Thoughts on doulas? What immediately springs to mind when someone talks to you about doulas? I did a quick search on google… doulas are…. “stupid”, “annoying”, “useless”, “dangerous”, “unnecessary”, “idiots”, “dumb”…. do it… start typing “doulas are” and see what appears on your suggested list of search terms – there is nothing positive. […]
Women in Scotland are being encouraged to give birth without doctors in Scotland using continuity of care as provided by midwives – that’s a massive change! I am 100% for this initiative which is being rolled out across Scotland following the Best Start Maternity Review for the Scottish Government. We know without a […]
It’s Maternal Mental Health Week and as such, I’ve been seeing this slogan on an hourly basis – “It’s ok to NOT be ok” Really – is it really OK to not be OK? It took me some time to really understand what it was saying. I remember one of my friends (another warrior), point […]
One of the main issues many women struggle with is the thought of a painful birth… probably no surprise really – who hasn’t seen one born every minute? It’s got to be one of the biggest fears. Yet for many women, what we actually hear is other things that were more painful than childbirth […]
So your thinking about getting a doula? But have no idea where to start? Read on… this post is for you…. Where to find a doula? Like all other services – here’s some ideas…. Word of mouth is a great place to start – ask your friends, ask on facebook/social media, maybe check […]
“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” Maya Angelou ——– I’ve shared this before when I was circulated last year but sharing again as I’ve seen this on a few shares recently. Extract: “Care provider actions […]
Well certainly not for birth – planning for birth needs preparation – mental, physical, emotional preparation as well building knowledge about the physical act of birth. Consider a marathon runner – what would she do to prepare for her marathon? Especially if she was keen to do it in a specific time! If you’re […]
I’m not sure about you but I find December really challenging – not because I don’t like Christmas – in fact, I think it’s because I LOVE it so much that I am so determined to make it so special for everyone – often at a detriment to me. Before I had kids and before […]
In a time where intervention rates are ridiculously high (63% at NHS Lothian – details from an FOI request – what percentage of births are induced/augemented/forceps/ventous/c-section – a rise in 12% in the last 5 years…. ) In a time where adverse events in maternity care are very high In a time where […]
… I cannot believe what I keep hearing – women expect too much from their births!!! Who from senior government advisers and health care professionals both in person and all over social media… “don’t write a birth plan – it’s not worth the paper it’s written on” Or “… birth preferences… not […]