St. George Magazine Article December 2011

Options and Benefits abound for Mothers Wanting a Natural Childbirth Experience in Southern Utah

            In conversations with elderly women, I have been surprised to find that while some couldn't remember what they had eaten for breakfast that day, all had detailed memories of the births of their children, both the treasured parts and more difficult parts.  The experience of giving birth profoundly impacts a woman forever.  Many women had little choice in their birth experiences.  Either they gave birth before the advent of modern anesthesia techniques, or gave birth during the time of “twilight sleep birth” when women were given pain medication that rendered them unconscious or into such a trance that they would not remember what they went through to birth their babies.

            In the modern world, women have more options.  They can choose a “natural birth,” without any type of medication to start, stop, or numb the pain of labor, or an epidural, anesthesia placed in the epidural space in the woman’s spinal column, causing a cessation of pain below her waist. Epidurals can be a lifesaver for women who need cesarean sections and a very useful tool for those with long or drawn out labors.  However, natural childbirth offers tremendous benefits for the laboring woman and her baby:

·         Reduced chance of cesarean section

·         Easier time breastfeeding

·         Increased bonding between mother and infant and less separation

·         Increased participation by the mothers partner in the birth experience

·         Increased maternal sense of accomplishment

Natural childbirth also helps avoid many side effects that can occur from epidurals:

·         Reduced maternal blood pressure and fetal heart rate

·         Labor slowing, leading to additional medication to augment labor

·         Increased maternal temperature

·         Difficulty pushing

·         Increased likelihood of having a cut made (episiotomy) to birth the baby

·         Increased need for forceps or vacuum extractor to birth the baby

·         Increased cesarean section rate

·         Increase in infant hypoglycemia (low blood sugar)

·         Increased chance of baby having to spend time in the nursery

·         Maternal anesthesia headaches (“epidural headache”)

·         Increased incidence of postpartum maternal back pain and paralysis

            While a natural birth is not the only road to a positive birth experience in Southern Utah, it is easiest to have a positive natural birth with some preparation.  Here are some local options to help women achieve that goal. 

Natural Childbirth Classes

Understanding the birth process makes it easier to cope with labor.  Classes are offered by the hospital and by other trained instructors. There are different approaches to childbirth education, make sure your class is focused on natural childbirth. 

Doula Services

A doula is a trained professional birth coach.  They provide support to the laboring mother and her partner by providing information, massage, changing of positions, relaxation support and other techniques to help ease the pain of labor.

Careful Selection of a Care Provider

Several local obstetricians, family doctors, and hospital based certified nurse midwives support and encourage natural birth. Shop around. You are paying your provider for a service: choose someone who supports your wishes while safeguarding your health and your baby's. 

Out-of-Hospital Birth Options

Southern Utah has one of the highest homebirth rates in the nation. Many trained and qualified homebirth midwives serve the women in the area, providing wonderful, safe experiences for both the mother and baby. The benefits of homebirth include:

ñ  Midwives are trained professionals who know normal birth and how to handle complications and have good relationships with the hospital if it becomes safer for you to birth there

ñ  One on one attention

ñ  Birthing in the comfort of your own home with water birth as an option

ñ  A clean environment, free of many of the “super bugs” that reside at hospitals

There are also out-of-hospital birth suites available in both St. George and Cedar City.   Birth suites provide the benefits and resources of homebirth outside your home if you aren't comfortable birthing there. 

More and more Southern Utah women everyday are realizing the benefits of choosing a natural birth for themselves and their children. The right tools can make all the difference and change a potential frightening and overwhelming experience to one that is treasured.

DyAnna Gordon, BS, is a Southern Utah native, mother of 4, doula, childbirth educator, birth trauma support group facilitator and traditional midwife at Complete Beginnings Childbirth Services

What? Your Midwife is Human?

Criticism. 

As birth professionals this is definitely something that you will come in contact with. There are so many factors going into a birth. Many you can control and many you can’t. Talk about a hormonally charged profession. Groups of women who are often on the fringe of legality and acceptance working with hormonal, uncomfortable and often sleep deprived women, truly it is a recipe for disaster. So it should be no surprise to us when someone is not completely 100% satisfied with their experience. But man it hurts to hear it. As midwives we give so much of our selves to our clients.   To hear that is may not have been enough cuts deep. However criticism can be to our benefit if we handle it appropriately. I have birthed with four different midwives, worked with dozens of other doctors and midwives and have helped numerous couples with their births placing me often on the giving and receiving end of criticism. I have been on both ends of this and here is what I have learned and what I aim for.

Here are some ideas on how to receive and react to criticism.

1. When someone approaches you wanting to give feedback  make sure you have adequate time to fully discuss the issue. The last thing you need added to the criticism is feeling like it is rushed and not complete. Nobody likes unfinished business.
2.  If you are extra sensitive and emotional ask to receive the feedback in a medium that both you and the client are comfortable with. I am a verbal person so I would much rather have a conversation in person or on the phone while others might prefer email or a feedback form. If you know you can’t contain your emotions while receiving feedback in one way choose one that you can.
3. Stop your first reaction. Take a deep breath and think of the situation from all points of view. Remember especially when dealing with birth it often doesn’t matter what happened what mattered is how they feel about it. 
4.  Listen to the entire feedback with out interrupting. Pay attention to your eye contact and physical cues making sure they are appropriate and show your sincere desire to hear them out. 
5.  Reflect and say back to them as close as word for word as you can what they told you. This will give you a chance to avoid misunderstanding and gives the critic a chance to hear exactly how they worded things. It then gives them a chance to clarify if that wasn’t exactly what they meant.
6. Ask specific questions to clarify. Was it something you did specifically? Was a feeling the person had? Was it something not related to you that is being clumped with you because you were there?
7.  While validating their concerns and feelings refer back to the original goals that were laid out together before hand.
8.  Ask if they have any questions they want answered about the experience or did they just want their feelings known?
9.  Answer their questions in a non-defensive manor paying close attention in validating anything they might be feeling.
10.  Thank them for their honesty.(And mean it!)
11.  Ask if there is anything you can do.

Things to remember about receiving feedback as a birth professional

1. Constructive feedback is how we learn and grow
2.  You can not please everyone all of the time.
3.  The birth is about them and not about you. 
4. You are likely to hear one negative feedback for every ten positive experiences that clients have. The negative are much more likely to be shared.
5.  Never put a time limit on them processing their birth or experience. Just because their “baby” is ten doesn’t mean that the experience is not still impacting them.
6.  Don’t talk about the client giving you negative feedback to other clients or midwives. Making them look the fool doesn’t help you any. 
7.  Remember that like and dislike are not the same as good and bad. Someone may not like something you did but that does not necessarily mean they think you are bad.
8.  In the end be the better person. Birth is so amazing, emotional, memorable and life changing a receptive care provider can make a world of difference. Each woman only gets a few births to learn and grow but us as midwives have many.

Things I Want to do and Learn

Things I want to do and learn

People often say, "Wow midwifery takes up so much of your time!"

While they are right and much of my other time is filled with wife and motherhood duties I have and insatiable thirst for knowledge. Below you will find a list that shows you a little for the type of person I am and some of what I still have to accomplish in my life time.

•   Knitting- I want to make sweet little hats while I am waiting for spirits to enter the world.

• Quilting- The only quilts I have ever made have been for my babies and they took so much time and effort. I love looking at quilted art like this:
• Gardening- Yes I do this already but I don't do it well thank heavens my family does not need to survive on what little I am able to grow. I really want a green house.

• Chickens-  I LOVE CHICKENS!!  We have had over two dozen chickens in our time and they have all died. Mostly due to  racoons. :( 

• Cheese making- I love cheese!

• Bread making- I can make a decent loaf of 50% whole wheat bread but I need to get better.

• Sign language- I took a few semesters in college and I used sign with my babies but I would love to be fluent.

• Enjoying the arts-dance,music,plays- If I had my choice and unlimited money I would attend an art event every week. I am so fortunate to live near great venues such as Tuachan and the Shakespearean Festival.

• Playing guitar- I played in my youth but I have lost so much. I would love to work more on composing.

 

• Playing piano- My daughter is learning and I would love to learn as well. My parents made the mistake of only letting me take lessons from my Grandmother's as a child so I never got past reading top hand.

• Hiking- I still hike regularly but I would love to some some major hiking some day like walk the Appalacian Trail from start to finish.

• Camping- We do this as much as we can as a family. My goal is to ultimately camp in every National Park in the USA.

• Fishing- I love to fish and someday I want to go deep sea fishing.

• Archery- This has been on my to-do list far before anyone wrote about Katniss Everdeen. I have had a beautiful Mongolian Horse bow for a few years but I need someone to teach me how to use it.

• Service- I do this too but some day I hope to do service in other ways than only midwifery.

• Swimming- I did swim team in high school and I would love to get to the place where I swim regularly again. I really want one of those swim in place pools in my back yard buy my husband finds them silly.

• Reading classics- I would love to read every book on this list.

• History of names- I find the origin of names incredibly fascinating.

• Local government- Yes I yearn to serve in local government. I hope to find a position that can handle my on call life style. Mayor Dy has a good ring to it don't you think?

• Fencing- Yes the kind where you hit people with swords. My husband is pretty involved with the SCA

• Geocashing- My family does some of this but we would like to do it more. A lot of fun.

• Writing poems- Yep, I write poetry. I think I inherited it from my lovely Grandmother who writes a personalized poem for every birthday in each of her 6 children and 28 grandchildren's birthday card.

• Writing children's books- I have so many ideas for these it is ridiculous.

• Boxing- Yes I know it is gory but it is so much fun.

• Get my PHD- Because I love education and it would be fun to be a doctor who is also a midwife. 

Why Midwives are Fat

Ok. Maybe that is a generalization. There is the occasionally sleek and statuesque midwife. But they are most likely able to also pull off the long grey hair and braless hippy theme as well. This is not the majority of midwives I know. Here are some of my observations about why many (including me) midwives are on the plumper side.

•   Who as a laboring woman wants to lean into a bony shoulder? As a child I had one grandmother who was 92 pounds soaking wet and another who was tipping the scales at 200 pounds. Whose lap do you think I gravitated to? It is a no-brainer.

• Most midwives have had babies themselves, and often many of them. Most midwives I know have had at least four kids and eight is not uncommon. Regardless of good genes and exercise carrying around and caring for all of those babies does something to your waist line.

• Can anyone say adrenaline? Being a midwife is all about the adrenaline rush, ok maybe that isn’t all it is about, but it is surprising how quick you feel the need for another “birth fix”. All of those shots of adrenaline do something to your system. Adrenal fatigue anyone?

• We often don’t have control over what we eat. We have all been at a birth, a long birth think 24 hours plus, when all there is in the cupboard is Coco Crispies. So that is what you eat for five meals in a row. Or you don’t eat. Neither is good for your metabolism.

• We often don’t get to choose when we eat. Last night we had a five day old newborn in the ER so where were my second midwife friend and I at midnight? At Maverick stocking up on Icee’s and soda and crème filled cupcakes hoping our cold infested bodies would not fail us and we would make it through the night as our client’s support system and advocates. Followed by Rescue Remedy, echinecea, and Vitamin B6 of course.

• Any exercise routine we establish is soon shot to pot by an overnight birth (or two or three in a row) and a baby that is feeling abandoned so he won’t let you put him down for a week.

• The last thing a pregnant woman wants is for her husband to be checking out her hot midwife. Enough said!

• You have no circadian rhythms. After I have been up all night at a birth I need three hours of uninterrupted sleep right when I get home. And maybe a 30 minute nap later in the day and I am good. If that doesn’t tell your body that it is stressed and it needs to hold on to all the nutrients it can nothing will.

• We have repetitive injuries caused by assisting at births that make it difficult to exercise. I know my wrists will never be the same after the close to hundreds of hours I have spent doing hip squeezes. How does that look for my racquetball game?

• We have to have large breasts so we can adequately demonstrate how to easily position the breast for nursing and how an over weight (or pregnant) person can indeed do a full squat with our heels flat on the floor.

No am I always happy with the extra few pounds I carry around. No. I try to eat healthy and I exercise regularly but sometime you just have to love what God gave you.