Friday, May 6, 2011

Its called Responsibility. Have you heard that word before?

Ok I am just going to go out on a whim here and "assume" that everyone that hires a Midwife to assist them through their growth into a motherhood, is either ready and willing to learn or already has a pretty good idea of the responsibility it takes to make that decision. 


I cant tell you how shocked I am to be sitting here writing this realizing how many women want their Midwife to do all the work for them to grow their baby. Dont get me wrong. Midwives are amazing at HELPING you through your pregnancy, birth and Postpartum period. They are great at giving advice and keeping an eye out for possible complications that can occur. But when you sit there and tell your midwife that she didnt tell you HOW to hydrate yourself, after she talked to you time and time again how JUST water isnt enough. You need to make sure you have proper sea salt intake to give you the right electrolytes to get and keep you hydrated. This is were YOU as the mother take the responsibility to refill your water when it is empty and to salt your food to taste. Such a small example in the big scheme of things, but if you cant do this simple task for your health and especially YOUR baby's health and you are not willing to hear anything from your midwife. Nor are you willing to take that responsibility on yourself, than maybe you should hire a doctor and you should have your baby in the hospital. 


Homebirth and Healthy pregnancy and birth is not a joke or a contest people! No one can do this for you! If you cant take care of yourself than Dont get pregnant. Your baby doesnt have any other choice but for you to take care of her or him. How dare you put that in anyones hands but your very own!!

Thursday, May 5, 2011

If my baby were born at home he/she would be dead....

I cant tell you how many times as a birth professional I hear this statement. Of course, I always have to know where this statement is coming from. So I simply and considerately say, "Oh wow that is scary! What happened to your baby?" 99.99999999% of the time their answer is, "well my baby's cord was wrapped around her neck so I had to go in for a  c-section right away." Of course my questions dont end there. "hmm did your babies heart rate drop?"  "No." "Oh, well then the Ultrasound must have told them it was around the neck then huh?"  "They didn't do an ultrasound." ..... Well as you can guess by this time they are atleast thinking. Which is exactly what I am wanting. I then tell them the little fact that Dr's dont want you to know... "Well you do know that 1 in 3 babies are born with a cord around there neck right? And RARELY ever does anything actually need to be done about it."


So the question now is still WHY would your baby have died? Or would it have at all? Where you told the truth? Im just going to go out on a whim here and say NOPE.... But, but, .... Why would they just say something like that? GREAT QUESTION!!! Im so glad you asked! Hmm where should I start? 1. Impatient Doctor? Does he/she have plans or have you been in labor for more than 12 hours and he just doesnt want to wait around anymore? What an easy way to manipulate a vulnerable woman in labor and tell them that something is wrong with their baby. Of course you are going to jump to do anything to help your baby, and that is a perfect reaction! Here is where we tend to go wrong... BELIEVING EVERYTHING YOUR CARE PROVIDER TELLS YOU!  2. A C-section is more money in there pocket? Need I really say anymore on this?  3. They did something wrong but needed to find someone else to blame it on? Ah, I love to hate this one! Do you EVER hear a care provider take responsibility for their own actions? Of course not, because that means they may be held accountable. So instead they make a woman feel like she is broken! That it is your bodies fault that you didnt dilate... couldnt possibly be the pitocin and the fact that your body and baby were not ready to be in labor... UGH that is a completely different blog post!LADIES,  YOU ARE NOT BROKEN!!  


Doctors and sometimes even midwives bank on you to not know any better for yourself. The only way to change this is to educate yourself as much as you can. Dont put all of your faith in your care provider! Take responsibility... It is your body take charge of it! YOU GET ONE CHANCE TO DO THIS RIGHT.... there are NO Re-Do's!!