman has to want to experience natural childbirth in order to do so!

Another birth educator commenting on The Family Way's blog post, made an excellent observation that I think really got to the true heart of the issue. She said, " Until childbirth educators emphasize this key component of CONGRUENCY in their classes women will continue to seek 'care' from professionals and institutions incompatible with their professed desire for natural birth. (emphasis mine) All this study proved to my mind it that both types of classes offered were ineffectual in promoting the with-women model of care in labor and birth... Both types of classes failed to address the real crux of the matter…are you receiving care from a provider/institution compatible with the kind of birth you want?" I explain to people in my classes that in the hospital women’s coping mechanisms are often stripped away from them-–sometimes by force, sometimes by misinformation, sometimes by excuses. I tell them over and over again to “ask questions before their chile is roasted” (Pam England). People tell me they can fight for what they want or that their husbands are good at “standing up for me” and I remind them that birth is not a time in a woman’s life when she should have to fight for anything! The time to get good care is NOW, not while "fighting" during labor and not during the "next birth" either (see more thoughts about "the next birth" here).

I recently finished reading the very firey and passionate 1990's manifesto on VBAC, Open Season. The author bluntly addresses the issue of transparency in maternity care and also the effectiveness of childbirth education in this quote: "If childbirth classes really 'worked,' more women would be having babies without interference. More women would be recognizing the complete naturalness of birth and would remain at home, delivering their infants with feelings of confidence and trust. More and more, midwives would be demanded. The names of those hospitals and doctors who treated women and babies with anything less than absolute respect would be public knowledge, and childbirth classes would be the first place these names would be discussed. 'You're seeing What's-His-Face? He's a pig! In my opinion, of course,' I tell people who come to my classes. I then proceed to give them the names of people who have used Pig-face. They can always ask Dr. P. for the names of people who have used him and been satisfied with their births, for balance."

Speaking of Open Season, another quote in it addressed the idea of being in the "same camp" or having "opponents." I found the perspective really useful for thinking about maternity care issues: “The moment you start thinking about other people as opponents it becomes impossible to find a solution. ‘There are no opponents in a disagreement; there are simply two [sides] facing a common problem. In other words, they are not in opposite camps, there are in the same camp. The real opponent is the problem.’” The Woman-to-Woman CBE blog mused on something similar recently in this post: Same Team...Same Team?

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Molly
CfM Blogger

International Birth Wisdom Week

As I mentioned a couple of days ago, beginning on May 9th, birth bloggers around the world will be acknowledging International Birth Wisdom Week. Read more about this cyber-event in the message below. And, of course, check back here for my Birth Wisdom post on the 9th!

Molly

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We are holding a cyber event next week. We would love all birth bloggers to join!

All you have to do is blog about birth wisdom whether it’s refuting an obstetrical myth or sharing a birth story of a woman who experienced spontaneous birth outside ‘textbook’ birth (i.e. a posterior birth, cesarean prevention, VBAC, twins, international birth voices are of great need, etc.). In your post link back to the independent childbirth blog post on birth wisdom (it is not yet on the site [but will be on May 9th]).

When you complete your post send us a link to it to view it for inclusion in the IC blog post. In addition, if you visit those posts that are listed on the IC blog post and leave comments on a couple that inspire you to comment we’ll send you a ‘button’ for your blog that you may wish to include on your blog.

Many of us have readers who follow our blogs but may not be aware of other blogs that also have great information to share. Together we are an awesome resource is what the IC birth wisdom cyber event is about. The birth community is global yet we, what we know, are/is all available wherever a mother resides.

If you are interested in joining the event please email us at births @ comcast dot net. Please feel free to forward this email to other birth groups.

Thank you in advance for sharing what you know and inspiring mothers in your neighborhood and “ours.”

Dale

http://independentchildbirth.wordpress.com

www.independentchildbirth.com

More about Fathers at Birth

I previously mentioned that I was looking forward to reading the new book Fathers at Birth by Rose St. John. Well, I finished reading it last week and it did not disappoint! This book is a valuable contribution to birth literature and I hope men, women, doulas, nurses, midwives, and birth educators all seek it out to read. Though it is specifically written to/addressed to men women with same-sex partners would likely find it has a lot to offer to them as well. I read it through the "lens" of a childbirth educator seeking to more fully engage the men in my classes. I found several good, practical ideas in this book that will help me reach out to men as well as just some general concepts and language that will enhance my ability to connect. So, though it is written for men at birth, it has a great deal to offer to anyone involved with supporting birthing women.

As I've developed as a birth educator, I find myself more and more interested in exploring the role of men during labor and the ways in which men can prepare for birth and for fatherhood and the things that educators can do to facilitate this process. I'm also interested in birth as a rite of passage for men as well as for women (see prior post). And, I'm also interested in the question, "do men belong at birth?" and, indeed, whether they want to be there--I've moved from feeling like all fathers-to-be should be at the births of their children, to recognizing that families have a variety of different circumstances and needs and that couples have different "personalities." Research has indicated that men take on one of three roles during labor the role of "coach" the role of "teammate" and the role of "witness." Most men take on the "witness" role--regardless of what their partners want/expect from them. Rose St. John's book offers two new roles--those of "warrior" and "mountain." These, to me, seem more empowering.

For a thought-provoking post about men in the birth place and whether or not they actually want to be there, check out this post: Men in the Labor Room: Do they want to be there.

Independent Childbirth also has a brief post about Men at Birth.

Another resource focused on men and fathers is Dads Adventure. I use their little magazine in my classes and find it useful to have something to hand out that is specifically written for men (and, in this case, addresses fatherhood).

In addition to the Birth Partner book I mentioned before, two other books specifically for men about birth are the older books Sharing Birth by Carl Jones and The Active Birth Partner's Handbook by Janet Balaskas.

I actually have a number of quotes marked to share from Fathers at Birth, but as this post is getting quite long already I'll save them for another time!

Molly Remer
CfM Blogger

All I Want for Christmas...

...is to the see the maternity care system in our country experience wide reform. I also want women everywhere to have the choice of a midwife-attended birth if they want it. And, I want women to have access to good quality information about their options and choices in birth. And, I want women, babies, and families to be treated with respect and tenderness in the birth environment, wherever and however the birth happens to be.

With regard to my first Christmas want, I wanted to share a link to the statement from Childbirth Connection about Health Care Reform Priorities for Maternity Care.

And, with regard to my second and third Christmas wants I would like to share links to some excellent blog posts at the Independent Childbirth blog. The first is Happy New Year ACOG and the other two are about How We Are Born Matters and The Home Birth Experience.

Finally, with regard to my final Christmas want, I want to share a link I received today to a segment on a local television station about homebirth and midwifery in Missouri. It was a two-part story. The news anchors do make a comment about needing collaborative practice with physicians and at the end about "if the situation was to become life-threatening..." but overall it is an extremely positive piece and a really moving one (I cried when the baby was born!). The first clip and transcript can be found here and the second here.

Happy Holidays!

Birth films + free e-book

Yesterday, I learned about an interesting new film called Home Delivery: The Adventure of Giving Birth at Home. I am also looking forward to watching an Australia film called The Big Stretch.

Speaking of films, Pregnant in America is now available to buy on DVD and so is Orgasmic Birth!

I was also excited to find out that Sherri Menelli's book Journey Into Motherhood: Inspirational Stories of Natural Birthis available now as a free e-book. I downloaded my copy right away and I'm looking forward to reading it. I learned about this offer from the Hypnobabies blog.

Speaking of Hypnobabies, they've recently started selling their home-study program on Amazon. You can also find their Hypno-Doula Workbook there as well as a Hypnosis for an Easy Pregnancy CD set.

Hypnobabies Interview

This morning, CfM President Susan Hodges was interviewed by Kerry Tuschhoff of Hypnobabies. The show will air on www.HealthyLife.net on Friday, July 25 at 9:00 a.m. Pacific time and Saturday, July 26 at 1:00 p.m. Pacific time. It is also archived for about 2 months starting a few days after the first air date.

I'm looking forward to listening to it and hope many people will tune in!

Hypnobabies also an interesting blog that I enjoy checking.