Doula Role: Neonatal Care
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How do you support a client whose baby was whisked away to the Neonatal Care Unit? Whether it’s planned or unplanned having a baby in the neonatal care unit can be overwhelming and scary for parents. As doulas, we can … Read More

What Are the Side Effects of Pitocin?
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Did you know that Pitocin is the most commonly used drug for inductions in the US?  Did you also know that it is classified as a “high-alert” drug, and half of all paid legal claims involve pitocin? So why is … Read More

How a Doula Helps During a C-Section
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Doula Cesarean Support? Many women who use doulas are looking to have a natural birth without medications.  Occasionally, though, emergencies happen, plans change, and a c-section is neccesary.   I often get questioned on what doula cesarean support to help … Read More

Supporting Physiologic Birth
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In my writings, and perhaps those of others, you may have seen the term physiologic birth.  In order to understand why I choose to use this term and how to provide support for a physiologic birth, I thought it might … Read More

Natural Induction Methods: Sex
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Sex for the Induction of Labor Why it may work: It is not the intercourse that causes contractions, but the hormones that help with labor induction.  Semen has the highest levels of naturally occurring prostaglandins.  Prostaglandin is the same hormone we use to … Read More

How Can I Increase Blood Flow to Baby?
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The placenta acts as a transport for the infant’s nutritional and oxygen needs. Sometimes a baby can get by okay if the placenta is not functioning well during pregnancy.   However, during labor, a dysfunctional placenta can cause problems that … Read More

A Doula’s Role: Delayed Cord Clamping
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When I first started working as a labor and delivery nurse, delayed cord clamping was often scoffed at.  Women who wanted to have that done were “humored”, but seen as “one of those patients”.  If a baby did not cry … Read More

Natural Induction Methods: Blue Cohosh
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Blue Cohosh for the Induction of Labor (To learn the early signs of labor and how to cope with them, Click Here!) What it is: Blue Cohosh is a plant that was used by Native Americans for many reasons, including … Read More

Harm vs benefits of obstetric interventions
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I came across an article that said that  “Overuse of therapeutic procedures, diagnostic tests, and medications is an understudied problem that may account for as much as 30% of healthcare spending in the United States and result in harm to patients, … Read More

Another reason not to do cervical checks…
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This video discusses cervical checks in the context of preventing gbs infections, but I think we need to look much broader than that.  There are not a whole lot of reasons to check women so often before or during labor. … Read More