advocating for yourself

We’ve written in the past about a pregnant woman’s lowered immunity. Good nutrition, sanitation habits, rest, and exercise all help to strengthen the pregnant woman’s immune system—yet she will inevitably be exposed to viruses and other immune challenges. Pharmaceutical remedies may prove too strong or be contraindicated in pregnancy, so we wondered about herbal remedies. […]

Birth is often a mystery—at least that’s what we’re led to believe. But closer examination reveals basic physiological truths that underpin normal birth for both the mother and baby. Certain truisms can indicate risk, such as a pregnant woman’s prenatal nutrition and medical history, but, in the end, birth is a complex orchestration of hormones, […]

Each woman arrives at a new pregnancy from a different starting point. One woman may have planned for months to get pregnant, taking vitamins, eating healthy, and exercising. Another might be classified as medically obese and is worried about how that will affect her pregnancy—should she lose weight or focus only on eating healthy? […]

When a newborn emerges from the womb, it leaves behind a warm, dark, and physically stimulating environment that includes the mother’s heartbeat, the sounds of children or other adult voices, and the rocking, jostling, and rhythmic steps of the mother moving about. Upon birth, a baby will turn toward the familiar sound of its mother’s […]

People who have never given birth outside of a hospital may have no idea of the differences between hospital and out-of-hospital birth. What’s the big deal? You can have a natural birth in the hospital. Why would someone want to have their baby at a birth center or (gasp!) at home? The answer is not […]

…just having someone else calling the shots on things you may or may not care much about, hands your power over to that person or institution for the things you do very deeply care about.

First it was the breastfeeding and the cloth diapers. Then it was becoming a La Leche League Leader. Then it was the babywearing. But this? This??? They just couldn’t wrap their minds around this.