Hot Momma’s blogspot

First I will say this.  It is perfectly SAFE to eat and drink while you are in labor.  The reason you are not permitted to do so is for aspiration.  (vomiting and breathing in food/drink) In a study totaling 78,000 women in 3 different U.S. studies, not one of the women had a case of aspiration.  The majority of other countries actually PERMIT it. 

The real problem is the crappy anesthesiologists with a crappy technique.  (doing IV’s) Experts say they are to blame for any related deaths and aspiration. 

The Problem: OB’s consider birth a medical event.  Eating and drinking do not fit this mold…IV’s do. =)

Narcotics contribute to at least as much risk of aspiration as do eating and drinking but nobody tells the doctor to back off.  Narcotics fit the mold of it being a medical event.

Water is absorbed so easily in the stomach lining….whats the deal with the ice chips?  Let the women have something to drink.

It is said that a natural labor is conducive to being the same physical strain on your body as doing a marathon.   Literally burning the same amount of calories.  A sports medicine doctor would be completely horrified to suggest an active runner to do a marathon with nothing to eat, and especially nothing to drink.  Its absurd.

Hunger and Thirst can cause serious discomfort.  Dehydration may cause fevers.

Hunger is associated with longer labors and increase of pitocin.  We all know what pitocin can do!

Starvation causes faster, sharper drop-off in blood sugar levels

IV’s prevent movement of any kind and can cause inflammation.  It can even cause bruising.

IV’s main problem is fuild overload which can lead to fluid in both mother and baby’s lungs.

It dilutes the blood if done wrong and decreases red blood cells which can lead to lower oxygen levels. 

Glucose containing IV fluids also called dextrose IVs can raise the baby’s glucose levels to a diabetic level.  Hyperglycemia in the baby increases the production of lactic acid which can contribute to the baby’s stress.  Bet your doctor left that tidbit out.

Monitoring a newborns glucose means one more painful heel prick and possibly being fed a bottle of sugar water or formula.  For you breastfeeding mommas I dont need to get into that.

IV fluid overload can cause jaundice in newborns, transient pneumonia called wet lung syndrome and low blood sodium which puts the infant at risk for problems such as breathing apnea and seizures.

For those of you who do eat while in labor you should consider eating the following: nonacid fruits, yogurts, cereal, graham crackers, jelly toast, puddings and smoothies.

Fasting during labor causes a rise in ketone levels which may have adverse effects in labor.

Eating and drinking in labor does not increase vomiting tendencies during labor, it avoids IV overload, and may help labor progress.

Caregivers commonly overdose fluids.

Enough said on this.  MORE COMING when I have time =)  Apparently I have a lot of it these days.

Most laboring women will have pitocin at the hospital.  Typically for either inducing labor itself, or for  slow progress.  For those who are not aware, it is in the BIRTH BIBLE that a woman must give birth within 24hrs of her water breaking for safety reasons.  (I don’t always agree or argue with that bc my water doesnt break until I am pushing).

Induction typically causes problems that it intended to prevent. 

Induced labors add more stress to baby during labor.  It takes greater contraction pressures over a longer time to get the labor going and then keep it going. They are overly long, strong and close together.  FYI induced labor contractions can be as long as 5 minutes long or more vs natural 2-3 min ones. 

Breaking the bag of waters!  AHHH!  this removes the cushioning effect of amniotic fluid, allowing contractions to squeeze the ambilical cord.  A baby made to handle the stress of regular labor might not withstand to the pressures of an unnatrually induced one.

What OB’s think about induction and what research has proven supports two totally different things:

1.Inducing for reasons of convenience has been DISAPPROVED by the FDA people.  Yet it happens every day.

2. Inducement for large babies.  Problem is, ultrasound weight estimates are so inaccurate. My sister in law was scared into a cesarean because they told her that her baby was 8# and something.  They cut out of her a 6lb. baby.  AT MEMORIAL HOSPITAL.

3. Induced women have more cesareans and equal numbers of shoulder dystocias. (shoulders getting stuck basically)

4. Increase of fetal distress. (we have to cut this baby out now or he is gonna die!) —that is what you havent had happen to you yet Krista.

5. Rupturing membranes can cause umbilical prolapse, increase an abnormal fetal heart rate and cause cesarean.  (wow this just happened to my friend may 1st NO joke) and raise the risk of infection.

5. Induced labors cause more pain, require an IV, EFM, which often causes uterine hyperstimulation which can lead to fetal distress.

6. It doubles the odds of baby being born in poor condition.

7. Increases postpartum blood loss and newborn jaundice.

For those of you people who still think im crazy, if you are going to go ahead anyway and put you and the baby in danger take some of the following advice:

Start induction at night. The uterus is most sensitive at night.  But hey, that means the doctors are inconvenienced so good luck with that haha.

Make sure the IV contains salts.  It can help with blood chemistry balancing.

Have continual EFM, it reduces risk of newborn seizures.

Have the pitocin given on a 30 min. dose increase because it will help lower the risk of adverse effects.

Once actively in labor turn the crap off!!

Avoid or hold off on epidural. Especially in early labor.

Refuse membrane rupture.

Limit vaginal exams and tell them to back off.

You can refuse an induction for a large baby. 

If your doctor gives you a due date that is further out than the original, TAKE IT!  Chances are it was wrong to begin with and it will give you more time to not have your doctor freak out on you.

Refuse tests of fetal well-being.

Alright well that is enough today.  My  next blog will be on the RETARDEDNESS of not being able to eat or drink while in labor at the hospital.   Oh how I could write a book……Oh wait…there already is one!

Before I get started I want to make a very clear statement.  I am NOT against cesareans for a medical emergency.  When people have a  prolapsed cord, or there is very high meconium staining….CUT ME OPEN to save my baby!  I believe cesarean should always be a last result unfortunately hospitals do not always agree.  Therefore I still cling to my statement:  Homebirths are the better birth.

Research shows that nearly half a million women have unnecessary C-sections every year.  In case you didn’t know, having a cesarean carries GREAT risk for permanent injury and even death. 

More than one doctor has argued IN print that all women should have cesareans.

It increases incidence of babies born in poor condition, with breathing problems, admission to special-care nurseries, and jaundice compared to vaginal birth.

Cesareans are responsible for the decline in perinatal mortality rates (% of babies dying in the weeks before, during or shortly after birth).

Doctors recieve hundreds of dollars more for them, of course they will perform them!

One third of the cesareans are done for the reasoning of “we couldn’t get the baby out”, or “the mother is too small”.  Hello people, how did the world thrive and grow?  Our mother’s generation is the first generation of women to even get cesareans.  What about 5 generations ago?  You have her genes, she got a baby out…but now the doctors say you can’t?

Cesareans for poor progress should not be done in early labor when progress in dilation is normally minimal, but doctors like to ignore this.

It is done for convenience.  Studies show doctors are less likely to perform these on late nights and weekends.

A study was done on 50 different cases of cesareans.  Four of the Five reviewers agreed the cesarean was not necessary.  The worst part is, 3 months later given the same data the experts changed their minds in 20 of the 40 cases.  Studies also show that what part of the country you live in depends on your risk factors.  The south is the worst, the west is the best.

Two thirds are done because of insufficient progress, or because a previous birth was a cesarean. 

10% are for fetal distress.

10% for breech and another few percent for premature and multiples.

It causes pain, debility and a longer recovery.

1 to 6 women lose enough blood to require transfusion.

Infection occurs 8-27% after the cesarean.

They cause more death than vaginal births.

The baby can be cut.

Babies are more likely to be in poor condition at birth.

It increases the chances of your baby having breathing difficulties.

It increases infertility and ectopic pregnancies.

Increases the chance of your placenta detaching before birth.

Okay…that alone for me is enough….but maybe for some of you it might take more convincing!

Well it is official.  I am playing and actually really really enjoying it!  I won’t get into details because they would be so miserably boring to my readers.  Looks like Eddy and I both win. =)

I’ve even got my own account now!

Since I know most people won’t read books for themselves, here is some data from The thinking womans guide to a better birth by Henci Goer. Not to mention a lot of my own input.  Enjoy.  (all the statistical information directory is indexed in the back of the book in case you want to make sure she isnt lying)

Good reasons NOT to go to the hospital if you are healthy and not high risk:

1.Cesarean sections are the MOST common major surgery performed in America.  One out of every five pregnant women will have one.  If you read the information available to us publicly you will find that at least half of these surgeries were not necessary.

2. Electronic fetal Monitoring (EFM) records the babys heart rate during labor.  If you don’t know what this is, it is like a cap that goes on your baby’s head with a small needle that is inserted into the top of the head to get an accurate heart rate.  Yes, please stick a needle in my newborns head. =)  Studies show this does not imrove the babies health and can often threaten a mothers health by increasing the odds of forceps, vacuum or cesarean section.   

3. Most hospitals have every laboring woman with an epidural in place assuring they are safe.  Studies document otherwise with a TON of complications affecting mother, baby and sometimes both.

4. Almost half of laboring women have an episiotomy (a nice slice to open the vagina larger) no matter what the circumstance.  Research proves “up, down, and sideways that, with rare exceptions, this procedure does no good and often does harm sometimes serious and permanent harm.”

5.  If you have had one C-section, you are prompted/scared to only have babies via cesarean.  Studies consistently show that Vaginal Birth After Cesarean (VBAC) is safer for mothers and works with nearly three quarters of women.  I currently have a friend who has had 2 cesareans and desperately longs for a VBAC.  Unfortunately, nobody is even willing to try and allow her a natural delivery.

6.  Moms and babies cared for by midwives experience fewer complications and have fewer tests and procedures compared to a regular ob.  Their C-section rates in large studies have rates as low as 4 percent.

7.  No pregnant woman in the traditional medical setting can escape the tests, drugs, procedures and restrictions that show typically little and NO benefit.  Often enough they can even introduce risks.

Have you heard enough?  There is so much more to it than just this.

I have so much to say on this topic so I will first start out with a brief testimony on how I was introduced to homebirth.

Almost 3 1/2 years ago I was painting a nursery for my girlfriend who was expecting her first child.  She was planning on having a homebirth and told me she would squat her baby out in her bedroom.  I was appalled that such a person could have such negligence for their precious child by risking their life to birth at home.  Little did I realize that the Lord had been forming baby Caiden in my womb for the past 3 weeks.

The week after I discovered the new life in my womb, Jennifer gave birth to her sweet baby Logan Lea.  I was very anxious to hear how it all went being that I had just found out I was pregnant.  I wanted a step by step detail into what happened the day she went into labor, how it felt, and what she did throughout the process.  Originally I had wanted to get an epidural and take advantage of so called “God given” technology, but after the testimony of the birth of baby Logan I started to realize the Lord might have different plans for the baby he was forming inside of me.

As I left her home I mentioned to Eddy I wanted to visit her midwife Sharon just to ask her questions.  Before doing so, I got down to business and did research for hours upon hours upon hours.  I say that with no exaggeration.  I was self consumed in knowing the risks and benefits of homebirth and wanted to make the decision that was safest for me and my little one.  I was completely uneducated.  I knew sperm met egg, attached, formed a child and then came out 9 months later.  There was so much to learn!

I joined a yahoo HOMEBIRTHING group to find support from women who had personal success testimonies of homebirth.  I was anxious to learn.  I have grown to love that group of women even now 3 years later.

After doing my research, talking with other moms, and meeting with Sharon the Lord had made His will perfectly clear.  The next step was telling my parents, and then my inlaws.  My mom was okay with it, and my dad was scared up until he saw Caiden for the first time.  Thankfully my mother in law had attended a homebirth and wasn’t scared one bit.  Also maybe because she never technically gave birth and had 2 babies via Ceserean.  But that is another blog all in itself.

As the months went by, I bought my birthing kit and got all the necessary preparations together.  The midwife gave me a check off list and I didn’t leave one thing out.  I even went as far as spending an extra $250 to rent a birthing pool.  And again, that is another blog all together.

I even had a phone call made to me at 37weeks pregnant from a labor and delivery nurse (now my friend)  practically begging me to birth at the hospital. She almost got to me until I realized I was losing faith in my God and not trusting He would take care of my child after He had already told me what to do.

So here I stand firmly believing that for a non-risk pregnant mother that homebirth is the better birth.  After much extensive research and reading, I am convinced more than ever that it is even a safer birth.  Being pregnant and giving birth is not an illness and therefore does not need to be sought after by a physician for something that is simply a natural occurance.  I believe that rule applies to healthy NON high risk pregnant mothers only.  Again, I can expand on that in another blog.

I invite you to do your own research, and make the decision to birth your child the way God has intended.  Naturally and safely.  How you achieve that is up to you.

Oh man what have I gotten myself into!?!  For those of you who don’t know, I bartered with my husband to play WOW if he would read a book.  He made it 6 chapters in and then quit.  Basically it achieved its purpose for the time being.  The best part is, he said I didn’t have to play in exchange.

Now here I am, and he has somehow managed to get ANOTHER computer, desk, speakers, monitor, game AND hard drive.  He is currently setting it up in the bedroom now.

It’s crunch time and I obviously have to play now.  He has invested so much TIME and money into this (well maybe not so much money because God hooked us up but I wont get into that).

I have played the past 2 nights and it hasn’t been all that bad, but just exactly what I thought it would be.  A huge time waster.  Hopefully I start to like it.  Who knows.  That would be Eddy’s dream.

I picked the name Eryss for my character.  I already forgot what it meant lol

I guess I’ll let you know how fun or dumb it is.

So as a child I loved this movie.  What is even crazier is that I loved the original swedish dubbed version just as much.  Now that Caiden makes me watch this about 5 times a day, I am sick of Pippy!! 

http://www.pcplanets.com/videoyoutube-E-kttTzLCxI.shtml

We all know my heart’s desire is to be pregnant in the near future, but as of now I have something more tangible to work on.

I just decided that Im going to start training for a race this August.  It is called Tour de Pain and is a 4 mile beach run at the Pavillion at 7:30pm that night.  For those of you who love to run, please feel free to join me on my tour de pain. HaHa.

I ran 2miles the other night and it was pretty sad.  I haven’t been as committed as a I was before surgery.  When you take a mandatory 6week break and then get really sick kids, it is hard to start back up and pick up where you left off.  For me I cant.  It is almost like starting all over.

Needless to say, I thought I would set out an open invitation for my friends in case they wanted to join me.

<3Morgan

May You Have A Blessed Mothers Day – No. 110

As this day is put aside to honor you as a mother, I pray that you will be blessed, honored and spoiled rotten for all your toil, faithfulness and sacrificial love. I would also like to remind you again of the high status of your calling. In the midst of all your mothering, when you often feel exhausted, worried, frazzled and overwhelmed, it is easy to forget the big picture and the divine task to which God has commissioned you.

You are not involved in some insignificant task. You have the highest calling in the nation. You may have been involved in a career at some stage and of course you had to be faithful to your employer. But you now have a far more important task. You are employed by a heavenly employer, the King of all kings and the Lord of all lords. You are now responsible to Him.

Here are a few reminders of the greatness of your divine calling.

1. YOU ARE THE REVEALER OF GOD’S MATERNAL HEART
Dear Mother, in all the activities and work of keeping your home, never lose sight of your highest purpose – to walk in the anointing of your maternal instinct. This is who you are. You are a maternal being. You were created to ooze with nurturing. This is the greatest need of your children. This is the greatest need of this sin-sick hurting world. It does not matter if you do not finish every project and every teaching course you have planned for your children, but it does matter that your children live in an atmosphere of nurture and love. Embrace your maternalness. Pour it out upon your family and all you meet. In doing this you will walk in the anointing and glory of womanhood.

2. YOU ARE A NATION SHAPER
More than anyone else, you as a mother can determine the destiny of the nation. You may feel as though you are hidden in your home while many of your neighbors drive off to work each morning. They may think you are wasting your life, but they have no idea of what you are doing! They don’t realize that you are shaping lives. You are polishing and sharpening “arrows”. You are getting children ready to fulfill God’s divine purposes for their lives. There will come a day when they will come forth out of your home to rock this nation – and even the world!

Look out world! Get out of the way, Satan. There is a mother in this home who knows who she is and knows her calling from God. You can trifle with this woman. She is like an awesome army with banners! (Song of songs 6:4,10)

3. YOU ARE A LEGACY MAKER
You not only can you determine the destiny of this nation, but you will influence the generations to come. Ruth became the great-grandmother of King David and I am sure she had the privilege of holding him in her arms. Did you ever read about Hudson Taylor who founded the China Inland Mission? His godly generation started with his great-grandfather who lived in the time of John Wesley. This godly line has passed on from one generation to the next and there are now nine generations of preachers in the Taylor family.

What mighty children will be born in your following generations as you strongly impress God’s ways into the hearts of your children?

4. YOU ARE AN ETERNITY FILLER
Your influence goes even beyond the many generations to follow. Motherhood is an eternal career. Every precious baby that you embrace from the hand of God is another eternal soul that will live forever. There is absolutely nothing more powerful and more eternal that you could do in this life than bring an eternal soul into this world! You will leave everything in this world behind – except your redeemed soul and the redeemed souls of your children.

5. YOU ARE A HOME NESTER
Don’t let this humanistic society deceive you to think that your home is a boring place. On the contrary, it is a place of divine appointment for you. It is a sacred place. God chose the home as the place where He wants His children nurtured and raised. Before God gives us children, he first puts us in a home. Psalm 113:9 “He makes the barren woman to keep house, and to be a joyful mother of children.” Our humanistic society provides daycares for children but these are poor substitutes for the home. A little boy was asked why he didn’t like daycare. “Because I didn’t have a mommy,” he replied.

Embrace your home. Thank God for it. Know that it is where God wants you to be to fulfill your great commission.

6. YOU ARE THE SENTINEL OF YOUR HOME
Husbands guard the city gates but you stand sentry at your home, guarding against all inroads of the enemy. You watch in prayer. You watch over the bodies, souls and spirits of your children. As I raised our children, I made Paul’s prayer for the Thessalonians in 5:23 my goal, “I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

7. YOU ARE A WALKING PRAYER MEETING
Prayer should be inseparable from motherhood. It is pretty difficult to adequately mother without constantly looking to the Lord. Abraham Lincoln said, “I remember my mother’s prayers, and they have always followed me. They have clung to me all of my life.”

Perhaps you have a child who has gone astray or is giving you much concern. Don’t despair. Keep praying. They cannot get away from your prayers. When the great Latin Church father and theologian, Augustine, went away to college, he got in with the wrong crowd and became a worldly young man for many years. Monica, his mother, had one vision – that her son would know God and be a preacher. She prayed and interceded continually. Her whole life was given to prayer. When he eventually came to the Lord in answer to her prayers she said, “I have fulfilled my task. I am now ready to go to the Lord,” and she died soon after.

8. YOU ARE THE BEST TEACHER AND TRAINER OF YOUR CHILDREN
There is no one who can teach your children better than you can. Proverbs 6:20-23 says, “Do not forsake the law of your mother. Bind them continually upon your heart; tie them around your neck. When you roam, they will lead you; when you sleep, they will keep you; and when you awake, they will speak with you…”

Abraham Lincoln said again, “The greatest lessons I ever learned were at my mother’s knees.

George Washington said, “All that I am I owe to my mother. I attribute all my success in life to the moral, intellectual and physical education I received from her.”

John Wesley said, “I learned more about Christianity from my mother than from all the theologians of England.”’

Dear mother, God has chosen you to be the mother of your children. No one can do it is well as you can. And God is behind you all the way. He has commissioned you to the task and He will empower you.

Love from NANCY CAMPBELL