Reader Birth Story - Megan

Hi Everyone,
Today Megan, mother of three is sharing her experience of being pregnant with and birthing Isla.....

I was diagnosed with whooping cough when I was about 6 months pregnant. I was sick for a long time. That was truly awful!

I'm sure that is what bounced my baby into a transverse position....non stop coughing! I spent a lot of time doing yoga as I recovered and trying to get baby to shift but she wouldn't! My doctor told me that a C-section was necessary for me to survive the birth when I was 36 weeks.

I begged the universe to help me out as I was terrified of surgery. I went in to labour the day my final "deciding" scan was due (38wks). But I never went to the scan.....I just walked and walked and walked for over 10 hrs then presented to my wonderful midwives and they had to do a simple "twist" of Isla (which _did_ hurt!) but she was born a minute or so later, perfectly healthy and me untorn and totally fine. We were both home within 1.5 hrs. :)

I am soooo glad I trusted myself. And I will truly love Marie and Jenny (my mids) forever.

Megan

Thanks for sharing Megan, Cynthia xx

Hi Everyone,

Today I am reviewing Getting Real About Growing Up by Amrita Hobbs. This is a book that I found invaluable as a parent. It gave me some solid, no nonsense resources and advice about the adolescent years and encouraged me to enter this time with the view of my child as a whole person, not defined by behaviours and reactions, but with a much deeper sense of who she is and how she wishes to be.

The language is clear and non-patronising, and deals with issues such as relationships, pregnancy, depression, abuse, homosexuality, social isolation and physical changes. It is written in a calm and factual way which dispels myths and empowers the reader, without imparting any particular moral prerogative.

Hobbs has written a realistic, deeply spiritual book about subjects that are all too often delegated either to the 'too hard' basket or treated as purely physical manifestations of growing up. This is no doubt due in large measure to the fact that she has facilitated many parent child groups over the years. Hobbs gently encourages the reader to question his/her own beliefs and assumptions and shares numerous poems, stories and input from teenagers who have been there before.

I found that sharing Getting Real About Growing Up allowed my teenager and I to discuss social issues in a relaxed and informed way we may not have done otherwise.

This is definately a book I will be sharing with all of my children as they reach adolescence and recommend it to anyone wanting a relevant, well-informed resource dealing with this often sensitive time.

Talk Soon, Cynthia x

Doulas Supporting Teens

Hi Everyone,

I have been reading about a not-for-profit organisation called Doulas Supporting Teens, and I am really excited by the results they are achieving. By offering the free support of doulas to girls who become pregnant in their teens, rates of peaceful births are slowly on the rise in this demographic.

Here is a direct quote from their web-site:

Founded in 2003, Doulas Supporting Teens was created as a grassroots effort to help fill the need pregnant and parenting teens in Oregon have for prenatal education, continuous labor support, in-home early postpartum care and continued support throughout the first year of parenting. Since 2003, Doulas Supporting Teens (DST) has provided services for over 200 pregnant and parenting teens and their families, and helped teen parents negotiate critical choices during pregnancy, birth, and early parenthood.

Doulas Supporting Teens' mission is to support and educate pregnant and parenting teens to bring healthy babies into healthy families to build healthy communities......

The purpose of DST is to increase awareness of, access to, and quality of education and health care for women age 18 and under and their infants. Doulas Supporting Teens:

• Connects DST doulas (labor support professionals) with pregnant teens, providing evidence based information, as well as emotional and physical support during pregnancy, labor and postpartum.
• Offers free teen-focused childbirth education classes, parenting support groups, social events, and referrals to community resources.

What a wonderful idea, and so simple. I remember as a teenager being generally unsure about the process of labour and childbirth. It seemed something alien and painful, and dramatic birth scenes in movies and on tv didn't really give me any information about the empowering calmness you can invoke during childbirth by going within! Offering grounded, caring support and information in addition to a direct experience of community to young mothers is an absolute gift.

Australian government programmes meet some of these criteria, but current funding isn't allowing for this level of individualised support although, several successful community and church based programmes are running to meet the challenge of social isolation and prejudice experienced by many teen parents.

Inspired by reading about the information on the DST site and the Midwifery Today article about the organisation, I am hopeful of one day finding a similar programme funded within the framework of the Health Department.
I can but dream..........

Talk Soon, Cynthia

Beautiful Breastfeeding

Another celebration of beautiful motherhood. Just as beautiful as those mums we see breastfeeding everyday on cafe booths, buses and park benches complete with milkstained shoulder and unbrushed hair after a night pacing the floorboards with baby :)