The cesarean rate in our country (and many others) is undoubtedly too high. Normalizing birth, talking about women’s choices, sharing stories and educating ourselves will help reduce the amount of surgical births. With that said, there are times when a cesarean section is necessary to save the mother and/or baby’s life. This is when obstetrics is a blessing. When a…
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Trusting Birth and Trusting Ourselves as Birthing Women
When it comes to birthing in our country, there are many different opinions on what is safest for mom and baby. What it comes down to is, there is not one blanket right answer. Yes, most of the time, the more unhindered the birth, the safer it is. However, every mom, pregnancy and baby are different. Each woman needs to…
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Breech Does NOT Equal C-Section
I have written before how a breech baby is another variation of normal. Having a breech presentation does not mean you automatically need to schedule a c-section. Remember, our babies are wise and know just how they need to be for birth. Most of the time, babies will turn, even late in pregnancy and labor!!! You can read my other…
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The End of Pregnancy…Positive Thoughts
The end of pregnancy can be so hard. You are ready to throw in the towel and give up. Swollen ankles, face and every other body part, stretch marks, feeling like you need a crane to help lift you and turn you in bed, the waddle, pelvic and pubic bone pain, and who knows what else. But you can’t…give up.…
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This is for Zelda…
I recently read Baby Catcher by Peggy Vincent, CNM. It is an inspiring book that took me on a 40 year journey of obstetrics, nursing and midwifery. It is an emotional ride with slow buildups, screaming with excitement drops, unexpected turns and even solemn moments. The first chapter grabbed me by my heart and reached into my soul before I…
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Two Amazing Hospital VBAC’s!!!
This mama had 2 VBAC’s in the hospital with midwives. She shares both here. Enjoy! These are my birth stories for my 2 VBAC’s, I have three sons and my first was an ‘elective’ caeser due to him being breech. It left me with feelings of failure, which lead to breastfeeding failure and mild PPD. I then researched, researched, researched…
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22 Favorite Birth Quotes and Affirmations
“Giving birth should be your greatest achievement not your greatest fear.” ~ Jane Weideman “When you change the way you view birth, the way you birth will change.” ~Marie Mongan, Hypnobirthing ”If I don’t know my options, I don’t have any.” ~ Diana Korte “There is a secret in our culture, and it’s not that birth is painful. It’s that…
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Blessed With Another Pregnancy
I am very blessed to be pregnant. Mr. BWF and I have conceived 5 children, all in the first month we stopped preventing. Every pregnancy has been different emotionally and physically. Every birth has been vastly different as well. You would think after a planned c-section, a homebirth transferred c-section, a traumatic hospital VBA2C and an empowering unassisted homebirth, that…
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The Birth of River Jeremiah: The Homebirth of a First Time Mama
When my water broke at 1:00 in the afternoon, just two days after my estimated due date, I was shocked. I prided myself in not being anxious for my son’s birthday to arrive; I knew it would happen. I knew stressing about it wouldn’t help. I kept in mind that first babies, on average, are born 8 days after their…