The Family Journey

Here is the abstract for this study, which demonstrates what natural birth proponents have known all along. Multiple cesarean births carry more risk….

*note: This event is not affiliated with The Family Journey. If you go, please post a comment and let us know what you thought of it!

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Please join with us to celebrate the joy & wonder
of birth as a transformative life experience.

You are invited to a Film Presentation of
Born in the USA

Saturday, March 8, 2008 ~ 1:45 pm to
4:30pm

Public Library – Koelbel Branch
5955 South Holly Street, Centennial, CO 80121

An event for expectant families, birth professionals and all
those concerned about the quality of care provided to birthing families
in the USA.
Presentation will be followed by an audience participation discussion of pregnancy
and birth care options available to Colorado families.
You will learn how choice of care provider and birthplace can help achieve the goals of a safe and satisfying childbirth
experience.
There will be door-prizes including parenting classes, breast pumps, and other treats for new families.
Quiet babes in arms under 6 months of age are welcome.

Please forward this invitation to any you think would benefit!

Janet Schwab, CNM
Certified Nurse Midwife
To Each Her Own Women’s Health Services, LLC
Home Birth & Women’s Health Care
www.2eachherown.com

Faith McGinn, CD, CLE, CLD, ICD, LCCE, LPN
Birth & Breastfeeding Classes
Family Builder Doula Care
Lactation Consulting & Professional Training
faithmcginn@yahoo.com
(720) 323-9805

Michelle Parks
Sweet Beginnings, LLC
Begin, Grow, Become ~ everything motherhood!
www.oursweetbeginnings.com (coming soon!)
(303) 317-5795

Mothers who breastfeed have always known that human milk is amazing stuff.  It’s nice to have science to back us up…

http://www.sciencealert.com.au/news/20081102-16879.html

One of our BirthChat Mamas is collecting donations for two different projects: Miracle Diapers and No Mother Left Behind.

If you have any cloth diapers in usable condition, or baby carriers, contact Raeanne

The Family Journey is pleased to announce that we will be starting a Birth Book Club. The first book we will be reading is _Adventures in Natural Childbirth: Tales from Women on the Joys, Fears, Pleasures, and Pains of Giving Birth Naturally_ by Pam England.

The first gathering will be Monday April 7th from 6:00-8:00 p.m. at Reader’s Cove (in the Ace Hardware Building)
1001 E Harmony Rd. Fort Collins, CO 80525.

If you are interested in participating and/or need more information, email The Book Club coordinator, Lia Closson. We can order our books through Reader’s Cove for a discount and must do so soon to ensure that we have adequate time to read before meeting. So, contact Lia as soon as you can!

Happy Reading!

Supporting Women through Perinatal Loss – A Workshop for Childbirth Professionals 

with Miriam Maslin

Sponsored by   The Family Journey

The entire birthing process can be seen as a paradigm. Painful contractions
represent the challenges in our lives; and each challenge presents an
opportunity for growth and healing.  The greater the challenge – the greater
the potential for transformation.  Only from the deepest, darkest places can
we reach the loftiest heights.

Stillbirths and neonatal deaths are “contractions” that no one ever wishes
to encounter. Yet, working in this field, each of us will ultimately be
called upon to support through such an experience.

     How can we, as childbirth professionals, learn to be truly present with
     our  clients? 

     Do we know that while pain and loss are inevitable, trauma is not?

     What can we do to support in a way that will promote healing and
     growth?

     And finally, how can we support and elevate ourselves throughout this
     difficult process?

We will explore this challenge through stories, meditations, writing,
counseling exercises, sharing, and teachings.

Date: Monday, June 2, 2008
Time: 9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Place: 2900 Wagonwheel Court, Fort Collins, CO
Fee: $125 ($100 will be refunded if anyone is called to a birth) payable upon registration
Workshop participation is limited to 15 participants

DONA CEU’s: 5

For information, registration and directions:
Kim Lenderts
       Tel: 970-225-0828
        E-Mail: babycatcher@comcast.net

Wife, mother, grandmother, and retired interior designer, Miriam Maslin has
been a source of inspiration to many: young and old, secular and religious,
long-time searchers and those who are just beginning their own “Interior
Design”. Her inner journey has taken her across the spectrum from the
beginning to the end of the life cycle — she is a doula and has served as
both hospice volunteer and member of the Jewish Burial Society.  She
incorporates both Polarity Therapy (a system of energy/holistic healing) and
spiritual teachings into her work.  Miriam has lead workshops for women’s
groups and childbirth professionals all over the United States, Canada, and
Israel. You can read more about her work at  www.miriammaslin.com

This graph from Childbirth Connection provides a visual aid and a comprehensive list of resources.

study out of Case Western that just came out in Obstetrics & Gynecology
(2008;111:285-291).

The study’s OBJECTIVE: To estimate the success rates and risks of an
attempted vaginal birth after cesarean delivery (VBAC) according to the
number of prior successful VBACs.

METHODS: From a prospective multicenter registry collected at 19 clinical
centers from 1999 to 2002, we selected women with one or more prior low
transverse cesarean deliveries who attempted a VBAC in the current
pregnancy. Outcomes were compared according to the number of prior VBAC
attempts subsequent to the last cesarean delivery.

RESULTS: Among 13,532 women meeting eligibility criteria, VBAC success
increased with increasing number of prior VBACs: 63.3%, 87.6%, 90.9%, 90.6%,
and 91.6% for those with 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4 or more prior VBACs, respectively
(P<.001). The rate of uterine rupture decreased after the first successful
VBAC and did not increase thereafter: 0.87%, 0.45%, 0.38%, 0.54%,
0.52%(P=.03). The risk of uterine dehiscence and other peripartum
complications
also declined statistically after the first successful VBAC. No increase in
neonatal morbidities was seen with increasing VBAC number thereafter.

CONCLUSION: Women with prior successful VBAC attempts are at low risk for
maternal and neonatal complications during subsequent VBAC attempts. An
increasing number of prior VBACs is associated with a greater probability of
VBAC success, as well as a lower risk of uterine rupture and perinatal
complications in the current pregnancy.

Contrast that study with another from Obstetrics & Gynecology
(2006;107:1226-1232) which found that there is maternal morbidity associated
with multiple repeat cesareans.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the magnitude of increased maternal morbidity
associated with increasing number of cesarean deliveries.

METHODS: Prospective observational cohort of 30,132 women who had cesarean
delivery without labor in 19 academic centers over 4 years (1999–2002).

RESULTS: There were 6,201 first (primary), 15,808 second, 6,324 third, 1,452
fourth, 258 fifth, and 89 sixth or more cesarean deliveries. The risks of
placenta accreta, cystotomy, bowel injury, ureteral injury, and ileus, the
need for postoperative ventilation, intensive care unit admission,
hysterectomy, and blood transfusion requiring 4 or more units, and the
duration of operative time and hospital stay *significantly increased *with
increasing number of cesarean deliveries. Placenta accreta was present in 15
(0.24%), 49 (0.31%), 36 (0.57%), 31 (2.13%), 6 (2.33%), and 6 (6.74%) women
undergoing their first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth or more
cesarean deliveries, respectively. Hysterectomy was required in 40 (0.65%)
first, 67 (0.42%) second, 57 (0.90%) third, 35 (2.41%) fourth, 9 (3.49%)
fifth, and 8 (8.99%) sixth or more cesarean deliveries. In the 723 women
with previa, the risk for placenta accreta was 3%, 11%, 40%, 61%, and 67%
for first, second, third, fourth, and fifth or more repeat cesarean
deliveries, respectively.

CONCLUSION: Because serious maternal morbidity increases progressively with
increasing number of cesarean deliveries, the number of intended pregnancies
should be considered during counseling regarding elective repeat cesarean
operation versus a trial of labor and when debating the merits of elective
primary cesarean delivery

Here’s an interesting and important angle to consider in the event of a natural disaster or epidemic, from the Kansas City Star.

Childbirth fear high among women opting for cesareans
Source: British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology 2008; 115: 324-31

Investigating whether childbirth expectations differ among first-time mothers requesting a cesarean, those undergoing elective cesarean, and those planning a vaginal delivery.

MedWire News: First time-mothers who opt for a cesarean section are more likely than those planning a vaginal birth to suffer from childbirth anxiety, Swedish study findings suggest.

Ingela Wiklund (Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden) and team assessed the birth experiences of 496 first-time mothers recruited between 37 and 39 weeks’ gestation. These women were then followed-up at 3 months postpartum. In all, 104 expectant mothers requested cesareans, 128 had cesarean sections for breech presentations, and 264 planned a vaginal birth.

Mothers requesting cesareans were significantly more likely to have clinically significant fear of childbirth, defined as a score of 85.8 or above on the Wijma Delivery Expectancy/Experience Questionnaire, than pregnant women who planned to have vaginal deliveries, and those who underwent cesareans for breech presentations, at 43.4, 13.2, and 6.0 percent, respectively.

Mothers in the requested cesarean group also felt less happy before the delivery, and were more afraid of giving birth and losing their child than mothers in the other two groups. Those who had a cesarean section due to breech presentation, however, were more afraid of behaving badly during the delivery than the other women.

Pregnant women who planned to have a vaginal delivery were less afraid of childbirth than the other women. However, those who suffered from complications as a result of vaginal delivery felt unhappy during delivery, and feared their child would be injured. But these fears were not considered clinically significant.

The investigators conclude: “Women requesting an elective cesarean section appear to often suffer from clinically significant fear of childbirth.”

Posted: 06 February 2008