In yesterday’s blog post, I talked about the impact your choice of hospital has on your birth experience. The other part of the picture when you want a natural birth, free of interventions is the health care provider you choose to attend your birth. Your health care provider has a big impact on your birth experience. In many hospitals, you can have a doctor or midwife attend your birth. Choose a provider that is supportive of natural birth and won’t use interventions unless medically necessary. Doctors are very different in their approaches to labor and birth. Some are quicker to … Continue reading →

Many mothers and most proponents of home birth would argue that the current medical model of maternity care in the United States makes it difficult to have a natural birth in the hospital. Interventions are so routinely used in some hospitals that it is almost impossible to make it through the birth without any. However, with some planning it is possible to have the birth you want. The two most important factors in having a natural birth in a hospital setting are the health care provider and hospital in which you will deliver. In the first part of this blog, … Continue reading →

There are many benefits to natural birth. One of the benefits of drug free birth is freedom of movement. When drugs are given, many hospitals restrict the mother to the traditional hospital position of lying on your back, or the newer semi sitting position for pushing, throughout labor and birth. However, this is often not the best position for birth. This position is the most convenient for the doctor attending the birth and nurses doing exams, but is not the best for mom. When women are free to get into the most comfortable position during labor, they rarely lie down … Continue reading →

Proponents of natural child birth have long maintained that giving birth naturally results in better bonding with baby compared to c section births. In fact, women choosing VBAC often cite this as one of the many reasons for making this choice. Mothers who have had a c section may disagree with these statements, but recent research is adding credibility to this long held belief. Researchers at Yale School of Medicine looked at bonding in mothers and babies with the method of birth. Women were divided into two groups for the study, one group having had vaginal deliveries and the other … Continue reading →

Proponents of natural child birth say natural birth is the safest option for both mothers and their babies. Some women swear by the epidural and will recommend one immediately upon hearing the news that you are expecting a baby. You may be left wondering if natural child birth is really all that important. Does it matter whether you have pain medication when you are in labor? Although opinions vary widely on this issue natural child birth does offer some benefits to the mother and baby. One benefit to the mother is a lower risk of interventions during labor, such as … Continue reading →

You’re in the midst of painful contractions, you’re exhausted, you feel as though you can’t take it any longer and your birth plan is tucked in a folder somewhere in your suitcase. After months of planning and decisions, you’re about to throw the towel and beg for mercy. The nurse offers an epidural, even though you originally said you didn’t want one. Should you take it? First of all realize that you are not a failure if you decide to take the epidural, but do ask yourself a few questions before you change your mind. How strongly did you feel … Continue reading →