Spit-up On My Shoulder

We’ve been upped again in the health care field by the French. Check out this New York Times article on perineal re-education by an American writer currently living in Paris.
Here’s an excerpt:
After a woman [in France] has a baby, perineal re-education shapes up her stretched-out birth canal. It also strengthens her pelvic floor for […]

I saw The Business of Being Born in December and highly recommend everyone (men too!) see it. It’s one of those movies I wish every American would view so we can start making changes that give women more choices about birth.
Movie Synopsis: Birth: its a miracle. A rite of passage. A natural part […]

Can a caesarean section feel as natural as a vaginal birth? Yes, according to Professor Nick Fisk , an obstetrician in London. Fisk is the pioneer of a movement to slow down the delivery of the baby during a c-section and allow the parents to participate more in the birth. Instead of […]

If you’re pregnant or considering conceiving soon, are you worried about handling the pain of labor? I know I was, but I think my fear made me experience the pain at a higher level than I had to. I recently read some new information that neuroscientists have found about the way your brain […]

What sounds like a fascinating documentary was released in DVD form for the first time on July 3rd. Mary Coley, an African American midwife who delivered almost 4,000 babies in Georgia from the 1930s through the 1960s, is the subject of the 1952 movie All My Babies.
Here is an abridged description from Amazon:
This beautiful […]

A big fear during my pregnancies was that my baby would not be able to leave the hospital with me. It’s one of the most stressful experiences a new mother can have. Jennifer, a woman profiled in my book, describes it this way: “I literally felt like my heart was being ripped out […]

If you were hoping for a vaginal birth and instead had a cesarean section, you may be feeling disappointment or depression over it. These feelings are very normal. The c-section was not your fault. I know you did the best you could during the birth.
Melissa, a woman profiled in my book who […]

In the headlines today from Associated Press:
Cancun, Mexico - He is called “Super Tonio,” and at a whopping birth weight of 6.4 kilos (14 pounds), the “little” fellow is causing a sensation in this Mexican resort city.
Cancun residents have crowded the nursery ward’s window to see Antonio Vasconcelos, who was born early Monday by Cesarean […]

If you are considering an elective cesarean section, please read the following information from the January 2007 issue of Discovery Magazine:
Cesareans Boost Death Risk for Baby
A study of nearly 6 million low-risk births has found that the neonatal mortality rate for delivery by cesarean section is nearly three times the rate for vaginal delivery: 1.77 […]