What Is a Midwife?

To learn more about midwifes and decide if this is the right choice for you go here.

What Is a Doula?

Educating the public at large, I will be giving short definitions every few weeks of what a Doula is.

"A Doula is part of the birth community. She is a trained paraprofessional, not a volunteer looking for certifications."

Multiples. Think You Can't Have A Vaginal Birth...Think Again

YouTube Video of Calm Natural Birth With Medical Professional In Tub

Can I Afford A Doula?

This question is a big one in the doula community and I am sure for those deciding whether or not to hire a doula. A better question would be can I afford not to hire a doula? With the c-section rate sky rocketing and the financial burdens that accompany having a c-section it might be seen as penny wise pound foolish not to hire a doula. The World Health Organization believes that c-section rates should not exceed 15%. Currently the statistics show that 30% of all healthy pregnancies are ending up in c-sections in the United States. Most of them are unnecessary. In NYC the rate is closer to 50%. We are one of the most educated generations. Most moms-to-be are going to birthing classes and reading tons of books and yet the c-section rate is climbing. Acoording to womensenews.org, in 2005 the average cost of a vaginal birth was $5,574 compared to $11,361 for a c-section. I know I know...YOU aren't paying for it, your insurance company is. In the June 1, 2008 edition of the NYTimes, writer Denise Grady tells us that many insurance companies are dropping women who have had c-sections because they are pretty much a guarentee that another c-section will be incurred due to the pressure from hospital policy, not medical evidence. So where does having a c-section lead you then? Aside from the financial aspects of having an unnecessary c-section the physical risks are as follows: moms- - blood clots, strokes, emergency hysterectomy, infection, long lasting pain, fertility problems, placental problems in later pregnancies such as ectopic or abruptions. Generally the recovery time is six weeks without complications. babies - - breathing problems, surgical injury, reduced breast feeding and asthma in later childhood. I think it is really amazing just how many books moms today are reading. However, much like reading about how to ride a bike, it's just not the same until you experience the situation. Childbirth has so many variables today that one cannot possibly be expected to know how to handle them without a trained doula by her side. There's so much pressure to follow what the doctor wants you to do and those of us who have been to many births know that there is very little consistency in what those protocals are. The only consistancy most of us do find is the push to comply with interventions that have a high rate of ending in c-sections. That is why study after study for more than 30 years have concluded that having a doula with you even when your spouse is available and supportive, halves your chances of having an unnecessary c-section as well as shortening labor time and pain levels. A great book to get you started on the truth about birth is by Ina May Gaskin called Ina May's Guide to Childbirth. In NYC currently the average cost of an experienced doula (10 or more births is ) $1500-$3000. A Trained Doula with less than 10 births and/or going for her certification usually charges $500-$800. On Long Island the average charge is $1000-$1500 for an experienced doula. Doulas visit with you before the baby is born to discuss your birth wishes, work with you from the time active labor starts until one hour after the baby is born, and visit again once to see how you are doing and give you information on postnatal support professionals if needed. Doulas are also on call the two weeks leading up to your due date and take unlimited emails and calls from you. The average hourly wage for most doulas fees amount to $10-$25 an hour and in most cases about one-weeks salary in the NYC area. We understand that in some cases for some income levels this is not affordable. If you earn $30K or less in the NYC area these fees can be adjusted. Many doulas will also do volunteer births for teenagers. For middle income couples a trained doula might be your best option while those earning slightly less might ask for reduced fees or payment plan options. If having a doula with more than 10 births is very important to you then hiring a doula at the higher range of the fee scale will be necessary. Each doula comes with unique experiences that will be invaluable to your birth of your baby regardless of the experience level of that particular doula.

Jennifer Block Author of the New Book Pushed Responds to ACOG on Home Birth

From the Los Angeles Times

Big Medicine's blowback on home births
Why do U.S. doctors strong-arm women into our standard maternity care system?
By Jennifer Block
July 9, 2008


Jennifer Block the author of "Pushed: The Painful Truth About Childbirth and Modern Maternity Care" wrote an amazing piece in the LA Times on July 9.

Key points from her published piece are as follows: (taken directly from her article)


Her friend in Britian received the following care last year:

• As a healthy woman with a normal pregnancy, she saw midwives. And one of their first questions to her was, "So, would you like to give birth in the hospital maternity ward or at home?"
• Britain's national health guidelines call water the safest, most effective form of pain relief. A woman will be helped to give birth in positions that are effective and protective: sitting, squatting, on hands and knees, even standing.

But hospital maternity care in the U.S. is typically not supportive of this process.

• More than half of women are induced into labor, or it is sped up with artificial hormones; the vast majority of women labor and push in the desultory flat-on-the- back or leaning-back position; and (perhaps not surprisingly) nearly one-third of women end up giving birth through major surgery, the caesarean section.
• This has led to an epidemic of pre-term births in the United States. A 2006 survey showed that the majority of babies are now born before the spontaneous onset of labor, which leaves them more prone to breathing and feeding difficulties. Caesareans are also contributing to a rising maternal death rate, announced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last year.

The choice to give birth somewhere other than a hospital is backed by sound science. Studies of "low-risk" women in North America planning out-of-hospital births with midwives have found that 95% give birth vaginally with hardly any medical intervention. The largest and most rigorous study to date, published in the British Medical Journal, found that in North America, babies were born at home just as safely as in the hospital.Organized medicine can't believe this.

In a joint statement last year, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the Royal College of Midwives said, "There is no reason why home birth should not be offered to women at low risk of complications, and it may confer considerable benefits for them and their families."


For the full article please click on the link above.

Survey of Mothers' Sleep & Fatigue

Texas Tech University Is Searching For Research Participants
"In this survey, we will be asking you some detailed questions about how well you and your baby sleep, where members of your family usually sleep, and how tired you feel on most days. We will also ask you some questions about things that can interfere with sleep. There are very few studies on this important topic, and we will use the results for a research study. There are no benefits to you for completing this survey, but your answers will help us educate providers about the realities you face as a new mother."

Please follow the link above to participate.