Pain Management Techniques
A Doula For The Dying: 5 Things I Learned at My Father’s Deathbed
Almost three years ago, I packed up my four children and drove to Oregon to help care for my father. His melanoma had metastasized to his spinal fluid, and everything that could be thrown at it to kill it, had been. There was nothing left, but to wait. Probably only weeks were left. His decline…
Read MoreReally?! Fear Slows Down Labor?!
It’s been awhile, birthy world! Thank you for your patience. I’ve had quite the interesting summer so far, how about you? Anyway. Today’s post. Go ahead and go read this short article before you proceed here: Fear Makes Labor Longer, Study Finds. So, they’ve “discovered” that fear slows down labor. Really? This is something women…
Read MoreDo Moms Planning an Epidural Need a Doula?
This question was posed on her facebook wall by my mentor, Desirre Andrews. I appreciate the thought that her questions provoke, and the way she challenges me to dig a little deeper and search out what my answer would be to this question. I think, overall, there is an assumption in our country that an…
Read MorePain’s Message
“Labor will hurt. Probably a lot. But whether this is negative is another matter… A laboring woman can be in a great deal of pain, yet feel loved and supported and exhilarated by the creative forces flowing through her body and her ability to meet labor’s challenges.” ~ Henci Goer Pain in general is not…
Read MoreThoughts On Pain In Childbirth
What is pain, exactly? Biologically speaking, it’s simply a message our bodies send to our brains that something needs to change, and quickly. Hand on a hot curling iron? The pain message sent tells your brain to MOVE YOUR HAND NOW!!! I would say that this is a very efficient way to carry a message.…
Read MorePushing Techniques & Positioning in 2nd Stage Labor
By: Janet Grabe, RN, BSN, ICCE, CD(DONA), CLD Col Sylvia Wood, RN, MSN, CNM at Tripler Army Medical Center is a Co-Investigator and the Site Coordinator in a multi-site study on management of the second stage of labor. She was kind enough to share some of their knowledge with us by providing several excellent presentations…
Read MoreSinging Through the Pain
I saw this blog at The Birth Ecology Project, and had to share it here. It’s too beautiful… And it just dawned on me. I used this technique when I was in labor with my firstborn. After I’d been in labor over 24 hours, the midwife and my mom convinced me to take a walk…
Read More