Simone Snyder's blog

Becoming a Childbirth Educator-One Woman's Journey

We all have our reasons for wanting to become childbirth educators and/or doulas.  Most of us have gradually discovered a passion for all things related to pregnancy and birth.  Sometimes some of us are fortunate enough to know which path to take and how to reach our goals-and other times it can be a bit overwhelming.  Which organization should I certify with? How long will it take? Will I make any money? Will I be a good teacher and where can I find pregnant couples who would be willing to learn from me? Will I have the time? Can I find a someone to mentor me? In the end it becomes clear that one need only trust and be open to what unfolds...

This is one woman's story about her path to becoming a childbirth educator.  The letter was written in response to an inquiry about the certification process.  I am sure you will find that your story resonates on some level with Dolly's and if not-she does give some excellent advice.  

Thank you Dolly for all that you do to inspire and educate pregnant couples and your words of wisdom for those of us who are either on the certification track or who are giving it some thought.

 

A Story of Two VBACs

Why a Vaginal Birth After Cesarean should be a Vital Option

My second birth as a student doula was with a woman who was attempting to have a vaginal birth after Cesarean.  She had spent a great deal of time preparing.  Bradley Method classes, a doula, and an obstetrician that was willing to “let her try” to give birth vaginally. 40 weeks came and went-and her doctor started talking about an induction.  Wanting to keep things as low-risk as possible my client tried all sorts of natural induction methods, however at around 41 weeks she found herself in triage awaiting induction.  They had talked of pitocin but her cervix was not favorable.  I remember it so clearly-induction points, clary sage oil, me at her feet, sister at her right hand and partner at her left.  We were going to force her cervix by sheer will into submission. 

Blogs You Should be Following

There are so many amazing blogs out there that pertain to topics we love-pregnancy, birth, doulas, informed choice, breastfeeding, childbirth educators, parenting-its nearly impossible to keep track.  I have decided that every so often I will post a list of blogs you should be following.  I look forward to your comments and suggestions-chances are I will miss out on a great blog or two so if you know of a blogger worthy of our attention-please let us know.  Here are some of my favorites...

Happy Blogging!

Our Bodies-Our Blog - www.ourbodiesourblog.org/blog

Science & Sensibility - www.scienceandsensibility.org

Citizens for Midwifery - cfmidwifery.blogspot.com

Peaceful Parenting - www.drmomma.org

Birth Activist - www.birthactivist.com

 

Childbirth Connections-Transforming Maternity Care Project...

Childbirth Connection’s Transforming Maternity Care project collaborated with industry leaders and stakeholders to set a vision for a “high quality-high value maternity care system.”  In order to implement this vision workgroups were created to establish a Blueprint for Action.  An Action Community has been created to bring together individuals, birth advocates, care-providers, and consumer groups

Maternal Mortality in the Golden State

According to California Watch (a project of the center of investigative reporting) the mortality rate of women in California who die from causes directly related to pregnancy has almost tripled in the past ten years. Though I am sure you have read all over the Internet that its safer to give birth in Kuwait or Bosnia, the state of California has yet to go public with this information claiming the report needs some more revisions.

So what exactly did the research find? Plain and simple California has seen the largest spike in pregnancy related deaths since the 1930s.  Some researches chalk this up to the fact that now there is just a better counting of deaths and that there hasn’t really been an actual increase.  Others believe that the actual numbers are on the rise and that changes in population, obesity in mothers, and fertility treatments are not the sole culprits. 

What adds to this disturbing reality is that this problem may be occurring nationwide.   It has been suggested that if other states took a closer look they might notice a similar phenomenon.  In response on January 26 the Joint Commission sent out an alert to hospitals stating; “unfortunately, current trends and evidence suggests that maternal mortality rates may be increasing.”