Pit to Distress

While I feel very lucky that all the births I've attended thus far have been induction and pitocin free, I know there will come a day when a client faces pitocin.

With all the birthy information that I read about or talk about on a daily basis, I have not heard of this. Honestly (and unfortunately), I am NOT surprised. The fact that there is even a need to inform women of this, disgusts me.

"Pit to Distress": Your Ticket to an "Emergency" Cesarean?

“Pit to distress.” How have I not heard about this? Apparently it’s quite en vogue in many hospitals these days. Googling the term brings up a number of pages discussing the practice, which entails administering the highest possible dosage of Pitocin in order to deliberately distress the fetus, so a C-section can be performed.

Yes folks, you read that right. All that Pit is not to coerce mom’s body into birthing ASAP so they can turn that moneymaking bed over, but to purposefully squeeze all the oxygen out of her baby so they can put on a concerned face and say, “Oh dear, looks like we’re heading to the OR!”

Ok, so here is my advice.

First, read the blog entry from Jill at Unnecesarean (above).

Next, read my blog on Labor Induction.

Next, don't induce unless it is medically necessary.

Finally, do some research on pit protocols and ask your doctor and hospital what their policy is. Do they jive? Does it sound like too much? Will they agree to a lower or slower pit induction?

If not... RUN.

Shame on OB's that practice this way.

Welcome Baby!

My client due 7/20 had her baby this morning. I'm so glad I got to attend this birth!

She was great. Very calm, very in control. She called me yesterday afternoon to check in after her OB appt and let me know that she was 3cm/100%/btw 0 & +1. WOW! She told me her back was hurting her a lot. I had a nervous feeling, but told her to try some pelvic rocks and hands & knees.

She called me back a few hours later around 6:30pm to ask if she was having contractions. From her description, I confirmed that she was probably in early labor and told her to go rest, take a bath, relax and to call me back in 2 hours to let me know if things had changed.

She called again at about 7pm, to say she was bleeding. She felt like it was a lot of bright red blood, so I told her to call her doctor and ask what he thought she should do. He wanted her to come and get it check out, just to make sure there wasn't a problem. She has a 45min drive to the hospital. I told her I would meet her at there.

I arrived at about 8pm. She was checked at 8:15pm and was 4cm/100%/0. The blood was just bloody show, although a lot of it. She was admitted and we were in a room around 9pm and her antibiotics were started (GBS+).

Around 10pm, her contractions were about 3 minutes apart, and long (double peaking). I got her in the tub and it spaced her contractions out a bit and they weren't as long, and she said she felt a lot better there. After about 30 minutes, she got out and back to the bed to lay down.

At 12am on 7/7, she was checked again and was 5cm, her contractions were long again (90+ seconds) and about 2 minutes apart. Around 2am she went to the bathroom and said she heard a pop and thought her water had broken. She laid back down on the bed and was immediately shaking and showing signs of transition. After saying she was feeling some pressure and grunting, she was checked and was 8cm.

The nurse left us alone (again) and we talked her out of giving up. Several times I looked up at the door wondering why no one was in here checking in. After several contractions of uncontrollable pushing during contractions, I paged the nurse to come. A different nurse comes in and I tell her that she is pushing a lot with each contraction. It's been about 20 minutes since she was last checked. She tells me she will tell her nurse, but not to push (as if I can hold her baby in or stop her). We work to get her to breathe out and that works a lot to keep her from pushing. Finally (at 3am) the nurse comes in and I give her a look... you know the she is ready to have a baby look, and she checks her (she's complete, duh!) and she calls the doctor, and tells her not to push (hah!). I tell her to blow out again, but I don't try and stop her from pushing. She's complete and whether he makes it or not, wasn't that important.

OB comes in and asks how things are going. Watches her push a couple times and leaves. (This doc is kind of funny, he's sort of a interventionist, but he tries to be hands off) At about 3:30pm, she has moved the baby down to almost crowning and doc comes back in. The baby is born at 3:41am.

He is a cutie! Congratulations to the new mom and dad!

Sleep with your baby!

Ok! So how often have you heard this:

"Is your baby sleeping through the night yet?"

It is often (and unfortunately) the first question people ask a new parent.

The truth is that most babies do not sleep through the night, yet it is a myth that is perpetuated from generation to generation.

Ladies! It is ok! There is no reason for your baby to be sleeping through the night! The fact that they are not, shows that they are developing just as they should. They are bonding. They are attaching. They need you at night, just like they need you during the day.

Parents who are frustrated with frequent waking or who are sleep deprived may be tempted to try sleep training techniques that recommend letting a baby cry in an effort to "teach" him to "self-soothe". New research suggests that these techniques can have detrimental physiological effects on the baby by increasing the stress hormone cortisol in the brain, with potential long term effects to emotional regulation, sleep patterns and behavior. An infant is not neurologically or developmentally capable of calming or soothing himself to sleep in a way that is healthy. The part of the brain that helps with self-soothing isn't well developed until the child is two and a half to three years of age. Until that time, a child depends on his parents to help him calm down and learn to regulate his intense feelings.

Notice the bold that I added. Bet you didn't think about the neurological aspects of sleeping through the night!

The Case Against Solitary Sleep

It's important to note that infant solitary sleep is a relatively new practice that has evolved in the western world only within the last 100 years. Recently, there have been efforts by various medical and professional organizations to discourage parents from sleeping with their children for fear that it contributes to an increase in Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). However, new research demonstrates that co-sleeping, when practiced by informed parents, can be safe and beneficial. In fact, many cultures where parents routinely sleep with their children report some of the lowest SIDS rates. In some of these cultures SIDS is non-existent.

In closing! Sleep with your baby! If you aren't comfortable with the baby in your bed, try a side-car arrangement or a bassinet next to your bed. If nothing else, keep the baby in your room! It will help your baby, and it will help you. If you have to get up in the middle of the night with your little one, at least you don't have to walk across the house in a haze.

Happy sleeping!

Ref: http://www.attachmentparenting.org/principles/night.php

Special Offers!

Ok, so I've got some special deals running right now. The economy being what it is, I thought I would try to offer what I could.

Check them out here!

Push Summit 2009 in Birmingham!

Push Summit 2009 in Birmingham!

The Big Push for Midwives, is holding “Push Summit 2009” in Birmingham from July 12-14. The nation’s best and brightest midwifery advocates will be convening to discuss state- and national-level strategies for licensure of Certified Professional Midwives.

The summit is expected to draw national media attention.

If you want to be more involved in our state’s licensing effort, this will be an informative event. You may register here.

Please note that they are offering a discounted rate for students who wish to attend.

2009/2010 Maternity Care Excellence Awards

HealthGrades recognized 145 hospitals with a 2009/2010 Maternity Care Excellence AwardTM. This places these hospitals among the top 10% of all hospitals nationwide for maternity care.

These best-performing hospitals consistently outperformed all other hospitals for maternal complication indicators as well as the weight-stratified neonatal mortality indicator (the number of newborns who died while in the hospital, examined by birth weight). Because of these vast quality differences, women should take care to research quality prior to choosing the hospital where they will deliver their baby.

Unfortunately, not a single hospital in Alabama received an award. In fact, the closest hospital that received the award is in Gainsville, FL, 240 miles away from Dothan. North Florida Regional Medical Center

AND... I am not incredibly happy with this study for its cesarean rates....

C-section rates average approximately 32% among the 19 states studied.

Obviously, a much lower c-section rate would be beneficial.

For a complete list of the hospitals, click here.

Labor Rooms Around The Country

The Brooklyn Hospital Center
Brooklyn, NY



Mount Nittany Medical Center
State College, PA



Medical Center of Lewisville
Lewisville, TX



Simi Valley Hospital
Simi Valley, CA



Cedar Park Regional Medical Center
Cedar Park, TX



Reston Hospital Center
Reston, VA

Babies R Us

So, the healthy mommy, healthy baby event was a bit of a bust, but I did have the opportunity to meet a few pregnant ladies, so it was well worth it!

I had quite a busy day afterward though. Some friends came over with their kids and we had a small birthday party for one of them. Such fun! The kids played all day and I had ZERO problems getting either one to bed.

I feel great... except that the house is a but messy now, but oh well... tomorrow is Sunday and I can take care of it then. Right now I have a Saturday evening alone to relax and unwind... at least until Cole wakes up... although, he didn't nap this afternoon, only around 10am.... hmmm, maybe he'll sleep for a while!

Frustration

It's really easy to come by lately...

Frustrated because I'm a mom... the kids don't always go to bed peacefully, they throw tantrums, they're whiny or hungry or sleepy or all of the above...

Frustrated because I'm a wife... to someone in law enforcement, and all that comes with it.. the long hours, the weird schedules, the fear and worry, the grumpy mornings from lack of sleep and because the kids are screaming...

Frustrated because I have a job and a business, despite already being a mother and wife.

Frustrated because it's often hard to find money to pay all the bills, not to mention all those random bills that show up when you least need them too.

Frustrated because life is just frustrating... because when you had no responsibility, "life" looked so exciting and easy. Welcome to the real world.

Despite all that frustration, I still love being a mother, a wife, a worker, a business owner, a doula, a birthy woman, an advocate.... I just wish there was a bit more money (hahaha)!!!!

The evenings happenings...

This evening was full of lively adventures! There was outside play, followed by homemade lasagna...



Yum! And of course, the aftermath of such a meal...



Such fun! And if you are Sophia, you are now driving around the garage...



And finally, after awaking from the lasagna coma, a lovely bath...



Night night!