Talk Birth

This morning as I was brewing my coffee, I overheard that the Today Show was going to be doing a segment on home birthing. I ran to the television immediately to hear what they had to say on the topic. The first words I saw written on the screen were “The Perils of Midwifery”. Perils? Was this going to be an entire session lashing out at midwives? I was already disgusted, and quickly re-evaluated whether or not I wanted to watch the piece. But I continued on. Then they referred to home birthing as “extreme birthing” because there would be no drugs, and no doctors. How can one refer to something that is so normal and natural, something women have done from the beginning of time (with midwives) as extreme (Click here for full article on “A Short History of Midwifery”)? This is not to say that there is not a time and place for a doctor or a hospital when it comes to childbirth, especially with high-risk pregnancies. In fact, most women choose to birth in a hospital setting. It makes them feel safer, and that is understandable. But we now know that home birthing, in a low-risk pregnancy, is just as safe as a hospital birth. continue reading »

When you plan a vacation, you do all of the research on the best hotels, dining, attractions, etc.  When you set out to buy a new car, you want to know the details like gas mileage, safety, and all of the possible options the car may include.  What about when you become pregnant?  No one wants to hurt their bodies or their babies, and we all wish for the safest birth of a healthy newborn. Yet, many women are still subjecting themselves to unnecessary medical procedures that may actually be hurting their bodies, their birth, their babies. continue reading »