Social Media and the idea of an Ideal Birth
Social media places an enormous amount of pressure on parents during pregnancy and it never lets up. It is relentless and pervasive and is forever telling us that we are not good enough, we do not do enough, and we will never be enough, and it is consuming us all. When I hear women say “I am so disappointed in myself for needing an epidural” or “I feel like I have failed because I needed a c-section” it absolutely breaks my heart. To look into the tear-filled eyes of a person who has been brave and vulnerable, and so very strong, and know that they feel inadequate because of this pressure, is not ok.
Nitrous Oxide for Kansas City Births!
In 2019, Nitrous Oxide became available in Kansas City to laboring people at Research Medical Center (HCA Midwest Health) and Overland Park Regional Medical Center. The addition has been a part of a resurgence of availability across the country that started in 2014. While Nitrous Oxide or “laughing gas” has been readily available in delivery rooms in the UK, Canada, and Australia for over a century, the US was slow to have it be a part of our pain management options.
Postpartum Anxiety
I didn't take my baby to a restaurant until he wasn't a baby, technically, any longer. About 14 months after he was born, I was starving, forgot to bring a snack for myself while out running household errands, and it would still be hours before I would be back home with the rush hour traffic. My child was happy, and seemingly unbothered by the fast-paced world, the tedious safety straps of his car seat, or of any logistical conundrums of needing to change a diaper in a place with no changing station. Thankfully, he is a relatively go-with-the-flow sort of kid.
Best Snacks For Breastfeeding
As a doula, one of the most important topics I talk to expecting parents about while helping them prepare for their postpartum period is snacks. That’s right snacks. I promise, when you bring your sweet little baby home from the hospital you will be so tired, that once your little one is sleeping your entire life will come down to three things: eat, shower, or sleep. And spoiler alert, sleep usually wins. So how do you maintain enough of a calorie intake to nourish your healing body and establish a milk supply for your baby? Snacks yo!
Labor Induction
As a doula, I typically support hospital births. It is never my goal to tell you what type of birth is best, it is to give you information so that YOU can choose the right birth for you. Recently, I have been getting a lot of questions from my clients about inductions. I found that even clients who have chosen to take Childbirth Education classes to prepare for their birth are still unsure about what an induction is, or how it could affect their birth plan.
Backup Doulas Are Essential
When you hire a doula it is such a personal thing! Finding someone who is just the right fit for your birth team can take some time, so the idea of having her not be at your birth would be very hard. Believe me, as your doula I feel the exact same way. I want nothing more than to be there for the families who have chosen me as their doula. However, I have learned that the only thing predictable about birth is that it is unpredictable!!!
My Journey to Became a Doula
Aloha, I am Charity, the Birth Doula and Photographer at Mahina Birth Support in Kansas City. Birth work is the destination that so many aspects of my life have led me to. As September nears, I feel it is appropriate to share my journey into the birth world by starting at the beginning. I was a young mother when I had my first child 22 years ago this September.