April, 2009

Control & Birth

One of the things I explore in birth classes is feelings about wanting to be "in control" or "staying in control" during birth. I ask couples to consider what "losing control" would mean to them and what the benefits of "losing control" might be.

I really enjoy this section from Childbirth with Insight about control and birth:

[with regard to prepared childbirth films and class] "...are instructive rather than enlightening. They confirm a particular teaching method by advocating roles and techniques. Such films obscure the fundamental holistic experience of birth. Couples are not aware that the power of giving birth involves individual surrender to its uncontrollable nature. It is understandable that expectant parents become anxious about their abilities to maintain the kind of control that is expected of them, given that no such control of natural forces is possible--or desirable."

"The actual experience of contractions, like other intense bodily sensations, is extremely difficult to describe...The more completely an expectant mother can experience labor as a unit of body and mind, the more easily she can flow with the process of birth...the more a woman tries to be in control, the more she fears the inevitable loss of control..."

Movement & Upright Gravity Positive Positioning

What many of us have been teaching for years has now shown up in the media, thanks to the Cochrane Review.

A review of 21 studies showed that Women who walk, sit, kneel or otherwise avoid lying in bed during early labor can shorten the first stage of labor by about an hour, according to the new Cochrane evidence review. Women who labored out of bed during the early stages were also 17% less likely to seek pain relief through epidural analgesia, the review found.

Read more at: http://www.news-medical.net/?id=48342

This should be an integral part of EACH class we teach, not just one designated class in a series! Get 'em movin', movin' !

Environmental Pollutants In Infant Formula

It was no April Fool's joke.

As I was driving down to Cincinnati Ohio last week to teach a workshop, I heard on the radio about researchers finding percholate in infant formula. Percholates are salts from perchloric acid and besides being used in rocket fuel (yes, that is what I said!)these salts are commonly found in the ground water of up to 35 states. Plants watered by this ground water are then eaten by cows and that milk is used in infant formula. Percholates have been used for nearly 50 years in the treatment of thyroid disorders. Their impact on newborn infant brain growth and development is not thoroughly researched. The CDC does have a pamphlet on human consumption of percholates (http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxguides/toxguide-162.pdf) and there has been testimony in the US House of Representatives on the FDA's Role in Measuring and Assessing Percholates levels in food and beverages: http://www.hhs.gov/asl/testify/2007/04/t20070425a.html.

Press Release (03-25-09): The Parent’s Journal Public Radio Program and Podcast

We are pleased to announce that Jeanette Schwartz, ICEA President, was recently a featured guest on the nationally-syndicated, Parent’s Journal (TPJ) Public Radio program, and that the Podcast version of The Parent’s Journal is now available online.To listen to this interview, and the full TPJ podcast follow this link: http://www.parentsjournal.com/radioshow The Parent's Journal Topics&Guests (start times in parentheses)*5 Free Ways to Fuel Family Closeness- Brook Noel (1:00)*Social Development in the First Years - Dr. Linda Gilkerson – (06:05)*Parent's Notes- A Practical Parenting Tip from a Mom or Dad (24:30)*Childbirth Options- What’s Best for You? - Jeanette Schwartz (29:00)*Improving Kids Diets While Living in the Real World - Betsy Block (50:58) Ellen Pruitt Program Assistant, The Parent’s Journal Public Radio program information@parentsjournal.com