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Sweet Pea ​Births
Sweet Pea ​Births
...celebrating every swee​t pea their birth
...celebrating every swee​t pea their birth
Blog
Patient Rights
| Posted on September 25, 2015 at 9:39 AM |
comments (3)
|
 Thank you to one of my colleagues, Rachel Davis, for
suggesting this topic. I originally shared this after one of our couples had an unplanned unassisted birth couple encountered in the
hospital, and they were not treated very kindly upon arriving or throughout their hospital stay. Most people would not expect their baby to be born at 35
weeks. In addition, they had not counted
on dealing with hospital protocols since they had planned a homebirth. The other situation they hadn’t planned on
was giving birth away from their community. They were familiar with their local hospital in northern Arizona - it was beyond their imagination that they would spend their first week of their child's life having to deal with a major hospital in central Phoenix.  Their situation underscores the importance of having a
well-thought out and written birth plan no matter what kind of birthplace you
have chosen. Wherever you are
planning to give birth, Bruss and I suggest that you think about writing two birth
plans. Write one for a normal, uncomplicated birth at your chosen birth place. Also consider writing one that has your wishes written down in the event of complications, and that
factors in hospital care if you are planning to birth at home or birth center.. Once you have
talked these out between yourselves and your care providers, write them down and have a copy handy at all times.You just never know how the birth journey will unfold…in the event of
unforeseen circumstances, your birth plan can act as a compass for your
decisions. It can also remind you of the
decisions you made when you took the time to research your options and when you
were not under pressure. You can then
evaluate the current situation with a little less emotion and a little more
reason. There are two sections to this post. First, I highlight the main points of your rights as a patient in the hospital. I encourage you to remember that you are the CONSUMER of health care, not a helpless being at the mercy of the staff. The second section reviews some basics of informed consent so that you have an idea of how to receive the right care for you after asking questions that other people have found helpful to gather complete information before accepting or declining treatment. PATIENT RIGHTS For a full Pregnant Patient and Obstetric Patient Bill of
Rights, I am going to refer you to a link on Doris Haire’s Alliance for the
Improvement of Maternity Services (AIMS): http://www.aimsusa.org/ppbr.htm One of the reasons so many of us feel pressured to make choices
against our instinct or desire for as natural experience as possible is that
sometimes information is relayed in such a way that implies that you are a bad
parent if you deny treatment to your child, or they imply that by not choosing
something you could harm your child. How
many parents are strong enough to follow their instinct with pressures like
time, fatigue and shock also factoring into the situation? Whether you are planning to give birth at home, in a birth
center, or a hospital, I encourage all pregnant mothers and their coaches to
become familiar with the AIMS Pregnant Patient Bill of Rights in the event that
you end up in a hospital for whatever reason.
I suggest that you print out the American Hospital Association's
"Patient's Bill of Rights," (http://www.patienttalk.info/AHA-Patient_Bill_of_Rights.htm) as well as the AIMS Pregnant Patient Bill
of Rights and bring them both with you in the event of a hospital visit during
your pregnancy and labor. I will summarize some of the points here and encourage
parents everywhere, that pregnant or not, if you are in a hospital, there is very little that you can be forced to do or take for yourself or your child. You have every right to ask and be told the
benefits and the risk of EVERYTHING they recommend as treatment, and you have
the right to refuse. These are what I chose to pull our from both of the Bill of Rights documents as your rights as a pregnant and an obstetric patient:
INFORMED CONSENT What is informed consent?
According to Doris Haire: "Most courts consider that the patient is
'informed' if the following information is given:
You can ascertain this information by asking questions. For a more comprehensive look at positive
communications and informed consent, refer to page 55 of The Bradley Method®
Student Workbook. I suggest that you start with questions that establish how
the mother and the baby are doing.
Always use names to remind the care providers that they are making
recommendations for another human being, not an ambiguous test case:
If both are well enough and there is time, then you can
continue with questions such as:
If the care provider agrees that Mother and Baby are well
enough to let labor proceed and let nature take her course, continue to trust
that Mother and Baby are working together and that you will be meeting your
baby in due course. You can address
other probable causes – is mom hydrated?
Is she emotionally ready and relaxed enough to accept her labor? Are you using the best positions in the
appropriate stage of labor to allow gravity and physiology to move things
along? If after asking this series of questions Mother and Coach
decide that further action is worth exploring, then you can continue with these
questions:
One of the reasons it is so important to take care when
choosing your care providers and medical facilities is that sometimes there
isn’t time to ask all these questions.
If Mother and Baby are already compromised and there is no time to ask
questions, you must trust that the care providers and the birthplace will do
the best for your family. Do you have
this level of trust with your care provider?
Do you have this level or trust with the birthplace? If you answered “no” to either of these
questions, it’s time to seriously consider making a change. Although true complications are rare, if you
are part of the small percentage, you want to ensure that you have the best chance
for a good outcome despite any complications that may arise. You have a couple of
options in a hospital setting in the event that you want to choose differently than your care
providers are recommending and/or if you feel like your concerns are not being
heard by your care provider.
There is no decision, big or small, that you will regret
making as long as you keep in mind Dr. Bradley’s ultimate outcome: Healthy Mom,
Healthy Baby. As long as your decisions
are made with the best results for these two people in mind, then you can find
peace of mind that you are making the right decision for you and your family. The
material included on this site is for informational purposes only. It is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical
advice. The reader should always consult her or his healthcare provider to
determine the appropriateness of the information for their own situation. This blog contains information about our classes available in
Chandler, AZ and Payson, AZ and is not the official website of The Bradley
Method®. The views contained on this blog do not
necessarily reflect those of The Bradley Method® or the American Academy of
Husband-Coached Childbirth®. |
What is natural birth?
| Posted on September 4, 2015 at 9:37 AM |
comments (2)
|
The night we started our seventh Bradley Method®
class series in December 2011 played out like all other "first nights" of class. I am on edge all day long. I get nervous before our students
arrive: What if I forget anything? Will they like our class? Will our class run smoothly? What if I leave something I need for class at home?  The class went well, and we got a question that we have
never gotten before: “What is natural birth – is it anything that doesn’t end
in a C-section?”
It made me pause and think for a moment. My short answer in class was, “Well, I guess
that depends on the person and their definition of natural birth.”
I pondered that question all night. Up until three months before that class, I would have said
that we had three natural births and were preparing for our fourth. And then we had our home birth experience,
which re-defined “natural birth” for me.
It turned out to be the most natural birth experience we had.
I can’t say our hospital births were completely intervention
free since we were always poked and prodded by something or someone. Heck, they weren’t even “un-medicated” – I
was administered some kind of medication with each one. With Puma, I had penicillin, Pitocin and an
episiotomy; I had penicillin with Night Owl; and penicillin and Pitocin with Charger. We did achieve three epidural-free vaginal births
with a very supportive OB, though, and for that I am grateful.
Otter’s birth gave us a new definition of “natural”. Here are all the things we DID NOT experience
during our low-risk home birth: - A transfer from our home to another location during active
labor - Forms to fill out - A wait in the triage area with other families in varying
states of apprehension - Vaginal exams to check the progress of labor - Heparin lock for access to veins “just in case” - Electronic fetal monitoring - Mommy-monitoring
Nurse coming in to check vitals - Calls to the doctor to report on my “progress” - Restriction of food or drink - Beeping sounds and hospital smells that inhibit rest or
sleep - Time on back for the convenience of the hospital staff - Episiotomy
Our midwives were called when my water broke and they came
to see how we were doing. The baby was
low and things seemed to be progressing, so they stayed. To this day I do not know what the deciding
factor in their staying was when our labor hit the start-stop mode…I do know I
am grateful that they didn’t leave us. I
would have felt like another “failure to progress” and who knows what that
would have done to my emotional state and our labor. (Click here for our homebirth story.)
At first, they checked on us every thirty minutes. They would monitor the baby with a Doptone to
assess her heart rate, and they would check my blood pressure to see how I was
doing. When it was clear that we were
both handling the labor well, they checked on us with less frequency while
still maintaining a trained eye on us to judge our fitness and make sure we
were still low-risk and doing well.
They asked questions.
They let me eat. They made sure I
was drinking. They checked in with Bruss
to see how he was doing and how he thought I was doing. They offered moral support and encouragement
that everything was fine although we were clearly not going to be one of those families
who can say their homebirth was their shortest labor. In an ironic twist of fate – this happened to
be our longest labor, and we were so grateful to be at home with trained care
providers who allowed my body and our baby the time they needed to figure out
the process and have a healthy mom, healthy baby outcome.
So now we know what all the possibilities are when a person
imagines “natural birth”. A woman and
her partner work together to welcome their child, free of interference or
invasive probing, supported by a team that completely believes in your
abilities and will help you welcome your baby gently and lovingly into the
world. It makes me wish that there were
no pregnancy complications so that every woman could have a gentle birth.
The reality is that the majority of our students coming
through class are just like we were with our first baby. They believe that a hospital is the safest
place to give birth and that an OB is the only person qualified to safely
deliver your baby. It would be irresponsible
to have a baby at home, outside of the “safety net” if something were to go
wrong.
I am so grateful that now there are many more Certified
Nurse Midwives ("CNM") working in hospitals.
They provide the level of belief in the natural process that we found at
our home birth, while still working at the hospital setting in which most people
feel comfortable.
If a student’s care practice does not offer midwifery care,
I hope that like us, they will find a supportive OB who respects their
proactive approach to achieving a natural birth and helps them find a way to
have the birth experience they want in the hospital. We have a very tender spot in our hearts for
our OB. Not only did she deliver our
biggest baby without an episiotomy, she also helped us have our most natural
hospital birth because she believed in our ability to birth.
There is also another option available to families in the Phoenix area. We now have several birth centers. Birth centers strive to be the happy medium between home and hospital for families that want to have the "compromise option". They can offer a more relaxed atmosphere similar to the home environment, and some provide medical options at the center that would not be present in a home birth. I feel it is our role as Bradley Method® instructors to help
every couple achieve the best birth possible for their children with a healthy
mom, healthy baby outcome. “Natural
birth” will be different for each of them based on their pregnancy and their
choices. What can you "control" in the childbearing year? A couple will probably have more options availabel to them in labor if the mother has good nutrition, maintains a daily exercise regimen to tone their back, belly and
bottom, and does some form of exercise for stamina. By attending classes every week they learn a
new relaxation technique that they can put in their labor toolbox. We explore many, many options available to
birthing couples today. What can you influence during the childbearing year? We work on
communication every class so that the couple is prepared to respectfully ask questions of their care
provider if they feel something they recommend goes against their dream of a natural birth, or to better understand their recommendations so that
they can make an informed decision. The choice of care provider will also play a role in the way to birth plays out - are you getting red flags during your prenatal visits? Do not ignore them - ask around and find the provider that respects your rights and your knowledge as a birthing parent of *your* child. They may be the expert in birth; you are the only one that knows your baby. Beyond that, the rest is up to what we would call God, or a Higher Power; some people call it Fate...whatever the belief system, we encourage our students to focus beyond the "how" of their birth story: - What will you learn from this birth journey? - Where will the transformation from Maiden to Mother happen for the woman? Where will the transformation from Stag to Father happen for the partner? - How will your partner disappoing you? How will they rise to the occassion, and maybe even surprise you? - What was your most brilliant moment? We look forward to sharing the information taught in Bradley
Method® classes with our students. We strive
to equip them with the tools they need to assess situations that present
themselves in pregnancy and labor. When we hear that a baby is born and nurses
readily at the breast, we know those parents worked together to achieve the
ultimate Bradley Method® outcome: Healthy Mom, Healthy Baby. What does "natural birth" mean to you? Disclaimer: The
material included on this site is for informational purposes only.
We are now enrolling for our Spring 2016 Series For more information or to register, please call us at 602-684-6567 or email us at |
Q&A with SPB: Healthy Pregnancy
| Posted on July 6, 2015 at 11:46 PM |
comments (0)
|
 Question: What can I do to have a healthy pregnancy? Answer: A lot, actually! Come to Saturday's class to learn more about what any mom can do to lay the foundation for their Sweet Pea to have a healthy start in life. See today's VLOG HERE or click We are excited to announce another Healthy Pregnancy Classes at Modern Mommy Boutique this month! It is a two-hour class designed to introduce the basics of having a healthy, low-risk pregnancy that is best for mom and best for Sweet Pea. As childbirth educators, one thing has become painfully clear over the last five years...no matter how many things a family will "do right" during pregnancy, we just don't know what the birth journey will hold until they are on the other side, holding their baby. The one thing we can all share, in spite of whatever happens during birth, is the opportunity to give our Sweet Peas a healthy pregnancy. We all have the ability to be intentional; to provide a place for our baby to grow and be nourished through the pregnancy. If you or someone you know is interested in setting a great foundation for their child's life earthside, please join me! In the class, we will cover how to the foundation for a healthy pregnancy. We'll introduce basics like exercise (no previous fitness level required) and nutrition to build on to keep the mama and the Sweet Pea well, plus substances and environmental factors to avoid. We will also do a mini-relaxation workshop so that participants can have a few basic tools to practice during pregnancy and in the postpartum period. We know that meditation, even a minute a day, can make a difference! This class is designed to be an informative session to get your pregnancy off to a healthy start, or to make sure you are having the healthiest possible pregnancy! Couples in the first, second and third trimester are welcome. Included in the tuition is a 1-on-1 call follow-up call with Krystyna, as well as a take-home packet for you to use as you continue through your pregnancy. Tuition for the 2-hour session: $10/couple I hope you can join me - please call or text 602.684.6567 to register. JULY CLASS AUGUST CLASS  Disclaimer: |
Q&A with SPB: Changing Locations During Labor
| Posted on February 10, 2015 at 3:15 PM |
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I taped my first vlog this morning!! When to go to the birthplace is a common question we get from our students, who are still primarily choosing to birth in a hospital setting. This information is also applicable if you are transferring to a birth center or having a non-emergent homebirth transfer. A non-emergent transfer is the most common type of transfer when it happens in a homebirth setting. The midwife and patient decide together that the family wants a different kind of observation if they feel things might be shifting away from healthy and low-risk. So, with that being said, here is today's Q&A: Do you prefer to read about it? Check out these blog posts from our archive: Kudos and thanks to Jen McClellan at Plus Size Birth whose message to "Capture Motherhood" has inspired me to be okay in front of the camera again. This adventure into "vlogging" would not have been possible without her support and encouragement <3 What tips would you share with a family who wants more information about making the trip from home to their birth place? Disclaimer: |
Dr. Bradley's Nutrition Tips
| Posted on October 14, 2013 at 1:45 PM |
comments (0)
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 Today we take a look at Dr. Bradley's advice to mamas about pregnancy nutrition. One of my favorite things about doing these at-a-glance tips is going back into his book (I need to do it anyway for re-certification at the end of the year) and reading his gems about pregnancy, labor, birth and postpartum.In reading about nutrition in Chapter 8 (How To Live With A Pregnant Wife) of his book, "Husband-Coached Childbirth", I am reminded again why we teach these childbirth classes. He has a no-nonsense, practical explanation to help mamas avoid heartburn in pregnancy by eating slowly and eating more frequent, smaller meals.
Besides asking your care-provider for antacid suggestions, the book goes on to suggest the natural remedy of eating papaya as a natural antacid (that also counts as an orange-yellow fruit/vegetable for their Bradley class nutrition tracking!). What did you do to help you avoid heartburn in pregnancy? Please leave us a comment - it will be moderated and posted. Disclaimer: It is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. The reader should always consult her or his healthcare provider to determine the appropriateness of the information for their own situation. Krystyna and Bruss Bowman and Bowman House, LLC accept no liability for the content of this site, or for the consequences of any actions taken on the basis of the information provided. This blog contains information about our classes available in Chandler, AZ and Payson, AZ and is not the official website of The Bradley Method®. The views contained on this blog do not necessarily reflect those of The Bradley Method® or the American Academy of Husband-Coached Childbirth®. |
Keys to Labor: Pushing
| Posted on September 30, 2013 at 7:34 PM |
comments (0)
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Here is another installment in our "It's Not Nice to Fool Mother Nature" series. Dr. Bradley had revolutionary ideas to share with the public when we started his obstetrical practice in the 1950's. He was not the only person advocating natural birth, however, he is one of the first to advocate for fathers to be the coaches and in the hospital delivery room at a time when partners were relegated to hospital waiting rooms.  Here are his keys to pushing: Key #1: Wait until the urge to push is overwhelming. Dr. Bradley was a big proponent of saving energy and tuning-in to the body to birth as instinctually as possible. Key #2: Use effective pushing positions. Dr. Bradley believed that squatting was the most effective pushing position. However, if that wasn't going to happen for whatever reason, he wrote that, "It is not necessary to have the knees far apart. This assures us that the mother's back is rounded like a ball and the baby comes sliding out - like on a slide." Key #3: Athletic breathing. In his book, Husband-Coached Childbirth, Dr. Bradley uses the analogy of an athlete clearing out stale air before performing in an athletic event. Basically, during the second stage, a mama pushing is acting like she is running a quick sprint. As the contraction builds, she should take three deep cleansing breaths. Before exhaling on the third breath, she should tuck her chin to her chest. She uses that air to create a cushion behind the diaphragm to push to the point of comfort, holding her breath as long as it's comfortable. If the contraction is still strong after she exhales, she can take another deep breath and trap that air for a second (and third push) as long as the contraction feels "push-y". Key #4: Relax the Kegel Muscle. Now this is always the hardest one to explain because you have to feel it to understand how it works in practice. The idea is that only the abdomen and the uterus need to work during a contraction. The Kegel, which up to this point (hopefully) has worked beautifully to tuck the baby's chin to their chest into an optimal fetal position, now needs to relax and open to allow baby a smooth passage earthside. I hope you are enjoying these "Dr. Bradley's Keys". Next week, we will look at his postpartum instructions. The material included on this site is for informational purposes only. It is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. The reader should always consult her or his healthcare provider to determine the appropriateness of the information for their own situation. Krystyna and Bruss Bowman and Bowman House, LLC accept no liability for the content of this site, or for the consequences of any actions taken on the basis of the information provided. This blog contains information about our classes available in Chandler, AZ and Payson, AZ and is not the official website of The Bradley Method®. The views contained on this blog do not necessarily reflect those of The Bradley Method® or the American Academy of Husband-Coached Childbirth®. |
What Is The Bradley Method?
| Posted on September 23, 2013 at 2:12 PM |
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I had the opportunity to participate as a panelist this weekend at the Healthy Happy Baby Expo. I realized that I have never articulated what The Bradley Method® is in a nutshell before. I will spend the next few weeks trying to capture the essence of The Bradley Method® in these little slides...let me know if you have any questions that I should address!  A little note about the apple image...Dr. Bradley was ahead of his time in thinking that every baby had the right to choose their due date without interference simply because the mama had passed her estimated due date. He used the analogy of an apple tree in his book, Husband-Coached Childbirth: some apples fall early, most ripen at around the same time, and a few are going to ripen after most of the crop has been harvested.The material included on this site is for informational purposes only. It is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. The reader should always consult her or his healthcare provider to determine the appropriateness of the information for their own situation. Krystyna and Bruss Bowman and Bowman House, LLC accept no liability for the content of this site, or for the consequences of any actions taken on the basis of the information provided. This blog contains information about our classes available in Chandler, AZ and Payson, AZ and is not the official website of The Bradley Method®. The views contained on this blog do not necessarily reflect those of The Bradley Method® or the American Academy of Husband-Coached Childbirth®. |
Top Ten Reasons To Take A Bradley Method® Class
| Posted on September 11, 2012 at 6:46 AM |
comments (0)
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Top Ten List: Reasons To Take A Bradley Method® Class We had the privilege of starting two new Bradley Method® Class Series last week. We are teaching a Friday night series with First-time parents, and on Sunday we are teaching our Bradley Method® "Next Class" with alumni families who are expecting baby number two. Some of the thoughts shared when we asked our students "why are you here today" inspired today's post. The first time moms who have been hearing that they are "crazy" because they want to "go natural" were so relieved to see a roomful of people who were making the choice to prepare for a natural birth, just like them.  Date Night – Spend one night (or afternoon) a week with your
beloved and do something together to honor the birth of your child. Whether you spend a little time visiting in
the car or breaking down the class on the way home, it’s class time +
conversation that the two of you are dedicating to prepare for the birth of
your baby. Snack – I remember being hungry when I was pregnant and
looking in the refrigerator, the freezer AND the pantry and finding that there
was nothing in there that I wanted to eat.
Bah! Then I got cranky. Most Bradley™ classes take a snack
break. Whether it’s provided by your
instructor or your peers, its one time that day that you will get a yummy snack
without putting time or thought into it.  Camaraderie – Think you are alone experiencing the creaks,
groans and squeaks of pregnancy? Spend a
little time talking to the couples on either side of you and you will find out
that there are other people making sounds they never knew they would make,
having heartburn that could fry an egg, and the concerns that have plagued
pregnant women since time immemorial.  Community – Those people you see in class for twelve
weeks? It’s likely that they are going
to be people you keep in touch with after class is over and you are holding
your babies on the outside. Even though they
are complete strangers the first class session, like you, they are choosing to
prepare for a birth with little to no interventions or anesthesia. Maybe your friends and family are telling
you, “Take the drugs – that’s what they are there for,” or, “You don’t get a
medal for natural birth.” The folks in
class with you are a sign that you are not alone in your choice. Together you will learn to say, “This is the
choice that works for our family.” You
can gain confidence in your choice when you see how many other like-minded
families are around you that understand and support your choice because that is
a choice they are making for their families, too. Communication – The foundation of any win-win relationship
is the ability to communicate effectively.
Each week of class there is a different communication exercise to build
skills between the couple, to help you clarify what you want and your
priorities for your birth experience, and how to express that and evaluate what
you are hearing from your care provider.Healthy, whole food nutrition is a foundation for a healthy, low-risk pregnancyNutrition – Although it is seemingly basic, it is one of the
easiest things that a couple can control in their efforts to have the birth
that they want. More and more studies
are confirming what Dr. Bradley and Dr. Brewer knew – good nutrition is one
of the foundations for a Healthy Mom, Healthy Baby outcome. By making good, whole food choices that yield
a daily protein count between 75-100g of protein, a family can lay a good
foundation to have more options during a normal, low-risk birth.  Exercise – The next building block towards having lots of
choices in labor is a mom that has the strength and stamina for her particular
athletic event. Some mamas have a
“sprint”, some mamas have “marathons”, and most fall somewhere in between. The Bradley Method® exercise program is
designed so that a mama does some form of cardio to build her stamina and it
incorporates exercises to strengthen her back, belly and bottom. The mom who does these things increases the
likelihood that she will be able to comfortably move through her labor to ease
baby into position and still have the energy for her pushing phase. Comprehensive Education – Yes, we are definitely the
“longest” childbirth class among the list of recognized “brands”. By choosing our class series that is 12-weeks
long, you are choosing a method that covers many different aspects of
pregnancy, the process of labor, natural labor coping techniques, birth plans,
variations and complications of labor (and knowing the difference between the
two), postpartum care, breastfeeding and newborn care on top of the weekly
focus on communication, exercise and nutrition.
While there are other “brands” that teach shorter sessions, we are
confident that our approach allows couples the greatest opportunity to prepare
for the birth that they want and life together as a new family.  Relaxation – Relaxation is the key to The Bradley
Method®. Dr. Bradley believed that a
woman who could relax her body by focusing on abdominal breathing and nesting
like other perspiring mammals was a woman that could labor and birth without
drugs. His theory proved out: his natural birth rate was 94-96%, depending
on the year. Our classes not only remind
mothers how to do their abdominal breathing, we also instruct couples on eleven
different relaxation techniques that address physical, mental and emotional
relaxation. A couple that takes a
Bradley™ series theoretically has a toolbox full of techniques to use during
labor. Practice Makes Prepared – Every couple has the opportunity
to take the material home and make it their own. By spending a minimum of five minutes a day
practicing the weekly relaxation technique and practicing one of the many
laboring positions we teach throughout the series, a Mom and her Coach are
ready for a normal, low-risk labor. If
they take the communication lessons to heart, they have spent time outside of
class preparing a birth plan that works for their family, and they have an idea
of how they will choose to handle any variations of labor they may face so that
if their labor follows a curvy path, they can handle the twists and turns with
confidence. Above all, a well-trained
Bradley Method® couple trusts in the process of birth and they know to follow
the Mom’s instincts + communication with the coach and the birth team towards a
Healthy Mom, Healthy Baby outcome.Would you add anything to this list? Disclaimer: It is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. The reader should always consult her or his healthcare provider to determine the appropriateness of the information for their own situation. Krystyna and Bruss Bowman and Bowman House, LLC accept no liability for the content of this site, or for the consequences of any actions taken on the basis of the information provided. This blog contains information about our classes available in Chandler, AZ and Payson, AZ and is not the official website of The Bradley Method®. The views contained on this blog do not necessarily reflect those of The Bradley Method® or the American Academy of Husband-Coached Childbirth®. |
Bradley™ Classes and The Next Baby
| Posted on September 4, 2012 at 11:34 AM |
comments (0)
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 We have had parents take a Bradley Method® class series with
baby number two (or three) when they had never taken a series with previous
children. The question is: is there
value to taking a class series when you are pregnant with other children, when
you have already taken classes with another pregnancy? I think that depends on the individual couple. We made the choice to take a second complete
class series because we only took 9 of the 12 classes in our first series. Bruss also traveled; while I attended 9 of
those classes, he only came to five or six of those. We also ended up taking classes with a different
teacher. We were apprehensive at first –
who likes change? It turned out to be a
great thing. Our new teacher offered a
different perspective on the same material, and we got to make new friends as
well. Here are the benefits we saw of taking a second series: It was time to
honor our new baby. It’s easy to
get caught up in all the “stuff” with your first-born. For most of us pregnant with number two, baby
one is already active and engaged in the world.
They require your time and your energy for the better part of your day. Taking the time to prepare for our second
child’s birth was time we spent enjoying the pregnancy without our older
child. It was just baby and us again
during class time. It was our
weekly “date night”. That
adorable toddler? As sweet as she was,
our conversations revolved around answering all her inquisitive questions. Not a bad thing at all! However, our drive time going to class was
spent connecting with each other as a couple.
Sometimes we were even able to sneak in a little snack stop before class
if we got it together and dropped her off at our sitter’s house early enough. It was the
beginning of sibling preparation.
In retrospect, it prepared our daughter to spend time away from mom and
dad and still feel valued. My aunt took
care of her while we were at class. This
same aunt is the one we planned to come stay with her until my mom flew in from
Chicago. This time with other adults
allowed Ysabella to do something fun without us – she knew it was
possible. She learned to do things
without mommy. Later, after baby
arrived, she continued to enjoy doing special things without me, like going out
to get breakfast with Daddy while Mommy and baby slept. She loved this time without me, and she made
a decent transition to being an only child to being the big sister. The material was
new again. First time parents
have no idea what to expect from labor and birth. A mom has no clue what contractions feel
like. A coach has no idea how (s)he will
react when they see their partner in labor, and there is nothing they can do to
fix it – all they can do is support. The
couple does not know how long their labor will be. They do not know what their normal gestation
is: is MomBaby an early bird, on time,
or a late bloomer? So many
unknowns! Going back to class, the material made sense in a different
way. We knew without a doubt that we had
to be serious about doing the exercise assignments so that I would have energy
at the end of a long birth (back then, Ysabella’s 26 hour labor was “long” to
us – haha!) I wanted to go for the
accountability of tracking nutrition and doing the homework assignments. It was also interesting to learn from the
questions our new classmates asked – in that sense, it made it a completely
different class. For Bruss, he was hearing it for the first time, and classes
10-12 were new for us, too. I also found
we paid more attention to the different positions to use in labor and during
the pushing phase. Whether it was new
material or a different presentation of the material, it really stuck this time
and we made good use of the information in our second labor. We knew what we
wanted to change. We could look
back on our first labor and learn the lessons.
We knew what worked for us, and we knew what we wanted to do
differently. Knowing what we wanted to
improve on helped us pay attention in class, even though the syllabus, the workbook
and the movies were the same. The desire
to have a different birth, one without the use of Pitocin, helped us focus on
the things we wanted to do better. The
classes were a positive step in having the Pitocin-free birth that we were
preparing for and wanted to achieve. I am looking forward to teaching our first The Bradley™
“Next” series to our alumni students that are pregnant with their second
babies. We also have a couple joining us
who took classes from another teacher and is new to our area. Since we have the unique opportunity to form
a class just for second-time parents, we are also going to spend some class
time on sibling preparation. It will be
fun for these families to prepare for their next child together, and for all
the big brothers and sisters to have other peers with new babies in the house. Disclaimer: It is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. The reader should always consult her or his healthcare provider to determine the appropriateness of the information for their own situation. Krystyna and Bruss Bowman and Bowman House, LLC accept no liability for the content of this site, or for the consequences of any actions taken on the basis of the information provided. This blog contains information about our classes available in Chandler, AZ and Payson, AZ and is not the official website of The Bradley Method®. The views contained on this blog do not necessarily reflect those of The Bradley Method® or the American Academy of Husband-Coached Childbirth®. |
Relaxation Practice
| Posted on July 6, 2012 at 11:07 AM |
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Our relaxation session in our last class was for both the
mother and the coach to make a list of positive things the mother could think
about during labor. They were then to
use these ideas during our relaxation practice/labor rehearsal portion of
class. Coach had a great list going that
included what he called his “secret weapon”.
It was going to be his “go to” story to tell his wife when the going got
tough in labor.
The time for relaxation practice/labor rehearsal
arrived. We dimmed the lights, put on
our relaxation music, our students got into their first “practice position”
from our diagrams of labor positions.
Then we did our first “practice”.
I timed the contraction by announcing how many seconds had elapsed (I
call out 15, 30, 45 and 60 seconds).
Coach started with one of the ideas his list. Mom did not like it – the story made her
laugh instead of relaxing her.
We did our second practice, trying out a different labor
position and the same scenario with music and lighting. I timed again and Coach went back to the
verbal coaching we have been using up to this point in classes, “words of
encouragement”. Mom reported feeling
much more relaxed and Coach made an “uh-oh” face.
I asked him what was going on since he had just coached his
wife through a great minute of relaxation.
He replied that his “secret-weapon” is a story that is along the same
lines as the story that made her laugh, and she prefers words of
encouragement…what was he going to do?
We reminded our couple that this is exactly why we practice
in class and we encourage them to practice at home. We are teaching them several ways that are
effective at managing the discomforts of labor so that they can fill their
toolbox with several different ways of relaxing mom. If you don’t practice before you get into the
hard parts, it’s unlikely you will be able to improvise since there are so many
ways to manage labor.
By the same token, we tell couples every labor is unique, so
it’s important for a coach to have a “Top Five” list of moms’ favorites so they
know what to try first. On top of that,
we remind them that the most important factor for coaching is to be
flexible. Sometimes coaches find that
the things that work in class do not work in labor. Sometimes the list of “Top Five” turns into
the one thing that works. And it has
happened that none of the coping techniques the couple liked in class helped,
and they pulled from some of the other relaxation techniques we had covered and
that they had practiced at home “just in case”.
It is exactly for those reasons that home practice is
vital. Mom can review techniques on her
own and create her list of favorites.
Coach can review techniques and practice scenarios in his head while he
is on his own. The most important
component is to practice together for the direct feedback. Practicing together builds the coach’s
confidence that he knows what he is doing and he will do well as a labor coach. It builds the mom’s confidence that she will
be able to rely on her coach. Our
personal experience is that this sense of safety and security, which leads to the
ability to complete surrender during the labor experience, is the key to
allowing labor to progress to the intensity that helps us meet our baby
earthside.
We reassured Coach to keep those stories in his toolbox
because laughter is actually a great coping technique. It’s not comfortable during a contraction
because it adds tension to an already tight body part – not ideal when a mom is
trying to work with her body. However,
laughter is great tool to reduce adrenaline.
This is a huge plus because adrenaline inhibits oxytocin. Receptors in the body can only accept one or
the other, not both. The other plus to
laughter is that it releases endorphins, which can act as analgesia and promote
a sense of well-being – both good things for a mom in labor to welcome their
child. We encouraged Coach to bring
those stories out between contractions – they definitely deserve a place of
honor in their personal toolbox.
I don’t liken labor to a final exam because sometimes the
most prepared couples end up with a birth that doesn’t go according to their
wish list and I don’t want to convey to them a sense of failure. It is true that labor will test the couple in
ways that they probably have not been tested before, and the more they practice
at home, the better prepared they are for their experience. Although the weekly assignment is for twenty
minutes per day, even one minute of practice is better than none to build a
couple’s confidence. Being prepared for this experience will definitely improve
the likelihood of having the labor they have practiced for. Whether they have a “textbook” birth or a
birth with variations, our happiest couples are the ones that feel they used
their information from class and worked together to choose the birth of their
child as a team for a Healthy Mom, Healthy Baby outcome.
What has been your experience? More about laughter and endorphins:
http://stress.about.com/od/stresshealth/a/laughter.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endorphin
More on labor positions: Disclaimer: It is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. The reader should always consult her or his healthcare provider to determine the appropriateness of the information for their own situation. Krystyna and Bruss Bowman and Bowman House, LLC accept no liability for the content of this site, or for the consequences of any actions taken on the basis of the information provided. This blog contains information about our classes available in Chandler, AZ and Payson, AZ and is not the official website of The Bradley Method®. The views contained on this blog do not necessarily reflect those of The Bradley Method® or the American Academy of Husband-Coached Childbirth®. |
