GET IT ON VIDEO

By Myriah C. Boudreaux

I am Wonder Woman. My friends say so. This status is earned because I have birthed all my babies, including a ten-pounder, drug free. My fifth time around, I wanted my labor and delivery, a homebirth, on video. Would this dispel or confirm my growing legend? I wasn’t sure. But I wanted the option of later experiencing the event objectively, or at least with my eyes open.
Video-taping kept me at my best.
1. It encouraged me to look great. I bought a turquoise knee-length Greek goddess style dress for the occasion, which I wore until my Tarzan cries convinced me to strip and forego the Jane look.
2. It discouraged me from doing anything regrettable, such as biting my husband’s shoulder when my vocalizations had gone from “mmm” to “AWWW” to “O God, O-God, O-GOD!”
As pushing time arrived near the end of my three-hour labor, I leapt onto the bed and with a mighty cry single-handedly delivered my nearly-nine-pound baby while in lunge position, and sporting a gleaming smile.
Wait. The video tells another story.
Kneeling on the bed on one knee, nuzzling my forehead against my husband’s neck, clinging onto him, I yelled, “Catch it, catch it, CATCHIT!” – whereupon my husband single-handedly received the baby – and I shouted “Praise God!”
The video did confirm the following:
1. My sons are always impressed by warrior cries.
2. My daughters appreciate that mothers willingly sacrifice for great rewards.
3. I am Wonder Woman, even if not quite a legend.

"What led you to BirthWorks?" 24 Hours in communication

If you're like so many future parents and educators, you delve deep before
making a decision to entrust your education - and in some instances, your
child with an organization. This intrigued the staff of BirthWorks
International and led us to ask one question - "Why did you choose
BirthWorks". This question, posted online on our Social Networks, for 24
hours led us to hundreds of responses.

Answers like "because my mother told me that VBACs were a thing of the past"
and "because my OBGYN told me that using a midwife for a home birth is no
better than having a back alley abortion." were some of the most mind
boggling responses ever.

Some answers like "because I was denied entrance into other organizations
because of my need to have an epidural" and "because I was removed from
another organization because I had a cesarean" were absolutely appalling.

An answer like "because after being an instructor with another organization
for seven years, I was dismissed an stripped of my income because of my
mandatory cesarean" nearly brought us to tears.

We even received answers like "because BirthWorks encouraged me to make
educated decisions instead of letting someone make them for me". Answers
like this one, is exactly why we do what we do at BirthWorks.

Some answers were quite honest, "because BirthWorks was the only
organization - of its kind, to have a clear and informative website".

However, in all of our 117 responses, eleven stood out because they had a
powerful message. They weren't prolific responses, written by noted doctors
and educators, but they were simply women - women that came from all walks
of life and were searching for an organization like our own. And their
answer, written in four short words, was loud and clear - because
"BIRTHWORKS CHANGED MY LIFE".

The answers we received from our past participants and current members, are
the reason why we love what we do. Like us, our Members understand that
BirthWorks thrives because our members succeed and like excellent customer
service - it's ancient.


Written by:


Jamia "Mia" Bell

Program Director

BirthWorks International

We encourage you to answer the question "What led YOU to BirthWorks" in our comments section below

Birth Is Instinctive

Birth Is Instinctive. Women's bodies are designed to give birth. The knowledge about how to give birth already exists inside every women.

When you here those words what does it mean to YOU?

We would love to hear your thoughts and opinions on the statement listed above. Please use our comments section to participate in an open friendly discussion!

Reclaiming Our Birthrights

By Melissa Feldman


By reclaiming our connection to nature, women get in touch with their nurturing skills, which help to preserve our own species. According to an article "Wild at Heart" that appeared in O The Oprah Magazine in July 2002: "Women know in our bodies, our souls and our histories what it means to be domesticated, managed and tamed. Yet medical research has revealed that our bodies work on an innate circadian clock that changes with the ebb and flow of sunlight and seasons."
I gave birth to my four children during the natural childbirth movement in the late '70s and '80s. While pregnant with my last two children, I became interested in the alternative childbirth scene. I intuitively connected with the idea of the Leboyer method, in which lights were turned off and babies were welcomed to this world in a warm, comforting environment.
I also read about how women could have control in how they gave birth, in the positions they assumed and by working with professionals who were open to how they wanted to give birth. So I decided to take a training to become a doula. I attended several births and thought about becoming a childbirth educator as well.
I had heard about BirthWorks International from the women who gave the doula workshop I participated in. Reading about the BWI philosophy, which "Provides high quality training that instills confidence that the knowledge about how to give birth already exists within every woman", struck a chord with me.
I also realized that natural childbirth methods that were available when I was given birth had been created by men. It was gratifying to learn that in the early 1990's, a new generation of women reclaimed their innate ability to give birth in a way that suited them and wanted to educate other women, as well. I wanted to be part of this movement. Self-expression was a strong impetus for me.
Helping women to find their own voice during the process of giving birth can help them become more empowered in all areas of their lives. Women helping women is an idea whose time has come.

Chewy Oatmeal Bars

Combine, mixing well:

2 Ripe bananas
1/2 cup agave nectar
8 oz. plain organic yogurt
2 eggs
2 Tablespoons of sunflower oil
2 Tablespoons of unsweetened soy milk

In another bowl, mix:

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup dried coconut


1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Combine dry and wet ingredients and then stir in 3 cups of rolled oats, 1 cup of dried fruit (such as raisins, cranberries or goji berries)
3. Spread into 9x13in ungreased pan and bake 28 to 32 minutes
4. Let cool on rack. Cut into squares.
5. ENJOY!



recipe provided by Tracy Gary. Tracy is the founder of Intuition Nutrition.

Not So Safe

By Mali Schwartz, BirthWorks International Board of Director-Secretary



I was 23 when I had my first child, my first and only son. He was born in the summer of 1975, at the very height of the natural childbirth movement. I remember being diligent about going to my Lamaze classes, accompanied by my husband. I really enjoyed the nurse who gave the training; she was very personable, and I felt that she really cared about each individual class member.
This training helped me in certain ways. I went into early labor in the late evening, around 9:00p.m. My water breaking alerted me to the fact that something would happen momentarily. Remembering that I had to count the amount of time that passed in between each and every contraction, I walked the hallway near our bedroom, pacing back and fourth and feeling increasingly sensitive to the pain.
Finally I roused my husband from his deep sleep and we rushed to the hospital, getting there at midnight-a bewitching hour. As my contractions grew closer together, I practiced my breathing exercises, my husband coaching me at all times. I was interrupted by a medical intern who insisted that he had to do an internal in the middle of a contraction. That's when I lost it big time.
The minute he started poking around, I couldn't handle the intensity of the sensation, and I instinctively reached my arm out and gave him a strong punch in his stomach. He was quite taken aback, but at that point in time, I truly didn't care about social conformity's. My husband apologized for me, and the intern made a quick exit.
I felt violated by this procedure and had a very strong negative reaction. I didn't feel like abiding by the rules, and reacted from a different part of my psyche-a part I wasn't even aware that I had. This was standard procedure of this hospital and could potentially create sensations in the mother of feeling exposed, when most mammals, including human beings, yearn for privacy and seclusion.
I guess the internal examination was the last straw for me. Being hooked up to a monitor, unable to move around, staring at the glaring white walls that reflected the harsh florescent lighting and finally my feelings of vulnerability were stretched to the limit. Looking back on this experience and knowing what I know now about birthing, it was not the ideal enviroment to encourage feelings of being safe and protected.
Although I have never attended a home birth, the idea of a women laboring in an enviroment that she is so familiar in, surrounded by the people she loves, having the lights turned down low, is the type of scene that lets the woman open to the sensations of birthing her baby. She is able to access the part of the brain that is responsible for our emotions, sensations and feelings, called the limbic system. According to Elena Tonetti-Vladimirova, a mid-wife and pioneer of Conscious Birth in Russia, "limbic imprinting happens in the part of the brain which is not directly connected with the cortex. ...That memory lives in the body throughout the rest of our life whether we know it or not."
While the woman is giving birth, the limbic part of the brain is reactivated and is extremely sensitive to stimuli from outside sources. And the baby also is imprinted, based on the type of birth he or she experiences. While most of us would not contemplate the idea of giving birth outside in nature, Elena created a film "Birth As We Know It" featuring 11 natural births-several including women who birthed their babies in warm shallow lagoons, part of the black sea.
According to Dr. Michel Odent, Elena's film prompts us to re-examine basic features of human nature. "Her film explains why millions of women all over the world dream of giving birth in the sea among dolphins." Elena's role as a midwife is to help women eliminate their own birth trauma. She feels that a woman may give birth the way she, herself, was born.
According to a 1995 study by Dr. William Emerson, a pioneer of prenatal psychology, 95 percent of all births in the United States are considered traumatic, 50 percent rated as "severely" traumatic. In expressing her personally deep and beautiful healing experience in helping women and their babies experience being birthed in Love, Elena states, "Healing of one's birth trauma allows one to enjoy the delicious, juicy experience of comfortably owning a body, being fully engaged in life and loving it."
She goes on to then say "by reprogramming our limbic imprint and transmuting our suffering and helplessness during birth into the love and joy of being born on this planet, we can regain our authentic power, clear the pain of our ancestors from our system and set the stage for our children to step into their lives as peaceful, empowered guardians of Earth."

Choices In Childbirth, by Cathy Daub

At every turn of life, there is a choice to make. When I was pregnant with my daughter, who was a single footling breech, I had to decide whether to go into labor or opt for a Cesarean two weeks before my due date like the doctors advised. I took the time to think about it and decided that there was a chance she could turn in labor. She didn't turn but to this day, I am grateful that I felt the contractions of labor. I will never wonder, "If only I had labored, maybe she would have turned."
I had another choice as to whether or not to go back to work when she was young. I thought about it. I decided that I would never have this opportunity again and wanted to enjoy every minute of it fully, so I stayed home. To this day, I am glad that I did.
Each time I had to make a decision, I took time to think about it. Awareness and expression of thoughts is very important. In BirthWorks classes, birthing parents are given ample opportunity to express their thoughts, fears, and joys. Speaking fears is a way of releasing them. They hear stories from other women who have given birth. They begin to develop a base of current and evidence-based knowledge. This will serve them well when having to make decisions in labor.
In childbirth, women are faced with many decisions such as choosing their birth place, the birth team, positions in labor, and whether or not to accept various medical procedures and/or obstetrical drugs. These decisions will be based on knowledge, love, self-confidence and too often fear.
A fear based thought might sound like, "If the contractions become too painful and I can't take it, I'll request an epidural." A thought based on knowledge and love/self confidence might sound like "If the contractions become too painful, I'll go into the birthing pool and find positions to work with the contractions, and I'll make sounds. Thousands of other women have done this and I can do it too!"
I believe that choices women make in childbirth that are based on fear and/or lack of knowledge, are ones they later live to regret. Choices they make that are based on love and self confidence are usually ones they feel good about in the months and years after birth. Regardless of the choices that women make, I believe one thing- that every choice a woman makes is right for her at that point in time because she is her own best friend. If indeed we are doing our very best at any given point in time, what more can we ask of ourselves than that? It is not anyone's place to judge another person's choice. As childbirth educators, all we can do is offer information in terms of options, and alternatives to expand the available choices open to birthing parents. And we can do one more thing; we can offer them our love.

This is a letter written by our BirthWorks president Cathy Daub for the Summer 2006 Edition of our newsletter.

Please feel free to use our comment section below to post your thoughts and experiences of choices in your own childbirth.