Eating

It is thought that an acidic body can cause morning sickness, or at least not help it. So it would make sense that if you avoid acidic foods and eat more alkaline foods, your body can become more alkaline and hopefully your morning sickness will leave. Check out this list of acidic and alkaline foods. Balancing your body’s pH is not only beneficial for morning sickness but for overall general health and may prevent disease. From NaturalNews.com,

Most experts suggest eating four times more from the list of alkaline foods than from the acidic foods. Don’t get stressed if you don’t achieve this, it’s an ideal to shoot for.

The most important thing we can do is to ensure that the majority of foods that we eat are fruits and vegetables.

To learn more about pH balance, NaturalNews.com has a fabulous report – a guide to acid/alkaline balance. To check your body’s pH level, you can use pH Test Strips. We use this brand and they worked great. We would test our saliva before going to bed every night (it’s better than testing in the morning, when our bodies are more acidic). The results can be seen in 30-45 seconds. By testing everyday, you can see when the results change, after changing your habits. I highly recommend this.

Another idea is that morning sickness is how the body keeps harmful toxins, including unhealthy food, away from the developing fetus. On that thought, restricting grains and sugars may be a good idea as well; sugar and soda would be very good to eliminate from your diet.

Other tips for eating include:

• Avoid fatty, fried, greasy, or highly spiced foods.
• Eat smaller meals, such as six to eight small meals instead of three larger ones.
• Don’t go for long periods of time without eating.
• Salt your food to taste. Lack of adequate salt can aggravate nausea.
• Eat enough protein; have a high-protein snack (almonds, cheese) every couple hours. Do not let your stomach get empty.

Drinking

Here are a few tips for what you can drink:

• Citrus can help (lemon in your water, unsweetened grapefruit juice).
• Drink fluids between, but not with, meals.
• Aim for 1/2 your body weight in oz. of water per day. (ie. a 140 woman should aim for 70 oz. of water each day).

Ginger

Ginger is one of the most popular and common remedies for treating morning sickness. There are many ways to get some ginger in your diet:

• Grate fresh ginger into hot water for an anti-nausea tea
• Ginger Snaps
• Ginger Candy
• Crystallized ginger
• Put real ginger in something sweet
• Drink gingerale
• Altoids Mints, Ginger flavor

Supplements

• Vitamin B6 supplements can help.
• Vitamins K and C, taken at the same time.
• Take your prenatal vitamin with food or at bedtime.

Also, make sure your prenatal vitamins are whole-food based since they are easier on your system and most bio-available for absorption. I used (and loved) Perfect Prenatal by New Chapter. Another good brand is Rainbow Light. You take a tablet several times a day, which is easier (and better utilized) than once-a-day vitamins.

Alternative Treatments

Here are a few alternative treatments that have been known to be very effective in relieving morning sickness:

• Homeopathy: It is best to see a qualified homeopathic practitioner for a remedy since homeopathy is a complex system and the appropriate remedy depends on the patient’s unique symptoms. More information can be found at Hyperemesis.org as well as Altmd.com.
• Acupuncture: Acupuncture is another safe and effective treatment for morning sickness. The acupuncture point Pericardium 6 (P6) is stimulated, which is known in traditional Chinese medicine to relieve nausea.
• Acupressure:  Acupressure is similar to acupuncture; pressure is put on certain points of the body.  Acupressure in the form of wrist bands, sometimes known as sea bands, has been helpful as well. Sea Bands can be found at most drugs stores or Amazon.com.

Treats

Here are a few other things you can eat that are more like treats!

• Preggie Pop Drops – Organic: These wouldn’t be my first choice for morning sickness relief, as they are essentially sugar candy, but many people seem to like them and say they work. Originally created as lollipops, they now come in candy drop form. (Notice I just included a link to their organic version since their original version has a few ingredients that I don’t like.)
• Popsicles: Real fruit frozen popsicles might help as well, especially lemonade.

Other Remedies

• Put drops of lavender or peppermint essential oil in an aromatherapy diffuser or humidifier to scent the air.
• Rest as much as you can. Too much activity can aggravate nausea.

Wendy - Parenting Tips 365

And yes, I realize that all a new baby really needs is something to eat, something to wear, some sort of diaper, a roof over her head, and lots of love. But I know there are other things that you will want to get and with the abundance of “stuff” available, it’s pretty overwhelming to sort through it all.

When I was pregnant I asked all my friends and family with kids (which was all our friends and family) for their opinions on baby gear. I also asked other mommies online. I asked anyone who would listen to me! I read books about baby gear. I wanted to be smart about this. I’ve compiled a list of what I found out; that is, recommended baby products and products you can live without.

Of course this is all subjective; what might be a ‘must have’ by one person could be a ‘live without’ by another. I formed these lists based on the most common answers I got; along with a bit of my own opinion! I understand that what works for your family might be completely different. So with that disclaimer out of the way, here is what I recommend:

WHAT TO GET

Dresser as a Changing Table
Many people, myself included, like to have a dedicated spot to change diapers. My husband and I wanted to be more practical about it so we purchased a dresser for our child; we found one that he could use until he leaves the house. Right now it’s used as a changing table; we place a changing pad on one end of it and diapering supplies on the other end. When he is no longer wearing diapers, it will become his dresser for clothes as he grows.

dresser as a changing table

Bouncy Seat

If you ever want to take a shower, or just need to put the baby somewhere for a few minutes, these little seats work so well. Babies can bounce, play with toys, or snooze. I brought ours into the bathroom and that’s where I put my son while I showered; we could see each other and all was well. There are many on the market, ranging from simple to fancy. I think a simple one would do just fine; at least get one that has a cover that is easy to take off and wash.

I had this infant-to-toddler rocker and was happy with it. But check out how neat this zen infant seat looks; I love the colors!

G having fun in his seat: 6 weeks

G sitting up: 6 months

Nursing Bra

If you’re going to breastfeed (and I sincerely hope you are) you will need good nursing bras; ones without underwire and that fit you well. If you go to Motherhood Maternity, they can help you find the correct size. Don’t forget about sleep bras; they are important too! The girls need support at night; especially in the early months! And when you find a nursing bra you like, buy several. Although I didn’t see this organic cotton nursing bra until recently, it sure looks great to me!

Ultimate Crib Sheet

It’s a fact, babies have accidents in the middle of the night. And I can tell you that it’s not much fun to change sheets in the middle of the night. But once I found the ultimate crib sheet, that part of my life was easier! This sheet fastens on top of your crib sheet and there’s no need to remove the bumpers. It is waterproof so it protects your mattress as well. If baby has an accident, just take this sheet off and you have the regular sheet below it.

Baby Monitor with Dual Receiver

It really is nice to have two receivers for the baby monitor. We keep one in our bedroom and one around the house. The one we got has a clip so you can clip it to your waist and walk around with it. It lasts many hours before needing recharging. The lights on it are nice, too, if we want to turn the volume down. We got this one from Fisher-Price and have been happy with it.

Crib Soother

We received this Fisher-Price rainforest waterfall crib soother as a gift and it’s been one of our favorite things. When our son was a tiny baby, we just turned on the background sounds, which were forest noises. As he got older, we changed settings for different music and motions. He loved it! He would watch it and it helped him go to sleep on his own. And when he wakes up in the middle of the night, I hear him turn this on and it soothes him back to sleep. We are fans!

Many of my friends have said the same thing about crib soothers; here are a few other crib soothers I found on Amazon.com.

G engaged with waterfall soother: 9 months

Medela Breast Pump

If you are going to breastfeed, even if you are staying at home, chances are you will need to pump at some point. (Mama’s gotta have a night out sometimes, right?!) Many friends have told me to skip a manual pump or a cheaper brand – and get a Medela! I took my friends’ advice; I have the Medela Pump in Style breast pump and have been very happy with it.

Stroller Frame

When your baby is tiny and still in an infant car seat, I highly recommend getting a stroller frame instead of a big stroller. You can use one of those down the road if you like, but when everything was new to me I loved the ease of using this lightweight frame. The infant car seat snaps into this frame and it has lots of storage below. You will want to be sure your infant car seat fits with this frame; there are several stroller frames on the market.

Sling

Another great option for keeping your hands free with a little one is to wear them in a sling. There are many wonderful slings on the market and babywearing is a growing trend. Here are some of my favorites:

• I have the Moby Wrap and love it! I didn’t get it until my son was four months old and I wish I had it sooner. The baby stays so snug and close to you in this wrap; your hands are free to do what you need to do. I used this wrap to help him fall asleep. Once I was wearing him I would sing and pat his bottom. Once he fell asleep, I would unwrap it and transfer him to his crib. Magic! It also makes a great baby shower gift.

• Another popular option is the Hotsling. There are several ways to wear this sling as your baby grows. It’s great for out in public; easy in and easy out! Plus there are many great colors and designs; it’s a new fashion accessory!

• Many of my friends had the Maya Wrap. This sling is easy to use, comes in many colors, and is great for nursing. Many slings are great for nursing.

me wearing G in Moby wrap: 4 months old

Exersaucer

Another popular item is an exersaucer. Once the baby is old enough to use these, they are another great option if you need to free up your hands for a few minutes. There are many toys for the baby’s entertainment and they rock a bit if baby pushes with his feet.

Infant Tub

We really liked this infant tub, and we liked having a tub in general. This one had a sling for the early days, a recline position, and a sit up position. When he was about eight or nine months old, we moved this tub into another tub for baths before graduating to just a regular tub. It served us well over the months and I recommend it.

Nursing Pillow

I almost didn’t add this one to the list; mainly because I didn’t use one and was fine. But I know MANY friends who used one and loved it, and since I am all for anything that helps a mom with breastfeeding, I decided to add it. I would recommend the My Brest Friend nursing pillow, since it’s flat and easier to use (I’ve heard). But many people like the popular Boppy. (Did you see that they now have an organic cotton slipcover for the Boppy? Awesome! If you saw my previous post on organic cotton, then you know how great this is!)

Note: I did have a My Brest Friend pillow and used it for a day, but then I got breastfeeding help from a lactation consultant and was able to nurse successfully without needing the pillow at all (20.5 months and counting)!

WHAT TO FORGET

Wipes Warmer

This item was one that was almost unanimous. It dries out the wipes and let’s face it, it’s another gadget to have cluttering up your house. If you are concerned about the temperature of the wipes, hold them in your hands for a few seconds to warm them up before wiping the baby.

Big High Chair

I give you permission to skip buying a big high chair. You may think you need one, but there is another option. The big high chairs take up room in your kitchen and are hard to clean, especially if the padded seat is made of cloth. What we did, and so did several of my friends, was to use a booster seat strapped to a chair at your table. The booster seat is adjustable in height and the tray is adjustable too. Also, the tray is small enough to wash in the sink. Once we introduced solids to our son (at eight months) this is where he sat – and he’s still there today!

G in the booster seat: 12 months old

G in booster seat : 20 months

Expensive Diaper Pail System

Forget the Diaper Genie pails and the like. The pails themselves are expensive but don’t forget about refills; those will add up! And I personally think they are a bit complicated to use. We have this simple diaper pail and it’s been great. We use grocery sacks in ours since we have many of those and they are free. You can put an air freshener in it if you like. Or better yet, put some baking soda or essential oils in it for the odor. Be sure to change it often; at least once a day. (You can see our diaper pail in the picture of the changing table above; it’s on the left of the table.)

Crib Mobile

Everyone thinks they need a crib mobile to complete their nursery, but trust me; you don’t. They kind of get in the way and are hard to store. If you want something in the crib for baby’s entertainment, get a crib soother (like I mentioned earlier).

Expensive Crib

Unless you have lots of money to burn, you really don’t need an expensive crib. If you like the cribs with storage underneath, there are many other ways to incorporate storage into your nursery. Perhaps some storage baskets underneath the crib would work well. You might also want to skip the crib that doubles as a toddler bed. Yes, it might be convenient but for many people who have more kids, you will need it as a crib again before you could use it as a toddler bed.

Small Clothes

There are several recommendations I have for baby clothes, especially in small sizes (0-3 and 3-6 months):

• Don’t buy too many clothes in sizes 0-3 and 3-6 months. We didn’t have to buy any in this size as we received many for gifts. This is a time of rapid growth for your baby and they may grow out of the clothes faster than they can wear them out.
• Skip the infant jeans or jean overalls. They may be cute, but they are not comfy.
• Forget the baby shoes. Socks are just fine for this age.
• You don’t need many dress-up outfits in this size range. Let’s face it, babies just want to be comfortable; and chances are they aren’t going to many fancy places.
• Skip the baby bath robes. A nice towel is sufficient. And at this age, we pretty much want to dry them off as fast as we can and get them dressed and warm again. I don’t know how much they want to lounge around in a robe!

Fancy Infant Bedding

I know how tempting it is to see all the pretty infant bedding sets for sale; you want a beautiful room for your beautiful baby! But the truth is that babies don’t really care if they have a complete nursery set from the most expensive store. Babies will poop and spit up and vomit all over it no matter what it cost or where it’s from. You can still have a nice nursery with a simple crib sheet, breathable bumper, and nicely painted walls, with maybe a few pictures.

Speaking of bedding, books recommend getting eight crib sheets. You don’t need that many; two or three is plenty. Especially if you have them in rotation with the ultimate crib sheet, like I mentioned earlier.

Sleep Positioners

I don’t have much to say here except that these are not necessary. We got by just fine without them.

Special Laundry Detergent

You don’t have to buy that special laundry detergent for baby’s clothes. We already used a laundry detergent that is non-toxic, hypo-allergenic, and free of dyes. There are several kinds of similar laundry detergents on the market; you can find one you like and use it on the whole family’s laundry.

Disposable Changing Pad Covers

Let’s help out the environment and try to buy less disposable things when we can. I just put this portable changing pad on top of a changing table when I need to.

Swing

We had the swing that was low to the ground, and although that seems to be the way to go (versus a large one), we just didn’t use it. We had plenty of other ways to entertain our son. I know many people love the swing, but I would say that you can forget this piece of equipment.

I hope this list has given you some information you can use. Feel free to use it as a guide for what to register for. Or a guide for what to buy a friend.

Wendy - Parenting Tips 365

According to Midwifery Today, the most common physical reason for preterm labor is inadequate maternal nutrition. As part of my prenantal care with a midwife, nutrition was a major part of discussion and of my care. I don’t know if doctors stress the importance of good nutrition in preventing preterm labor, as well as many other pregnancy-related complications.

Dr. Thomas Brewer has a website (blueribbonbaby.org) devoted to promoting good nutrition and helping women apply the “Brewer Diet”. The website includes checklists for specialized diets (vegetarian and vegan) and supplemental plans for women carrying multiples.

If women commit themselves to good nutrition, and work with care providers who not only understand the importance of good nutrition during pregnancy but encourage it, they are taking an important step to ensure a full-term birth.

Our son was born at 39 weeks 6 days, weighed 8 lbs 0.5 ounces, and was wonderfully healthy and perfect in every way. I received all my prenatal care from a wonderful team of midwives at a local free-standing birth center. Feel free to read my birth story.

Our son, two days old

Wendy – Parenting Tips 365

Here is a brief overview of Childbirth Connection from their ‘About Us’ page on their website:

Childbirth Connection is a national not-for-profit organization founded in 1918 as Maternity Center Association. Our mission is to improve the quality of maternity care through research, education, advocacy and policy. Childbirth Connection promotes safe, effective and satisfying evidence-based maternity care and is a voice for the needs and interests of childbearing families.

One section of their website that jumped out at me was the section on “The Rights of Childbearing Women“. How many of us ever really think about our rights when it comes to this area of our lives? Their list of the Rights of Childbearing Women applies human rights to the area of maternity care. The website also says that “although most of these rights are granted to women in the United States by law, many women do not have knowledge of their maternity rights.” It goes on to state that many pregnant women are not aware of their legal right to make health care choices for themselves and their babies.

I encourage you to click the link above to read their entire list (20 bullet points). The list has some of the statements marked with asterisks to indicate that currently in the US, childbearing women are legally entitled to that right, or that the legal system would probably uphold that right. Here are a couple from the list:

• Right to uninterrupted contact with the newborn from the moment of birth.
• Right to give birth in the position of her choice.
• Right to accept or refuse procedure, drugs, tests, and treatments.
• Right to have family members and friends of her choice present.
• Right to receive full advance information about risks and benefits of pain relief methods, including those that do not require drugs.

Reading that list again makes me wonder about something. There is a hospital in my area that has a policy against having a doula, using a birth ball, walking around during labor, showering or taking a bath during labor, and is generally against a laboring mom “going natural” (not getting an epidural). It seems to me as if their hospital policy violates many of these rights of childbearing women. And that makes me sad.

But instead of being sad and doing nothing about it, I am doing what I can. I write about these topics in the hope of spreading information to others. When enough people are upset about these hospital policies, maybe change can start to happen.

I encourage all of you to read that article on The Rights of Childbearing Women. And then read more articles on their website. And pass this information along to all the women of childbearing age you know. Together we can make a change.

Wendy - Parenting Tips 365

The report (PDF) says that “although most childbearing women and newborns in the United States are healthy and at low risk for complications, national surveys reveal essentially all women who give birth in U.S. hospitals experience high rates of interventions with risks of adverse affects.”

The report was picked up by a few news organizations and Consumer Reports even wrote an article about it. The report found that many maternity practices are overused on healthy women with low-risk pregnancies, thus introducing risk of harm with little or no medical benefit at all. Such practices include:

Inducing labor. The percentage of women whose labor was induced more than doubled between 1990 and 2005

Use of epidural painkillers, which might cause adverse effects, including rapid fetal heart rate and poor performance on newborn assessment tests

Delivery by Caesarean section, which is estimated to account for one-third of all U.S births in 2008, will far exceed the World Health Organization’s recommended national rate of 5 to 10 percent

Electronic fetal monitoring, unnecessarily adding to delivery costs

Rupturing membranes (“breaking the waters”), intending to hasten onset of labor

Episiotomy, which is often unnecessary

The study also highlights several safe and effective practices that are underused for healthy low-risk pregnant women:

• Use of midwife or family physician
• Prenatal vitamins
• Ginger for nausea and vomiting in pregnancy
• Continuous labor support
• Upright and side-lying positions during labor and delivery, which are associated with less severe pain than lying down on one’s back
• Vaginal birth (VBAC) for most women who have had a previous Cesarean section
• Measures to relieve pain, bring comfort, and/or promote progress during labor (such as acupuncture and hypnosis)
• Delayed and spontaneous pushing
• Delayed cord clamping
• Early mother-baby skin-to-skin contact
• Breastfeeding and interventions to promote its initiation and duration

As a natural childbirth advocate myself I am happy to see this article published and picked up by some news organizations. Any way the facts can be made available to childbearing women is a good thing, in my opinion. Women should have all the facts so they make informed decisions about their childbirth. It’s also the same reason I loved the documentary The Business of Being Born; information about maternity care and birth choices is starting to come out to the general public a bit more often.

My husband and I recently watched the movie together and I guess you could say that it was “preaching to the choir” for us, as it outlined the many facts about modern maternity care that I had already discovered years ago and were the reason we chose the maternity care that we did. But I do think this movie does an excellent job of introducing these facts and information to the general public, who may be unaware of exactly what is going on with our maternity care, and providing an introduction to safe birthing options available outside a hospital. For example, did you know that the US has the second worst newborn death rate in the developed world? And did you know that midwives attend 70-80% of births in Europe?

I was also happy with how the movie portrayed midwives and home birth. I know many people do not even know what a modern midwife does exactly or what prenatal care with one involves. I think there is a lot of fear involved; fear of the unknown. Once you do the research and look at the facts, you will see how home birth is a very safe option and that midwives are highly trained and skilled.

I think this movie accomplishes two main things:

• Highlights the issues with maternity care in the US including the motivation behind many obstetrical decisions made today
• Shows safe birthing options available with a midwife

I do think every woman should see this movie. I know not everyone will end up choosing a natural birth, but I think it is important for women to have all the facts before they make a decision as important as how their baby will be born. I bet many women would be surprised to learn about the United State’s high infant mortality rate, or the fact in other countries most babies are born with midwives attending. Maybe their eyes will be opened to the motivations behind many decisions made by OB surgeons. And maybe they will start researching this decision for themselves. The movie’s website (www.thebusinessofbeingborn.com) has some excellent birth resources, including links to books, articles, and medical studies. As mentioned in the movie, people spend more time researching their purchase of a camera or car than they do the birth of their baby.

You can view the movie trailer here:

And if any of you do decide to have a natural birth, don’t forget to read my article on How to Have a Natural Childbirth. You can also read my birth story.

Tale of the Tape

This is what my husband and I called measuring my belly with a piece of ribbon. I got this idea from a baby shower game. I tried to find a piece of green ribbon, in the perfect shade of baby green, because when I started measuring my belly we didn’t know if we were having a boy or girl. I searched high and low and couldn’t find what I liked, so I used white. I ended up liking that choice.

I started measuring my four week belly, which documented the starting point and the point I wished to return to – someday. Every couple weeks I measured my belly with the ribbon, going through my belly button as a reference point. I would mark a line on the ribbon with a pen and write the week next to it.

Here is what my ribbon looked like:

In case you can’t see the numbers very well, week 4 is on the right and week 24 is on the left. Being the engineers we are, my husband and I decided to do some calculations at that point:

• Week 4 belly: 26.25″
• Week 24 belly: 34″
• Belly growth so far: 7.75″
• Belly growth increase: 29.5%

Yes, by doing those calculations we opened ourselves up to being called geeks – but that’s OK!

It was interesting to see that my belly was biggest about week 37, and then I got a smaller measurement after that. I am sure this is because the baby dropped and so measuring through my belly button showed a smaller number.

I will give you one word of caution, though. Even though after the baby is born it’s fun to wrap the ribbon around your waist and see how big you once were (it’s the whole reason for doing this after all), it was a little shocking to see that I was no where near the week four line on the ribbon. And this was nine months after the birth, when I was back to my pre-pregnancy weight! I was closer to the week 16 line. *sigh*

Photo Collage

Once I saw this idea I knew it was perfect for me, the photo lover! My husband took a side photo of me once a week while I was wearing the same outfit against the same background. We started at week 12, although I wish I would have started sooner. Because I am so, um, ‘precise’ about things, I insisted the photo be taken on the exact day of the week when I entered my new pregnancy week (if that makes sense). So every Tuesday was picture day!

I then created an 8×10 template in Photoshop Elements, re-sized some of the images, and placed them in the template. I ended up using photos from every other week. I will say that this is a VERY basic template and I’m sure if you have more PS skills than I do, you could make a really beautiful photo collage. I was just going for ’show all the bellies’.

My collage shows pictures of me biweekly from week 12 through week 38. I went into labor one day before week 40. While I was laboring at home, I was even thinking of changing into this outfit and taking one more final shot for ‘week 40′. But then the, um, ‘precise’ side of me would say I cheated because technically I didn’t get to 40 weeks. But I digress.

Belly Cast

Another really fun idea is to create a belly cast, or mold, of your beautiful belly! Or create several throughout your pregnancy and see the change. You can do it yourself with this Belly Cast Kit by ProudBody. For casting and decorating tips (and many photos showing unique ideas) visit their website (www.proudbody.com). These casting kits are much cheaper than I imagined; I wish I would have done this!

Another neat site I found is www.Originalbellyworks.com. Let your creativity flow!

One thought about these though – where will you put it when it’s done?

Maternity Photos

Many more women are wanting beautiful maternity photos as a way to remember the amazing time when they are pregnant. There are many photographers who do this; you can do a search for photographers near you. Since my hobby is photography, my husband and I decided to take our own maternity photos. I hung a black vellux blanket on a backdrop stand in my game room upstairs (which has great natural light). I got the camera ready and handed it to my husband. I had a few poses in mind and then we just started shooting. Here are some of my favorites; hopefully they provide you with some ideas and inspiration!

Many people wonder about the best time to take maternity photos. You want to be far enough along to have a good-sized belly, but you also want to be able to move around comfortably. We took ours when I was 37 weeks along, as I wanted the biggest belly possible! I was in perfectly good health and still exercising a lot, so moving around wasn’t an issue for me.

Another questions people have is what to do with these photos once you have them? We framed a few and have them in our bedroom. You could also put some in a small photo album and leave it on your coffee table.

In addition to these types of maternity photos, don’t forget to take casual snapshots of your growing belly every once in awhile – like these:

23 weeks

37 weeks

Pregnancy is definitely one of the most special times in a woman’s life and it’s a time worth remembering. Even if it doesn’t feel like it sometimes, you won’t be pregnant forever! And you will forget exactly how big your belly was! You will be so happy that you took the time to document this amazing time in your life!

Wendy – Parenting Tips 365

Our new family just minutes after birth

I’m not here to convince you to have a natural (unmedicated) childbirth. You deserve to have the birth YOU want; not what anyone else wants and not what I want. But if you have decided to have a natural childbirth (NCB) I hope the information I share will help you accomplish your goal. Once I decided I wanted a natural childbirth, I knew I needed to prepare myself with tools and advice on how to accomplish that goal. In addition to advice of my own, I have come across a lot of advice and suggestions from other moms on how to have a natural childbirth. This advice involves pre-birth preparation as well as tips for coping during labor and birth.

1. Stay Away From Hospitals

This piece of advice is number one for a reason. I know this might seem impossible or just plain crazy but I assure you, if your goal is a natural childbirth, it’s not. Epidural rates are extremely high at hospitals. And since epidurals are not available in a birthcenter or at a home birth, staying away from a hospital for birth is a very good way to have a natural childbirth! No hospital=no epidural. Goal accomplished!

Sure, many laboring moms choose to have an epidural. But what about others who want to have a natural childbirth in a hospital? It’s not impossible to have a natural childbirth in a hospital, but in order to be successful you will probably have to fight for your ‘alternative’ birth choices. I didn’t want to have to fight for my decision, or defend it, so I chose a setting where my decision was normal and natural. If you aren’t surrounded by people who support and encourage your natural childbirth choice (including your doctor and nurses), you can probably expect to be talked into something you don’t want. And in the middle of labor, all your wishes can go out the window if you know that an epidural is in the building.

2. Hire a Doula

If you are having a hospital birth, I would highly suggest hiring a doula (pronounced DOO-luh). A doula is a person who supports a woman during labor, birth, and beyond. Even if you are birthing in a birth center or at home, you may still consider hiring a doula for extra support. Doulas are advocates for birthing moms and offer suggestions for partners. Doulas understand what is going on and even though they cannot tell the doctor or nurses how to care for you, they can let you know what’s going on, remind you of your wishes, and encourage you during difficult moments.

Visit Doulas of North America (www.dona.org) and www.doula.com for more information about doulas and to find a doula near you.

3. Attend Natural Childbirth Classes

Like the boy scout motto, be prepared. If you have decided to have a natural childbirth, you need to prepare yourself by taking a natural childbirth class with your partner. There are several different classes available:

• Bradley method: The Bradley Method of Natural Childbirth is a comprehensive course that not only teaches ways to handle labor pain, but also provides information about nutrition, staying healthy, and relaxation exercises. This class also focuses on providing coach training for your partner.
• Hypnobabies: The Hypnobabies course teaches self-hypnosis techniques for a relaxing and comfortable labor and birth, as well as teaching you to trust in your body and your baby. It is also a comprehensive childbirth course. Many Hypnobabies moms report a birth with no pain; only pressure sensations. There are Hypnobabies classes you can take from an instructor. If there is not an instructor in your area, the Hypnobabies self-study course is a great option. Since I am a very strong believer in the incredible power of the mind, we chose the Hypnobabies self-study course for our childbirth preparation. I particularly loved the affirmations CD, which I listened to every day and is filled with many positive statements about pregnancy and birth to encourage only positive thinking.
• HypnoBirthing: HypnoBirthing is another method of teaching self-hypnosis techniques for relaxation during labor and childbirth. HypnoBirthing courses are offered mainly through a HypnoBirthing practitioner; however, if there is not a practitioner in your area, there is learning material available for purchase (book, CDs, and DVDs).
• HypBirth: HypBirth is yet another hypnosis-for-childbirth program. It features CDs and an instructional DVD.
• Birthing From Within: From the Birthing From Within website, ‘awareness’ is the key message with this class. Being tuned in to your pregnant body can lead to an increased trust in your own body.
• Autonomous classes: Some doulas, or other NCB supporters, may offer their own natural childbirth classes. I know of a doula in my area that offers a NCB class that touches on many of these birthing techniques. Here is her site: cherishbirth.com

4. Believe You Can Do It

“Whether you think you can or whether you think you can’t, you’re right.” -Henry Ford

Anyone can have a natural childbirth if you set your mind to it and believe in yourself. You don’t have to be special, or talented, or athletic, or have a high pain tolerance. You do need to have a belief that you CAN do it. This belief in yourself can start with finding a belief that birth is natural and normal and finding a trust in your body. You were made to do this! Natural childbirth classes, repeating positive birthing affirmations, and hearing positive natural childbirth stories are all other ways to gain this belief in yourself. Your mind is so very powerful!

Here is another quote I just love:

“We have a secret in our culture, and it’s not that birth is painful. It’s that women are strong.” -Laura Stavoe Harm

5. Surround Yourself With Positive NCB Stories

To build up confidence in natural childbirth, surround yourself with other women who have had a natural childbirth and hear their stories. Read as many positive natural childbirth stories as you can find. This is how it becomes normal to you in your mind. You will begin to see all the many different ways natural childbirth can unfold and you will see the range of ‘normal’. Hopefully that will help you let go of any fears or concerns you may have.

If you don’t know many people who have had natural births, you can read some stories online on Babycenter.com in the NCB forum and in the Mothering.com forums. To start you off, here is the birth story of my son.

On a related note, stay away from negative birth stories including those from people who will want to share with you what happened to their friend of a friend. And immediately stop watching those dramatic TV shows about birth. They will not help you prepare for a natural childbirth.

6. Read Good Books

There are many wonderful books that provide technical information and research, as well as inspirational birth stories. Hopefully by reading these books, you can learn to trust your body and do what comes naturally.

• The Thinking Woman’s Guide to a Better Birth, by Henci Goer and Rhonda Wheeler. This book provides scientific research about many birth choices so the reader can make informed decisions about their maternity care and birth.
• Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth, by Ina May Gaskin. Written by a midwife, this book shares many inspirational birth stories from her clients as well as information about how to avoid many standard medical interventions.
• Baby Catcher: Chronicles of a Modern Midwife, by Peggy Vincent. This midwife chronicles her life as a baby catcher.
• Gentle Birth Choices, by Barbara Harper. The topic of water birth is discussed as well as the mind-body connection during labor and birth.
• Birthing From Within: An Extra-Ordinary Guide to Childbirth Preparation, by Pam England and Rob Horowitz. This book contains activities and exercises to help expectant moms analyze their thoughts and face their fears during pregnancy. It also provides tips for coping with labor pain.
• The Birth Book: Everything You Need to Know to Have a Safe and Satisfying Birth, by William Sears and Martha Sears. This book provides information so the reader can take control of their own birth. Topics covered include the best birthing positions, pain management, writing a birth plan, and many more. Also included are several birth stories.
• Journey Into Motherhood: Inspirational Stories of Natural Birth, by Sheri L. Menelli. This book provides many positive stories of unmedicated childbirth, revealing the many birthing options that women have.

7. Get Support from Like-Minded Family and Friends

If you surround yourself with people who believe you can do it and who support your own belief that you can do it, then you can do it.

Once you have made the decision to have an unmedicated childbirth, only surround yourself with people who will either support you – or keep quiet! Make sure your partner understands and is comfortable with the role you want him to play. Also, let your medical staff and your support staff (your partner and doula) know you intend to have a natural childbirth and you do not want pain medication. Let them know how you want to be supported. If you ask for pain medication, tell them to offer alternatives. Doulas are wonderful in this regard; they know many alternatives and many ways to encourage and support laboring women. No matter how wonderful your partner is, there is something special about a woman supporting another woman during this time.

You will want to let your partner and doula know that you especially need to be supported and encouraged during the transition phase, as this is when many people ask for pain medication. Remind your partner that he is your best support. And remember, just when you think you can’t do it anymore, you are probably almost done.

8. Create a Birth Plan

A birth plan is a written list of your preferences for labor, birth, and newborn care that you share with your health care practitioners. Birth plans can include your preferences on the following topics: labor, monitoring, pain medication, episiotomy, cesarean, delivery, postpartum, breastfeeding, circumcision, and people present during the birth. There are several websites that provide information about writing birth plans, and some will help you create one online. Here are a few I found:

• birthplan.com
• childbirth.org
• babycenter.com
• thelaboroflove.com (writing a plan for a gentle birth)
• midwiferytoday.com (I enjoyed the humor in this one!)

It’s a good idea to bring your birth plan to a prenatal appoinment and discuss with your health care practitioner before labor starts. I will just warn you, though, that not all doctors will be accommodating to all of your preferences, and some will even say they are against hospital policy (as crazy as that may seem). I have even heard that a local hospital does not allow doulas, birth balls, taking a shower, or walking around for a woman in labor!

You will want to make several copies of your birth plan; one for your doctor/midwife, several for nurses, and one for your doula.

9. Labor at Home as Long as You Can

At home you are surrounded by comfort: your bed, your sofa, your jammies, your shower, your photos on the wall, your children. You also have the option of laboring how you wish. As I’ve mentioned previously, when you are relaxed and in a calm, comfortable, and familiar environment, your body can relax and labor more efficiently. Hospitals can create tension and their policies may not allow you to labor in your desired way.

10. Don’t Be Afraid

Read about the fear-tension-pain cycle. Fear of what is happening creates tension and resistance. Tension increases pain. And increased pain results in increased fear, and so the cycle continues. Knowing that helped me tremendously. Once I noticed that I was tensing up during a contraction, I really let it go and relaxed and let the contraction happen. My husband’s words during each contraction really helped me to relax as well (“release the energy”, “peace”, “relax”). The birthing muscles work in perfect harmony when your body is relaxed and you trust birth. Labor is faster when you aren’t fighting your body. By breathing through the contractions and letting them happen, I had a fairly quick labor. Our bodies were meant to do this!

11. Stay Hydrated

Labor is hard work, just like running a marathon. It only makes sense to keep yourself hydrated to help you make it through. Birthing in a birth center, I was allowed to eat and drink as I wanted. Eating food that is easy to digest is important, as your body is using resources for labor that may take away from digesting food. I drank water and an electrolyte solution during labor. I didn’t feel like eating much, so had just tiny bites of an apple. If you aren’t allowed to eat or drink during labor, that can often take away a sense of control and can make you want to give up sooner.

12. Pain Relief Techniques

In addition to the techniques taught in a natural childbirth class, here are a few other techniques that can help ease labor pain:

• Hydrotherapy: Sit in a tub of warm water. Take a shower; or sit on a chair in the shower and spray warm water on your belly like I did. It felt wonderful!
• Change positions: Take a walk. Sit on a birth ball. Be on your hands and knees. Squat. Find a position that feels good.
• Breathing patterns: Vocalizing in low tones, instead of high tones, helps release the energy from your body. Low moaning while exhaling is a very common natural expression for coping with pain.
• Acupressure: There are several acupressure points on the body; foot, hands, ankles, buttocks, shoulder. For information about the specific acupressure point, ask your acupuncturist or search online.
• Stay out of bed: Natural childbirth is difficult while laying in bed, especially on your back.
• Visual imagery: Visualize your perfect, easy birth. When it starts, how long it lasts, positions you want to labor in and birth in, who you want supporting you and how, how you feel, how you think, time of day, etc. Everything that you want your birth to be. Then visualize it happening that way.
• Massage or counterpressure
• Meditation
• Yoga
• Hot/cold packs
• Laughter
• Humming or singing
• Listening to favorite music
• Focal points
• Aromatherapy
• Essential oils
• TENS machine

13. Stay in the Moment

Stay in the moment and only deal with the contraction you are working on. If you are anticipating what’s next, you might have a harder time. Don’t look ahead, regardless of how your labor is progressing. Embrace the experience; feel it, live it, enjoy it! I can say that this advice was very helpful for me. Not once was I thinking ahead. I was concentrating on relaxing and breathing down the energy through each contraction.

14. Birth in a Position That You Choose

When it comes time to push and birth your baby, there are several positions that can help make this stage of labor easier:

• Side-lying: This position is good in the latter stages of labor, and for a long labor as it promotes full body rest and relaxation. This is also a good position for first-time moms, as the baby comes out a bit slower which allows the perineum time to stretch and hopefully avoid tearing. I was surprised when this was the position that felt good for me. (I pushed for 30 minutes and I didn’t tear at all!)
• Hands and knees: This position is helpful for turning a posterior baby, back labor, and birthing a large baby.
• Squatting: Squatting opens up the pelvis and helps align baby.
• Sitting: Sitting positions allow gravity to to work, as well as aid in relaxation. My birth center had a birth chair to aid this position.
• Vertical or standing: These are more positions where gravity is used to assist in the birth.

Did you notice that I did not mention the lithotomy (flat-on-back) position? This position is the most commonly used position in hospital births; and it’s strictly for the convenience of the doctors. Many complications (which need interventions) arise from birthing in this position.

15. Breathe Down to Push

A common worry about natural childbirth is the pain related to the pushing phase. For me, labor was painful but pushing didn’t hurt at all. Your contractions do most of the work; you really don’t even need to push too much at all.

I just pushed by breathing down through the contractions. In between contractions I just rested. I didn’t feel like I was really pushing, just purposeful, deep breathing. There is no need to hold your breath and count to ten, and there is no need for your legs to be pinned back. Again, this can cause more issues.

To me, pushing was so cool! It didn’t hurt, and I could feel his head come farther out each time, then retract back in.

Alert baby G at 4.5 hours old

Having a natural childbirth was such a powerful event in my life and I would confidently do it again. In fact, everyone I know who has had a natural childbirth has said the same thing. It’s completely doable and people want to do it again. What does that tell you? Hopefully it tells you that you can do it too!

Wendy - Parenting Tips 365