Have you noticed the air in your house is dry?  Fly away hair, itchy skin, more coughs and sneezes.  Whenever I think about complaining, I remember what it was like to be pregnant over the holidays.  Our skin is already stretching to make room for baby.   Some pregnant women experience additional itchiness in our hands and feet.  Others have less dry skin.  We each experience pregnancy individually so bring up any concerns you have with your Midwife.

Its the day after Christmas at New Birth Company, and I am soaking up our humidifier (the water wall), the infused water with cranberries and nectarines, the fire (ok, the fire app) and the smell of our Lavender shea butter skin ointment; perfect for rubbing on growing tummies, rough elbows and sore feet.  Stay hydrated Mommies…inside and out !

Hydration for Mommies, Inside and Out

Top Ten Signs Your Doctor Is Planning To Perform an Unnecessary Cesarean Section on You

1. Arrives to L&D immediately after office hours and says, “I just don’t think this baby is going to fit.”

2. Third Trimester, Routine Office Visit, “I think this is going to be a big baby. You should just have a C/S”– Did you know?  ACOG has very specific guidelines for when it is appropriate to offer a patient an elective C/S for MACROSOMIA (fancy word for large baby).  ‘Prophylactic (elective) cesarean delivery may be considered for suspected fetal macrosomia with estimated fetal weights greater than 5,000 gms (11 pounds) in women without diabetes and greater than 4,500 gms (9.9 pounds) in women with diabetes.

3. “We should induce at 39 weeks because your baby is getting too big” – Did you know that, according to ACOG:

‘Induction of labor at least doubles the risk of cesarean delivery without reducing shoulder dystocia (rare situation where baby’s shoulder can get stuck at delivery) or newborn morbidity(complications).  Suspected fetal macrosomia is not an indication for induction of labor, because induction does not improve maternal or fetal outcomes.’

4. Performs routine ultrasounds at end of pregnancy to see how big your baby is. Did you know that ultrasounds at the end of the pregnancy can be 1-2 pounds off?  Ask some VBAC patients who were talked into a C/S for this, then had a vaginal delivery of a bigger baby the next time.

5. “You have a positive herpes titer (or history of herpes); the baby will get it if you deliver vaginally.” Try some Valtrex for the last month of the pregnancy that is pretty much standard of care now.  It prevents outbreaks and allows for a normal vaginal delivery.

6. “Your baby is breech. You need to have a C/S” Ever heard of or performed an External Cephalic Version (process by which a breech baby is turned to the proper position)?  It really does work.

7. “You have pushed for 2 hours” (with an epidural that prevents you from feeling anything so you are probably not pushing effectively; this is evident on exam because the baby’s head is still perfectly round, but you do not need to know that) “It’s just not going to come out”

8. “I scheduled you for an induction at 39 weeks. It is just soooo… much more convenient for you!” (and so much higher risk of ending in a C/S, especially if you are not dilated when you start the induction).  At least 80% of my VBAC patients were induced the previous pregnancy.  For whose convenience was the induction?

9. First Visit (7 weeks), “Congratulations you are having twins.  I will go ahead and schedule your C/S at 38 weeks, but don’t worry if you go in to labor early I will cut you right away!” Translation, “I am scared out of my mind for you to deliver your babies vaginally because I am not trained on what to do when the second baby is coming, plus it pays more to cut you open.  Oh yeah, I don’t have that great a rapport with you because I only spend 2 minutes (fundal height, heart beat and ‘I’ll see you next time’) with you each visit, so I am afraid I will be sued for trying to do the right thing.”

10. First Pelvic Exam in Office (7 weeks), “Hmm, your pelvis is pretty narrow”.

Bonus Tip:

11. 38-week visit, “Your blood pressure is a little high today. You are probably developing preeclampsia or toxemia.  That can cause you to have a SEIZURE!  The treatment is to deliver the baby.  You need a Cesarean Section, as this is the quickest way to resolve it.  Let’s get you up to L&D NOW!” Translation – Preeclampsia or Pregnancy Induced High Blood Pressure is a pain in the butt.  If I induce you, it could take 24 hours or more and then I would have to manage your blood pressure, and put you on Magnesium.  This is way too inconvenient.  Do not worry you can try to have the baby vaginally next time.  Yeah right!

Well, I hope you future moms find use for these tidbits of info.  If anyone wants to add anything, please feel free.  Your experience may help other women in the future. Remember, there are only a few emergent reasons for a C/S such as fetal distress, unexplained heavy vaginal bleeding, etc.  It is okay to ask your doctor questions.  We are not supposed to bite.

Jonathan Weinstein, MD, FACOG

Obstetrician/Gynecologist

Husband to a Labor and Delivery Nurse with 27-years’ experience

Father to two beautiful children, Zoe and Ashton

On a blurry eyed post election Wednesday, New Birth Company’s entire clinical staff attended the March of Dimes Perinatal Conference for Health Professionals.  This annual conference brings together all the physicians, midwives, health officials and interest groups in the state of Kansas and Kansas City working on improving pregnancy and infant outcomes.  Headlined by Kansas Secretary of Health Robert Moser, the conference kicked off the collaborative effort, joining 17 other states including Florida and Ohio.

What is exciting for New Birth Company moms, families and our staff, is that we will have a chance to benchmark the outcomes of licensed Midwives  and Birth Centers against the national criteria.   When our Moms are asked, “Why are you going to a birth center and midwife?”  You can proudly answer, ” I know its best for me and my baby to reach at least 39 weeks of pregnancy.  Midwives and Birth Centers will help me achieve that goal. ”

Thanks to the March of Dimes for including us in the Collaborative and proving what our Moms have known for a long time.  Babies are worth the wait !

Check out the 39 Week effort here…

http://www.marchofdimes.com/pregnancy/pregnancy_hbww.html

“No one likes a bully” they are aggressive jerks!  Bullies are found everywhere!  Bullies are defined as people who use intimidation and sarcasm to “get their way” and “in their minds” they somehow believe they have the authority to demean anther person.  Bullies are self-governed by their narcissistic motivation to elevate themselves.  Bullies actually get satisfaction when they belittle another individual.  The bully will do anything and everything they can verbally to tear down another person. They do this by laughing at them, not listening, interrupting and even “telling them off”.  Bullies thrive on being right and letting everyone know it!

Everyday while working with women,  I listen to stories from clients  about how they believe they failed at birth.  I hear words like ” failure, wimp, didn’t try, “they made me get an epidural”, and “not a ‘real’ natural birth”.  They will tell their “birth story” and over and  the common thread of defeat is ” I feel like a failures” because they did not experience birth like their friends, co-worker, and family.  Women will talk of a so called “friend having a painless easy birth” and question why they could have them same, they must have failed.  The feelings of failure arise from conversations whereas women challenge each other on their birth options and outcomes.  Often, one can hear the conversations “well I had my baby at__________, why would you ever think of anything else? If you go to that facility  ____________they will _______, and _________, or ________.”

Sometimes one can hear ” that can’t be safe”……. or ”you’re crazy to consider that”

Just fill in the blanks, it can be fun.  No matter where you are the birth bullies try to make their personal opinion and outcome the one that is best for others.  It can be such a strong influence that one can feel reject and like a failure if they don’t even try what the bully suggests.  Bullies often use fear to make to coercive their opinion.  They will attempt scare you into believing that options are not options by using the biggest scare tactic of all, “they will take your baby”.

My philosophy is that all babies are born.  Think about it -they are born.  Very few are born in a “blissful breathing baby out with harmonious singing and happiness and no pain.”  This is not the norm, and it definitely doesn’t happen often.   Believe it or not, in our world today, over 90% of all  babies are born as “natural .”    The birth itself  is also one of the most powerful athletic events of all times!  This event surpass all team sports,  olympics,  gold medals and trophies.  This event uses an entire body to rhythmically and gently move a living being out of another. Yes, there is pain, exhaustion, physical, mental and emotional work and most importantly there is great reward.  Birth requires training, health, and strength, it is not for wimps, failures, and cowards. Even bullies can give birth!

Every athlete in our world endures pain, training, exhaustion and reward.  Athletes need encouragement, coaches, trainers and the cheering audience, not bullies.   GOD’s plan was for women to be the champions.  He chose women because they are strong, wise, fearless and able to complete the task.  Each women who desires and is chosen to given birth will win and receive the prize!  It is a miraculous event that can happen.  BIRTH IS FOR CHAMPIONS -NO BULLIES ALLOWED.

The bible describes the evilness of the tongue in Psalms 52, reading the the tongue is deceitful, devises destruction like a two edgedsword.   Reading these scriptures one can understand how words can be so painful that the cut to the heart of an individual. Our words to one another are very strong, and can either uplift or tear one down.  I am challenging myself and you to champion positive influencing words to empower women in having an INCREDIBLE BIRTH DAY!

New Birth Company invites all families to partner with us in the promotion of prenatal care across the globe! Our goal is to provide as many vitamins as we can to pregnant mothers and their children. We will be starting in two specific areas initially, the island of Trinidad in Caribbean Islands & Tanzania Africa. We will be working with Dr. John Powell in Trinidad & Pastor Daniel Ouma in Tanzania to promote prenatal care.
Our newly formed 501C-3 non-profit at New Birth Company is called Les Amis de Naissance. Les Amis de Naissance will procure the vitamins, through donations and prepare them to be freely given to mothers. Les Amis de Naissance, I will abbreviate as LAN, is collecting vitamins now for a team leaving for Tanzania December 9th.
Les Amis de Naissance is French for “friends of birth”. Our mission with Les Amis de Naissance (LAN) is to promote safe and natural childbirth. The friends of birth, LAN, will function in the following manner:
1. Promote safe and natural birth through advocacy. Serving as an incubator to arouse awareness of safety, standards and education of natural childbirth in our local community and throughout the world.
2. Using World Health Organization millennial goals to promote and aid in safe birth for women globally.
3. Fund raising for the promotion and awareness of birth globally and to procure needed supplies and medications for birth attendants in developing countries.
4. Provide funding to enhance education, standards and birth equality globally.
All of us can be friends of birth and promote safe birth and healthy babies globally. Our current project is to collect vitamins to give out to women who are pregnant. Ideally, the best vitamins are children’s chewable vitamins simply because mothers will often share their vitamins with their children. Prenatal vitamins are too strong for a child to ingest therefore we can safely offer children’s vitamins and supplement with folic acid.
If you would like to donate vitamins, you can bring them over the New Birth Company in Overland Park. Follow on the blog to see how they will benefit women and their babies!

Laura Boujakly, RN, has joined the New Birth Company family and we are thrilled. We know she will be an important piece to our ever growing “business of being born”. We are eager for you to meet her.

“It is with great excitement that I can now say I am apart of the wonderful staff at New Birth Company! It has been my desire and dream for a long time to work in a birthing center that encourages and empowers mothers to give birth naturally. Little else gets my heart racing quite as much. I am a hippy at heart. I love to read in my spare time. I absolutely love chasing my nephews and niece around. I cannot wait to have children of my own and look forward to being apart of many incredible birth days at New Birth Company. ” Laura

I. I believe. I believe that we.  I believe that we will win !  I believe that we will win ! We were sad to see the Kansas City Sporting lose the semi-final match Sunday night.  Going to soccer games has been a way for the New Birth Company family to connect outside of the Birth Center.   (I have this First Comes Sporting, Then Comes Birthing idea, but that is for another post)  Futbol, music and birth are global languages.  You can go anywhere in the world, hum a tune, dance a jig or kick a ball and create a connection despite language barriers.  Pregnancy and birth are another.  Today we were delighted to host guests  from Maison de Nassaince, a birth center in Haiti.  Ms Odean, the head midwife…is a “sage femme extraordinaire” as Cathy introduced her to our team.  Dr. Betsy Wickstrom is its co-founder  whose name may be familiar to our moms as one of our referral partner physicians.  It was a close the loop moment for me today.  Almost 5 years ago I went to Haiti & met the midwives who introduced me to Cathy.  And there we all sat in the birth center together….a dream that has become reality.

The reason I love the “I believe” chant is that it has double meaning to me….when I hear 20,000 Sporting fans, I imagine we are cheering for women in labor. We are cheering for natural childbirth with licensed and certified midwives in hundreds of  free standing birth centers serving women and their communties.  We are cheering for Cathy and her work with birth attendants in Tanzania this December.

I believe that we will win !  Do you?  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvpFTpMzXoA

Open House this Sunday, October 16 from 2:00-4:00. You are in for a treat; not only will you see  the beautiful NBC , birthplace of  2 boys and 5 girls just since opening, you will also taste lots of yummy foods and sweets, receive gifts and put your name in the basket for a drawing every 15 minutes. Listed below are many of the folks who will be here to help us celebrate…many of them bringing gifts for our drawings. Of course our Certified Nurse Midwives, RN’s, Medical Asstistant and even yours truly, your senior scribbler who keeps you updated on our facebook and twitter.

Wonder what is Baby Planning? An Itsabelly Baby Planner will be on hand to answer questions and explain how we help parents relax and enjoy their pregnancy. We will also be displaying a large range of well researched, safest and Itsabelly-recommended products for mama and baby. You will definitely want to put your name in the basket to win their beautiful basket of mommie/baby gifts. Also you might win a great baby shoe rack, organic body products & baby bath goodies.

 Enjoy a piece of Bo Lings celebration cake. Bo Ling’s Custom Cakes and Cupcakes! “Let your imagine go wild – we create a cake to match!”Bo Lings, Chinese Please!

Freedom Chef, Becky Ross,  is bringing treats to taste too, gluten & sugar free You will find her in the kitchen at NBC, serving up treats and ready to visit with you about her services and any food allergies you or your child may be experiencing.

Dr. Kezia Shine, Align, Chiropractic care for mommies and babies, has donated 2 $85 gift certificates. Dr. Shine sees patients at New Birth Company on Tues. Wed., & Thurs. She will be in her room at NBC to answer all those questions about how your body is changing.

Smooth Labor Smoothie Bar will be opening and churning out some piña colada  smoothies. You have heard alot about our wonderful smoothie bar…opening at all hours of the day or night. For those of you wondering, that is a little signal that a mommy is in labor. She is offered wonderful smoothies supplying her with an amazing amount of energy…after all she IS running a marathon.

Costco will be here to share some delicious cookies and visit with you about their programs. Whatever your needs, a 52″ TV, a diamond ring, a multitude of diapers, a car,  churros, they have it!