Having seen births at hospitals, birth centers, and homes, I have to say it is amazing how differently the process unfolds when we don’t mess with it. If you are a low risk mama and are hoping for a peaceful, natural birth and bonding experience, please make sure that you choose a provider who trusts birth and a venue that supports birth as a normal part of life, not a medical event to be managed. What you see in this video is possible (probable, in fact!) when we let it be.
This video features my amazing clients Karen and Regis. The three of us got to know each other really well as they not only hired me to be their doula, but also for private childbirth education classes. From our first meeting, I loved these two, and they just keep inspiring me! Karen was an amazing force of nature as she labored and, as predicted, Regis was a phenomenal support.
Karen, Regis and Lily, kudos to all three of you on your breastfeeding success story!
When it came to breastfeeding brand new baby Lily, Karen felt she needed a little help. I recommended she call “the breast whisperer,” lactation counsultant Freda Rosenfeld. They were the second couple in my practice who had been told their little one was tongue tied, and who were able to have a successful breastfeeding session moments after having their little one’s tongue untied, so to speak. I think that it’s wonderful that Karen and Regis have shared their story for other new parents facing the same issue. Seeing this pair on TV made me feel like a proud mama. Way to go Karen, Regis and little Lily!
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Have you heard mixed messages about breastfeeding, sleeping, and the optimal way to manage nighttime feeding for the health and wellbeing of you and your little one? I would be surprised if you hadn’t. That is why I’m really excited to share with you the outstanding work of Kathleen Kendall-Tacket , Ph.D., IBCLC (board-certified lactation consultant) today. Dr. Kendall-Tacket is a clinical associate professor of pediatrics at Texas Tech University School of Medicine and has a special interest in Psychoneuroimmunology (PNI). She decided to look to the science to come up with some clear guidance for new mamas trying to do what’s best for everyone while protecting their mental health.
I’m sharing her article in full, but here is the conclusion for any just-the-facts-ma’am types:
The results of these previous [breastfeeding and sleep] studies are remarkably consistent. Breastfeeding mothers are less tired and get more sleep than their formula- or mixed-feeding counterparts. And this lowers their risk for depression. Doan and colleagues noted the following.
Using supplementation as a coping strategy for minimizing sleep loss can actually be detrimental because of its impact on prolactin hormone production and secretion. Maintenance of breastfeeding, as well as deep restorative sleep stages, may be greatly compromised for new mothers who cope with infant feedings by supplementing in an effort to get more sleep time. (p. 201)
In sum, advising women to avoid nighttime breastfeeding to lessen their risk of depression is not medically sound. In fact, if women follow this advice, it may actually increase their risk of depression.
Should Mothers Avoid Nighttime Breastfeeding to Decrease Their Risk of Depression?
by Kathleen Kendall-Tacket, Ph.D., IBCLC
There is a movement afoot in childbirth education and perinatal health urging mothers to avoid nighttime breastfeeding to decrease their risk for postpartum depression. We know that if mothers follow this advice, it will have a negative impact on breastfeeding. But let’s put that issue aside for the moment and consider whether avoiding nighttime breastfeeding will preserve women’s mental health by allowing them to get more sleep. In short, is this good advice?
Is milk making your super power? Check out this tee by clicking the pic.
A lot of people don’t realize that they can both give and receive donated breast milk. Check out the trailer for the documentary Prescription Milk to learn why this is important, and visit the Human Milk Banking Association of America (HMBAA) if you want to give or receive yourself. If you have a plentiful supply you can also put the word out in your community in case there are parents via surrogacy (especially helpful for gay male couples), adoptive parents, or any one else in your friend circle who can benefit from this amazing gift.
Image from www.breastmilkcounts.com, a fantastic breastfeeding resource! Click the pic to visit the site.
I discovered (via Facebook) an amazing post, The Normal Newborn and Why Breastmilk is Not Just Food, written by pediatrician Dr. Jenny Thomas of Lakeshore Medical Clinic in Franklin, Wisconsin. Dr. Thomas and her partner Dr. Stephanie Behnke are International Board Certified Lactation Consultants as well as practicing general pediatricians, offering their expertise to healthcare providers, expectant, new and experienced breastfeeding mothers. {If you live near Franklin, Wisconsin you can access this amazing resource via this link.} The article contains tons of evolutionary insights into why mamas, babies, breastfeeding, and more, are designed like they are, and sums up the wonder of breastfeeding by saying, “A baby at the breast is getting their immune system developed, activating their thymus, staying warm, feeling safe from predators, having normal sleep patterns and wiring their brain, and (oh by the way) getting some food in the process.” Read the full article below. You will be amazed, and a better mama (or care provider for mamas) for it!
The Normal Newborn and Why Breastmilk is Not Just Food
written by Jenny Thomas, MD, IBCLC, FAAP, FABM
What is a normal, term human infant supposed to do?
First of all, a human baby is supposed to be born vaginally. Yes, I know that doesn’t always happen, but we’re just going to talk ideal, normal for now. We are supposed to be born vaginally because we need good bacteria. Human babies are sterile, without bacteria, at birth. It’s no accident that we are born near the anus, an area that has lots of bacteria, most of which are good and necessary for normal gut health and development of the immune system. And the bacteria that are there are mom’s bacteria, bacteria that she can provide antibodies against if the bacteria there aren’t nice.
The organization Best for Babes was started to help moms beat the “Booby Traps“–the cultural & institutional barriers that prevent moms from achieving their personal breastfeeding goals. Click the pic for great resources and information!
Yesterday’s New York Times article, Breast Milk Sugars Give Infants A Protective Coat, is a must read, and an important reminder that nature knows best, and is often driven by reason and rationale to which we are not yet hip. My belief that nature is inherently intelligent is a large part of why I think it wise to stick as close to nature as possible in terms of birth, health, food, lifestyle, etc…. I am one who cringes at the commercials for pills to give women just four periods a year (or none whatsoever) and I feel anxious every time I hear a colleague tell a patient, “you don’t need a period every month.” Hmmm, really? How do you know? Do you really think that we have discovered every single thing there is to know about the periods, and as such can manipulate them at will with complete confidence there will be no unwanted consequences? Not me.
I trust that by and large, the way things work naturally is for a very good reason, even if I have no idea what that reason is. And this is why it has always just made sense to me that breast is best. Never mind the fact that we haven’t yet been able to make a formula that is a perfect stand in for mother’s milk. In my bones, I have the sense that even if we could, it wouldn’t be the same. And now Researchers Bruce German, Carlito Lebrilla and David Mills at the University of California, Davis have discovered part of the reason why feeding a baby formula is not the same as breast feeding (despite the long held “food is food” argument). It turns out,
“A large part of human milk cannot be digested by babies and seems to have a purpose quite different from infant nutrition — that of influencing the composition of the bacteria in the infant’s gut.”
This undigestible portion of breast milk, despite comprising 21% of the milk, was previously believed to serve no purpose. This is an incredibly good reminder that having no purpose, and having a purpose science has not yet discoveredare two totally different things. Something to keep in mind regarding other natural occurrences we’ve been told are unnecessary: tonsils, appendixes, foreskins, menopause, normal household germs, food in its natural state, and on and on. So please, start your day by reading the rest of this fantastic article, and by passing on the non-fat half-caf latte with sweet and low and fat-free muffin, yikes!
ABOUT HOLISTIC DOULA NYC
Holistic Doula NYC was founded by holistic RN, doula, and former labor and delivery nurse Andrea Crossman. HDNYC offers holistic health care consultations, labor doula support, and childbirth education classes for holistic mamas-to-be and mama-wanna-bes.
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