Enjoy the blue moon tonight and feel it’s effects on the women and birthing babies.
Happy New Year!
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Category: Full Moon's Daughter
Blue Moon Birth
Most years on average we have 12 full moons, with one appearing each month. An extra full moon in a month — a blue moon — occurs every 2.5 years. The last time there was a lunar double take was in May 2007. New Year’s Eve blue moons are rarer, occurring every 19 years. The last time a blue moon appeared on New Year’s Eve was in 1990, and it won’t happen again until 2028.
What to Expect During Labor & Early Postpartum Workshop – January 10
What are the signs of early labor? Have you ever wondered what labor will be like? How will you handle it? What role will your partner, friend or family play in the birth of your child? What do you do with baby after he or she is outside your womb?
This interactive 4 hour workshop will cover the following topics:
- Birth plans and birth bags
- Natural and safe labor induction methods
- What to do once labor begins
- Early signs of labor
- Positions, breathing and other pain coping techniques
- Ways to keep labor progressing
- Partner’s role during labor
- Comfort measures
- Standard hospital interventions
- Pushing
- The first hour after birth
- Common newborn procedures
- Postpartum care
- Parenting
Call to be added to our list. There is a winter workshop scheduled for January:
When: January 10, Sunday – 1pm – 5pm
Where: NE Bryant St. Portland, OR 97211, This workshop, with some adjustments, can also be held as a private series in your home or another comfortable space.
Cost: The “What to Expect” workshop is offered on a sliding scale, between $75 – $90, based on what you can afford.
Details: You will receive evidence-based handouts about each topic, community resources to take home, potential friendship with other expecting couples, the safe space to share stories, concerns and questions and a group that will support you throughout the rest of your pregnancy. And maybe lunch, ask for details.
Winter Group Childbirth Series – January 2010 – 4 Week Series
Group Childbirth Classes
Full Moon’s Daughter’s workshops hope to inspire participants to educate, empower and enable themselves to achieve the pregnancy, birth and postpartum period for which they seek. Our workshops are creative, educational programs designed to include all participants needs by keeping class size small.
We offer positive birth classes catered to all participants. Each class is limited to 5 couples to preserve the integrity of conversation and sharing. Our classes are hands-on, interactive, and designed to prepare you and your family for a new baby. Topics that will be covered include, but are not limited to:
- The physical, emotional and psychological aspects of pregnancy and labor
- Nutrition, exercise and sex during pregnancy
- How pain plays a part in labor
- Partner and doula support
- Birth plans and birth bags
- Pushing
- Hospital interventions and newborn procedures
- The first hour after birth
- Breastfeeding
- Life with a newborn
- Insert your interest here
Each participant in this class will receive handouts, community resource information and potential friendships with other new families.
Classes are usually scheduled based on interest and season (winter, spring, summer, fall), please contact us to be added to the list of expecting parents scheduled to attend this class. Classes are held in NE Portland, off of 15th Street, about a mile north of Alberta St. If a group of friends get together to take this class, we may also be willing to come to your home for each session.
Cost of class is $125 – $150 per couple for 4, 2 hour sessions. Minimum of 2 couples, max of 5.
There is an upcoming Winter Childbirth Series scheduled for early 2010:
When: January 9, 16, 23, 30 – Saturdays, 10am – 12pm
Where: NE Bryant Street., Portland, Oregon 97211
Cost: The Childbirth Series is offered on a sliding scale, based on what each person can afford and ranges from $125 – $150 per couple.
Details: At each session you will receive evidence-based handouts about each topic, community resources to take home, potential friendship with other expecting couples, the safe space to share stories, concerns and questions and a group that will support you throughout the rest of your pregnancy.
On Vacation
Full Moon’s Daughter is on vacation until August 12. Please feel free to send emails to courtney@fullmoonsdaughter.com or call 503.737.8834 if you have any questions. We’ll get back to you after the 12th.
Be Well.
Continue reading »Full Moon’s Daughter: Philosophy on Pregnancy and Birth
~ Pregnancy is a normal and natural life event.
~ You become a mother as soon as you discover you are pregnant.
~ Your body is designed to nourish and grow a baby that is perfect for you.
~ Selecting a care provider that mirrors your beliefs, allows you to make your own decisions about your body and baby, and honors your path, is paramount to having the birth you want.
~ Prenatal visits with your care provider should be treated like a celebration.
~ Nutrition, movement and a positive support system will help you to have a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby.
~ Labor is about setting your mind aside and moving into an instinctual place few are able to journey to.
~ Labor is hard work AND you can do it. Your baby and your power will allow you to move through your own birth as a mother.
Continue reading »Full Moon’s Daughter
Bright light in darkness
Guiding watching holding space
Forever compassion
Early Pregnancy Class – June 27 – 28
Planning for pregnancy, birth or a new baby? This class will help you sort through your options and provide you with a wealth of community resources, coupons & samples. Oh, and we’ll feed you too!
The Early Pregnancy Class is for any woman thinking about starting a family, any couple that thinks they might want to start a family and anyone who already has children and wants more education and information.
The Early Pregnancy Class is organic to what each person wants to learn. In addition to customizing the class to your needs, we will also cover the following topics:
- The difference between OB/GYN, Certified Nurse Midwives, Naturopathic Midwives, Direct Entry Midwives
- Hospital Birth Centers, Free-standing Birth Centers and Homebirth options
- What type of prenatal class best addresses your needs and lifestyle
- What are pregnancy, labor and postpartum doulas
- Healthcare support while pregnant and postpartum (Acupuncture, Reiki, Chiropractic, Massage)
- Nutrition and exercise
- Baby and new mom essentials
- Breastfeeding resources and accessories
- Sleeping options for baby
- Diapering options and cloth diaper demo
- Baby sling demos
- Guest presenters who specialize in pregnancy and newborn care
Grab bags full of community resources, handouts. coupons, tea and much more will also be provided.
Date: June 27 & 28 (Saturday & Sunday)
Time: 5:00 – 7:30pm
Where: Nurture – a Family Wellness Collective (http://www.nurturepdx.com)
1614 NE Alberta St.
Portland, OR 97211
Cost: $75 per couple
Eats: Dinner will be catered by din din. When registering, please notify us of any dietary considerations
Raffle: At the end of the second day a raffle will be held and wonderful, community prizes will be given
Contact: Angi Gunther, LCCE
503.890.1361
or
Courtney Jarecki
503.737.8834
Angi Gunther has been supporting new families in Portland since 2002. She is the mother of three children born in 2001, 2004 and 2008. Her children have inspired her work as a Doula, Breastfeeding Advocate & Lamaze Certified Childbirth Educator. She believes parents need complete information about their options so they can make truly informed decisions. Angi currently teaches Confident Birthing Childbirth Education classes at Nurture.
Courtney Jarecki is owner of Full Moon’s Daughter, a professional doula and pregnancy education service. She tends to new moms and babies at a birth center and is a midwifery student. Courtney believes that every woman can have the birth that is perfect for her if she is aware of all her options. Courtney’s path in life is to guide woman toward motherhood.
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Where Am I
I’ve been distant from this blog. A lot of it has to do with me being busy as a Postpartum Doula – spending nights with a new family in their home. Missing sleep for me requires days of recovery. And by recovery I mean doing as little as possible.
I’ve also not been posting very often because I’m hoping to have an official Full Moon’s Daughter website up. Though I am not even close to even finalizing a design, I feel like I don’t want to blog too often until that is a reality.
Full Moon’s Daughter, by the way, is that name of my Doula practice, which will transition into my Midwifery practice. The name is powerful to me for a lot of reasons, two of them being that I am, for the first time in my life, identifying myself as a daughter and claiming who my mother is.
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Life Path
Education is a journey, not a destination.
Continue reading »Time Bank
Interested in trading service for service? Wanting a massage or acupuncture treatment? Looking for a babysitter or someone to put together your new crib?
The international, community organization Time Bank believes that each person has a skill that someone else finds valuable. The basic premise is that members offer services (everything from accounting to grocery shopping) and other members pick and choose what they need help with. Money never changes hands at the Time Bank.
For example, let’s say you need a garden bed dug. You can post securely online or through a Time Bank Coordinator that you are looking for help or search out other members who list that skill. Once you find someone to dig your garden bed, you pay them one time dollar for every hour worked.
If it took the person 3 hours to dig your garden bed, then you have gone into “time dollar debt” by 3 dollars. There is no time frame for when you have to pay your time dollar debt off, but the premise is that you will then offer your unique services to someone else.
Now let’s say that you offer guitar lessons and someone requests 5 hours of lessons from you. After those 5 hours you have paid off your 3 dollar debt and earned yourself 2 time dollars. And so the process continues….services provided and received without the exchange of money.
Check out their site to see if you have one in your community.
My Complete Doula Services
What is a Doula? “Doula” comes from ancient Greek, and means “a woman who serves women”. Today, Doula is used to refer to a trained woman who can provide support during three different times of a woman’s childbearing year. An Antepartum Doula supports the mother later in her pregnancy with pregnancy massage, meal planning, education and labor preparation. A Labor Doula provides continuous physical, emotional and informational support to a mother before, during and just after birth. A Postpartum Doula is there for mom and baby after delivery to help in whatever way best serves mom. What Services and Experience do I Offer? Antepartum Doula As an Antepartum Doula, I help support mothers on bed rest, single or teen moms, women with severe morning sickness, emotional trauma or multiple children. As an Antepartum Doula I can provide informational, emotional, physical and practical support during a woman’s pregnancy. My ongoing academic and professional experience includes education at Birthingway College of Midwifery, training from Alma Birthing Center, and my own self-study. Labor Doula I am currently in the process of becoming a certified Labor Doula through Birthingway. I have attended extensive training through the school and now must attend 5 births in order to become certified. The mother and caregivers will need to fill out paperwork for the school evaluating my performance as a Labor Doula to help with this certification process. As a Labor Doula I can assist with birth plans, birth art, pain coping techniques (massage and touch, positioning, breathing, meditation and visualization, vocalization, aromatherapy and healing energy techniques), pregnancy and postpartum diet and fitness designed to ease labor and recovery, Reiki healing, and creative expression and relationship / birth coaching. (Whatever works best for mom and family.) Postpartum Doula Currently, I work at Alma Midwifery Birth Center as a Postpartum Doula where I have received training to care for new families in their first 48 hours after birth. I have expanded this service beyond the birth center environment and into new families’ homes. I provide lactation consulting, infant care techniques, meal planning and cooking, gentle yoga and exercise options, natural healing, light housekeeping, dog walking and nanny care. What do I Charge? I believe that all families should be able to afford Doula services and all Doulas should be able to pay their mortgages. Therefore I offer my services on a sliding scale, based on what each family can pay. I am happy to discuss pricing options and payment plans with each family. Antepartum & Postpartum Doula Services $25 – $35 per hour with a 4 hour minimum Labor Doula During certification process: reimbursement of transportation and food expenses, usually between $50 – $75. After certification: $400 – $700. Includes 3 prenatal visits (if time allows), full labor and delivery support, 1 postpartum visit Want to Learn More? For a lot of people, the concept of a Doula is a very new thing. Now that women often don’t have built-in family support, a Doula can really fill the gap for the new family by providing knowledge, compassion and practical support during this very important childbearing year. If you’d like to learn more about what I do and the services I offer, please leave a comment to this post (it will remain unpublished).
Portland Doula for Hire
As a Doula, I am honored to serve in whatever way you feel will best support you and your family prior to, during and after the birth of your new child. I am privileged and humbled to be there for you and your family during your birthing process.
My ongoing academic and professional experiences includes continued education at Birthingway College of Midwifery, Postpartum Doula work at an established birthing center, and experience as a student Antepartum and Labor Doula. I maintain an extremely flexible schedule and support network to ensure you will never be without Doula support.
My services include supporting families during the antepartum period if mom is on bed rest, a single or teen mom, has severe morning sickness, emotional trauma or multiple children. As a Doula I can provide informational, emotional, physical and practical support during your pregnancy.
As a Labor Doula, we will meet three times (if time allows) and can incorporate modalities that you and your family need, such as help with birth plans, birth art and pain coping techniques (massage and touch, positioning, breathing, meditation, visualization, vocalization, aromatherapy, energy techniques) pregnancy and postpartum diet and fitness designed to ease labor and recovery, Reiki healing, creative expression and relationship / birth coaching. You will decide what type of total labor support you require from me as your Labor Doula.
Postpartum, you will receive one visit, during which we will share your birth story and discuss all the challenges and joys that lay ahead. You will also receive any needed breastfeeding support during this time.
Additional longer-term postpartum support can include lactation consulting, infant care techniques, meal planning and cooking, gentle yoga and exercise options, natural healing, integrative life coaching, light housekeeping, dog walking and nanny care.
Happy New Year
I wish all women, moms, health care workers and babies a wonderful and healthy new year.
Happy Birthing!
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What Kind of Advocate am I?
Am I a birth advocate? Am I a baby advocate? Am I a mother advocate?
I am a birth baby mother advocate.
Providing the most diverse and safe options for a woman will allow her to birth in her most natural way. I believe that by doing this, the baby and mother will be safe and protected because the mother is using her natural instincts to birth her baby.
By allowing a woman to create this kind of natural childbirth space, I am empowering her to trust her body to allow the very best birth that is perfect for her little baby.
By holding a natural birth space, mom and Midwife are allowing the baby to come into this world with it’s fullest potential and power.
What kind of advocate are you?
Continue reading »What a Midwife vs. Nurse Midwife vs. Doula?
I grew up going to the hospital with both my mother and step-father whenever they would get called into work. I’d spend weeknights and weekends there hanging out with doctors and nurses, helping mom run CT scans on patients and moving from department to department.
I’m very comfortable in that environment and don’t have any of the fears that most people have in hospitals. So it’s not intimidation that directs me away from the Nurse Midwife profession, it’s actually because a hospital is too limiting for me.
My desire to be a homebirth/birth center Midwife is so that I can provide mothers, babies and their families with as many options as possible while maintaining a safe and protected environment.
Within the home setting of birth, I want to have clinical responsibility for the well-being of the mother and baby. Throughout my life I’ve always strived for as much ownership as possible and it doesn’t really get bigger than taking care of two lives.
I also want to be involved in the actual birth of the baby. I think of the baby in the womb as a being with unlimited potential. As the baby comes into the world he or she is immediately shown sights, sounds, sensations and boundaries. It takes only a second to ground that baby to this earth and I want to help with that process.
Nurse Midwives are able to provide uplifting support and care to women who want to birth in hospitals and Doulas are so very very important to birth. Both provide a service that is truly beyond words and I’m so grateful that women are beginning to have more and more birth options available to them.
Continue reading »A Return to Love – Marianne Williamson – Poetry Submission
My deepest fear is not that I am inadequate,
My deepest fear is that I am powerful beyond measure.
It is my light, not my darkness that most frightens me.
I ask myself
who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?
Actually, who am I not to be?
I am a child of God.
My playing small does not serve the world.
There is nothing enlightened about shrinking
so that other people will not feel insecure around me.
I was born to manifest the glory of God that is within me.
It is not just in me; it is in everyone.
And as I let my own light shine,
I unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
As I am liberated from my own fear,
My presence automatically liberates others.
First Thoughts
This is a brainstorm I did a few months ago when I first decided to enter into Midwifery. I discovered that birth is a dance and I will be a follower.
Midwifery Dreams
This is the journal where I write all my inspirations, questions and ideas about being a Doula and becoming a Midwife.
First thought: Why aren’t women seen at least twice a month during the first three months of pregnancy to help guide diet, exercise and care when it matters most?
At my practice, this will be a standard of care.
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Full Moon’s Daughter
A long time coming and sudden at the same time. I was looking for my passion while I was still in college. It took eleven years, a wonderful husband, moving across the country, a few bad jobs, two very strong careers and a mystical health crisis to find my path. Without the struggle I couldn’t imagine the reward.
A new way of being.
This is a Full Moon’s Daughter blog about healing, education, advocacy, passion and joy of birth. Please join me on this journey.
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