Modern day babies

I found a notice in the mail upon return from Illinois this weekend. It said I had a parcel waiting for me at the post office since it wouldn't fit inside my tiny apartment mailbox. Seeing as it was 2am, I couldn't rush to the post office in excitement. I went to bed and when I woke up this morning, I still felt pretty exhausted from the weekend so I just lounged around for awhile in my plush white robe. There was an unexpected knock at the door at about 11am... without really thinking about my attire or disheveled hair, I opened the door to see the mailman with a small parcel for me. He handed over the package with his head turned away, avoiding eye contact. I said thank you cheerfully and he scurried away. What's wrong with answering the door in a robe?

As it turns out, the package contained one of the three books I'd ordered recently online: The Doula Book. I'm really excited to start reading it! No, I'm not pregnant. I am pursuing my Doula certification. For those of you out there who are unfamiliar with the term, a doula is an individual who supports the mother and father throughout pregnancy and delivery. Somewhat like a labor assistant, a doula will be there to assist the midwife or physician during delivery to ensure a more natural and enjoyable birthing experience.

Our culture has turned birth into a traumatic, excruciatingly painful endeavor. Many women don't even WANT to have babies simply because the thought of labor is so terrible. Our Christian paradigm has fed us with the notion that giving birth should be painful as a punishment to all women for Eve's folly. This is complete bullshit. There are many women currently discovering that birth can and SHOULD be an amazing, and sometimes orgasmic, experience. Delivering a baby is what nature designed our female bodies to do and we should take pride in our role as mothers. We should also stand up for our rights to deliver how we want to! We have slowly and unknowingly allowed the rigid health care system to overtake the birthing process.

From a Harvard health letter, quoted in my Doula Book, it states that "Continuous support from a doula during labor provides physical and emotional benefits for mothers and health bonuses for their babies. With less medical interventions, fewer complications, and shorter hospital stays, there may be a financial savings as well." I truly believe our "advancements in health care" are not always advancements. The system in place at hospitals is not cozy, welcoming, natural, or intimate but rather sterile, pessimistic (assuming the worst), and facilitates separation of mom and baby. I won't even get into the number of Cesarean sections done in the US, or the amount of induced labors so it's more 'convenient' for the doctor, or the high infant mortality rate compared to other first-world countries. Just some more food for thought... I would encourage you to ask questions rather than blindly accept that this is just the way birth is in our world today.

On that note, I attended a presentation by a chiropractor a while back who reported that the vast majority of sublexations in the spine occur during birth from the absurd amount of pressure applied to an infant's neck when twisting and pulling to get the baby out of the birth canal. Disturbing! What makes us think we need to yank these babies out!? The wife of this chiropractor happens to be a doula and in the midst of her midwife training. I met with her in their home and was greeted by four smiling, healthy children. She told me of her first birthing experience in the hospital and how it convinced her to do home births with her future children.

My intro to birthing, certification workshop, and breastfeeding class are on Memorial Weekend. In addition to a lot of required reading and essay writing, I'll need to be present for at least three live births in order to complete my certification. I have a handful of possibilities this year since many of my cousins and female friends are pregnant! For the next decade, the two dozen closest women in my life (sisters, friends, cousins) are entering their prime birthing years. :) I am so thrilled about the idea of providing this service to the women I love.

Along with offering delivery support as a doula, I'm looking forward to combining my other skills of coaching and massage to offer an irresistible Mommy-To-Be care package of one-on-one coaching through pregnancy, prenatal and postpartum massage, and empowering support. Upon entering the modern world, who could provide a better environment for your baby than a mother who's grounded in herself, relaxed, prepared, confident, and overflowing with love?