I’ve compiled this quick list of five important things you can do to prepare yourself for a great birth. In my years of experience as a doula and childbirth educator, these are the things that I have seen make the biggest difference in getting the birth you want. Find the Right Care Provider and Birth Location for You In my work as a doula and childbirth educator, I feel that this is one of the most important decisions you will make about your upcoming birth. You want to be sure to have a care provider that is comfortable supporting you in the type of birth you’d like to have. Be sure that you talk with your provider about your wishes and make sure that you are on the same page with them. If you find that your current care provider is not supportive of the birth you want, it is never too late to change and find a new provider. I also encourage you to tour your birth location and continue to ask questions so you can be sure you're in the right place for you. Eat Well and Exercise Most people know that your nutrition and exercise are very important during pregnancy. You are growing a little human being and they need the nutrients to grow and develop. Be sure you talk with your care provider about your nutrition and what they recommend. Be sure to get lots of veggies and greens, fruits, protein, iron rich foods, and whole grains. You can also download your own copy of this awesome pregnancy nutrition e-book! Exercise is another important factor in a healthy practice. Prenatal yoga, walking, stretching, swimming, are all examples of exercise that are great during pregnancy. It is not recommended to start any strenuous exercise routine if that is not something you’re already doing. Be sure to do your kegels too! When you take a Birth Boot Camp class you will also learn lots more about your nutrition and exercise during pregnancy! See a chiropractor Chiropractic care can help you have an easier, more comfortable pregnancy and birth. Be sure that you find a Webster certified chiropractor in your area, as they have received specific training to work with pregnant women. Seeing a Webster certified chiropractor during your pregnancy can help your baby to be in the optimal position for birth, which can also help you to have a faster, less painful birth. Hire a Doula Doulas offer physical, emotional, and informational support to women during their pregnancy, birth, and postpartum period. Studies have shown that women who hire doulas are more likely to have a vaginal birth without pain medication, are less likely to need interventions such as vacuum or forceps, are less likely to have a cesarean section, and are over all more satisfied with their birth experience. Doulas are not just for natural births. As a doula I’ve worked with clients birthing in hospitals, birth centers, and at home births. I support my clients whether they choose to have an unmedicated or medicated birth. I’ve served clients having a planned cesarean as well. Doulas support women in every kind of birth! Take a Childbirth Class Taking a comprehensive childbirth class like Birth Boot Camp, gives you and your partner the opportunity to spend one on one time together to focus on your upcoming birth. As an instructor, I want the couples in my class to learn about ALL of their options and all about what they can expect so that they can make an informed decision about the birth they want to have. You will leave class confident in yourself and your partner to handle whatever type of birth you have. I’ve been a doula for about 7 years and a childbirth educator for 5 years. This past week I went back and read my very first post about my early journey as a birth professional. It’s a long post and I loved looking back and thinking about how far I’ve come. I thought I’d share more of my journey as a doula and educator the past 4-5 years. As of this month, November 2017, I’ve been blessed to attend almost 100 births and have taught almost 100 couples in my childbirth classes. I’ve attended home births, birth center births, and hospital births. My life has been enriched by each and every one of my clients. I’ve learned something from each client I’ve worked with and from each birth I attend. Looking back on the past 7 years and how far I’ve come as a doula I made a quick list of a few things I’ve learned along the way. I’ve learned it’s not about me. It’s about my clients. I support my clients in all of their decisions, no matter what they may be. My clients may choose to have a medicated or unmedicated birth. She may choose to be induced or have a c-section. I will support all of my clients in their decisions and help them have the best birth experience for them. I’ve learned that women are amazingly strong, stronger than they think they are. Women go through so much during pregnancy, and then the amazing journey of birth. They make tough decisions when the birth isn’t going exactly as she had hoped, but she makes those decision with her baby in mind. She overcomes so much and comes out the other end with a new life. I’ve learned that spouses and partners are incredibly capable of providing amazing support during birth. Partners know what specific comforting words to say and give great counter pressure and hip squeezes. Partners are wonderful advocates and most want to be active part I’ve learned that your care provider and birth location matter. Find a provider that supports you in the birth you desire. Also, choose to birth in a place that you are most comfortable and is also supportive of the birth you want to have. I’ve seen these two things make a big difference in birth outcomes. I’ve learned that being on-call is tough. I have to be ready to go at all times. I have to have last minute childcare ready and a bag packed for my kids. My phone is always in my pocket with the ringer on high. I check it multiple times before I go to bed to be sure that it’s all the way up so I hear it in the middle of the night. I schedule everything with ,”If I’m not a birth…”. Yes the on-call life can be tricky, but it hasn’t stopped me from doing this work. So why do I love my work as a doula? I get to witness one of the most special events in a family’s life. I get to witness and support women and families becoming educated and empowered to make decisions regarding their care. I get to see women become strong, capable mothers. I get to see husbands and partners become fathers. I have had many people over the years ask me why I've chosen to birth both of my children without intervention and without pain medication. Both of my labors were completely natural, born at a wonderful hospital with a great group of midwives that are very supportive of your wishes. My first labor was about 11 hours and my second one was about 6 hours once I was in active labor. You can read both of my birth stories here and here So why did I choose natural birth? I have always felt that a woman's body is very strong and that we are meant to birth our babies, our bodies were simply designed to do it. I began to question and research all of the many things you hear about, like inductions, epidurals, IVs, etc. and the more I learned, the more I didn't want any of those. Any intervention during birth has side effects and can cause a need for other undesired interventions. In Birth Boot Camp we call this the cascade of interventions. I just didn't feel that any of that was necessary. My husband and I attended a great childbirth class and we prepared to have a natural birth and hired a doula. After delivering my son naturally, I felt amazing! My recovery was quick, I was very proud of myself and felt like I could do anything. I knew my body could do it! As I've thought more about my natural births I wanted to hear from more women about why they chose to give birth naturally. I asked and received many great responses, and thought I'd share them here with you. " I chose a natural birth because I knew deep down inside myself that I could do it and that my baby deserved the most gentle birth possible. I also hated the idea of an epidural. I had heard so many horror stories about it." "My body was built to give birth. Plain and simple. If an emergency arises that's why we have paramedics and ambulances, but 99% of the time a woman can do it as long as she believes she can!" "Before I had children I wanted to have a natural birth because it was safer. After I had a baby I wanted future births to be natural because the experience was amazing." "I had never thought about having a natural birth until my husband suggested it when we were expecting our first. I was really nervous but decided to give it a shot. I was surprised how amazing my experience was. I love sharing my experience and encouraging other women to learn more about their bodies and the amazing things they can do." "I chose a homebirth because I wanted as low intervention as possible. My decisions weren't being taken seriously or respected by my doctor so I decided to birth at home instead. Now I chose it again because it was beautiful and peaceful. There was nothing like feeling so comfortable and at home during and after birth." " I chose a natural birth because it has less risks to me and my baby and my baby's health comes first. And I was able to do this because I knew that my body was creating my labor and I am as strong as my body so I could do it. Also I loved that I was in control of my body and could listen to what it needed me to do." "Because a day or so of pain is worth the benefits to my and my baby's health." " I am choosing a natural birth because there's nothing in the world that compares to the joy you feel when you have baby in your arms and realize what you've just done. That birth "high" is the best feeling ever. I give birth naturally to find myself, discover how amazing my body can be, and love myself, my baby, and my husband more than I thought possible. Also, having done an epidural, I choose natural because the recovery is SO much easier." "My mom had all 4 of her children naturally at a birth center with midwives. I grew up learning that this was normal for birth. I began researching and knew my body was capable of birthing my baby naturally without intervention. I had an amazing hospital birth with a midwife, no interventions and an easy recovery. Medication and intervention sounded a lot scarier to me than the "pain" of labor. Although I am grateful for modern medicine when it is TRULY necessary! I'm so glad I trusted my instincts and body and birthed my baby perfectly and peacefully." "I feel like women have so many amazing talents, and our bodies were designed to carry and birth beautiful new babies. To me the a natural birth is the most natural of things, like the definition of natural!" "I chose a natural birth because I believed that my body knew what to do and the risks of interventions in a natural process were unnecessary. While I know that sometimes birth doesn't work right, I wanted to give my body a chance first. In the end, it was one of the most empowering experiences of my life. I never realized just how POWERFUL women are. I'm so glad for that knowledge. So, I chose a natural birth because I believed in my body and wanted to give it a chance to work." "The first time was because I was scared of the side effects of everything they try to give you at the hospital. The second time because I knew my body could do it without any interventions. The third time I wanted to feel empowered, and I was!" "When I was going up my mom talked about her natural births like they were normal, wonderful experiences. When it was my turn I never had any doubt that I could do it or fear of the pain. I knew it was going to be hard work but I never considered it anything but part of the natural process." "The first time was because I was scared of the side effects of everything they try to give you at the hospital. The second time because I knew my body could do it without any interventions. The third time I wanted to feel empowered, and I was!" "It's the way God designed it, and if He has enough confidence that I can do it that way then I need to believe I can, too." "I chose a home birth to prevent any interventions and give myself and my baby the birth we deserve and we're capable of. I wanted to experience my birth. I wanted it to be the way it should be and was meant to be. I never wanted anything less for my baby, as well as myself. I honestly never saw another option. Never wanted it any other way." "I wanted to see what my body could do. In short, I believe my body was created to work right. I'm the mom of a c-sec baby, 2 hospital VBAC babies, and a carBAC baby (born on the way to the birth center)." "Because my mom and both grandmothers did, so I always heard stories about that is how birth is." This testimonial comes from a past client and now good friend. Every couple I work with is very special to me and I am honored when I receive these special notes.....
"Hollie was not only a great Birth Boot Camp instructor but also an amazing doula! From very early on I could tell Hollie was meant to be our doula. She always made us feel so welcome, never so much as smirked at our silly questions and was a wealth of knowledge on all things birth! When we decided to have a natural hospital birth Hollie was right on board with our plan. She stuck it out with me the entire 22 hours (and then some) and along with my husband we made the best team! I was so grateful for not only her vast knowledge of child birth, but also all the 'birth bag' she brought along with her. It was full of essential oils, heating packs and snacks! Hollie is knowledgable, supportive, comforting and most importantly a good friend." - Emily "My wife and I loved having Hollie as our doula! She came super prepared with all of the little things that needed and she a real wealth of knowledge. Having Hollie at out birth freed me up to really just be in the moment with my wife and new daughter!" - Keith The most common reason I hear for women not hiring a doula or taking a good childbirth class is the cost. To me, it is 100% worth it. In some cases having a doula may even save you some cash. Studies have shown that doulas can prevent the occurrence of unwanted or unnecessary medical procedures that are expensive. Doulas also help create wonderful birth memories. Totally worth the money! I always hope that money isn't the final deciding factor for women when choosing a doula or class. Here's a list of things you can do to earn and save some extra money so that you can hire the doula of your choice and take an awesome Birth Boot Camp class!
Please share any other ideas you have. I'd love to add more. I always encourage women to contact me if money is a concern for them. I'm willing to discuss each individual situation. I, as well as many doulas, are willing to create payment plans or barter for services. I have known doulas that have bartered for photography, essential oils, and a large handmade quilt. There are also many doulas that are training and will serve for free or charge a reduced fee to just cover their cost for gas and childcare. Where there's a will, there's a way. Have you heard the awesome news? I will begin teaching Birth Boot Camp classes starting this July in Grapevine,TX. I can't wait to get started! The past few months I have been focused on studying and training to become a certified instructor and now that I've completed my certification, I am so excited to teach my first class. Not sure what Birth Boot Camp is? Let me catch you up to speed. Birth Boot Camp has been voted the #1 Childbirth Class by the Fort Worth Child Magazine. It is a comprehensive 10 week course that teaches couples everything they need to know to have the experience of a lifetime. Check out the syllabus for each class here. You'll learn why one may want to have a natural birth, nutrition and exercise during pregnancy, choosing your care provider, tips for dads and birth partners, medical interventions, relaxation, postpartum, newborn care, and breastfeeding- and that is just the beginning! Couples receive a great "Field Guide" to support and continue their learning throughout the course as well as a wonderful DVD "Breastfeeding: The Ultimate M.R.E." The statistics since Birth Boot Camp started a little more than a year ago are astounding. You can check out the specifics here. Couples are having amazing births. Another awesome perk is that Birth Boot Camp offers online classes to couples that can not attend live classes because of schedule conflicts or if there isn't an instructor in their area. I always recommend a live class first, but for some people that just won't work and these online classes are great. They are taught by the founder of Birth Boot Camp, Donna Ryan. Couples that attend live classes that may miss a class or two will also be given access to the online classes ` Classes will begin in Grapevine on July 12th. Contact me if you'd like more information or to register. With Birth Boot Camp you can have an AMAZING birth too! |
HollieWife, mother, daughter, sister, and friend. A passionate birth doula and childbirth educator. Archives
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