Learn About Blissful Pregnancy, Holistic Birthing & the 4 Trimesters
Category: Childbirth
How to Create the Ideal Birth Environment
Video from the new online childbirth preparation course Birth Transformed, http://birthtransformed.teachable.com
Natural Ways to Induce Labor
Interview on Informed Pregnancy Podcast
Doulas Are F*cking Awesome
*Quoted as expert in article
Tracey O’Halloran had one C-section and didn’t want another, so she found a hospital that would respect her wishes — and a doula, Katie Prendergast.
Once labor began, Tracey says, “I was in full-blown freakout pain and fear … She encouraged me to get on top of the wave and ride it out and reminded me this was all normal and my body was designed to do this. I don’t know if the pain became more manageable or I became better at managing, but that was a game changer.” Katie rocked Tracey and her husband together in the midst of her contractions. She kept Tracey’s husband from chattering at her during contractions. “So many little and bigmoments, even to the gentle suggestion of using mineral oil when baby’s head got a little stuck,” Tracey tells Scary Mommy. “I am so, so so thankful.”
Tracey had it right: Doulas are amazing.
Inspired Conversations with Linda Joy
Curious about what’s it’s like to navigate the emotions of an unplanned pregnancy? Or, many of the other wonderful/crazy/confusing/transformative challenges of the journey into #motherhood? Tune into to my interview on the Inspired Conversations with Linda Joy radio show today at 2pm ET here, http://omtimes.com/iom/shows/inspired-conversations/ #pregnancy #childbirth#fengshuimommy
Become the Queen of Quickies
*Excerpt from Feng Shui Mommy
Exercise does not have to be held together by laces, sweat-wicking spandex, and a Jillian Michaels playlist you found in a fitness magazine. Toning and stretching your muscles and livening up your heart rate can happen anyplace, anytime. Of the suggestions below, some are a few of the endorphin-eliciting quickies I partook in while my uterus was packing a baby, and some are ideas from the human-making babes I’ve worked with. I encourage you to try these, then work out your creative nature by thinking up new ways to get in a quickie.
Squats:
While you’re doing dishes, scrolling through your phone, or engaging in any other stationary activity, squat into it. A squat is an excellent way to prep your birthing muscles and get comfortable assuming the most effective birthing position, which is . . . a squat. Play around with the squat until you find a position that you feel secure in while it’s causing your glutes and thighs to tighten. No need to assume a full squat; bending your knees a bit and lowering your tush a few inches is effective. Squat for as long as you feel comfortable, and upgrade the benefits by dropping some Kegels into the mix.
Natural Solutions: How to Have a Balanced Pregnancy
The Best Ways To Prepare For A C-Section, According To Experts
*Quoted as expert for this article.
No two birth stories are alike, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t still some universal guidelines that can help any mom-to be. If you plan on having a Cesarean delivery (or even if you don’t — birth is unpredictable) then you might be relieved to know that there are actually quite a few ways you can prepare for your C-section.
If you aren’t familiar with the procedure, a c-section is “the delivery of a baby through a surgical incision in the mother’s abdomen and uterus,” according to Baby Center. In most cases, the end result will leave you with a thin, horizontal scar slightly below your bikini line.
Due to multiple chronic illnesses which affected my pregnancy — Lupus, an autoimmune disease, Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, a connective tissue disorder, and scoliosis, to name a few — I knew well in advance that I was going to have a medically necessary C-section. This gave me plenty of time to research, and it also gave me plenty of time to worry about every hypothetical situation in the book. Thankfully, you can ease your mind by knowing what to expect when you check out these things you can do to prepare for your C-section.
How to Prepare for a Baby – The Essential To-Do List
Preparing for a permanent resident in your life that you’ve never met can be tricky, but doing nothing to prepare is even trickier. While there is no way to ensure you won’t be popped with surprises during early motherhood, there are ways to set yourself up for greater success, satisfaction, and sanity before your wiggly little person makes their grand entrance.
To kick off your preparations, complete the following to-dos before The Day:
- Create Your Baby Zones.
Babies have a sneaky way of taking over every square inch of your house if you don’t designate specific areas wholly devoted to your noisy cherub. For example, set up a changing zone in one room of your house (or two if your home is spread out) and an always stocked and organized diaper bag you can grab for on-the-go changes (like blowouts so messy it’s best to bring the supplies to baby.) In addition, consider setting up play zones, feeding zones, sleep zones, dressing zones, and any other zones you think your baby will need.
Pregnancy Insomnia – Where it Comes From and What to do About it
Oh sweet relief- after a long day of being pregnant you’re finally nestling in your soft bed, cuddling with your body pillow, and listening to your partner not snoring – you’re ready for a good night’s sleep. But wait, you can’t sleep? While pregnant women should absolutely be exempt from insomnia it unfortunately has a one-sided love affair with them, thinking they want it in their bed when really they would do anything to get rid of it.
So, what’s up with that? Why is it so common for exhausted with-child ladies to be wide-awake for hours past their bedtime?
A few common causes of pregnancy insomnia are:
- always wanting to be aware of baby movements (making sure baby isn’t still for too long)
- having to get up multiple times to pee
- out of control hormones
- common pregnancy symptoms like heartburn and congestion that seem to relish the supine position
- an overactive imagination that obsesses over everything that could go wrong
While a few nights of restlessness are inevitable during pregnancy, you can say goodbye to regular bouts of insomnia by incorporating the following into your life:
Here Are All Of The Additional Costs C-Section Patients Have To Deal With
*Quoted in article as expert
If you’re pregnant or wanting to become pregnant you may have already envisioned your child’s birth. For some it may be a medicated birth at a hospital, or a drug-free water birth. For others a C-section, either planned or unplanned, may be medically necessary. My first C-section was not planned and there were two things I was shocked about: the recovery time and the cost. No one told me how much more expensive it was. It’s important to know all of the additional costs C-section patients have to deal with so you don’t have to be surprised like I was.
Generally speaking, C-sections are only performed for health reasons related to the mother or the baby like breech position, multiples, or past abdominal surgeries. But it’s hard not to notice the obvious increase in C-sections this country has seen recently. According to the American Congress of Obstetrics and Gynecologists (ACOG), C-section rates in the United States were at the highest levels ever in 2009, with more than 1.3 million C-section deliveries (32.9 percent of all births) performed. With C-section rates on the rise many are questioning if they’ve all been medically necessary, especially considering the risks and costs to pregnant women.
10 New Ways to Afford Fertility Treatments
Before the birth of her daughter, Aurora, in 2016, Heather Huhman, host of the podcast Beat Infertility and founder of content-marketing firm Come Recommended, went through seven cycles of in vitro fertilization (IVF), suffered four miscarriages and gave birth to stillborn twins, Eric and Alexis. As difficult and heartbreaking as the Washington, DC, woman’s journey to motherhood was, she never stopped working—she had to foot the almost-$60,000 bill for all those fertility treatments.
Heather is not an anomaly. A survey by FertilityIQ, a fertility doctor and clinic evaluation website, found that 92 percent of women undergoing fertility treatments are employed. Of those, 68 percent work a full 40 to 50 hours a week.
One big reason? More and more women are postponing pregnancy until their mid-to late 30swhile they’re furthering their careers—and this delay often makes fertility treatments necessary to start a family. But medical need isn’t the only reason working women make up the majority of fertility-care patients: The high price of help forces many women to continue earning a paycheck while trying to conceive. The American Society of Reproductive Medicine reported that the average cost of one IVF treatment in the United States is $12,400, not including the extra medications a woman might need and the added fees for using an egg or sperm donor, or gestational surrogate.
Ride the Wave: Floating Through the Centimeters
Special thanks to Bailey Gaddis for sharing her transcendent birth story with us. Like many mothers, she was desperate for labor to start after she passed her due date. But once things got started, cervical dilation measurements played a major role along the journey: from determining if it was time for admission to the hospital to causing her doctor to decide to break her bag of water to determining that her dilation was too far advanced to get an epidural. Read on to see how she harnessed her inner strength throughout her birth experience. You can find the full story in Bailey’s book, Feng Shui Mommy: Creating Balance and Harmony for Blissful Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Motherhood, available on Amazon. Inspired by her beautiful story? Check out her website, Your Serene Life, where you can learn about hypnobirthing and childbirth classes.
Expectful Interview
Interview on Tucson Morning Blend
Main Principles for an Empowered Birth
The Story Behind Feng Shui Mommy
The Story behind Feng Shui Mommy: Creating Balance and Harmony for Blissful Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Motherhood.
Daniela GS:
Good morning Bailey and welcome! I’m looking forward to getting to know more about you and your book Feng Shui Mommy: Creating Balance and Harmony for Blissful Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Motherhood.
Bailey Gaddis, C.Ht, HBCE:
Good morning! Thanks so much Daniela. I look forward to diving in.
Daniela GS:
First off, how would you best describe your book?
Bailey Gaddis, C.Ht, HBCE:
It’s a holistic guide for women who want to feel informed and empowered to craft their own journey through pregnancy, childbirth, and motherhood. The book supports the woman through all four trimesters (the fourth being the first three months of baby’s life outside of the womb) and has a mind, body, and spirit section in each trimester with chapters that help to nourish that aspect of her self. It’s also designed to help a woman regardless of what type of birth she will have – women who want an unmedicated birth, or need medications or a c-section are all supported in the book.
Introducing Birth Transformed
An issue I’ve had with many childbirth courses is that they don’t leave much room for women to process their emotions, fears, doubts, and more. It’s for this reason that Taryn Longo and I created the online Birth Transformed childbirth preparation course with the goal of helping pregnant women feel safe, supported, and informed through pregnancy and childbirth so they can release their fears and find their own voice of wisdom.
Check it out 🙂 http://birthtransformed.teachable.com/p/birthtransformed
Course Description:
Birth Transformed is a comprehensive approach to pregnancy and birth that empowers you from the outside in, meaning it equips you (and your partner) with powerful and necessary information to prepare for what is ahead. But, rather than leaving it solely up to you to assimilate the information on your own, and navigate what comes up for you in this process, Birth Transformed supports you in continuing to unravel the layers of your experience, then works with you to move into, face, and transform your fears, challenges and blocks, finding your wisdom along the way.
As the you move through your time with Birth Transformed, you will learn all the “traditional” strategies you can use to navigate birth (e.g., breath work, birth positions, pressure points, knowledge of the phases of birth, and more), but will also be supported in exploring the deeper layers of birth and motherhood, and how these layers will impact your experience.
At Birth Transformed, we’re not just here to pass information on to you, but to love you through this journey, and be your mentor in finding and honoring your optimal path into and through motherhood.
Find out more at BirthTransformed.com
Interview on CW’s Bay Area Focus
Loving that still shot.
