Category: Labor Doula in Portland

Aromatherapy in My Birth Bag

August 2, 2009 | Filed under: Aromatherapy, Labor Doula in Portland | Tagged | Comments (0)

As a Labor Doula, one of the items that I can’t leave for a birth without is my Essential Oils birth kit. Aromatherapy can really help soothe and comfort moms during labor, not to mention provide sweet relief in a sometimes stressful hospital room. Babies are also keenly aware of their environment and the state of their mom when they leave the womb. And I enjoy the healing scents as well.

For those that would like to learn more about Aromatherapy, below is a list of the oils that I frequently use during labor. I also bring 2 room spray misters with me to a birth, one Lavender scented for all around love and the other Rose Absolute to help build confidence and emotional strength.

Geranium
Circulatory oil, and if circulation is good then breathing will be good.
This is a great oil for the afterbirth because it  pulls together dilated tissues.

Jasmine
My personal power plant. Grounding and bringing back into my body.
I only use this for myself, not on mom.

Lavender
Calming and relaxing. Best to not mix Lavender and Neroli in the same birthing room.
Good for headache and fainting and shock. Also lovely for relaxing and just reminding mom that everything is okay.

Neroli
Works on the nervous system and facilitates easy breathing, especially during panting. Its calming effect increases oxygen supply to the blood and brain and helps avoid hyperventilation. It also inspires confidence. Works with anxiety, fear and apprehension. Best to not mix Lavender and Neroli in the same birthing room.

Nutmeg
Calms the nervous system and helps to alleviate anxiety. Great to use in combination with Rescue Remedy Flower Essence.

Peppermint
Drop in toilet bowl if mamma can’t pee. This will open sphincter. Also great postpartum if mom is having trouble taking that first pee.

Rose
Uterine relaxant and helps ligaments to soften, enabling the pelvic bones to expand. Rose is a natural antiseptic and a good cardiac tonic.

Rosemary & Orange
Use in combination to energize.

Sage
Sage is not an oil you want to use on a laboring mom or a baby because it is toxic.
If there is negative energy in the room, I simply open the bottle of Sage and leave it on a nearby table.

Ylang Ylang
Drop in bathtub to open sphincter like a Lotus flower.



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Midwifery Today Birth Essentials – Penny Simkin: Using Doulas for Birth Care

July 23, 2009 | Filed under: Birth Movies, Labor Doula in Portland, Penny Simkin, Portland Doula | Tagged , , | Comments (0)

If you’re interested in learning more about how Doulas care for moms in labor, check out this video talk by Penny Simkin. Penny Simkin is a Doula, founder of DONA and childbirth advocate.

Midwifery Today Birth Essentials – Penny Simkin: Using Doulas for Birth Care

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Full Moon’s Daughter: Philosophy on Pregnancy and Birth

July 14, 2009 | Filed under: Full Moon's Daughter, Labor Doula in Portland | Tagged | Comments (1)

~ 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.

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Labor Doula Details

July 10, 2009 | Filed under: Labor Doula in Portland | Tagged | Comments (0)

If you and I decided to work together during your birth, the below information outlines the ‘technical’ details of how we can work together.

When You Begin Labor

  • I consider myself on call 2 weeks before you’re estimated due date. Please call me when you think you are in labor, even if you do not need me yet. I can answer questions and make suggestions over the phone. Together we will decide if I should come right then or wait for further change.
  • We will remain in close phone contact while you are at home, until you or your partner need more support. At this time we will decide where to meet – at your home or birthplace.
  • I usually need approximately 90 minutes to get to you from the time you ask me to come. Calling me as soon as you think labor starts helps me plan my schedule and get to you sooner.

When I Arrive To Support You & Your Partner

  • Except for extraordinary circumstances, I or my backup will remain with you and your partner, taking short breaks as needed, throughout labor and birth.
  • If a Cesarean Birth is chosen, you will need to specifically request my presence in the operating room. There is still a small chance that my attendance will be denied. If this happens, I will be waiting for you and your baby after the birth.

After Your Birth

  • I usually remain with you for one or two hours after birth, until you are comfortable and your family is ready for quiet time together.
  • During this time I can help with initial breastfeeding, bonding, meals, tidying up and any other support you may want and require, within my scope of practice.

Postpartum Support

  • I am available for phone and email contact to answer questions about the birth or your baby.
  • I would like to get together 3 -5 days postpartum to see how the family is doing, listen to your birth story, fill in any details, admire your sweet baby, and collect feedback from you about my role.
  • As a gift to you and your family, I will also provide you with a written birth story at the postpartum visit for your baby’s scrapbook.

Things to Keep in Mind

Labor is hard work, but it’s hard work spent doing amazing things.
And you can do it!

Remembering your baby and your power will allow you to move through your own birth as a mother.

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Thinking Woman’s Guide to a Better Birth

June 10, 2009 | Filed under: Childbirth and Labor, Labor Doula in Portland, Medical Model of Birth, Midwifery Model of Care | Tagged , , | Comments (0)

Henci Goer is a medical author and activist who is able to deliver clear birth statistics and information that anyone can understand. Admittadely biased towards natural birth, this book provides mothers with information they could use to better understand the hospital systems they are working through during pregnancy and labor. Though the stats are a bit outdated, the philosophies behind them still hold truth.

Here are some great points that Henci makes:

~ Obstetric belief tends to become a self-fulfilling prophecy. It has been said that a healthy person is someone who hasn’t undergone enough testing by specialists.

~ Cesarean is the most common major surgical procedure performed in the United States.

~ Baby’s head fits neatly against the cervix like an egg in an egg cup. This prevents the umbilical cord coming down ahead of the baby and getting pinched between baby and mom’s pelvis.

~ Inducing for exceeding your due date is a textbook case of how mainstream obstetric care keeps narrowing the definition of normal until practically no one fits, which tends to create the “need” for intervention.

~ The conventual 40-week pregnancy length is completely is completely arbitrary. It was established by a German obstetrician in the early 1800’s. He simply declared that a pregnancy should last 10 moon months, this is, 10 months of 4 weeks each.

~ The uterus is most sensitive to Oxytocin at night, which is why labor usually starts at night.

~ Electronic Fetal Monitoring (EFM) is said to lower the risk of cerebral palsy or mental retardation because of oxygen deprivation during labor, but this is less than 10% of cases. Continuos EFM has become nearly universal since the 80’s and it it worked it should have affected the cerebral palsy rate by now, but it remains unchanged.

~ During cervical exams, moms should find out about state of cervix, how far baby is down, and baby’s position. Mom may be making important progress even though she isn’t dilating. As a labor doula this is information I always find out for mom.

~ Natural labor offers an unparalleled opportunity to discover inner resources, capacities, and strengths you never knew you possessed. And there is great value in such an experience.

~ Labor will hurt, probably a lot, but whether this is a negative experience is another matter.

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Role Playing Dad

January 12, 2009 | Filed under: Labor Doula in Portland | Tagged , | Comments (0)

During my Doula training at Birthingway one of our activites was to role play a hospital birth. I was the husband of a laboring mother who wanted a natural birth. Another student was the head nurse, who took notes, came in and out of the room and periodically asked if we wanted medication.

My wife was insistent on no interventions and she did most of the talking. I took the persona of a shy husband who supported my wife when we were alone and noticed that I became embarresed at my wife’s “demands” that she wanted to stay in the tub and didn’t want an epidural.
Getting into the role, I wondered if her behavior would negatively affect how this nurse treated us and if we were causing her too much trouble. As I kept these worries to myself, I felt my emotional support withdraw ever so slightly and my fear rise.
Never, ever, ever would I have imagined that it would be so easy to fall into that submissive role. Had we not been role playing, I wouldn’t have thought that our simple requests to be left alone to allow birth to happen naturally would lead me to question the quality of care we would receive because of our beliefs.
This simple exercise drives home the point that all families could benefit from Labor Doula support. The Labor Doula acts as a educated companion and your advocate during the birth process.
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My Labor Doula Profile

January 8, 2009 | Filed under: Labor Doula in Portland, Portland Doula | Tagged , , , | Comments (0)

As a Doula, I am honored to assist 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 the birthing process. 

My ongoing academic and professional experiences includes being a student at Birthingway College of Midwifery, a Postpartum Doula at an established birthing center, and a student Labor Doula. Throughout my work and academic responsibilities, I maintain an extremely flexible schedule to ensure you will never be without Doula support. 

My expertise includes pregnancy and postpartum diet and fitness designed to ease labor and recovery, Reiki healing, meditation, creative expression and relationship coaching (aka baby-proofing your life). If time allows, you will receive two-to-three prenatal visits where we will get to know each other. We 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 and visualization, vocalization, aromatherapy, energy techniques).

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 postpartum support can include meal planning and cooking, gentle yoga and exercise options, infant care techniques, natural healing, integrative life coaching, light housekeeping, dog walking and nanny care.


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