So, what’s the deal with hearing that sleeping or laying on your left side is best while you’re pregnant?
Read moreTransferring to the Hospital
The majority of the clients who choose to give birth at the birth center do so because they either don’t feel comfortable in a hospital setting or are afraid of medical interventions that could lead to an ‘unnecessarian’ (unnecessary cesarean birth). I find most families are nervous of this possibility of transferring as they think this option is only reserved for emergency situations or a need for a c-section, when that is rarely the case (cesarean rates for planned out-of-hospital births are 5% compared to the national average of 31%). (1) However, in preparation for a healthy, natural birth outside of the hospital, this includes understanding when transfer is indicated, so if it happens the process is that much smoother.
Read morePosterior and Right Sided Babies
One of the things I loved most about co-teaching Two Doulas Birth (an LA-based childbirth preparation series) was their curriculum and emphasis on optimal fetal positioning. As once a doula and now a licensed midwife, I have seen many births in these past seven years and believe that a baby in utero intuitively knows the path of how to be born through his or her mother’s body without a lot of intervention. However, there are external factors that can make the path a bit trickier, and a natural labor more difficult.
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