Remember

We Remember September 11, 2001.

The Eleventh Of September
Written by Roger J. Robicheau ©2002

We mourn their loss this day this year
Those now with God, no danger near

So many loved ones left do stand
Confronting loss throughout our land

My heart goes out to those who do
No one can fathom what they view

I firmly pray for peace of mind
Dear God please help each one to find

And to our soldiers now at war
God guide above, at sea, on shore

They are the best, I have no doubt
Our country’s pride, complete, devout

The finest force you’ll ever see
All freedom grown through liberty

One final thought comes clear to me
For what must live in infamy

Absolutely - We’ll Remember
The Eleventh - Of September

WHY?

Ok, so it's been a few days since I posted. I've been tired and unable to think of a topic to post on.

I attended a birth on Monday that was a bit emotionally exhausting. Mom, Dad and baby are wonderful, and they did wonderful, but I find myself so demoralized just thinking about the birth itself.

Why do OB's think that they need to put down a woman's body to the woman while she is in labor? It is especially irritating when they do it after said woman has received an epidural because she just can't take anymore of the ridiculously and unnecessarily painful contractions caused by pitocin. And you know, "You could have never done this without an epidural. Don't you see how hard pushing is? Can you imagine how much pain you would be in without it?" Well, duh... maybe if you'd left her alone to go into labor naturally, she wouldn't have needed the epidural. Bah!

Being a doula is wonderful. I get to be a part of one of the most empowering and life changing experiences in a woman's life. The birth of her baby. I can't describe to you the feeling of seeing a brand new life enter into the world, and to see a mother born.

But sometimes, being a doula is hard, emotionally. It is hard to sit and listen to doctors or nurses tell women that their bodies are broken, when I know they aren't. It is hard to see a woman lose her voice, instead of find it, when she is about to go through one of the most important changes in her life. When she is no longer only responsible for herself, but for the life of another.

Birth is beautiful. It is amazing. It is hard. It is rewarding, in the most unimaginable way.

"There is power that comes to women when they give birth. They don't ask for it, it simply invades them. Accumulates like clouds on the horizon and passes through, carrying the child with it."
-Sheryl Feldman

Pregnant Woman = Doormat?

So, I've been reading a lot of articles and stories lately about women who have been treated badly during labor and birth.

Here are just a few:

Skol v. Pierce Update: Doctor Fined and Placed on Probation

New Jersey Cesarean Refusal Case: The "System" is Schizophrenic

Since when did pregnant women become doormats? No one, especially a woman in labor, deserves to be treated like this.

This all has me thinking.

A pregnant woman, like any other competent adult, has certain basic rights. She has the right (for any or no reason) to decline medical treatment. This has long been recognized by the common law in the United States, Canada, England and Australia. (from Childbirth and the law; By John A. Seymour)

It amazes me that in this country you can actually choose to have an abortion, yet you (obviously) can't choose to refuse a cesarean. And while I don't want to open a can of worms in regards to abortion, we need to sort out some facts.

An abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus/embryo, resulting in or caused by its death. (from Wikipedia)

So, an abortion ends in the death of the fetus (or embryo as the case may be), and it is a deliberate act. And if we take into consideration that there are a few doctors in this country that still do LATE term abortions, we can factually say that some abortions are performed on viable fetuses. So, we are legally allowed to cause death deliberately to a potentially viable baby, but we are not allowed to refuse a cesarean (even when fetal distress is the reason given for it).

Abortion = Deliberate Death = OK
Cesarean Refusal = Possible Death = Not OK

Now, I am not advocating for women to refuse cesareans if their baby is in true distress. And I think that most women are smart enough and brave enough to admit that cesareans are a wonderful live-saving tool and a benefit when used judiciously. But to tell a woman that she must sacrifice her bodily integrity to potentially save the fetus's life seems out of line.

Lets talk a bit about fetal monitoring for a moment.

Results were the same in all four studies: more electronically monitored women ended up...with Cesarean deliveries. Cesarean section rates ranged between 63% and 314% higher for electronically monitored women than manually monitored women. There was no improvement in perinatal outcome for the babies delivered by Cesarean section. The principal "reasons" alleged for these surgical deliveries--fetal distress and cephalopelvic disproportion (disproportion of head to pelvis)--cannot be proved or disproved. The real reasons, according to these studies, are attending physicians' impatience and nervousness. (Brackbill et al. 1984:10)

Ok, so according to 4 studies, the diagnosis of fetal distress via electronic fetal monitors which led to an implied life-saving cesarean, showed NO better outcome.

Forgive me, I am failing to see why a pregnant woman's autonomy should be violated...

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)!!!!

You're a "Crick in the Neck"

So, I woke up this morning with a crick in my neck. I spent the whole day trying not to turn my head the wrong way. So, I decided to look up some info about "cricks", so you won't suffer as much as I have today!

About 75% of "cricks in the neck" are due to a muscle spasm. If you wake up with a crick in the neck, try at home therapies like ice and/or heat and massage. But it's important to go easy on the area in the first few days at least, to avoid making it worse.

Remedy #1: Take a hot towel (or rice sock) and wrap it around your neck for 20 minutes. Take it off and then very slowly move your neck around, up and down and back and forth, but don't "stretch". Then use an ice pack for 20 minutes. Slowly move your neck again. Rest for 20 minutes. Do this every hour until you start to feel better.

Another interesting tidbit is that most cricks are a long time coming. It has been building up for some time and no matter how you slept last night, the crick was coming, like it or not.

Remedy #2: Put lotion on your neck and have someone roll a rolling pin up and down the large muscles along your neck. If you don't have a rolling pin, you can use use a round smooth plastic bottle or such.

Don't stretch your neck! This can irritate and even make worse a crick in the neck. It's fine to slowly move your head (within normal range of motion), but don't stretch the muscles!

If you are still hurting after relaxation, rest and remedies.... head to the chiropractor!

Good luck! I'm off to try to relieve some pain.

It's been a long day.

It's been a long day.

Somehow, I'm still up and blogging from my bed. There's nothing much to say tonight except... ::sigh::

Goodnight!