H.3731

I am very late to the party on this one, but I'm going to share the information and post the petition because it is sooooo important that the *powers that be* see that birthing women, husbands, families, and their children DEMAND that educated, experienced and TREASURED midwives be available for homebirths in our state. Midwives shouldn't be suffocated out by new restrictions and made underlings to the obstetricians who (although necessary in certain situations) represent a complete opposite approach when it comes to pregnancy and birth.

Handing over birth to the medical and managed model of care is not good for our women and babies and families, or future. It is unnecessary and it is not an approach that is supported by:

documented

repeated

scientific evidence

If I have learned anything from this amazing Lamaze training, it is that the information is out there, and it supports a simple, normalized birthing method. Flat out, the more interventions, the greater the complications, the lower the resulting birth satisfaction.

Midwives are the protectors of normal birth. The women of South Carolina deserve access to licensed midwives. But our representatives are currently reviewing a bill that (I'm told by those much more knowledgeable than I) would essentially kill homebirth midwifery in our state. 

Bill 3731, the South Carolina Lay Midwife Act

It is insane to characterize licensed midwives as "lay" i.e. "not of a particular profession. lacking extensive knowledge on a particular subject."  

Don't let this happen. As of today, over 5,000 people have signed the petition against this bill.

Petition Against Bill 3731

This blog explains it beautifully. 

"Calling Licensed Midwives "lay" would be the equivalent of suddenly calling all Licensed Builders in the state "lay" and requiring citizens to hire structural engineers to build their deck."

She also details the current licensing requirements for midwives under SCDHEC. With all required of them, I cannot believe someone can call these professionals "lay" with a straight face.

This site has the most current information on what is happening with the bill.

www.supportscmidwives.com

Just Because it Burns...

"Where there is desire, there is gonna be a flame.

Where there is a flame, someone's bound to get burned.

Just because it burns, doesn't mean you're donna die.

You gotta get up and try."

Pink, "Try"

Those lyrics always make me think of birth.

Pink had planned to have a natural birth with the midwives of The Sanctuary in LA, 

but her baby girl was a frank breech and no amount of convincing could get her to flip.

Willow Sage was born on June 2, 2011.

Science Behind Doulas

I fell in love with this book the moment I picked it up back in 2006. Henci Goer's "The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth." I'm reviewing it again as reference for the upcoming Hynes Childbirth Education Series. It is full of invaluable information.

“Randomized controlled trials produce the strongest kind of research evidence because researchers randomly assign participants to have the treatment or not, which eliminates all kinds of biases. We now have more than a dozen randomized controlled trials.

Various trials have shown that the continuous presence of a caring, experienced woman can reduce:

• the length of labor

• the use of pain medication
• the need for IV oxytocin (Pitocin)
• the likelihood of having an episiotomy
• the percentage of instrumental vaginal deliveries (forceps/vacuum)
• and the Cesarean Section rate

Doulas can reduce the number of babies:

• born in poor condition
• admitted to special-care nurseries
• have prolonged hospital stays
• who have evaluations for infection

These studies also show that women who have a doula

• experience less pain and anxiety in labor
• express greater satisfaction with the labor
• feel that they coped better
• have a heightened appreciation of their bodies’ strength and performance and themselves as women
• breastfeed longer
• experience less difficulty in mothering

They have:

• have more positive feelings toward the baby
• better self esteem
• a better relationship with the father
• and less postpartum depression

The fact that these studies took place in different countries with different populations of women under different circumstances and consistently found benefits further strengthens confidence in the validity of their results.”

This book should be issued with every uterus. :)