A Spectrum of Pregnancy, Birth & Parenting Services to Meet Your Needs

After working with San Luis Obispo families for over 20 years I am more strongly committed than ever to helping families find what feels right to them for pregnancy, birth and parenting. I have a broad perspective and a depth of knowledge which is grounded in the work I have done with families making a wide variety of choices. As a doula I have been blessed to be part of over 100 births. Working beside doctors and midwives I have witnessed inspiring births both in and out of the hospital. As a birth educator I have impacted the births of several hundred babies and through my work with the Birth & Baby Resource Network, La Leche League, and the International Cesarean Awareness Network I have touched the lives of countless families in our community and beyond.

I offer a variety of support/education options to match your unique needs. Our journey together may start at any point along the spectrum. Please feel free to mix and match and make the exact support and education package that meets your needs. All classes are offered both as group or private experiences with flexible schedules.


Before You are Pregnant

Private consultations over tea: learn about options & resources in our community or review and process a past birth and discuss possible effects on future births. We can meet in the privacy of your home or at a coffee shop.                              

 

Early in Your Pregnancy

Classes: learn how to nurture your body, your baby and your relationships in my Healthy Beginnings/Healthy Choices classes.

                                                        

Preparing for Your Birth

Classes: My small group classes held, in the privacy of a home, foster a sense of belonging as we eat, laugh, learn and share together this amazing adventure. My Heart, Mind & Body series empowers and inspires you to create the birth you want.

For each class group I create a private on-line community for extended sharing of ideas, inspiration, connection and support which continues until your baby is sleeping blissfully in your arms.

Labor Land Practice: My Birth Connection Date Nights are serene spaces where all learning is experiential through relaxation, guided imagery and touch. The focus is encouraging oxytocin, the “love hormone”, to flow between you, your partner and your baby, and to teach you how to move through labor land together. These “practice” sessions are ideal for experienced birthers, homebirthers, or as an expansion of more intellectual birth classes.

Private Classes in Your Home: Every family has different needs; bed resting moms, changing schedules, or simply a desire for privacy. I try to be as flexible as possible to let you create your unique education package. Let my Class Outline be your guide. I am happy to create a series just for you!



Doula Service: I am happy to join your birth team no matter where you are planning to birth; home, birth center or hospital. We start building a trust relationship with prenatal visits in your home. Through listening I learn what you need and want to feel confident about your coming birth. I facilitate thinking and dialogue between partners to help clarify and prioritize what is important to them and help craft a birth plan which reflects these values while being well received by your care provider and staff.

I am available via phone, email or Facebook to answer questions and lend support throughout the pregnancy.

                    Once labor begins. . .

 I will stay continuously by your side
 where ever you are laboring until. . .

your baby has arrived. . .

and is blissfully breastfeeding for the first time!

I will visit your home a few days after your birth to ensure breastfeeding is going well, check on your postpartum recovery, and help you process your experience with tears, talking and laughter. I will answer questions, clarify and enlighten you on issues you may not have understood. I want you to have a thorough grasp of what happened, why, and how necessary it was, to empower you for future births.

After Your Birth

Private consultations over tea: When women suffer after a difficult birth experience it is very helpful to share your story to a listening heart who is knowledgeable enough to review your birth, answer your questions, and help you move forward in your process. I can connect you to resources for your recovery and discuss things you will need to think about for future births.

Private Postpartum Visits: I believe new mamas need to rest and adjust to motherhood in the comfort of their home. I am happy to travel to you. The first days and weeks of parenthood many new families need some additional guidance. A little hands-on help from an experienced mother/doula can give a new mama just the boost of confidence she needs.

Welcome to the parenting community!

Classes: My Fourth Trimester Parenting Support group meets every Tuesday from 10:30-12. I provide this free to the community because I believe deeply that women need support during this important transition in their lives to grow fully into confident motherhood.




Support Group: I lead a La Leche League Mothers’ Meeting once a month in the South County which is free and open to all mothers for breastfeeding advice and support.

 

Loving Guidance Workshops: These periodic workshops cover my Five Steps to Creating a Healthy, Happy, Whole Family empowering parents to move through the normal ups and downs of parenthood, take control of their own learning, and make their own decisions on how they wish to parent.

Support Group: I created “Whole”istic Mamas and Papas to provide community for families choosing to parent from an alternative point of view; attachment parenting, co-sleeping, extended nursing, baby wearing, individual vaccination choices, homeschooling, etc. It is a safe space; both in our face-to-face play day meet ups and private on-line group for asking questions, gathering information, sharing and learning from each other.













Parenting is much more fun when we share and play with others!

Let's connect! I am happy to answer questions and get you started on just the right path for you.            Call: 805.459.8145
jenniferstoverdoula@gmail.com

Listening

All the time we are hearing that good communication is the key to relationships. For many of us this translates to if I can just find a way to tell you what I need you to hear you will grant me what I want. Or perhaps you think of it as speaking your truth and assume that the truth will set you free? What if the key to relationships wasn't in the speaking but in the listening?

Julie Nevison, founder of Aware Parents Aware Kids, recently gifted me with a slim little gem of a book called Listening Partnerships for Parents, by Patty Wipfler targeted at listening skills. I have always thought of myself as a good listener and over the years have actively worked on improving my skills. Recently I am finding that there is WAY more for me to learn and put into practice with those I love, clients I work with, and friendships that lighten my life.

Eons ago my husband and I took a class together taught by Steve and Cathy Brody, a psychologist and therapist husband and wife team. We learned the skill of mirroring what someone said. This was supposed to help them feel heard. Unfortunately we only learned the basic rote skill. In practice we simply fed back the other person's words before rushing forward with our own ideas, complaints, or needs. My husband rightly HATED it. I had to wait for more than twenty years to see the art of mirroring done so gracefully by Christi Silva as she facilitated La Leche League meetings. Not only did she mirror but she organized and sorted the random thoughts, feelings and ideas presented without ever interjecting her own ideas or making the speaker feel judged. She handed this back to the speaker as a gift. I listened. I heard you. Thank you for sharing.

Struggling as a parent and feeling I wished to strengthen my relationship with my son I read, "How to Talk So Your Kids Will Listen and  Listen So Your Kids Will Talk" by Faber and Mazlish. Oh ho! So if I wanted my son to talk I needed to STOP talking! Now there's a concept. I still have a hard time with this at times. Sitting and waiting rather than engaging with questions isn't easy for me. Also this was the first time I heard the idea that as the listener, especially as a parent, it isn't your role to give them solutions or fix things for the speaker. If you just wait attentively, supportively, your child will begin to think of their own solutions. Then you can help them "try their solutions on" to see if they feel right to them or have the chance of actually working.

A few years ago taking Tory Blue's NVC class (non-violent communication) again shifted my whole perception of listening. She opened my eyes to all the critical dialogue going on in my head about myself and the person I was listening to; all the ways I thought I would, could, or should "fix" their problem. I also became aware of the concept of unmet needs creating dis-ease commonly felt by us as anger, frustration, sadness, or tension while met needs create happiness, satisfaction and joy. Communication is simply a way of asking to get unmet needs met. Sometimes others are willing and can meet those needs. Sometimes they can't or do not wish to meet the need. Often because meeting your need is in direct conflict with one of THEIR needs. This isn't wrong or bad. It just is. We may have to meet our own need or seek that need being met by a different person or in a different way. And guess what? That's okay!

La Leche League training puts a lot of emphasis on listening skills. We are taught to help a mother observe, look for clues, and sort through her own situation. We give her pertinent information she may not have which could help her clarify what she desires to do. We express confidence in her and her own abilities to know what to do and to do what needs to be done.  We tell her whatever she decides we know it will be best for her and her family. Or perhaps we are expressing confidence in her baby's abilities to learn or conquer a struggle, tap into their innate wisdom and abilities, or the hard wiring of their genetic coding. In essence we are modeling the behavior of listening to her baby rather than any other voices, especially if listening to those voices shakes her confidence in her mothering abilities.

My CranioSacral and Ortho-Bionomy studies and Feldenkrais explorations deepened my understanding of the many ways to "listen" to myself or someone else through physical touch. Again I saw that no real communication would happen if I was anything but completely accepting of what was, rather than what should be. Only after awareness and acceptance could I begin to explore other possibilities. Doors keep opening and new levels of understanding are revealed. Awareness and intention allow us to blend with another physical being through our hands. Permission has to be asked and granted on many levels before another human being will feel safe enough to reveal themselves to you. This is a sacred trust.

As an Intuitive Doula I listen with my head, heart, and hands. I listen to her hopes, dreams and plans. I listen to her birth struggles. I listen to her joy or sadness when the birth is over. So much of what I bring to a birth is simply my attentive presence. Feeling really listened to and honored through the intensity of birth is what is missing in so many women's birth stories. I listen with my ears, my brain, my hands, my intuition, my intention. Listening brings self-awareness.

Reading Patty Wipfler's little book I realized I STILL have so much to learn about active, caring listening and acceptance. Some of it was simply a good review; helping me brush up on things I already knew. There were also good reminders of things I had learned but still forget to use effectively in every day life. Most importantly it brought me a new layer of understanding about pain, hurts, and healing. Patty says unhealed childhood hurts leave scars that create rigid, irrational behavior. This makes sense to me. In order to heal those hurts we need to be LISTENED to. Feeling truly heard accepted and loved can help us release tears. Tears allow us to rid our bodies of trapped emotions. Emotional tears contain the harmful chemicals that have been trapped in our cells; frozen in rigidity. From my body work studies I know these unhealed hurts also leave physical scars in the form of physical rigidity or dis-ease trapped throughout our bodies; aching to be listened to, released, and healed. When our body feels listened to it finally is able to let go.

I am lucky to have Julie drop into my life at this time. "When the student is ready the teacher will appear." Thank you Julie.

Laboring in a Secret Garden

I never know when I leave my home to join a laboring couple where the journey will take me. Sometimes finding just the right place to labor can be challenging. Driving away from Linda's house I knew from her history she wouldn't feel confident laboring in the hospital. It was also clear to me that as a second time mother her labor could change from 0 to 100 pretty darn fast and being in Arroyo Grande was no longer an option. So where to go on a hot summer day? As luck would have it Dad found us a secret garden, ideal for laboring with the breeze in our hair and the sun on our faces. 

Every birth I witness is indelibly etched into my soul. Some are long and hard; others fast and furious. They are all intense but sometimes within the intensity is a peacefulness; a serenity of love and trust that rises above the physical experience.

My Birth Statistics: 2010 through 2012

Statistics are an interesting animal. You can shape them or skew them various ways. They are used by many people to prove points or to motivate or even manipulate people into taking an action they desire. When asked about statistics on issues such as risks associated with a possible course of action doctors often answer with non-answers. Many times I have heard doctors say, "if it is your baby that dies the risk was 100% not worth taking" or "I only recommend this or do this procedure when it is necessary." They rarely give couples what percentage of their clients do they deem it necessary to do the procedure on, or how that compares to a local, national or global average. They certainly don't offer the parents what studies have proven the statistic should be based on best outcomes for mothers and babies. Those studies weigh the risks of both doing and not doing any given procedure.

Cesareans

For cesarean section the World Health Organization took a global look. Because they are a world-wide organization they looked at poor countries with low access to cesareans and wealthy countries with lots of access to cesareans. Their studies say a cesarean rate of between 5 to 10% of births is ideal and further when you get beyond 15% you are now doing more harm than good to mothers and babies. My total rate has increased from 15% to 17%. My rate in the last 3 years alone, when calculated as I believe WHO intended: total number of births and number of cesareans for any reason, is a depressing 22%. My numbers prove to me what my gut had been sadly telling me for a while; it has gotten harder to keep women out of the operating room. When looking at my statistics is important to remember how few births I attend; 27 since 2009. An individual birth has the ability to shift my rates wildly. But let's put my numbers into context.

Here is the national trend.

Here is the state trend.

But as I said numbers can be shaped many ways. Let's compare my section rate not using WHO's way of compiling statistics. Instead let's use the way California compiles their stats. They choose to not include breech babies, twins, premies and abnormal presentation. Abnormal presentation seems so vague to me it could include posterior babies (facing the wrong way), babies with a hand coming beside their faces (compound presentation) and babies that don't get their heads lined up just right (acenclytic). I have had all of these over the years and most but not all of them came through their mama's pelvis just fine. Using this system of exclusion my rate for the last 3 years plummets to 7% while California's is shocking.

OK now I'm not feeling so bad and a lot less frustrated. But wait! Maybe this doesn't reflect me at all. Maybe we just have really great providers and hospitals? Using identical parameters of exclusion in the statistics here are our local hospitals 2011 rates:

 French 21%

Sierra Vista 32%

Twin Cities 22%

Marian 30%

Now I'm definitely feeling better about my 7%! Let's not forget that I have done births at all of these hospitals in the last 3 years interacting with the staff and working within their individual medical establishment cultures. Don't forget to factor in that my clients use a variety of care providers, 15 in the last 3 years; from the ones who never saw an intervention they didn't like to the most
hands-off low-tech midwives. I've supported high risk moms and teen moms. I've had women hire me 1 week before their birth, 1 day before their birth and 2 this year during their births! Fifty-six percent of my moms were having their first babies and only one of them ended up having a section because of failure to progress.

Now let's compare my primary (first time) cesarean section rate to our hospitals rates. Using their compilation methods I have a 4% rate. The local hospitals 2011 rates:

French 12% 

Sierra Vista 18%

Twin Cities 10%

Marian 16%

Because I go to whichever hospital my client's choose for a birth place, 41% of my births took place in the 2 hospitals with the highest surgical birth rates.

But numbers are just a snap shot. They certainly don't tell the whole story. Let's look back at my true total of 17%. Ten percent of those aren't included in the numbers above. What are their stories? Some moms had a herpes outbreak and felt it was safest for their baby to be born via surgery. A small number were failed v-bacs. About 1% were failed inductions for one reason or another. In the last 3 years I had 2 un-diagnosed breech babies. Both moms labored great but when their baby's position was discovered a cesarean was performed. I had a high risk mom go into labor with her premie baby the day after we first met. Another was a mom trying for a vaginal birth after her first child was a cesarean baby. After laboring at  home and in the hospital for a long time she ultimately had a second section. This time I was able to explain to her exactly what was going on inside her pelvis which made her babies need to come through an incision in her belly.

This last mom called me because her doctor had said her baby was too large and scheduled her for a section for the next day. She was in a panic. We both worked very hard for a week trying to find a care provider willing to take her and let her try for a vaginal birth whom her insurance would cover. We couldn't find one and after an exhausting week of discussions with her doctor she ultimately chose to have a scheduled cesarean. I was with her as much as Marian Hospital would allow and helped her become one of the first moms to latch her baby on in the recovery room immediately after her surgery. 

But women have lots of worries about more than just cesareans. Here are my statistics which speak to those issues; the dreaded pitocin, its connection with induction and the need for pain medications!

Pitocin

Since 2010 I have had 22% of my mamas use pitocin at some point during their birth process; either to induce labor (7%) or to move a labor along (15%). This represents a significant increase from my past 14% rate. On closer inspection I see the change has come in my use of pitocin to augment or move a labor forward. 

Induction  

My induction rate has held steady since 1993; 7%. The only reason for induction in the last 3 years has been because their water had broken and we couldn't get labor rolling with natural methods. All of these women were able to labor without resorting to pain medication and birthed vaginally. 

Augmentation

Between 1993 and 2009 7% of my clients opted to use pitocin to augment their labors. But in the last 3 years 15% utilized pitocin to try to make progress during a stalled labor. Half of the stalled labors, or 7.4%, were transferred into the hospital after a planned out-of-hospital birth. Fifty percent of those transfers ended with a vaginal birth. 

Pitocin plus Pain Medication

The other 7.4% who augmented their labor with pitocin had chosen to take pain medication and then their labor stalled. Ultimately all of these women birthed vaginally. My hat is off to the 33% of my moms who labored on pitocin without pain medication. I am in awe.

This amazing mama successfully navigated a high risk pregnancy, a pitocin induction for broken waters and a vaginal birth in the operating room; all without pain medication!

Pain Medication 

Speaking of pain medication... let's see what my numbers say about the issue. Since 2010 I have had 19% of my moms choose to use pain medication of some sort during their labor. This is up from my 1993-2009 rate of 11%. Not what I had hoped for but to put it into perspective I looked up the official epidural rate in California in 2012. Turns out it was 42%. It is hard for me to believe this is an accurate number considering how ubiquitous epidural use has become in our culture. Digging into it further I see that in 100% of the cases my moms chose pain meds, pitocin was involved; either before or after. It turns out 10% of my moms opted for pain medication and then ended up on pitocin and 10% of my moms needed pitocin and then chose an epidural to  help them cope or as part of an over-all strategy to make forward progress during their birth. I don't know how that compares with the rates for California or our individual hospitals. They don't break their rates down this way.   

Speaking of progress...as a doula I am always pushing the boundaries of the places and providers that my clients have chosen. This usually involves giving moms the information they need to confidently say no to routine policies that are not based in evidence-based practices, such as the 40 week automatic induction or rigid guidelines on fetal heart monitoring. One of the areas my clients and I have been pushing is gravity enhanced non-traditional pushing positions, i.e. birthing on hands and knees, in a squat and standing. I have felt that I wasn't getting anywhere with this issue but the numbers tell a different story. I am happy to say 15% of my moms in the last 3 years have birthed within a traditional setting using a non-traditional position. This is a testament to the strength of will and confidence of those mamas. If I was at all instrumental in creating that to happen I am satisfied.    

This beautiful 9 pound 4 ounce baby boy was born quickly and easily as his mother stood beside her hospital bed.

By the Numbers
2009-2012
27 births
55% first time mothers 

Total Vaginal Birth Rate: 78%

Adjusted Vaginal Birth Rate: 93%

        (See above story for explanation of adjustment)

Adjusted Vaginal Birth Rate First Babies: 96%

Spontaneous Start of Labor: 93%

Total without Pain Medication: 81%

Pain Medication after Pitocin: 10%

Labor without Pitocin Augmentation: 85%

Labor without any Pitocin: 78%

Successful VBAC Rate: 50%

Looking at it another way...

Total C-section Rate: 22%

Adjusted C-section Rate: 7%

    (See above story for explanation of adjustment)

Adjusted Vaginal Birth Rate First Babies: 4%

Total Pitocin Rate: 22%

Pitocin Induction Rate: 7%

Pitocin Augmentation Rate: 15%

Total Pain Medication Rate: 19%

"Whole"istic Mamas Support for After Your Baby Arrives

You are invited to join my "Whole"istic Mama and Papas parenting support and social group! 

For the last twenty years I have been asked by moms who had attended my birth classes if  I would please start a mom support group after their babies came. Unfortunately I was too busy raising my son, being a wife, birth educator, doula, foreign exchange student teacher/coordinator and horse trainer and community birth advocate to say yes. In 2012 I finished my La Leache League leadership training and finally decided they were right. Moms who were choosing to parent from an attached perspective needed more support in our community. 

Because I have always viewed parenting as a dynamic constantly evolving experience I purposely chose to not call the group "attachment parenting". I wanted to encourage a broader spectrum of mamas to feel welcome. So I created the term "Whole"istic Parenting which I felt better reflected my views of parenting the whole child. At our meet ups and in our face book group I encourage mamas to make conscious choices for their child's physical, intellectual and emotional health. Research shows these are not distinct areas but are forever inseparably intertwined. 

The group offers mama-to-mama support and information sharing, as well as a social outlet with several park or play dates a month. The conversation is free flowing, covering whatever is on the minds of the attending mamas from sleep issues, balancing family needs, extended family, nutrition, traditional and alternative health providers, education, communication and more. As a veteran working mom, past home and public schooling parent, and La Leche League leader I gently offer guidance and resources. I ultimately believe mamas know the right path to choose for their unique family situation when given a small amount of nonjudgmental information and encouragement to listen to their heart. To receive invitations to our Blanket Babies & Toddler Time meet ups and join the on-line group feel free to friend me on face book and request to join.

Wisdom

Supporting women in labor I have come to believe this with all my heart. Even when birth takes a dramatically different path than the one envisioned, we can heal ourselves from it if we were treated with love and respect for our bodies and our spirits throughout the process.

The Seamstress

My doula journey takes me into people's homes and hearts. I am sometimes a receptacle for their smoldering anger or deep despair. I am always honored to help a woman along her path to peace and understanding. Birth trauma occurs when our hopes and dreams go awry. The wounds are deep if we felt unsupported at the moment our plans splintered into a million pieces of sharp glass raining down on us, and the grief process long. This poem is for all the seamstresses out there. The cesarean epidemic has infected our hospitals like a disease causing a disproportionate number of our mothers to begin motherhood disheartened, disillusioned and disattached from their selves. They are all seamstresses.

The Seamstress

We sat amongst her disillusionment and despair
piecing together the scattered remnants of her destroyed dreams.
The disarray of her disappointment spread around us
disconnecting her from the fabric of her life.

We sat disentangling the threads of her distrust and disbelief
from the dishonesty of those she thought had cared;
vainly trying to dispel her disenchantment.

The disjointed story spilled from her wounded heart
discouraged tears distorting the lines of her face.
The silver needle plunging in and out
as she desperately tried to repair the damage.

Together we examined the jagged edges of their handiwork
searching for patterns and matching the pieces.
How had this disaster happened;
this horrendous disruption to her plans?
Had she lost all of her abilities of discernment?

__ __ __ __ __ __

Carefully they stitched the edges of her womb together.
Her birth desires disintegrating around her
she lay in disembodied disgrace upon the cold metal of the steel table
discarded, dismissed and dispossessed.

Disheveled and disoriented she lay upon the gurney.
Could they not see the gaping wound they left upon her heart
her life blood disgorging onto the sterile white sheets?

Gathering together the fraying edges of her heart
she pressed discomfort, anger and disloyalty to her breast
bravely trying to staunch the unending flow.

__ __ __ __ __ __

Dislodged from all her instincts
her disordered mind distorting her visions for those first precious days of life.
Distraught she began incessantly working
the needle flashing in and out
feverishly sewing together the crazy quilt of her life.

Would she forever be at a disadvantage
disqualified for motherhood by her disfigurement?
Was there no way to close this wound that would not stop leaking
to rid herself of this terrible disease?

__ __ __ __ __ __

We sat discussing, sharing and disclosing
patching over the disharmony of her soul.
Disengaging from blame or guilt
we discovered a mother willing to sacrifice her body and her dreams.

# # # # # # # # # #

I became fascinated with the word and syllable 'dis' as I thought about this piece. First because of the dis-ease women feel with their bodies and their mothering abilities after a traumatic birth. Secondly because feeling they were dissed during the process is a large component of their grief. Third the syllable 'dis' turns a positive into a negative which is what they feel happened to their birth experience.

When I researched the meaning of dis this is what I discovered:

The Many Meanings of Dis

Pronunciation: dēs,
1. lady; woman.
2. Female deity; especially one promoting fertility.

Pronunciation: dis, Slang
1. To show disrespect for; affront.
2. To disparage; belittle.

Pronunciation: dis, Classic Myth
1. A god of the underworld.

As a Latin prefix
1. meaning “apart,” “asunder,” “away,” “utterly,”
2. having a negative, or reversing force when used as an English formative
Example: to change ability to disability; or affirming to disaffirming

I was stunned to learn Dis was both a female fertility deity and a god of the underworld. Now I see my seamstress as wrestling with these opposing gods; trapped in the depths of the underworld; struggling to sew her way back up to the light.

The Pendulum Swings

Can you feel it? The pendulum is beginning to swing the other way again. Last February I witnessed a doctor emotionally manipulating a woman, who was courageously working on pushing her baby out, into agreeing to a cesarean. I didn't know then that in that hospital room we were standing at the apogee of the pendulum's arc.

Apogee (Merriam Webster) Definition: 1. Farthest point on an orbit 2. final climactic stage, standing at the culmination

I only knew that in the past few years it had become a greater and greater struggle to keep my hospital doula clients out of the operating room. I didn't know that this was the final climatic stage in a hailstorm of surgeries.

Here is a simple physics lesson:
When a pendulum reaches it's apogee it holds its maximum potential energy. This energy is released as it begins to swing back the other way.

Can you feel it? In the past few months there has been a huge release of energy on a national and international scale against cesarean sections. On Tuesday I opened our local paper and saw more evidence of this phenomena; an article reprinted from the Los Angeles Times titled Study Finds Patience May Lower C-section Rates. That's right patience, not patients.

Here is a simple vocabulary lesson:
**Patient as a noun.
(Merriam Webster) Definition: 1.an individual awaiting or under medical care and treatment 2. one that is acted upon
**Patient as an adjective
(Merriam Webster) Definition: Patient 1.manifesting forbearance under provocation or strain 2. not hasty or impetuous 3. steadfast despite opposition, difficulty or adversity
**Patience is a singular noun
(Merriam Webster) Definition: the fact of being patient

Here is what this latest study done by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development said:

If doctors and their patients (women under their medical care) would have patience (forbearance under the strain of waiting out those last difficult weeks of pregnancy) and not go with an induction they have a much greater chance of not having a surgical birth. Of course for the woman remaining patient (steadfast) to the idea of waiting for spontaneous labor in spite of her doctors threats of placental disintegration, baby too large or blood pressure rising (opposition) can be a daunting (a great strain). In my experience getting a mom through these last prenatal visits is very difficult but well worth the effort. My own doula statistics bear this out with a 1% section rate for my first time moms who wait for labor to begin on its own.

If doctors would be patient (not hasty or impetuous) about the progress of their patients (women who they are acting upon) labors there could be many fewer c-sections. The authors of the study say doctors aren't acknowledging that labor takes time and doesn't follow a predictable pattern, especially in first time mothers. A high proportion of the surgical births reviewed were done after the patient (one who is acted upon) had been in active labor for only 2 to 3 hours! OMG!!! These women are being labeled as suffering from "failure to progress" which leaves them feeling defective the rest of their lives which leaves them much more open to being manipulated into repeat elective cesareans for all future babies. Most of the women I attend at births are in active labor for waaaaaaayyyy longer than that. I guide them, support them and explain that this is normal, babies take time and they are doing just fine. My cesarean rate even for mom's who agreed to an induction; 1%. The study showed that a major reason for having a cesarean was having had a cesarean. But my total cesarean rate with spontaneous labor, inductions and v-bac attempts is only 7%. There is no great mystery here. I am no wonder woman. Doulas and midwives support women whom they do not see as patients but instaed as healthy people in the process of a healthy physiologic act; like breathing or sex. Doulas and midwives having an abundance of patience is the key to good, safe, healthy births.

One final thought: Years ago I met the women who were spearheading our local International Cesarean Awareness Network at the time. One of them said, "There is no such thing as a 'failure to progress' only a 'failure to wait'. I have been calling it that ever since and now we are beginning to have the studies to prove who failed and what that failure has meant to women in america.

Can you feel it?

National Institute of Health panel strongly urges that steps be taken to reverse repeat cesarean sections.

Study in Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology says v-bac is a reasonable and safe choice because the outcomes for repeat elective surgery and v-bac were basically the same.

New Guidelines from American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists on repeat sections.

Study Finds Patience May Lower C-section Rates.

Being a Hospital Doula: My Greatest Challenge

Sometimes I can only bear witness. I am helpless to ward off the blow. I educate. I put a "game plan" in place. I manage. I guide. I manipulate the system. I encourage. I remind women they have a voice; they have a choice. But in the end sometimes I am powerless to protect. My role is to stand and bear witness to the birth unfolding before my eyes. My heart breaks; little pieces crumbling away. Bits of me I will never get back. Moments in my life I will never forget. I hold on to the belief, for her and for me, that grief is transformational if we let it be.

You Don't Know How Lucky You Are

I don't believe the birthing women of San Luis Obispo have a clue how lucky they are. Even many of the women working in our birth community don't know how lucky we are. We are so busy being in the here and now of our little corner of the world we assume this is how it has always been, this is how it is everywhere. Those of us working in the "alternative" birth community often see only the negatives. Guess what? Your perception is wrong. There are so many positives going on every day in our community. There is constant movement toward making births better for all women and their babies.

This was brought home to me in a very powerful and personal way the first time I attended a birth outside of our community. Being with my sister-in-law as she birthed at a hospital in Berkeley was an eye opening experience. A few years later attending another sister-in-law in Nevada taught me to treasure our hospitals and the people working in them. I can't tell you how grateful I am to be working as a doula in SLO.

So let's focus on the positives please! Here is a list:

Twenty years ago when I had my son if your baby was born in need of serious medical attention he was flown by helicopter to Stanford. Moms, dads and babies were separated until the mom was recovered enough from the birth to drive up to the Bay Area. Then the staff at Sierra Vista got together and created our local NICU. This was a huge project which now benefits women, babies and families in our community every day. Now if you are a high risk mom or have a high risk baby you have a place to go close to home and the support of family and friends.

When it became clear to everyone that General Hospital was probably going to no longer be funded by the county French Hospital stepped up to fill the gap. General had always been the low-tech family friendly hospital. French Hospital with it's small size and supportive staff is an excellent hospital for women going for a less medicalized birth approach.

Not too many years ago the best we could do for using water as a pain relief method was a shower. Now we have labor tubs at all three county hospitals where women can seek pain relief without the use of narcotics and needles. Want to birth in water? You can rent a tub and birth at home with one of our skilled homebirth midwives.

Fifteen years ago when a friend needed a specialized ultrasound done to check out the chambers of her baby's heart she had to travel to the Bay Area. Now for women who need specialized monitoring of their pregnancy we have qualified perinatologists with ultrasound capabilities far beyond what we once had.

We have lots of OB doctors with lots of different personalities and philosophies and styles to choose from. If you want to use a midwife instead we have an ever growing choice. There is something for every woman on the menu. Want to birth in the hospital but with a midwife? Guess what? We currently have two different certified midwifery groups working with two different doctors. Don't want to go to the hospital? We have two different licensed midwives to choose from and by this time next year we should have several new midwives joining their ranks.

Don't feel comfortable either birthing at home or in the hospital? Guess what? We have an out-of-hospital birth center currently under construction. It is due to be open for women with December due dates. Watch their progress on facebook.

I remember when your only choice for birth education was to take Lamaze at the hospital or Bradley outside the hospital. Now you can choose from these as well as Informed Birth & Parenting, Hypnobirthing, Birth Works or Birthing from Within. There is something for everyone from over the grade to the south county.

We have many other support groups and professionals for new parents in our area. Need free breastfeeding help? Call the Warm Line at 541-BABY. Want a breastfeeding support group? Try our local La Leche League meetings. Speaking of breastfeeding; we have excellent lactation consultants working in and out of our hospitals. Need postpartum support and counseling? Call the Postpartum Hot line at 549-7786. Need a shoulder to cry on about a negative birth experience? Go to one of our ICAN meetings. We have mommy support networks both on line and in person such as SLO County Mommies. We have parenting classes through Parent Participation throughout the county or Andrea Herron's Growing with Baby.

Considering using a doula at your birth? Go to the resource guide at the Birth & Baby Resource Network: wwwbbrn.org. We have a whole list of doulas working in the community and new ones getting trained all the time. The perfect match to your personality and belief system is just waiting for you.

As a doula these last items are the most important to me.

When the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists created new rules which required anesthesiologists standing by for a woman to be "allowed" to go for a vaginal birth after a previous c-section Sierra Vista stepped up and did what was necessary to make that happen for our community. Guess what? We have the only hospital for hundreds of miles that will do v-bacs. I recently had a client who moved back here from Santa Barbara just to be able to successfully v-bac!

Need a c-section? Our hospitals are actively working to create them to be as family friendly as possible given their staffing and geography restraints. They are trying to keep moms, dads, and babies together as much as possible. And guess what? Usually your doula, as well as your husband, can be with you during the entire process.

Last I would like to speak about the relationships with the hospital staff and doulas in our community. It has been many years since I was introduced at a birth as a doula and felt open hostility from the nurses. Now the staff has grown in their understanding and acceptance of the value of doulas within the hospital setting so much that I have even been paired with new nurses so they could be part of a "natural" birth. I would like to also say that anytime I have had doula clients with special needs or situations in preparing for their births both Marie Chaney, Maternal Child Assistant Director, at Sierra Vista and Charley Ault, OB Nurse Manager, at French took the time to speak with them and did their best to accommodate their needs and desires.

So within SLO town the picture looks pretty rosy but step outside this box and the picture gets ugly fast. There are hospitals that won't "allow" doulas to be present at births. They also don't "allow" birth plans or want couples who have taken classes which encourage natural unmedicated births. As a doula I have run into open hostility, been excluded from c-sections, had my client's pre-arranged wishes for their births ignored and witnessed verbal disrespect bordering on abuse of a mom preparing for a cesarean birth.

So thank you to all the women over the years who have tried to make this community more mother/baby friendly. A mountain of sand can be moved one grain at a time.


To read more about life outside our bubble go to A Sign on the Door.

Keeper of The Space

This is posted for all my doula friends and other women who provide sacred space for birth.

Keeper of the Space
by Michelle Fonte, Birth Doula

she…on elbows and knees on the bathroom floor
naked body glistening with the evidence of her exertion
brow wet
dad poised behind her
hands ready to catch
abundant curiosity and bliss on his face
she…hands grasping mine. holding. tight
me… mirroring her pose: knees and elbows on the cold floor
her forehead on my shoulder. pressing hard when the surges are strong
i meet her force with equal force
a break.
a pause
i shift my weight
she feels me
eyes raise and meet
intensity
she says ‘don’t leave me’
‘i won’t’
i say
she feels the truth in my answer. again rests her head on my shoulder.
“don’t leave me” she said.
her words turn over in my mind and stroke my ego
wrap around my shoulders like a warm blanket
for a split second. i. feel. Important.
she grunts and groans and sings
looking under her body
between her thighs I see her baby’s head filling up her. blossoming. pink.
intensity of these universes colliding: the one baby has inhabited for 40 weeks and the one he is about to enter
makes her think she may come apart
in this moment. she believes that she needs me
with courage and power and will she perhaps didn’t know she possessed, she births her baby into his daddy’s hands
the midwives say…’mama…take your baby’
she. stunned. still between worlds.
cannot
reaching under i receive their slippery blueish-turning-pink child
daddy’s eyes meet mine.
joy
i passing the gorgeous baby into her hands
eyes raise and meet again
i am humbled
she knows
her power
i remember
i am not important
simply the keeper of the space

Michelle is the mama of six children, doula and birth activist. She currently lives in Miami, Florida.
www.birthgirlz.com

www.motherpathdoulamiami.com


Thank you to Womb Space, a page dedicated to spreading information on childbirth through essays, pictures, articles, videos, poetry and more. http://wombspace.tumblr.com/post/947981510/keeper-of-the-space-michelle-fonte-birth-doula

Diane's Poem

December 25, 1997

Jennifer,

When I try to put into words what we have achieved together, it seems so simple that the intensity is lost. I am left with emotions and the process which words can not recreate. Metaphors and poetry will have to suffice. . .

Thank you for offering your strength,

you became a safe harbor in a storm.

Thank you for seeing my vision

and allowing me to face my dragon

and ride it through the fire.

Thank you for sharing my excitement,

the magic of anticipation as the journey began.

Thank you for understanding each transformation,

as I became a person I did not know,

in a body no longer mine.

Thank you for cleansing my spirit,

as my body flowed from every pore.

Thank you for singing my song with me

and guiding it's harmony to follow nature's melody.

Wishing you love and peace this Christmas & New Year,

Diane

Lisa Ann & Tracy's Gift

November 13, 2004

Dear Jennifer,

Over the past few months, we have tried to think of some gift that would precisely express our deep appreciation for your part in our son's birth. Any item we could think of minimized this expression. We would like instead, for this letter, a gift of the heart, to serve our purpose.

The work you did with us prior to Grant's arrival was an important part of our journey. You partnered with us in structuring our dream by getting us ready for the most monumental event of our lives. In the birthing classes we learned valuable information, imparted to us with tender care. Our personal meetings with you brought all three of us closer. The teaching we received about what to expect, how to prepare, how to ready ourselves as a couple, was invaluable. Though our birthing experience was surprising, we were as well prepared as possible thanks to your excellent instruction. But the word "instruction" doesn't speak to the heart you put into your work. You are so much more than a teacher and coach.

Our birthing experience was powerful and precipitous. We know it would have gone much differently had you not been a part. You kept us on track, you remembered our requests, and you honored the reality of what we were experiencing. We couldn't have asked for anything more than what you gave. You gave of yourself Jennifer and we can never equally repay you.

We believe that when we look into our son's bright, alert, attentive eyes-that you are partly responsible for that look. You kept us drug free! That is true even before the delivery as you worked with Lisa Ann on some health issues. You gave us an honorable birth. You walked with Lisa Ann into an inferno and helped her find a place she could survive. You steadied Tracy as he looked on as his son tore into the world much more frighteningly than we could have imagined. You maintained our dignity as you worked with us to create the birth you rememberd we wanted. In your own words, you gave us as much of our dream as you could.

You have become much more than a birthing coach. You are a friend. whatever paths our lives take, you will always have a special place in ours. How can we look at our son without remembering you? You have a gift and what you do is an artform. We know you put your heart and soul; into it and we want to recognize you for this immense effort.

Thank you Jennifer, for your part in Grant's arrival. Thank you for your care in the hospital and in the days afterward. Thank you for your continued presence in our lives. You are an angel.

With loving gratitude,
Lisa Ann & Tracy

Shasta's Birth

This birth took place at Sierra Vista Hospital around 1996.

At 7 a.m. I woke to the startling feeling that I had wet the bed. My water had broken! Before I got out of bed I had to wake Joe and have him make sure the water absorbent mat that had been next to the bed for the past several weeks was still there. It was and sure enough when I stood up, more water spilled out. At last there was no question about when. I called my folks and told them to start driving and to call us from Atascadero to make sure we had not gone to the hospital already. Next we (Joe and I) called Jennifer. The contractions were still pretty far apart so I decided to go for a walk down our hill and to the dead end on the next block. On the walk, the contractions were 2-3 minutes apart. Walking had always increased the frequency and strength of my contractions. Back at home I ate some breakfast and then we called Barbara Clutter, my O.B. The contractions had slowed to every 10 or 15 minutes when I was not walking. Barbara knew I wanted to spend early labor at home so she told me she would inform the hospital that we would be in at some point today, but let me know that if nothing was happening by 5 p.m. they might have to induce my labor.

After talking with Barbara, I called Jennifer. I was nervous about the possibility of having drugs to induce my labor. Jennifer suggested to me that an acupuncture treatment might be a gentler way to induce the labor. I called my friend Diane, an acupuncturist, and made an appointment for 3 p.m. This was a very weird point because I wanted to make sure my labor progressed but I wanted to have energy to take it all the way, and I wanted to hold out till my folks arrived. So, to bed I went. The contractions continued to build as I laid there. At last we got the call from my folks. They were in Atascadero. We told them we're still holding out, come on to Los Osos. In the meantime Carrie had arrived and was getting the video camera ready. Around noon my folks arrived and within an hour it was clear I wasn't going to make it to 3 p.m. for the acupuncture appointment. My labor was progressing all on it's own. Somewhere around here I had asked Joe to call Jennifer cause I couldn't deal with talking on the phone. Mid-contraction I saw Joe putting the phone in my face. He wanted Jennifer to hear what I sounded like during a contraction but I thought he wanted me to talk. Eee gads and I think we got my reaction on video. This was the turning point. Jennifer heard my reaction and told Joe, "I think you had better get her to the hospital unless you want to have that baby at home".

Jennifer met us at the hospital. Throughout the whole time at the hospital the baby's heart tones were strong and clear so they pretty much let me do what I wanted. (Like I really wanted to do a whole lot while I was having a baby!) So for the next several hours we (the whole team) walked the halls, then Joe sat with me in the shower for over an hour. At about sundown when I was really starting to loose it and I was begging for drugs, Jennifer helped me hold onto a tiny piece of reality by making me look into her eyes. That was the longest 2 hours of my life! The doctor even said I could have the drugs but she had to check the woman in the next room. By the grace of God the lady next door was pushing and 2 hours later when the doctor returned I was ready to push out our beautiful baby. The pushing took about 1 and a 1/2 hours. Mom and Joe held Jennifer's mirror for me to see his little head emerge. Mom took pictures, Carrie shot the video, Dad watched the monitor(heart tones), Dr. Clutter(my O.B.) cheered me on and Joe caught the baby at about 9:29. It was so incredible! Our little boy was so alert, he smiled when Joe and I kissed him, grabbed Joe's beard and within the first 1/2 hour of his life in the outside world he was nursing. Joe and I spent the night in the hospital, and the next afternoon Mom and Dad (Joan and Don) came back to help us get home with our new little baby boy. Of course Mom had decorated our house inside and out with blue ribbons, flowers and balloons.

Well that's basically the story of Shasta's birth. Thank you to all who have given us clothes, toys, baby gadgets, diaper service and most of all your loving prayers.