We had some lovely window light on Tuesday in the hospital birth center.
When Tara first contacted me to book a photoshoot for after the birth of her baby, I was amazed to hear of this baby's story of healing in answer to prayer. After a stillbirth, Tara and Justin were anxious when they got pregnant again to find out if the same brain condition was present in this baby. When they found out it was, their friends started praying like crazy. Here is their remarkable testimony (shared with permission). Long story short, God worked a miracle, and here is perfectly healthy little Garrett, pictured at less than 24 hours old. We had some lovely window light on Tuesday in the hospital birth center. With grandma:
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The article I wrote for Macaroni Kid Durango about what exactly doula support looks like was published this morning. Read more here: Doulas Empower Birth
This is a common question especially from families planning a homebirth. Here's my answer: A doula frees up the midwife to spend all of her energy on the medical side of birth, resulting in a safer birth all around. If a midwife is exhausted from hours of encouraging, coaching, and emotionally comforting a mom then her mind will not be as sharp when it is needed to make split second life-affecting decisions as the baby is born. Midwives do not typically provide extensive emotional support anyway, and often do not arrive as early in labor as the doula can. With a doula specializing on the emotional and comfort side of labor, the midwife is able to provide better medical care. The mom gets all of her needs met by having professionals there both for her emotional needs and for her medical needs.
On Wednesday, it was a lung-chilling 20* as I packed up props, backdrops, faux fir, a reflector, and camera gear to go meet five-day-old Elliot and her parents. This is one of those times when I'm especially glad the new baby didn't have to get taken out in the cold on a big errand just days after birth when everyone is still recovering. I love honoring new life by doing the legwork myself, and leaving the family to enjoy being home. Elliot is a sweet chubby little girl, at just under 9 lbs. She broke her mom Talya's tailbone during the birth, but Talya has forgiven her and fallen in love. Her daddy Matt is vying for top place of being in love, however, by his devotion. He was actually the one who called me in the first place and coordinated the photoshoot. Welcome to the world, little one! I was excited to be able to incorporate this tutu prop for the first time (yes! new moms, you can select it for your own little girl's photoshoot if you'd like).
Tiny baby Otto was so sweet and cuddly for his photoshoot that all I wanted to do was hold him! With two older sisters doting on him, he will be spoiled for sure. He is such a dapper little man. I love how the natural wood floor of their home creates a mirror effect in this image:
Click here to see a funny labor cartoon before reading on. Have you heard of "unplugged weddings"? There's something to be said for going "unplugged" in the birthing room, too, and being "all there," especially for Dad. There is plenty of time for telling friends after the fact, but while your baby is being born, be all there!
All sphincters muscles are connected. For instance, if your mouth is open (jaw relaxed), your cervix is open. It may be hard to consciously relax one's cervix to decrease pain in birth, but anyone can relax their jaw (and by connection the cervix lets go of tension). Another sphincter muscle is the pupil in the eye. If it is allowed to dilate, it likewise helps the cervix dilate--thus the advantage of birthing in low light. Sphincters are shy muscles. They close up if they do not have privacy. For instance, imagine going #2 and having people barge in on you. Not going to happen (that sphincter muscle would close up). Same with birth--privacy is a huge need in order for a women's body to be able to open.
The Undervalued Therapeutic Value of Rest, by Gloria Lemay: "For building up milk production, go to bed with the baby for 24 hours. Mother should wear only panties, baby only a diaper. A tray with fluids, magazines and flowers beside the bed for the mother and all diaper changing needs for the baby close at hand. Another adult woman in the house brings meals to the mother. After 24 hours of this bed rest, the milk will be abundant. (I’ve had one client who said it didn’t work. When I went through what she had done, it turned out that instead of following these instructions exactly, she went to her cousin’s place for the day and lay on her couch.) No, no, no. The naked skin and privacy are a big part of this “Babymoon” formula. Don’t modify. Probably, when you read this, you thought “This would be a luxury for a new mother.” It’s actually very basic and pays huge dividends for the family and larger community. Some cultures understand this and make sure the new mother is given a 40 day period of rest/care when she has a baby. "My personal experience is that ALL post birth bleeding is remedied by resting in bed. The lochia is red for the first two days, changes to pink and serumy around the third day, and then proceeds to being brownish and quite smelly for about two weeks. If it turns red again after going through the pink and brownish stages, it means the mother is doing too much. She needs to follow the 'BabyMoon' lie-in instructions above. Remember, THIS IS NOT A LUXURY, IT’S BASIC. The family needs to be told that, if they don’t help the mother to rest in bed, they will end up visiting her in hospital. "We need to give up the notion of supermom. Do whatever it takes to get your rest time after the birth and then you will be back to your busy life sooner. When women have homebirths, they usually feel so well that they want to get up and 'prove' to the world that they can do anything. ... The really smart women don’t even get dressed for weeks after the birth. If you’re all perky in a track suit, people will expect you to run . . . therefore, find the nastiest old nightie possible and wear that to convince family and friends that you need their assistance." |
Melanie Ellison, Durango COChildbirth fascinates me, and I always love learning more tidbits about it and sharing them with you. I also post photo galleries here from my photoshoots. Sign up for the RSS feed below so you don't miss a post! Categories
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