if you are expecting...

Many expectant American mothers have little knowledge of childbirth, and some, even though they have gone through pregnancy and childbirth, remain completely ignorant of birth, its natural process and the multitude of choices that revolve around it. Unfortunately, much of that ignorance exists because of the medical community and its inability to establish and maintain doctor-patient communication and education, which often is due to the fact that obstetricians are expected by their insurance companies to see a certain number of patients in a specific amount of time, cutting down on the length of time a doctor can spend with each individual patient. Because of this, and as most women rely on their doctors to make decisions for them, many patients are not given the opportunity during their pregnancies to learn what procedures are risky or unnecessary and which options are available to them when they labor and birth.

After having a deep discussion about pregnancy with an acquaintance who already has two children, I recommended that she watch the film The Business of Being Born to better understand my philosophy of childbirth. She came back to me and exclaimed, "Why didn't anyone TELL ME this when I was pregnant?!" Like many women who are given the opportunity to rediscover childbirth in this new form, she felt an array of emotions, including shock, anger, hope and regret regarding her previous birth experiences.

But what should every pregnant woman know before she gives birth?

Educate yourself. If you are expecting, start by doing your homework. Read objective and informative resources on childbirth. Learn to make educated decisions for yourself and your baby. There are choices to make throughout pregnancy, birth, infant feeding, circumcision, vaccinations, diapering, infant sleep, parenting. Learn your options ahead of time, during the nine-month stretch before your baby arrives, and continue educating yourself along the way. Consult your doctor, midwife, and caregivers regarding important decisions, but do not rely on them to make decisions for you or because that is the procedure your caregiver regularly follows. You are an individual, and every individual/birth/child/patient is unique.

Begin by watching The Business of Being Born or by reading Ina May's Guide to Childbirth, both of which will help you explore your options in childbirth and give you a better, more realistic understanding of true natural birth. These two resources will also prove that birth does not have to be filled with fear and pain, but can actually be a beautiful, memorable transition.

Continue by learning everything you can about breastfeeding now. While breastfeeding is natural and normal, it does not mean that it is always easy. If you already know important things like how to properly latch, common comfortable positions for nursing, and how often infants infants feed, you will be well on the way to breastfeeding success. Take an afternoon to go to a local La Leche League meeting, speak with women who successfully breastfed for more than a year, watch a baby latch on to the breast and nurse--these things will be invaluable in the days following birth.

Remember, you can read every book on parenting, sleep, birth and breastfeeding. However, you will not truly get it until you are actually experiencing everything first-hand. Your baby is unique and so are you. All the information you soak up when you are pregnant will be put to the test, and you will not really get it until you are right there. In the moment. You will be thankful you did your homework, and, years down the road, your life will be richer and fuller than you ever imagined it could be.

new resources

I have updates some of the resources on my pages, including finally adding the Breastfeeding Resources page and the Baby Care Resources page. I will be adding more to them as I bring the links and books in, but if you have anything to contribute, please let me know!

busy bodies

Life has taken over these last few months, what with school kicking into high gear and a new job for me. Oy! But we are all here, still kicking, and I am hoping for more up-to-date posts soon as the season gets cooler. One thing is for sure--Esme has been a ham for the camera lately. Here are some pics of her with my coonhound, Minnie.

 

creations

I knit this scarf for my Oma for Christmas. The pattern is Drop Stitch Scarf by Christine Vogel, and can be purchased from Frazzled Knits. I used an wool-acrylic blend and cast on almost twice as many stitches in order to make the scarf wider.

This round cloth was knit for a swap using cotton and is from 1870 Pearl's Pinwheel pattern.

For the same swap, I also knit another cloth, also with cotton, using one of my favorite patterns, Chinese Waves from Maggie's Rags.

This little scrubbie, also knit for the swap, is another of 1870's pattern's--Tribbles. It was easy and fun, really only took an hour or so to finish.

I made this pair of shoes for my cousin's newborn little girl. They are lined with extra soft fleece to keep her toes warm this fall.

This bag has taken me forever to finish. It has been knit up for ages, I just never quite got around to the felting. Over four years later, it is finally done--and may be my longest knitting project! I’m really pleased with how the colors turned out. The pattern is Fulled Lopi Tote from Adrian Bizila.

I knit this pair of Sartjee's Bootees for a friend’s gender neutral layette. I used scrap wool-blend yarn for this excellent, fast-knit project! Finished one bootie in June in just one brief sitting, but didn’t get around to the second bootie until September.

I sewed up this little drawstring project bag for a swap this past spring. I loved the alternating patterns of the fabric. It is the perfect size for a small project, like socks or a hat.

beetle juice?

After reading about the voluntary recall by Abbott Laboratories for the 5 million units of Similac baby formula contaminated with beetle parts and larvae, I was not surprised in the least. Formula recalls are a constant and regular occurrence, with 17 major baby formula recalls since 2000, and countless more in the two decades before that, according to NABA. However, the recall is voluntary, as the FDA determined that the presence of the beetles poses "no immediate health risks," aside from"symptoms of gastrointestinal discomfort and refusal to eat."

Nor I am not surprised in the FDA's stand on this issue. Actually, many of the processed foods that are regularly consumed in the United States contain more than only traces of bacteria and microscopic insects and are considered by the FDA to be safe for human consumption. Bacteria and small insects are regularly present in all forms of baby formula sold in the US, especially as there is no way to produce a perfectly sterilized product, which, according to the FDA, there is an expected allowance, and the number of beetles in the Similac formula recall falls into that allowance.

Then I read this article, Similac Recall Outrages Parents: Are Beetles Bad? from Time Magazine. I have some knee-jerk reactions, not to the formula recall, but to the article itself.

One particular aspect of the article, the statement, "It may be extremely difficult to determine whether beetles are responsible for a baby's symptoms. Inconsolable crying might simply be, well, inconsolable crying, which is sometimes just what babies do," was a jaw-dropper for me. Inconsolable crying is not normal. It is a sign that something is wrong. I know my babies. If they ever cried inconsolably (which was very, very seldom, as their needs were met directly, and in most cases, before it came to crying), then I knew that there was something seriously wrong. Inconsolable crying is a very direct cue for the mother or father to find out what is wrong and fix it promptly.

Another statement that then floored me was the closing of the article:

Not surprisingly, news of the recall rekindled bottle vs. breast animosities, if only online. One woman predicted breastfeeding advocates would wax triumphant. "Very upsetting, and here comes the ‘breast is best!' brigade to add to the anxiety by telling us all we asked for it." Sure enough, another poster wrote, "Yea, breastfeeding is the best. My breastmilk has never ha(d) beetle parts in it." [...] As millions of parents are reeling from the thought that their babies have chowed on bugs, it's a time for support, not gloating.

First of all the Breast is Best 'brigade' (or campaign) exists primarily to promote awareness of the true dangers of formula feeding. Breast IS the best provider of nutrition and immunity for baby, and formula is inferior in that babies who are fed formula as their sole source of nutrition tend to, on average, have lower IQs, suffer from more ailments and infections, and cry more than their breastfed counterparts. When a mother chooses formula, as with anything processed, she takes a risk with the health and nutrition of her baby.

However, for the Breast is Best campaign to be considered successful, facts and information must be available and presented to ALL mothers up front in order for a mother to make an informed decision on how she chooses to feed her infant. Furthermore, informed consent is only valid if the mother who tried (and failed) to breastfeed received TRUE assistance and diagnoses in regards to the problems she faced. How many women do I know who state they "could not" breastfeed for reasons that I, as a birth and postpartum professional, realize are fairly easy fixes had the mother actually had true, trained and knowledgeable assistance? The number is countless. And growing at a steady rate. Many times, it is hard for a mother to know which advice is sound and informed, and which advice is unintentionally misinformed or just plain ignorant.

As a mother who once was faced with the option of breastmilk or formula, I would rather have the facts--the other course is to sugar-coat everything and leave out what is legitimately important information to a major decision of parenting. That this article yet again plays the "guilt" card, comparing any pro-breastfeeding statements to "gloating," irks me. After hearing about this recall, I am thankful that I breastfeed. I am glad I had the foresight, resources and ability to seek out true, factual information regarding the risks of formula when I was pregnant with my first child. And I consider it a true disservice not to pass on my knowledge and the facts to other mothers. Every mother deserves truth and knowledge to lead her to an informed decision. I am glad I did not have to face any of the severe gastrointestional problems many babies are currently recovering from. My heart goes out, yet I continue to remain thankful.

another batch for baby

Like I have said before, apparently everyone in my life is having a baby. And I have been busy knitting little baby things for these teeny arrivals. One of my projects has been sitting in my knitting basket since April, and with all the crazy things happening around here in the last week, I have had the opportunity to do some mindless knitting and get it done. Take a look:

The pattern is Organic Heirloom Blanket, which can be found in Hadley Fierlinger's book Vintage Knits for Modern Babies. I used some miscellaneous nylon blend yarn from Plymouth Yarn. It is very soft and nice and fine. Please note that there is an errata in the pattern as published. Cast on 124 sts (instead of 125, as published).

wrapping up World Breastfeeding Week by nursing with confidence

Painting by Katie M. Berggren.


Today brings an end to World Breastfeeding Week 2010. Yesterday, I had the opportunity to talk with one new nursing mother, congratulate her on the arrival of a beautiful baby girl and give her some information and suggestions for breastfeeding in public, something she was very nervous about.

Many new mothers fear nursing in public more than anything else about motherhood. I know I did. I was afraid of flashing someone, of showing too much skin or breast or tummy, of making others uncomfortable, of someone confronting me. I could never get the hang of using a nursing cover. I could not see what I was doing, could not check position and latch. Plus, the cover constantly slipped down or bunched up. It was more distracting to those around me when I used the cover than when I nursed without one. Instead, I opted to dress in layers or wear nursing tops that strategically covered my breasts and stomach. By a few months, I was a pro at nursing in public.

I have been breastfeeding for seven years now. I have nursed everywhere, from airplanes to buses, from the beach to amusement parks, from restaurants to museums. Not once has anyone told me to cover up while I was nursing in public. In my seven years of breastfeeding, I have never been hassled for nursing in public. I got an eye roll then narrow from an older woman once in a mall food court, but that has been the extent of negative experience, though I was always prepared with some witty comeback if someone asked me to put a blanket over my baby's head or feed my baby in the bathroom.

There are articles everywhere of women being harassed for nursing in public, of those mothers who are told they cannot nurse here or there, who are forced out of restaurants and out of parks. You read all of the time about women asked to leave restaurants and public buildings because they were nursing. But why didn't anyone say anything about nursing in public to me?

What is my key to success? Confidence. I learned how to latch and position my baby quickly and smoothly without revealing much skin to nearby onlookers. I did not appear nervous or intentionally attempt to hide what I was doing. I instead, I looked like I was doing exactly what I was supposed to be doing. I was feeding my child the way Mother Nature intended. I made eye contact with those around me. I smiled and looked at my nursing child. I continued in conversation with my family and friends.

One thing that helped my confidence, almost above all else, was that the law in the United States is on the side of breastfeeding mothers. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures website, 44 states have laws with language specifically allowing women to breastfeed in any public or private location. On their Breastfeeding Laws page, they have a running list of state and federal laws in regards to breastfeeding. Another wonderful resource, from Mothering Magazine, is the map, Breastfeeding In Public: Are You Protected? I urge all breastfeeding mothers to know the law and educate themselves on their right to breastfeed. In a confrontation, many problems may be avoided if the mother is knowledgeable on legislation for the protection of breastfeeding in her state. With the government behind her, those who criticize will be more likely to lay off.

And I leave you with this wonderful story of a nursing in public escapade as told by The Poor Husband, I Used to Hate Camping on his blog Life with Rachael.