Hello LLL Moms and breastfeeding supporters,

Help us celebrate World Breastfeeding Week at our Annual Family Picnic on Saturday, August 7.  We’ve attached our Event Flier with all the info – please pass it along to all your friends, neighbors, family, moms groups, church groups and anyone you know that loves fun for the whole family.

Same time – same place: Alta Laguna Park in Laguna Beach from 11am to 2pm.  (PCH to Laguna Ave, which turns into Park and you take Park to the top of the world and turn Left on Alta Laguna, the park is on the right).

Be one of the first 100 families to get your free goodie bag filled with products from Lansinoh, Natracare, Plum Organics, Peter Rabbit Organics, Happy Baby, Whole Foods, Hylands, Motherlove, Tanners Tasty Paste, Mothering Magazine, Traditional Medicinals and more.

As always, we have some amazing donations for our opportunity drawings and silent auctions.  Check out the attached Donor Flier to see all of our great sponsors, such as Aliso Laguna Body Talk, Balboa Baby, Beco Baby Carrier, Law Office of Baron J. Bettenhausen, Bumbleride, Lansinoh, Natracare, Steph Fowler Photography, The Water Brewery and many, many more.  Silent auction items will be online on our website starting August 1.

There will be something for everyone, including vendor booths, food sales, bake sale, kids games and crafts and wonderful entertainment.

Event Schedule:
11:00am – Music Together concert
11:30am – Mom & Baby yoga demo by A Woman’s Place
12:00pm – Smile &  Sing music concert
1:00pm – Q & A session and book signing with Dr. Bob Sears
1:30pm – Opportunity Drawings
1:30pm – Food sales close

Be sure to check the WBW Family Picnic section of our website (http://sites.google.com/site/lllofsoc/home/world-breastfeeding-week-family-picnic) for the latest information.

I just got an e-mail from Mama Seoul about a VBAC she attended as a doula/friend.

My friend just had a Home Water Birth After Inverted T Cesarean at my house on Saturday.

She listened to Hypnobabies Easy First Stage for like 35 hours and the Pushing Track for about half of her long pushing phase. It was incredible.  She was dilated to 10cm from Friday night through Saturday afternoon with intact membranes. Baby was in a funky position so they didn’t want to break the water. Baby finally moved in a better position and they broke the water.

She pushed with her urges and it took awhile, but she got out a more than 9 lbs baby with only a small tear that did not require stitches.

She also included a link to her friends version of the story.  The Birth of Stella Rose

Why is it so inspirational?

• Mom had Inverted T-incision
• She lived overseas where it is often harder to have a VBAC than in the US
• She gathered the BEST birth team ever!
• She has a uniquely shaped pelvis that probably led to her first cesarean
• She was 10cm dilated with an intact water bag for 20 hours or so before any intervention.
• She pushed for about 4 hours.
• She had her HWBAC (Home Water Birth After Cesarean)
• She used Hypnobabies Childbirth Hypnosis
• Then as her doctor says, “Everything with A. takes more time.”  Her placenta took over 29 hours to detach.

Wow, those are some amazing highlights.

I loved reading both versions as they had different aspects that made the birth come to life for me.

I love to see how women can empower themselves to have positive birth experiences.  In this instance I loved to see how women helped support each other in A’s journey to and during her VBAC.  How amazing and powerful we can be!

I love what Wonderfully Made Bellies and Babies Blog posted about being a doula.

Being a doula IS amazing.

It has it’s challenges (phone calls at 2 AM, being on call),

but as Nicole says,

I believe that a doula can help a woman to reclaim the beauty, strength, and humble respect of the rite of passage to motherhood called childbirth.

It is powerful and such an honor to help women with this.

Here are some of my experiences in my life as a doula aka a birth guardian.

Why do you need to know about Group B Strep?

Group B Strep is something most expectant moms don’t think about or even know about until after they get the results of their test.  If it is negative, they don’t think anymore about it, if it is positive there are a number of choices to make.

I have a friend who was told she was GBS positive with her second baby.  Her first birth had gone quickly, so her OB was stressing her out about getting to the hospital early enough to have 2 rounds of antibiotics.  The OB made her feel like her baby would be at high risk of death if this didn’t happen.  I shared some of the following links and reassured her if she was not in a high risk category that her baby would most likely be just fine if she didn’t get both doses AND that there were certain symptoms they could watch for in the baby, that would alert her if there were issues.

You have options before even choosing to take the test!  Why does this matter?  Well, if you test positive it can create a bit of stress.   Some OBs want you to come to the hospital right away when your birth starts so you get 2 rounds of antibiotics before the baby is born.  If you share studies with them showing that other countries use hibeclens with similar results of antibiotics, with less risk to mom and baby, they don’t really seem to care.

I have gathered a group of links to help you do some research before and/or after the test.  (bonus points for you if you research before the test!!!)

• Some basic facts about GBS - this is a great link to start with. I love how she points out that despite one of the risk factors of GBS infections for infants going up after the water breaks, most OBs don’t hesitate to break a moms water.  I had that exact experience at the last induction I was at.  OB broke moms water and then later was talking about how the risk for the baby goes up when water has been broken so they better get that baby out soon.  WHY did you break moms water and did you tell her about the risks before you did so???
• No evidence that antibiotics work. – so why do we keep using it?
• Here is a great link talking about using Hibiclens if you are GBS positive.
• GBS part 1 Goes over 10 reasons NOT to do a GBS test and 10 ways GBS can affect newborns.
• GBS part 2 Goes over options you have if you choose to test.

Just like any other choice regarding birth.  Do your research and choose what is best for you and your baby. If you are in a high risk category then antibiotics might be the best choice.   If you are not, know you have some options.  At least know you don’t have to be scared about GBS.   You do need to be informed about it, but not scared.

A note on my friend. She did have her second baby quickly and only had a chance to get one round of antibiotics. 

If she hadn’t done some research, she may have felt very scared about that, if she had only listened to her OBs scare tactics.  Instead she knew that her baby was very low risk of getting an infection and she just kept a close eye on her baby.  She would have alerted her doctor if the baby showed any signs of sickness.    Her baby is healthy and mom is very happy she did some research.

I have been following this along with other SITS girls for the last 6 days.  Today our challenge was to read 27 different tips and tutorials to better your blog.  I actually did this on day 5, because I had some free time.

These were great resources to go and check out.  What a wonderful way to spend an hour or so, learning some great tips to improve my blog!

Here are things I already do.

• Short posts – most of mine are on the shorter side.
• Announce news – I feel like I do a lot of announcing birth news to my readers.  Like my ACOG supporting VBAC announcement.
• Polls  - I think those are fun.
  
• FREE BOOK – I made a free book and started giving it away in March.  All people have to do is sign up for my newsletter.  This has increased my following by SO much.  I used to get about 6 people a month sign up for my newsletter.  Now I have on average 130 a month sign up.  That is an increase of A LOT (any statisticians want to help me with that one?).
• Newsletter Subscribers, having readers on your blog is great, but to have them sign up for your newsletter gives you so many more options.  In Feb I had 169 subscribers, 5 months later I have 852 subscribers.  All because of my Free Book!!!
• Titles – make them interesting. I am trying to do more of this.  Like my Birthing a 20 Pound Baby Title.

• Pillar content – a link to my big babies page is a perfect example (though it takes you off my blog this is my page out of all my sites that gets the most hits)  If you look at the right sidebar under resources you can see my pillar content.  I only recently did this.

Here are some ideas for future pillar content.

• -how to choose baby name
• -cesarean page
• -vbac page
• -definition article
• -what is hypnosis for birth?

Things I SHOULD do.

• Use PHOTOS – http://www.skelliewag.org/a-complete-guide-to-finding-and-using-incredible-flickr-images-162.htm This was a GREAT link.  I usually don’t use photos, but I can see how it would be helpful for those visual learners.
• Change to wordpress.org so I can have links for people to facebook or tweet my posts automatically.  I am limited with what I can do with my WordPress.com site.  This would also help me to have better stats and so many more widgets.
• Post on weekends!!! I always wondered about this and tend not to, because I worried no one would read on the weekend.
• Do not clutter your website with badges: Even if we are talking about awards and recognition badges you should place them on the “About Us” page. —-  I like this ideas.  I do have a lot of badges on my blog, but I like them all.  But I also like putting them on the About Me page.  I don’t know how to do it only on there, but I can figure that out.   What do YOU think about badges?  Are mine OK?
• Open by asking a question? it shifts your mind to the “what’s in it for me” sphere that you started reading from in the first place. Make sense?– I’ll have to try that.
• If you worry that a post might get “lifted,” include a few links in the original post that will politely show people where the content came from. (This totally happens to me and I didn’t know what to do, so I LOVED this!)

Sometimes moms worry that birth is harmful for their baby.

You can be assured that birthing time helps your baby, because

• that is how things have been happening for thousands of years
• also science has shown that contractions help your baby prepare for life outside the womb
• the hormones released help increase bonding!

Here is a great article explaining more.

Support may be a bit to strong, but they have lowered their restrictions on it and even say that in certain cases VBA2C should be tried.

Attempting a vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC) is a safe and appropriate choice for most women who have had a prior cesarean delivery, including for some women who have had two previous cesareans, according to guidelines released today by The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

There was a lot more in the press release and I don’t think anything they said is shocking or new information, but it shocks me that THEY said it!

“The current cesarean rate is undeniably high and absolutely concerns us as ob-gyns,” said Richard N. Waldman, MD, president of The College. “These VBAC guidelines emphasize the need for thorough counseling of benefits and risks, shared patient-doctor decision making, and the importance of patient autonomy. Moving forward, we need to work collaboratively with our patients and our colleagues, hospitals, and insurers to swing the pendulum back to fewer cesareans and a more reasonable VBAC rate.”

I can only hope that more OBs actually DO this!  I am lucky enough to have had an OB who did just this.  Told me the risks of both and let ME choose.  But so many moms are not told the truth, they are just forced into repeat cesareans. No wonder the cesarean rate is SO high.

In addition, “The College guidelines now clearly say that women with two previous low-transverse cesarean incisions, women carrying twins, and women with an unknown type of uterine scar are considered appropriate candidates for a TOLAC,”

I just forwarded the link to a mom I was working with who had given up on finding a care provider support her VBA2C.  Maybe now she can find the support she needs?  I hope so!

What do YOU think, will this statement create more opportunities for moms to have VBACs? Please go and read their whole statement and tell me what you think!

I think at the very least they will have more support/”ammo” (I have a 12 year old who is all about ammunition!) when talking with their care providers!  I hope today is a huge step forward for birth rights for moms in our country!

I have to add a HUGE thank you to ICAN for all the work and advocacy you have done and will continue to do to help moms avoid cesareans and help support them after cesareans!

I have to add this awesome link by Birthing Beautiful Ideas where she compares the 2004 statement to this one and you can see how far they have come!

I have to add another link to Well Rounded Mama who talks more in depth about VBAMC.

Thanks to ALL birth bloggers who are helping to make changes in the birthing world!

<strong>This is part of my Wondering About Series.  Feel free to e-mail any questions you are wondering about to sheridan AT enjoybirth DOT com.</strong>

What would you say to someone who wants to use Hypnobabies Childbirth Hypnosis but is afraid it won’t work for her?

What do you mean it wouldn’t work?

I think any mom should define what her goal for taking Hypnobabies is.

• Is it that she is afraid of pain and wants to avoid all pain at all costs?

• Is it that she wants tools to have the best birth possible?

• Is it that she wants to be as calm and comfortable during her birth as possible?

• Is it that she wants information, education and support to have a natural birth?

• Is it that she wants some tools but may want to get an epidural if she feels she needs it?

I think that Hypnobabies could certainly work for all moms, however if her goal is to avoid pain at all costs, then she may be disappointed if she ends up feeling some discomfort and then she may feel that it “didn’t work”.   A large number of moms do have pain free births with Hypnobabies, but that is not really the point of Hypnobabies.  It is to educate moms about birth and give them amazing tools to help them during their birth, to be as comfortable as possible, given the circumstances.  (needing pitocin, a malpositioned baby, an unsupportive care provider are all examples of things that may take away from a moms comfort level)

I would also suggest that the mom read birth stories of moms who had unique births using Hypnobabies and see how they felt that Hypnobabies helped them during their births.  To see that Hypnobabies can help all moms regardless of their birth experiences, even if they end up needing a cesarean or an induction, Hypnobabies has tools that can help with that!

Here is a great birth story, where mom had some discomfort, but still felt that Hypnobabies worked for her and lists the reasons why!

I am participating in a 31 days to build a better blog challenge and of course it starts today when I am heading to the 1st every Hypnobabies Conference.  (Thank Goodness for being able to schedule posts) 

My challenge for today is easy, create an elevator pitch.  I have had one for awhile.

This is the one I say if I am talking to someone in real life:

I work with expecting parents as they prepare for their birth, by sharing tools and offering personal support to help them ENJOY their birth! (Yes, it is the most amazing job in the world.)

Here is one that is written and is similar to what you would find on my About Me page.

Are you pregnant?

I love helping expecting moms get excited (instead of being worried) about their upcoming births.  I share the best tools and tips to help them have a more empowering and enjoyable pregnancy and birth!

I really do LOVE being a Hypnobabies Childbirth Hypnosis Instructor. It is so much fun, I have lots of full classes and lots of happy parents. It is my dream job.

I am so excited to be heading to the first ever Hypnobabies Conference for Hypnobabies Instructors. I will get to meet many ladies I have only known online.

There is no Instructor Trainings this year, but if you are interested in becoming a Hypnobabies Instructor, they are accepting applicants this August for next years trainings.   It is an amazing supportive organization and wonderful instructors throughout the US and Canada.

I will let you know all about the conference when I get home!