I have been thinking a lot about epidural anesthesia for childbirth. Among those who have experienced it, birth is almost universally described as painful. Who wouldn’t want a drug or procedure that takes away the pain? Clearly, most pregnant people in America want this. It is by far the mainstream way to give birth. Read more
This is part five of a six-part series. In part one, My Baby Dropped!, I explain why engagement is pathology. In part two, Why Did My Baby Get Stuck?, I explore the maternal factors that cause babies to get stuck. Part three is called Fetal Factors: How Babies Get Themselves Stuck. Last week I wrote Fetal Constraint: How Culture Immobilizes Babies. Today’s post is about the fetal constraint downsides for labor and birth. Next week I’ll write about how fetal constraint adversely affects the babies themselves — the things we notice after birth. Read more
This is the fourth installment of the stuck baby series. Last week I described the fetal factors (ways babies get themselves stuck). The week before I discussed maternal factors. Three weeks ago I covered engagement and explained why it’s pathology. Next week I’ll go over how fetal constraint affects labor and birth. Stay tuned!
Today I’m going to discuss cultural factors that reduce babies’ opportunities to move in utero and cause them to get stuck. This is the category we can actually do something about because the factors are under our conscious control — if we know enough and if we care care enough. Read more
When I consider how babies fit into — and through — a maternal pelvis I view it from three perspectives: midwifery, bodywork and yoga. As a midwife I generally know more about birth than many bodyworkers. As a bodyworker I know more about how, anatomically and bio-mechanically, a baby fits into and ultimately through a maternal pelvis – more than than some midwives. This is about optimal fetal positioning – or lack thereof. Read more
First a word or two about birth physiology: Labor is almost universally painful for birthing parents and sometimes painful for babies. One of the ways we cope with pain is to produce beta-endorphin. Beta-endorphin is an opiate-like brain chemical – the same one responsible for the so-called runner’s high. It reduces pain. Read more