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Birth Happens...a blog with a little bit of everything birth related

3/22/2023 0 Comments

World Doula Week 2023 is here!!

World Doula Week is March 22-28th.  Kicking off on World Doula Day, the goal of World Doula Week is to showcase the impact that birth and postpartum doulas have on the physiological, social, emotional, and psychological health of women, newborns and families in the postpartum period.

Doulas are non-medical professionals who provide informational, educational and physical support during pregnancy, labor & birth and for the first 12 weeks of the postpartum period.

Benefits of the presence of doulas in birth and in the postpartum period: Reduces the incidence of c-sections May shorten the length of labor Reduces epidural and analgesic requests Increases breastfeeding initiation and continuation Increases mother’s satisfaction of birth experience Can reduce the incidence of postpartum mood disorders Increases new parents’ confidence in the care of their newborn

Your Body Your Birth Doula & Childbirth Education Services provides birth/postpartum doula support to Monmouth, Ocean, and Middlesex County families and is now taking inquiries! You can learn more here www.yourbodyyourbirthdoulaservices.com

Throughout history, women have supported each other during pregnancy, birth and the postpartum period. In today’s society of scattered friends and families, doulas fill this vital role of support for the people birthing the next generation.  Families in Monmouth, Ocean, and Middlesex County have benefited from working with Carla at Your Body Your Birth Doula & Childbirth Education Services since 2015!!
Hera is a beautiful testimony from a client... “My name is Conner R., and I am mother to a beautiful boy named Hunter. My dear friend Carla Ward was with me through every step of my pregnancy, and even four years later, still coaches me through motherhood with my toddler. While I was pregnant, I was working full time and found it difficult to manage normal pregnancy events. Carla helped me through the process by going to my OBGYN appointments with me and helping me figure out the next step I wanted to take. This helped greatly with my anxiety in general, as well as being a new mom and not having a lot of family around at the time. Her presence, coaching, and emotional support at that time was, and still is, invaluable to me and to my husband. Although I had planned for a non-medicated, vaginal birth, as per Carla’s sage advice, not everything went as planned, and together we went to St. Peter’s in New Brunswick so that I could be induced. As before, Carla was with me for every step and doctor, explaining the process and translating to me what needed to happen when and for what reason. She honored all of my requests to the best of her abilities, whether it was bouncing on the ball during painful contractions or finally getting that very-much-needed epidural and sleeping peacefully… for me at least. She was the perfect ambassador between me and the hospital doctors. Carla also guided my husband through his role and responsibilities as well. She coached him on how to help me when she was on her way over, she also reached out to him for updates when I was unavailable. While we were in the hospital, they were able to come up with a plan for post-partum care that we were confident in following through. After Hunter was born, she coached me on how to nurse him and most importantly, on self-care and how I can be healthy and active after the birth. She even brought my best friends and a special cake to have a quiet party to celebrate Hunters first day Earth-side. Carla continued to guide my husband and I through many of the ups and down that first-time parents go through: coughs and colds, allergies, falls, spills and everything related to having a child. Without her, I would have been up a creek without a paddle. I was able to entrust my childbirth experience to Carla because she is skilled, competent, and most importantly, she cares. She cares that each woman has not only a safe and healthy childbirth, but a genuinely fulfilling experience. She is educated in the matters of child birthing, as well as post-partum care and what needs to happen in order to have a truly meaningful child birth experience. She also has the understanding of what it takes to see women through such an ordeal. She is calm and level-headed, as well as tender and devoted to her passion. I am truly grateful for her and satisfied with all of my memories of bringing my son into this world knowing that I relied on her.”

Having a baby is one of life’s biggest transitions and greatest joys. However, many parents find themselves feeling extremely isolated and overwhelmed during pregnancy and the postpartum period after the initial excitement has subsided.
Hiring a doula can help reverse those feelings and provide the support that new families need to instead have a pregnancy and postpartum period that is filled with feelings of contentment and empowerment.

In honor of World Doula Week, here are the top 4 benefits of hiring a doula: 
*Non-judgmental support - a doula does not come in with specific
birthing plan or parenting style. Doulas do not push a specific ways of doing things. A doula is there to help you come up with your own birth plan and parenting style. She’ll help you figure out what feels right for your family.
Doulas are also expert listeners who have no baggage of a family history with you.
*More enjoyable maternity leave – doulas help ease the transition for new parents. Having a baby is a major life change. Doulas are there to calmly support you through the shift and help you focus on enjoying it, rather than muddling through it alone.
*Expert advice – your doula can share what works for other families, and other ideas and tips based on her training and experience, IF YOU ASK. It’s so wonderful to have all your questions answered as you go instead of relying on Google.
*Decreased risk of postpartum depression & anxiety – research has shown that new mothers who feel supported tend to report less problems with postpartum mental health.

​Your Body Your Birth Doula & Childbirth Education Services helps new families in 
Monmouth, Ocean, and Middlesex Counties, NJ by providing birth doula support , childbirth education classes, CPR training, and Reiki Healing. Contact Carla today at carla@yourbodyyourbirthdoulaservices.com or call
732-598-6468 to learn more.

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2/16/2023 0 Comments

Doula vs. Midwife...what's the difference?

Lots of people ask me what the difference is between a doula and a midwife.
A midwife is a medical professional who actually delivers your baby. Midwives also provide medical care throughout pregnancy as well.
A birth doula is a non-medical professional who provides physical, educational and informational support throughout pregnancy, labor, birth and immediately afterwards.
But it's so much more than this! I always find it hard to put in words the value of...
*having that extra set of hands in the room
*being that grounding force/energy to help you find your rhythm in labor and MAINTAIN that rhythm throughout your labor
*working with birth partners to enhance support in labor
*offering suggestions for positions to facilitate movement/rotation during labor.
I LOVE WHAT I DOULA!!
#doulalife #themonmouthmoms #monmouthcountymoms #birthwithoutfear #njdoula #naturalbirth #birthmyway #yourbodyyourbirthnj #30daysofdoulalife #njdoula #amazingbirth #doulalove #monmouthcountydoula #oceancountydoula #pregnancysupport #naturalbirth #oceancountymoms #oceantownshipnj #oceantownshipnjdoula #neptunenj #oceanportnj #tintonfallsnj #wallnj #middletownnj #redbanknj #avonnj #springlakenj #longbranchnj #westlongbranchnj #coltsnecknjmoms #belmarnj
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3/22/2019 0 Comments

Happy World Doula Week!!  Wait...what's a Doula?

So often, I get asked "What does a Doula do?" , or my favorite, "Why do I need a Doula?"
 
The age-old answer for this has been "we provide physical, emotional, and informational support."  While this answer is technically accurate, this definition sells us short.   Let’s break it down…
 
PHYSICAL SUPPORT
Sure, we provide physical support, sometimes by holding you up, sometimes holding your hips, your leg, or even your hair.  But my ability to physically support you isn't really that - it's that I am 100% focused on you, anticipating your needs before you voice them, using my knowledge and understanding of you and birth to make suggestions for your movement that may facilitate your birth.  Physical support sounds so, well, physical,  but we are so much more than that.
 
EMOTIONAL SUPPORT
Yes, we provide emotional support.  Pregnancy, birth, and postpartum are emotional times.  But, again, what you really need of me is my unwavering faith in you and your abilities;  however you carry, birth and care for your baby. I am there not only for you, but for your partner as well - a barometer of normal. I can slow the room when it seems it's spinning, be a rock when you need to hold on, a sounding board when you need to roar, or understand how very hard you are working when you make it 'look easy.' I understand postpartum and that my visit with you is more than ogling over a new baby.  I am there for the tough questions and the tears, the joys and the laughter, for you and your new family!
 
INFORMATIONAL SUPPORT
Doulas do have a vast amount of knowledge about pregnancy, physiologically normal birth, cesarean births and postpartum.  But truly, this is not what you need of me and providing you with endless amounts of information can be overwhelming and lead to feelings of judgement.  Instead, I am your bridge.  I will make sure you have the information you need to make informed birth choices.   I will provide unbiased information, allowing you to make decisions that are right for you.  In fact, you already know more about how you will birth your baby then me. I both know and honor that. I am here to help you connect with a birth class, a health care provider, pediatrician, a therapist, a lactation consultant, or a yoga class; to answer the questions meaningful to you.
 
SO…WHY MAKE A DOULA PART OF YOUR BIRTHING TEAM?
Birth Doulas build relationships with expecting families to help them have a positive birth experience.  We help facilitate conversations between the birthing person and her care provider. Provide non-judgmental support for her birth choices and support the family through labor and birth.  We work with our minds, hearts and hands and are a bridge to many other forms of care.
 
DOULAS ARE THIS AND SO MUCH MORE!  
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7/6/2018 1 Comment

TENS for Labor...

What is TENS?
Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation 
A handheld battery-operated device generates mild electrical impulses and transmits them via stimulating pads (electrodes), where they stimulate nerve fibers.  

Benefits of TENS
  • Reduction of labor pain with more freedom of movement
  • controlled by laboring woman
  • no loss of other sensations or contraction pain
  • no decrease of mental function
  • continued active participation by laboring woman
  • postponement or elimination of request for pain medication/epidural
  • shorter labor

How does TENS work?
There are two mechanisms by which TENS works, Endorphin Theory and Gate Control Theory
     Endorphin Theory - The low frequency, "acupuncture-like" TENS stimulates the release of endorphins.  Endorphins are the body's natural pain reliever.  
      Gate Control Theory- The severity of pain one feels depends on the balance between painful and non-painful (pleasant) stimuli that reach one's consciousness.  Pain awareness can be reduced by closing the "gate" to pain by increasing non-painful or pleasant stimuli (the TENS stimuli) thus reducing painful stimuli (contractions).  This is also known as distraction or refocusing.  The theory holds that the perception of physical pain is modulated by interaction between different neurons, both pain transmitting and non-pain transmitting.  By introducing the stimulation, the brain can control the degree of pain that is perceived based on which pain stimuli are to be ignored. 

When used on a high frequency, the TENS selectively stimulates certain non-pain-transmitting nerve fibers to send signals to the brain that override other nerve signals carrying pain messages.
When used on low frequencies, the TENS stimulates the production of endorphins by activating opioid receptors. 

How effective is TENS?
Research findings on TENS have shown that laboring women using the device use less pain medication than women using a “placebo” TENS device [2]. The majority of women surveyed in the UK National Birthday Trust Survey rated it as moderately or very helpful in relieving pain and would use it again in a future labor [3]. A study that investigated the use of TENS for back pain in labor found that "TENS has a specific beneficial effect on pain localized in the back."[1].

It is very important to start TENS use early in labor, before contractions become overwhelming and  intense.  This allows the body to recognize and process the stimuli before the pain becomes unbearable and overrides all other stimuli.  The effects of the TENS are eliminated when waiting until labor is at a peak. 

Is TENS safe?
There is no reported harm to mother or baby with the use of TENS in labor when used at full term (not before 38 weeks gestation)
Contraindications:
  • Not to be used on inflamed or injured skin or over a rash
  • Not to be used with a demand type cardiac pacemaker
  • Not to be used if woman has a seizure disorder
  • Not to be used in water/tub/shower

In Conclusion:
  • TENS is a safe, non-drug method of pain control for labor
  • For some women, it reduces their awareness of back pain
  • TENS is most effective when begun during early labor
  • It is a worthwhile adjunct to other non-drug approaches for back pain in labor
  • TENS should be used with consent from the woman's caregiver


References
[1] Bundsen P, Peterson L-E, Seistam U. Pain relief in labor by transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation:
A prospective matched study. Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica 1981; 60:459-468.
[2] Carroll D, Tramer M, McQuay H, Nye B, Moore A. Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation in labour
pain: A systematic review. British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, 1997; 104:169-75.
[3] Chamberlain G, Wraight A, Steer P. Pain and Its Relief in Childbirth: The Results of a National Survey
Conducted by the National Birthday Trust. Churchill Livingstone: Edinburgh, 1993.


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6/14/2018 0 Comments

Fetal Monitoring

While we can understand the value of fetal monitoring when in labor, many Moms are unaware of their options when it comes to the type and duration of monitoring available to them. 

​Most commonly used is Electric Fetal Monitoring (EFM). ​With EFM, two straps are placed around Mom's belly, one measures baby’s heart rate (with an ultrasound machine) while the mother’s contractions are monitored with a pressure sensor. Both of these sensors are linked to a recording machine. EFM can be used continuously or intermittently and is used in about 90% of mothers who give birth in US hospitals.   Mom's may be unaware that they can request to have intermittent EFM as opposed to continuous EFM when in a hospital setting, when appropriate.  Intermittent monitoring allows for freedom of movement.  While there may be a point when continuous monitoring becomes necessary (primarily with maternal and/or fetal distress or complications), monitoring can become distracting during labor and are restrictive.  Continuous EFM can also lead to a higher rate of Cesareans, forceps, and vacuum births.  

Another option is a fetal stethoscope or handheld ultrasound machine (Doppler) to listen to the fetal heartbeat.  While listening, the provider places a hand on the mother’s abdomen to assess contractions.  Doppler is used frequently in office visits, and is the primary method of monitoring with home birth and in birth centers.  

Handheld Dopplers support movement and upright laboring positions, can be used during water therapy (tub or shower) and lend to more continuous support of care providers during birth.  Dopplers may not be appropriate for mothers with complications and they are not capable of recording fetal readings.  

Open a dialogue with your provider regarding monitoring.  Make sure you are aware of your options and are on the same page as your provider!

For more information, there is a great article on EvidenceBasedBirth.com/FetalMonitoring



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