The Wise Women Way

35 Reasons to Give Birth at Home

2010-02-15T23:20:00.000-08:00

35 Reasons to Give Birth at Home (in no particular order):

1. Home birth is safer - Your house is a lot less likely to be a source of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, and it’s not full of sick people.
2. Your chances of getting a C-section are reduced with a home birth. At 4% our rates are a fraction of the national 31% average.
3. It’s cheaper - A midwife’s fee is much less costly than a hospital stay. Our total fee for all your care for 10 months is $3300 again a fraction of the cost of birthing in the hospital. Dont have insurance? We discount our fee another $600!
4. You don’t have to go anywhere. What could be better than your own shower or toilet if you need them?
5. The food is way better at home. Organic food? Vegan? No problem.
6. You don’t have to have strangers at your birth (unless you want to).
7. Your home is always more comfortable than any hospital room.
8. Everything you need is already there.
9. You can be as green as you want. Hospitals aren’t known for natural soaps, cleaners, or recycled-content anything.
10. You control the environment at home. If you want to dim all the lights or open a window, you just do it.
11. Birth is a sacred experience. What better setting could there be than your own nest?
12. It’s so much quieter at home. There are no cabinets full of blinky lights, fans, and humming devices. Well, maybe some of you have that… But probably not in your bedroom. And you can power them down if you want.
13. Home birth is just more fun!
14. Your older kids can be a part of the birth or comfortable in their surroundings while waiting for the birth.
15. Your pets can attend. Seriously. Pets are family, too.
16. Giving birth at home is an exceptionally empowering experience. We promise you will remember it forever!
17. No silly hospital gown is necessary at home. Wear whatever you want, or wear nothing.
18. You don’t need an ID bracelet for the mother or the baby when you birth at home.
19. You can choose the room for your birth, or change rooms in the middle. Not an option at the hospital.
20. Giving birth outside is an option with a home birth. One of the first home births we attended was in the families back yard, in a big galvinized tub, on a warm sunny day.
21. No paperwork is necessary at your home birth, well for you anyway - your midwife and her assistants will be very busy recording your birth on many pieces of paper.
22. You can cut the umbilical cord when you are good and ready. The speed at which the hospital personel want to snip our newborn’s lifeline is unbelievable.
23. No gadgetry on the mother: A home birth midwife doesn’t require you to wear a monitor or get an IV started “just in case”.
24. You don’t have to sign out when you leave your house.
25. Your family doesn’t have to negotiate a giant parking lot and endless hallways to visit you.
26. A heating pad does not cost $50 to use.
27. You can have as much sage, incense, candles, whatever, as you like.
28. There is no pressure to circumcise, vaccinate, or apply for a Social Security number for your baby right after a home birth.
29. You don’t end up with a “gift bag” (marketing samples) from big corporate America, full of disposable diapers, formula, baby wipes, shampoo, soaps, and brand propaganda.
30. Your baby’s placenta does not become a biohazard. It is yours just like your baby and you can do with it what you like. Many choose to bury it under a special tree, others choose to encapsulate it for bio-identical hormone replacement in menopause.
31. The dad has a bed at home. Sleeping on a foldout cot next to the hospital bed sucks.
32. Nobody comes in, wakes you up, and checks your vitals every half hour at home.
33. Having a home birth is different. Different is cool.
34. You are an individual, your wishes will be heard, respected, and honored.
35. The hospital is open 24 hours, so if you need it, it will be there.

Baby Names

2010-01-11T13:28:00.000-08:00

Midwives work with the coolest people and they come up with the coolest names.... here is a list of some of our babies with their birth weights besides them.... check it out! (all last names are omitted for privacy)
6.11 Irie Sophia
8.6 Devon Luca
8.14 Hayle'a Anne Xnthus
6.5 Abigail Esti Amaya and 6.0 Isabella Paxtyn Nayloni (twins at 38 weeks)
6.1 Amaya Ellen
7.10 Elena Elise
7.9 Loren Christopher
8.15 Bridget Rose
8.0 Jesus Luis
8.6 Alexa Grace
7.15 Kinsey Agnes
9.8 Verania Olguin
8.14 Bella
6.6 Anthony Leone'
6.3 Timothy Rodger
7.8 Myles Logan (the eigth baby born in this happy family)
8.1 Torin Charles Egg
6.15 Athena Anne
8.4 Raeveah
7.0 Lyla Jade
7.12 Enzo
5.12 Nico
7.4 Maggie Lee
8.14 Elias Marley
7.14 Solia
7.0 Chyna Mae Hazel
8.2 Sawyer (born the same day as his older brother)
7.11 Cael
9.11 Neaveah
7.14 Reggie
7.0 Jesus Edwardo
6.15 Jackson
9.11 Gunther
8.11 Beckett
6.8 McKenna Rose
8.12 Dakota
7.15 Sophie
8.1 Grey
7.4 Isabelle
6.12 Sophia Grace
8.4 Logan
9.4 Thomas
7.7 Annika
8.10 Kaya Grace
5.14 Miles Elias
9.2 Stella Lucia
8.15 Brayden Miles
5.15 Jannell
7.10 Florencia
9.7 Zoe Belle
7.12 Van Wyatt Satchel (Born in 17 minutes)
8.2 Erin Michelle
7.8 Esteban Mendoza
8.0 Stella Magnolia
8.7 Emrys Sabatian (born in his amniotic sack)
7.3 Lavender Kiki Oyong
7.6 Ian Daniel Wilson
7.14 Luke Grey
7.15 Thomas Henry
6.7 Julia Anne (born with almost no pain to a 1st time mama after 20 min of labor)
7.10 Arleen
4.0 Abigail Lea and 4.14 Emma Louise (Twins at 35 wks)
6.12 Susanna
8.14 Nancy (40 hour 4th labor - long but successful)
7.0 Eric
7.2 Guatalupe Sarah
7.4 Jessica
12.2 Luis Angel (first baby for a 16 year old)
8.1 Grace Ellen
8.8 Ryan Joseph and 7.6 Ann Rebecca (Twins at 39 weeks)
7.5 Ryan Micheal
11.2 Shanti (Born to a vegan-mostly-raw mama)
8.9 Lydia
6.7 Sammy (vaginal breech birth)
7.2 Alana Madison
10.1 Anthony (born at 41 weeks to a VBA2C mama)
7.9 Dominic Alan
8.9 Heather Kristina
10.1 Juan Luis (First boy in a family of 5 girls)

Thanksgiving Soup

2009-11-19T12:38:00.000-08:00

Every year I make Turkey stock after thanksgiving, here is my recipe...
after serving and cleaning up thanksgiving, the last thing you wanna do is process meat, but the large burd rarely fits back in my fridge, so I just slice all the meat that I think is edible off, (differnt people have differnt definations, but at least all the left over white meat, put it in a storage container in teh fridge.
find your largest pot (like a lobster pot or a black canning pot) and put the whole bird in there with:
1 head of cerey trimmed
3 lg whole carrots trimmed
2 lg yellow onion trimmed (but you can leave the skin on - it adds color to the broth)
12 whole cloves
3 bay leaves
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar (brings the calcium out of the bones and into the stock)
5 pepper corns and some red pepper flakes if you like
and also add all the drippings out of the pan and serving platter and any leg bones off someones plate, AND the reserved neck from the packeging.

fill the pot with water to cover the bird and all the veggies, or as much as 2 in from the top
put it on the back burner on med
in about 30 min it will start to form a scum on the surface, skim it off with a slotted spoon.

put the lid and turn it to low, leave it on all night.
In the morning turn up the temp to a slow bubble. (at night tuern it off or to very low)
You can continue to SLOW (on low) simmer this for the next 2 days if you want, or you can finish the soup now.

When you are ready to finish the stock, add one whole bunch of parsley and tunr the heat off and cover, leave covered for a couple hours. (the heat - but not boiling- releases all the the flavonoids and vit C from the parsley into the stock, But it is a water soluable vitamin so it would be lost in the steam if it wasnt covered.

When it has cooled, put a strainer over a large pot or bowl and slowly spoon or poor the contents trhough the strainer, press with a back of a spoon the vegges to release as much of their juice as possible. Discard the solids, retain the liquids. Put it back on trhe stove, freeze what you are not going to use for soup (and use it to cook rice in or make soup in a week or so)
But to make your thanksgiving soup, saute in a little butter:
2 chopped peeled carrots,
2 chopped celery ribs
1 onoin sliced
2 cloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon tyme
salt and pepper to taste

Add all this to the stock simmering on the stove
then add any combination of the following leftovers:
mashed potatoes
wild rice dishes
boiling onions
green beans
squash chunks
spinach salad
ect..

And add the reserved chopped white breast meat.
Season to taste and you have a yummy thanksgiving soup!

Seasoning cast-iron cookware

2009-11-12T09:45:00.000-08:00

Cast Iron is so great! Not just for the health benefits, but in the well-seasoned pan is the best/easiest to cook with!
So to get that well-seasoned pan, find a cast iron skillet, pan or griddle either from your neighbor that doesnt use it, your grandma, the local thrift store, or outdoor store. Use a brillo pad and scrub out any flaking black stuff, or red rust and get the pan relatively smooth (if it is new, you may want to do this anyway to remove the scarey almost-non-food-grade preseasoning oil) you should do this under/with running hot water. With your warm pan fill it with oil of your choice I prefer olive or coconut and put in a low oven like 200. swirl the oil around to coat the insides of the pan, check periodically... the oil will get absorbed, take it out, rub more oil all over the pan and put more in the pan, swirling it around, you may have to do this several time depending on how old the pan is.... after several hours and/or when the oil stops being absorbed take it out and let it cool on the stove with any leftover oil in it. Now you can cook in it; I recomend just using fatty foods to begin with like bacon and sausage - avoid tomatoes or other acidic foods, that strips your seasoning. Right after you have served food out of it, rinse it under running water and put right back on the burner you were using - turn it off.... this evaporates the water from rinsing and dryes the pan (you dont ever want it to sit with water in it.
Eventually, your pan will get to where you can cook eggs or potatoes in it with almost no oil. Your pan becomes non-stick over time. Once you have a well-seasoned pan, you can cook tomatoes ect. in it occationally and it actually helps you get that 'iron' from your pan because the acidity strips a more out than other foods.
Because your iron requirements go up in pregnancy, but iron pills are hard to absorb and cause constipation, switch to using cast-iron cookware everyday even before you are pregnant. Not only is cast iron cookware some of the best health-wise, it is also some of the best chef-wise - so enjoy and use for generations to come!

My 2 cents on cloth diapers

2009-11-10T15:53:00.000-08:00

I have literally used every type of diaper option out there over the last 10 years on my kids, friends kids, and clients kids... here are my 2 cents:

1. Cloth diapers are as easy as disposable, you just have to get in a habit, much like going to the store every week for diapers is a habit, washing diapers can also be a habit...
2. Don't use laundry soap, (which is different that laundry detergent - natural brands can be either, commercial brands are usually detergent), Dryer sheets or Fabric Softener in your Diaper Laundry, it creates an invisible film in the diapers especially the diapers with the fleece liners like Fuzzy Bunz and makes them water proof, not want you want on the inside of a cloth diaper and is the main reason for cloth diaper leaks. ( you should however wash your fleece covers with fabric softener as you do want covers to be waterproof)
3. Line drying diapers extends their life, but isn't necessary, you can throw your entire load covers and all in the dryer when ever you are in a hurry and they still work just fine ( the exception are some wool covers).
4. Ebay and WAHMall are great places to buy diapers, they are usually haft price and it allows you to try a few different syles.
5. My number one top fav cloth diaper is Fuzzy Bunz (or its cousin knock offs that are WAHM made). They truly are leak proof, rash proof, and grandma/dad - "I dont know how to do cloth" proof!! They are a little pricey - $15 a peice, but worth the investment, especially if you know there are more babies in your families future!
6. My second fav diapers are the prefold and cover combo.... there are laterally thousands of styles out there on hundreds of websites, some good brands are stacinators (fleece), and Prowraps (PUL)
7. The "wet" method isn't necessary and is gross.. so don't soak your diapers in a wet pail, just drop them in a dry pail or use a ditty sack. Also washing diapers in adult toilets is gross and not hygienic or necessary... modern washing machines get diapers really clean even with ewwwies in them!
8. Diaperpin.com is the web's most comprehensive clothdiaper review site, so a good resource to check out.
9. My secret for non-smelly, clean diapers is: if you have obvious lg solids in the diaper, remove to a toilet to flush, other wise dump all your diaper in your washer (separate insert diapers first) turn the washer on cold and a rinse cycle, add nothing to the wash and run. Then add detergent (the smallest amount necessary is always best - more detergent doesnt make a cleaner diaper) turn the washer on the hottest setting possible for the longest setting possible, wash, when done smell, if it is slightly stinky, add a cup of vinegar and run on a a rinse cycle. (but dont do this every time you wash - maybe every week or so - and it depend on how old your baby and diapers are, and what baby is eating.) Once a month (or more - always is best but not always practical) on a hot/sunny day hang your diapers in the sun for a long time... this sun bleaches them and truly makes them clean and germ free!

Suggested Birth Movies

2009-11-06T13:17:00.000-08:00

Suggested Birth Movies

1) The Business of Being Born
Inspired by their own unique birth experiences, producer Ricki Lake and directorAbby Epstein team up to provide a nation of mothers-to-be with insight into the processof childbirth and the various options available when preparing for life’s most specialevent. From pregnancy to the miraculous moment of birth, “The business of Being Bornis an entertaining and informative celebration of the road to motherhood that “should beseen by every pregnant women in America” (Jack Mathews, New York Daily News)DVD 84 min

2) Born in Water: A Sacred Journey
A beautiful collection of seven waterbirths at home and at Andaluz Waterbirth Center.From a first time mother with midwife helping to a fourth baby with siblings present atthe birth and mom catching her baby on her own, watch birth women give birth withgentleness, awareness, and wisdom. Suzanne Arms says about Born in Water, “Thisexquisitely filmed video should dispel any of the fears and misconceptions that stillsurround water birth. The film shows seven water births, each featuring womensurrendering to the power of her labor, birth partners actively supporting women, andmidwives at their unobtrusive best. Both English and Spanish-speaking families arepresented, making this an excellent film for bilingual audiences. Appropriate for youngchildren, teens and adults, and particularly valuable for those with preconceived notionsof water birth as risky - including physicians and nurses hesitant about water birth, whowill find this video most educational.”DVD 33 min

3) Psalm and Zoya
This educational tool will move, inspire, and transform you as you gain an intimateglimpse into the Goorchenko household where, after a two-and-a-half hour labor, twinsPsalm and Zoya are born into their mothers arms. Highlights include: A vertex birth, afootling breech birth, mother performing her own vaginal exams, mother catching herown babies, a child present at birth, a calm birth environment, breastfeeding of twins.DVD 20 minutes

4) Birth Into Being: The Russian Waterbirth Experience.
Russian Spiritual Midwife, Tatyana Sargunas and her filmmaker husband, Alexi,recorded five totally natural, incredible waterbirths. Their original footage takes you on abreathtaking expedition to witness two families birthing in the Black Sea, and into theirhome to see two of their daughters being born in a handmade clear birthing pool. Scenesof children and babies swimming with dolphins will delight and amaze audiences of allages.DVD 28 minutes

5) The Birth of Sabine
Sabine’s video shows us the excitement and anticipation of a mom’s first pregnancy. Thestory follows Stephanie and James from the positive pregnancy test, prenatal visits withtheir midwife, a belly cast, to the unexpected surprise of her water breaking days beforelabor begins. They are shown making decisions and using natural methods of inductionup until the day they are (gratefully!) in labor. Daddy helps catch baby as she is born intothe water and placed immediately on momma’s chest. With lovely music throughout, thisvideo is perfect for parents-to-be learning about the surprises, decision making, and joythat pregnancy and birth can bring. You will walk away touched by the birth of thisprecious baby, Sabine.DVD 10 minutes.

6) Giving Birth
This movie was designed to inspire and educate. It shows the model for normal birth andwhy it is important for mothers and babies. It contrasts the two different models for birth~ the medical model vs. the midwifery model and explains the risks of routine obstetricpractices. You will learn what scientific evidence has discovered about birth and hear itfrom three obstetricians (including best selling author and PBS television host Dr.Christiane Northrup), a labor and delivery nurse, and a doula. You will learn why doulasare important if you birth in a hospital. You will also hear from a cesarean mother andyou will see two births. You will experience a woman giving birth in her own home,attended by a midwife, and see images of a water birth. This video explores commonmisconceptions about pain in labor, epidural anesthesia, cesarean, and many routinehospital procedures. Giving Birth presents what midwifery care is all about.DVD 35 minutes

Placenta Medicine

2009-11-04T14:27:00.000-08:00

One of my apprentices has started making placenta medicine and I was amazed at the results. One of our newly postpartum mamas was teary and blue, home for the first time by herself with the baby, she took two pills in the morning and imediatly felt better! she continued taking them for another 5 days then felt so good she skipped a day, now she just takes a pill when she thinks of it and is so happy!

I am including the info about them that we hand out to clients...

Here at Wise Women Care Associates we feel that every woman should have many options about her health care in the childbearing year. That’s why we offer placental encapsulation. Placental encapsulation is a way to utilize your body’s own medicine. Each baby's placenta is an incredible gift to our babies and to us. Your placenta served as the lifeline to your baby, transporting hormones, nutrients, and many other vital necessities. Another way to continue honoring this wonderful gift is by using it as medicine. Using placental encapsulation is believed to:
Contain your own natural hormones
Be perfectly made for you
Balance your endocrine system
Replenish depleted iron stores
Give you more energy
Lessen bleeding postnatally
Increase milk production
Help you have a happier postpartum period
Hasten return of uterus to pre-pregnancy size
Provide bio-identical hormone replacement during menopause
70% - 80% of women experience “Baby Blues” in their postpartum period and 10% suffer from a more serious condition called Postpartum Depression. “Baby Blues” are described as feelings of sadness, fear, anger, or anxiety occurring about 3 days after childbirth and usually fading after 1 week.
Postpartum Depression is described as intense feelings of sadness, anxiety, or despair after childbirth that interfere with a new mother’s ability to function and do not go away after a few weeks. Many women’s only option is pharmaceutical medication to treat postpartum depression. In some cases this is truly necessary but many women find that by being proactive and using placental encapsulation that they can prevent and help combat the symptoms of postpartum depression and the 'Baby Blues'.
After the birth of your beautiful baby and placenta, your placenta will be cleaned and properly prepared for dehydration. Once dehydrated it is ground into a fine powder that is then carefully put into gel caps. During this process we treat your placenta with a great reverence for the wonderful gift that it is. Holding positive energy in the process in hopes that is passes to the medicine that is being created. The process takes approximately 48 hours to complete. Most placenta’s yield 100-150 capsules. They can then be taken immediately to start reaping their benefits. Most women do not finish their capsules and save them for menopause or give them to their child during periods of adjustment.

interesting food for thought!

Heartburn tips

2009-10-30T16:48:00.000-07:00

That chest burn that just wouldn't go away; what a drag for pregnant moms. We recommend some prevention and a few easy remedies.

Heartburn:
Prevention: First try to avoid getting too full - so snack often, eating 6 meals not 3 every day. If you notice that spicy foods or foods that make you burp increase the heartburn, than obviously avoid them. Try not to eat right before laying down, as the sheer pressure of your growing belly on your squished stomach can increase the leakage of acids into your esophagus.

Remedy: Try having raw almonds in your purse and snacking on them periodically, they contain an enzyme that is somewhat neutralizing to stomach acid. Many people find success with Papaya Enzyme pills or lozenges. Our favorite remedy is Slippery Elm Bark Powder mixed with a little honey. Mix about about a Tbs of both in a small bowl until a paste is formed, then gum it down. This is especially helpful for middle of the night heartburn. Some people try a glass of milk, but we have heard that heartburn with acidy-milk burps are almost worse.

Avoid: Tums or other ant-acids with added calcium. The calcium sounds like a good idea but actually is practically non-absorbable and in large doses (as in popping 2 tums every couple days the entire last trimester) forms calcium deposits in the placenta. These deposits of calcium can cause certain small parts of the placenta to die. The calcium deposits may also cause some parts of the placenta to be replaced with fibrous tissue. The calcium deposits can also obstruct parts of the placenta with clots of maternal blood. They can also harden or block the maternal blood vessels. Calcification can be caused by other factors as well, like just an aged pregnancy, or cigarette smoking. In most cases, placental calcification does not affect the functioning of the placenta, and the fetus is generally not harmed. But we feel it wise to avoid adding that much of a substance that isn't helpful and can be harmful.