Waiting game

I've got a client right now in the early stages of her induction... meaning nothing is really happening, so I am finding ways to occupy my time while my phone sits no more than 6 inches away from me. Every so often I stare at it, waiting for it to ring and tell me it's time to go. I'm not with her, but I am so with her.

I thought I'd keep my mind on birth and visit this little place I wish I visited more. Since it's been a while, there is so much I want to say.

First, Miles for Midwives was a blast. It was the largest they'd had, with 460 runners, 50 sponsors, and a huge crowd of others. And my little fundraiser page raised $200! Thank you so much to everyone who came and donated.

Of course, I forgot my camera, and the pictures I took on Michael's phone didn't come out, so I've got limited ones to show you. Here's one of the Metro Minis table. Joanna, the co-owner, is on the left wearing a beautiful Girasol wrap, while in the background, physical therapist Lisa Hoffman identifies a postpartum mom's diastasis (she teaches a free class at Metro Minis about it!). We also had cloth diapers, Kleen Kanteens, and other baby carriers on display:


And here's one of Michael and me and my brother's dog, Chi Chi, after they finished the race:


Dogs love midwives too!

The Miles for Midwives goodie bag was super sweet and chock full of coupons. I'm going to give most of them to my clients, but here are some I thought I'd post here. Give me a shout if you want any of them:

• $10 off an 8 week series at the Prenatal Yoga Center
• 10% off online orders at Magnificent Baby
• Free breastfeeding diary with any purchase at Yummy Mummy
  
• 50% off your first two treatments at Garden Acupuncture
  
• 10% off any class or workshop at Birth Day Presence
• $25 off your first BodyTalk session at Wisdom House Wellness
• $10 off any $50 online purchase at Jake and Ella
• This isn't a discount, but it's nice to know: 15% of what you pay for a 5-class Hypnobirthing course goes to Choices in Childbirth!
  

Miles for Midwives also kicked off National Midwifery Week. And I was so happy to see this banner as I was walking into a hospital for a birth that week:


After all this celebration, you're thinking, Leda has to add something cynical, right? It wouldn't be a complete post without some complaint, right? Have no fear! The bad news is here:

What is this all about? The IRS has decided that breast pumps cannot be tax-sheltered, but other items like acne cream can be: "I.R.S. officials say they consider breast milk a food that can promote good health, the same way that eating citrus fruit can prevent scurvy. But because the I.R.S. code considers nutrition a necessity rather than a medical condition, the agency’s analysts view the cost of breast pumps, bottles and pads as no more deserving of a tax break than an orange juicer." Yeah, except orange juicers don't prevent cancer. And diabetes. And asthma. Or have the potential to save the US $13 billion in health care costs (reported in the middle of the article).

Whew. Now that the bad stuff is out of the way, I can be done.

And maybe I'll go to this birth someday...

Great Success! MMA and CLC

I have two pieces of excellent news. First, The Midwifery Modernization Act passed and was signed into law! This is a big sigh of relief for midwives and their mamas-to-be everywhere.

Second, I recently became certified as a Lactation Counselor! In the training, I learned fascinating, fascinating things about breastfeeding. Here are some of my favorite nuggets of knowledge:

• During pregnancy, your breasts secrete an anti-bacterial oil that protects your baby from germs when he/she begins nursing. This oil appears as the absolute first sign of pregnancy, before you can test positive for pregnancy on a urine or blood test
  
• Newborn babies do not differentiate between feeling full and sucking. As long as they are sucking, they feel full. It is reason, more than "nipple confusion", why pacifier use is discouraged until at least two weeks of age- before this, they might suck and suck and suck, and never cue to you that they are hungry, putting them at the risk of under-feeding
• "Good" babies are weird babies. Ever hear a mom say, "my baby is so good, she never cries, she nurses every four hours for ten minutes exactly, and sleeps 5 hours during the night"? Either this baby is a freak, or this mom is a liar. Because human milk is very dilute (like us, it's about 70% water), babies need to nurse frequently, ideally, every two hours. And if one day, your baby is nursing more than usual, or for longer sessions, your baby is not being "wrong" for getting off "schedule." Babies are like real people: some days, we eat more than others, and sometimes, we eat slower or faster.
  
• The best way to achieve the first latch on is to let the baby self-attach. None of this "shape your breast like a cone and shove the baby's mouth at it" stuff. Self-attachment leads to a better latch, meaning less pain for the mom and more milk for the baby and more chances of breastfeeding success later on. On the rare occasions when mama and baby are left alone after birth, I've seen beautiful self-attachment. Watch the "breast crawl"
  
• Breastmilk is magic. We know that already, but I thought I'd say it again. In many ways, breastfeeding is so crucial to baby's and mom's health that it is quite risky (and medically expensive, later on) to not breastfeed. Here's a recent NY Times article touting its magic
  
• DOULAS! A study found that the more stroking, smiling, and talking a woman receives during labor, the more she strokes, smiles at, and talks to her newborn, leading to more successful hunger-communication and thus, breastfeeding

A Metro Minis co-worker and doula friend of mine, Koyuki Smith, also became a CLC. A drop-in breastfeeding group led by us CD(DONA)s/CLCs is in the works at Metro Minis...

The 5 births in 15 days

There is so much to write about. I have plans for so many posts, so here is a list. Maybe I'll get to them someday:

• The closing of St. Vincents/my GREAT birth experience there
• My thoughts on the relationship between pain management (medical or not) and birth outcomes
• A post that I already started, sitting in my drafts folder, about the NY Times article on Freda Rosenfeld, the lactation consultant
• Not birth related, but relevant to early parenting: the debate about babywearing, the safety of "slings", and where Metro Minis, my place of regular employment, fits in!
• The really groundbreaking Amnesty International report on maternal mortality in the US (I'm very proud because I helped work on it as an intern last spring)
• The recent NIH conference on VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean)
  

It's been a while, but for good reason. I attended my first birth since late November (had to take a break for health reasons) on Febuary 16th. Then another February 20th, five days later. Another February 26th, 6 days later. Another March 2nd, four days later. Another March 3rd, one day later. That is 5 births in 15 days.

FIVE births in FIFTEEN days. I'm birth-exhausted. Both of clients with due dates in March have given birth, so I'm just waiting on my April clients and I feel lucky to have this break (although I am on call for two of those April clients right now). I have five clients lined up for April, and I'm just praying, praying, praying, that they won't all give birth in 15 days. 30 days would be great. Could you do that for me, ladies?

I like giving stats on births, so let's recap the 5 in 15. All in-hospital. One had a midwife, four had doctors. One was induced (for low-fluids). All had epidurals. Three were c-sections: one was for "failure to progress", one was for "non-reassuring signs" in baby's heart rate, and one was scheduled in advance for breech presentation. Shortest (meaning my time spent at the labor, not the length of the labor itself) (and not counting the scheduled c-section, because that's about 40 minutes): 10 hours. Longest: 30 hours. Two tied at 30 hours.

But the most exciting birth by far, was one I was unfortunately unable to attend. On March 11th, one of my clients woke up to some mild contractions. Listening to both my advice and that of her childbirth educator, she went back to sleep, thinking her first-time labor would be a long one. She woke up two hours later, contractions still mild, and turned on a movie. She called me after the movie and told me, with great poise and lucidity, that she was in labor. Gauging her stage of labor by her voice, I thought "she's still in early labor" and said my usual "Great! Call me when anything changes or gets more intense" (among other things, I'm not that boring of a doula). I get a call from her husband one hour later and he says "We're going to the hospital, she can feel the baby coming out." I thought, "Yeah right. I spoke to her an hour ago and she sounded no where near this stage. She didn't even sound like she was in active labor. She probably just feels some premature pushing pressure." But, I leave for the hospital, and by the time I get above ground, I get a message from her husband:

"We didn't make it to the hospital, because she had the baby in the taxi! It's a boy!"

I learned a very important lesson. When a mom says, "I feel the baby coming out", ask "Do you feel like you have to push, or do you feel the baby's head literally coming out of your vagina?" Because later, she told me she felt the baby's head literally coming out of her vagina.

Full story here.

First, too many births at once, then a missed birth? Can't a doula get a break?

Nina's Needlepoint!

It's finished! She's going to put it on a pillow, which we'll put on our designated breastfeeding chair at Metro Minis. Don't worry, I'll also document the progress of the pillow...