The media circuits are buzzing this week with “news” of the safety of vaginal deliveries after C-sections (VBAC). While this really is not “news” for some, the new guidelines released by the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists marks a needed turning point in this country’s perception of a women’s ability to birth. The news the attention, ability and success of such a birth choice.

Candidates for VBACs are those women who have had a Cesarean birth using a horizontal incision low in the uterus (low transverse incision). It is recommended that such candidates undergo counseling in preparation for their VBAC, to encourage, support the women’s emotional and physical concerns.

Between 60 percent and 80 percent of women who attempt VBAC have a successful vaginal delivery, according to the guidelines.

The guidelines which are published in the August issue of Obstetrics and Gynecology, recommend that the following women may also be candidates for a trial of labor after a Cesarean:

• Women who’ve had two previous C-sections using a low transverse incision.
• Women who’ve had a C-section with a low transverse incision who are currently pregnant with twins.
• Women who’ve had a Cesarean delivery but don’t know if they had a low transverse incision.

The ACOG recommends that women who choose a VBAC birth choice should do so only if they’re in a facility that has “staff immediately available to provide emergency care.”

Women who are not eligible for a VBAC consists of:

• Women who’ve had a vertical incision on their uterus
• Women who’ve had/had Serious pregnancy complications such as placenta previa

Welcome back from your holiday weekend! In case you have not heard the wonderful news, the NY State Assembly has cleared the Midwife Modernization Act on July 1st. New York is now one step closer to granting women the right and access to midwifery care and home-births should they chose. With the passing of this act, it will no longer be a requirement for licensed professional midwives to have a “written practice agreement” with a physician or hospital as a prerequisite to practice. After the closing of St. Vincent’s, the only hospital in NYC to sign this agreement for midwives, women where stripped of their option to have a home-birth as the midwives were no longer legally allowed to practice homebirths.

Thanks to New York State Association of Licensed Midwives (NYSALM),Choices in Childbirth, BirthNet, Rochester Area Birth Network (RABN), Buffalo Birth and the various physicians including many OB/GYN physicians for spear heading the rally cry and for the thousands of people who signed petitions and called their legislators to overturn the WPA requirement and support the MMA.

Now, all that is needed for the bill to go into affect is Governor Patterson’s signature and 90 clearing days!

I will keep you all posted

Here is a nourishing and refreshing smoothy recipe from the ladies over at Mamatini.

Ingredients:

8 ounces Mamatini
1 cup of your favorite frozen fruit – blueberries, strawberries, pineapple
1 scoop whey protein powder
1 tsp/packet of your favorite natural sweetener
Optional Scoop of Green Vibrance Superfood Powder

Place ingredients in a high powered blender. Blend on high speed until smooth. Pour into a tall glass with straw and enjoy!

Mamatini was specially designed to help expectant and new mothers absorb and retain the minerals their body needs to have a more energetic and healthy start to motherhood while providing baby with the nutritional building blocks he or she needs to grow. In addition, Mamatini helps increase milk supply in mothers and aides to relieve baby’s colic symptoms. Click here to meet my write up on the brand from earlier in the year.

Hello Blogosphere,

It has been a while since my last entry. My life has been a flavorful series of ebbs and flows of late. I have been transitioning back into the full-time creative job scene once again. This transition I do welcome for it is bringing me a sense of balance and stability, which in these last 18 months, is very welcomed. Though I have been quiet on the virtual front and have not attended a birth since March, these last few months have been a much-needed restorative period.

A lot of changes have been taking place locally and globally in the realms of childbirth and women’s health & being. I was deeply saddened by the closing of St. Vincent’s here and NYC, accompanied by the desecration of the rights of NY Midwives who attended homebirths in the city. It seems so archaic that the right to birth at home has been stripped away. Archaic is actually the wrong word, because even them that was the only norm.

I had been feeling torn in the sense that one part of me wants to serve the birthing community and the other wants to build my creative career and begin to lay down my own roots. I have been sitting at these perceived crossroads for sometime now. I have been searching for a cosmic solution. I have been listening, reading and exploring. Through observations and conversations, I have been realizing more and more how many women and girls just do not know their options, their bodies, nor their power as creators and nurturers. This Western model of thought has brain washed our society. I need to help raise awareness and empower. Now that I am working full-time now, this is the most possible action for me to conduct (though I know the urge to attend a birth will probably creep up on me by fall ☺). Over the next few months, I will be focusing on supporting causes and education awareness.

I have always felt compelled to make right of the wrong and shed light on the truth with encouragement and embrace. My attempts in the pasts of doing so were not always executed in the most energetically sustainable way, often leaving myself feeling burned out. I now realize more then ever the importance of taking care of one’s self in order to be a better nurturer and provider for others. I have been taking care of and protecting people since I was 3. It is part of my nature and will never cease ( a cancerian moon and rising moon). But I understand to better serve others, I need to sustain and nurture myself in the process.

Please do still continue to visit me every once in a while. There may be some structural changes soon with both The Green Doula and Verte sites. I may not post every day or week, but I do enjoy writing for you and sharing with you. Please do give me any feedback you may have, share your stories here and with your friends and families.

Remember and connect with your inner strength, sacredness and love. It is inside of us all; people, girls, women, mothers, fathers and sons. Enjoy your journey to parenthood.

Best wishes,

Danelle

I am sure you have heard of the term Green Washing. Well, I am starting to believe that a new term is in order, the term Breastmilk Washing. Though there are marketing guideline mandates which prevents companies from calling their product better than breastmilk, many companies are heavily emphasizing their products closeness to breastmilk. In cases where these are formula brands, I do believe there is room to develop the science of getting formula as close to breastmilk as naturally possible and encourage more bonding with infants (though I strongly believe that breastmilk is the best method for infants ideally up to the first 6 months to 1st year of their life). Today though as I was getting acquainted with some new Facebook friends and groups, I came across a group called “No, Baby Yoplait… Your Yoghurt is NO WAY NEAR Close To Breastmilk”. I saw this picture on their site and was dumbfounded.

I headed over to Yoplait’s site and it is in fact true that they are trying to position Baby Yoplait yogurt from the standpoint that it is close to breastmilk. How did the yogurt category even come to dare to enter the conversation of breastmilk? I have never heard of any particular culture fermenting breastmilk and serving it to babies on a spoon. It is quite ballsy for a dairy company to make such a claim and association. What do you think of this marketing tactic?

I have just recently come across this delightful California based on-line store named Sprout Baby. It is a one-stop URL destination for all thing eco-friendly baby, parents and home. Next time you are shopping for yourself, friends or families, add this site to your bookmark of favorites.

SproutBaby also features a new EcoPass ($99.00) that grants customers:

• Free Shipping on every order
• 15% savings on every product we sell
• Advance looks at new products.
• Exclusive offers and promotions.

Click on the images below to read more about a few of my favorite products from the site

Grass Countertop Drying Rack $19.99

Organic Diaper Clutch $62.00

Sweet Knee Bun Glaze $9.95

Boon Mini Bath Goods $10.99

Sprout Foods Variety 12-Pack for Babies Seven Months and Older $15.49

His message is very clear and true. We need to re-educate ourselves and most especially our children ( yours, our nieces,nephews, god children, all of them) on food, how to prepare it, where it comes from, quality-vs- additives and its effects on our health. These are essentials survival skills which are lacking. As new parents start fresh and instill these lessons within your children from the beginning.

Join his revolution!

I have read that when a baby appears to be in the transverse position, that this symbolizes the baby’s comfort and desire to be close to their mother’s heart. While this is a sweet notion, when it comes to birth, the transverse position is problematic for a desired vaginal birth.

If after 30 weeks your baby is still presenting itself in a transverse position and your care provider and your self are concerned, it is helpful to incorporate some of these natural ways to encourage the little one to turn:

• Have either your partner or friend speak to the baby, shine a flash light, or place ear phones at your pubic bone area
• Contact a homeopathic doctor to give see if Pulsatilla in 200C potency or higher will work for you
• Pelvic rocking and exercises to strengthen muscle tone.
• Drink plenty of fluids.
• Have a chiropractor perform the Webster technique
• Try an inversion such as the one below:

DO do the inversion if you feel strong enough and it does not cause you discomfort for 2-3 times a day. DON’T do it if you have trouble breathing. As with any exercise, ask your caregiver if there is any medical reason why you shouldn’t do this. DON’T do this inversion if the case is your baby was in a breech position and has already turned head down.

1. Have a helper to brace your shoulders so you don’t come down from the couch too fast.
2. Have your knees on the edge of the couch.
3. Come down slowly.
4. Brace yourself on your forearms.
5. Relax your belly.
6. Relax your neck and head.
7. Hold the pose for 30 seconds for a head down, posterior baby, or a minute for a breech or transverse baby, if you can. Start with shorter times in the pose and work up to 30 seconds.
8. Crawl forward, bringing one knee down to the floor and then the other.
9. Come to your hands and knees.
10. Sit up, on your heels and catch your breath.
Crawl around the room helping the weight of the womb settle forward.

(above directions from Spinning Babies)

At the same time, I found this statement via Birth Naturally

Less than 20% of the babies who are transverse at 37 weeks will remain transverse when labor begins, so another option is to wait for labor to start and attempt to turn the baby or perform a cesarean if it is still necessary.

Speaking from within the context of the statement directly above, your doula and midwife can work with you to suggest various positions during your labor to encourage the turn of your baby. Using gravity and motion can potentially save you from unnecessary internal interventions.

For whatever reason, I had a craving for raw asparagus today. Since I have been trying to focus on my physical health of late, my muscles are screaming loud and clear for potassium. While eating the asparagus I became curious to see what other benefits were attributed to it. Low and behold I found some wonderful benefits that are actually tailored for mothers-to-be and new moms. Here they are for you:

5 BENEFITS

• Eaten during the early stages of pregnancy, it helps the body to fight against certain birth defects such as spina bifida (a neural tube defect)

• A cup of asparagus provides around 263 mcg of folate (Vitamin B). Folate is very important for the synthesis of DNA. Its absence or inadequate supply causes the improper division of fetus’ nerve cells, in turn leading to birth defects

• Stimulates milk production in nursing mothers

• Has very high levels of folic acid which is known to make conception easier

• Controlling blood sugar levels and therefore, is very beneficial for people with diabetes