Top Five Tips on Preparing Your Older Child for Birth
When I was pregnant for the second time and not wanting the same experience as the first, I began searching for more information and alternative options regarding birth. We brought midwife, Terri Payne, CNM, on as our doula and she asked where I would like to birth and if our …
Where to Birth?
Pros and Cons in Choosing a Birthing Location: Hospital, Birth Center (hospital or free standing), Home Birth, or Unassisted Congratulations! You’re pregnant, have a million things on your checklist, and you’re whittling away at them while you can. But should birthing location be a question of consideration? When our …
Must Reads for Birth Partners
Is your birth partner wishing they could learn more to support you during your motherhood transition? Check out this list of “must reads!” The Birth Partner – This birth classic written by Penny Simkin talks about preparation for labor, when to know labor has started, epidurals and other medications …
#MOMCRUSHMONDAY: Meet Joanne
Mom Crush Monday #MCM Joanne walked into my office during her second trimester with her first child. She was a vibrant, funny, and determined soon-to-be new mom who couldn’t wait to bring a life into this world. Joanne initially presented to my office with the common musculoskeletal complaint of …
Breaking Up is Hard to Do – How to Change to a New Provider During Pregnancy
So you’ve decided it’s time to break it off with your current OB GYN/Midwife in search of a better fit. Now what? How do you best handle the transition to a new provider during pregnancy without anxiety or guilt? First things first, you need to make sure you know who …
Train for Birth
As the mama of a toddler and also pregnant with number two, I am constantly staying active. My goal for exercising while pregnant isn’t to race in a 5K or marathon, lift heavy things, or even reach new fitness goals; it’s to train for birth. Birth is a mental and …
What is a Midwife?
Pregnancy, birth, and parenting are accompanied by their fair share of unknowns, but there is one thing that is guaranteed – you will be faced with choices to make! Being educated and informed about what your options are often results in a sense of empowerment and confidence in the choices …
What is Moxibustion? How Is It Beneficial With Malpresentation of My Baby?
Moxibustion is a technique using an herb (Mugwart) in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). It is a form of heat therapy that consists of burning herbs on or above specific points in the body to warm regions and meridian points (the body’s energy ‘highway’) with the intention of stimulating circulation and …
Healing from a Traumatic C-Section (Mentally and Physically)
Some women choose a cesarean birth and it is an empowered and educated decision; we fully support those women. But some women don’t plan to birth surgically at all, and end up with a birth story that is drastically different from the plan they had in place. This blog is …
Healing from a Traumatic Vaginal Birth
If there is one thing that you can count on during birth, it is that birth is an unpredictable process. Birth can leave deep emotional wounds, some of which we may want to erase. Unfortunately, as conscious humans, we cannot just erase these unfavorable memories and we must process these …