Last Thursday, Get Babied! had their first client birth, and it was a beautiful experience!  Kate was on call for this one; here is her story:

Mama had been in touch via email during the week experiencing some pre- and early labor.  On 3/25/10 around 2:30am, Dad called our 24/7 phone line and told me they had just gotten to the hospital and Mama was 4cm, 95% effaced, and 0 station!  Awesome!  I arrived at the hospital around 3:15am and met the parents in their labor room.  Mama was so calm and with it, and this state lasted the whole time.  She considered epidural many times during the labor, but it didn’t ever reach a pain scale of more than 7 for her, so she never got to that point that she thought she really needed one.  Her husband and I pampered her with back, hand, arm, leg, and foot rubs with lavender and clary sage; tried a few different breathing patterns as her labor progressed; and fanned her like a goddess during second stage!  Contractions were about 4-6 minutes apart at 3:15 when I arrived and never got much closer than 4 min (spacing out even longer for pushing), and they were never really regular ranging from 2-6 minutes the whole time.  She kept up fluids by mouth and had a few snacks throughout the labor, which really helped with her energy.

Rough timeline:
8pm 3/24: They started timing contractions at home.

2:ooam: They arrived at NAMC at 4cm, 95%, and 0 station.

3:15am: Kate arrives at hospital.  Mama sat on the ball (except when on monitors) and enjoyed double hip squeeze, which I showed Dad how to do.

8:15am: Kathy (midwife) arrived, and Mama was 7cm, 95%, 0 station (great progress!) and then she spent about 40 minutes in the shower.  She let the water run on her back which made her very relaxed.  When not in the shower or getting monitored, she really enjoyed the birth ball for squatting and various hands-and-knees positions.

9:45am: Mama started feeling some pressure and was looking more serious at this point but still calm.  Peppermint eased her nausea.

10:30am: The next check; she was 8-9cm, 95%, and 0 station.

11:06am: Her water broke spontaneously, and she felt the immediate strong urge to push.

11:10am: Pushing began and…

11:56am: Their gorgeous Baby Boy was born (on his due date!) weighing 8# 11oz.  8 and 9 APGARS.

12:15pm: Delivery of placenta.  She tried nursing starting at 12:20, but Baby was not interested.  They rested and he was still not nursing by the time I left at 1pm when the family expressed interest in being alone.  I followed up the nest day to find that he was latching beautifully, and everyone was doing great!

She expressed much gratitude for my presence and said she couldn’t have done it without an epidural otherwise.  Overall, it was the perfect first birth: great nurse, calm labor, attentive partner, satisfied mama, healthy baby and mom!
Very cool

We have a guest speaker for our March “Meet the Doulas Night”!  Melissa Light from Light Family Acupuncture will be talking about acupuncture for pregnancy, birth and postpartum.  She will also be giving away 1 free acupuncture session (up to $75 value) to one of our guests!

We will also be reviewing our services, answering questions and one of our past clients will be sharing her testimonial.

Come join us at East-West Family Health Center (2502 Manor Road) on March 29th at 7p.

We look forward to meeting you!!

N E W S

Release:     Immediate

Date:           March 18, 2010

Contact:      Get Babied!: Ame Shillington doulas@getbabied.com, MamaCents: teresa@mamacents.com

Baby registry list in hand; free, experienced personal shopper on arm

Austin, (Texas) — Shopping for a new baby can be an expensive, exhausting and overwhelming experience.  According to CNN Money, the typical new mom and dad spend $6,200 outfitting their baby in the first year, from cribs and car seats to clothing and formula.  In a tight economy, there are ways to save a buck, and buying baby registry items gently used from a consignment sale is one savvy way to go about it.

MamaCents (www.mamacents.com) consignment sale at the Palmer Auditorium in Austin starting March 26^th is the largest and most established consignment sale in Central Texas.  And this year it takes on an even more essential role in prepping for baby by providing personal shopping services to first time moms.

As part of the consignment sale, the Get Babied! Doula Collective (www.getbabied.com) is co-hosting the “Very Important Preggers” baby shower this year; and as part of the shower they are helping moms become even more efficient in outfitting their nurseries.  They have created an inclusive list of items, and are helping moms to navigate the more than 30,000 items to fulfill their list requirements.  In addition to being experts on pregnancy and childbirth, the Get Babied! Doulas are moms themselves, and can offer candid advice on if their escorts ‘really’ need that name brand luxury glider or if the knock-off is just as good; which breast pump gets the best reviews from lactation experts; and how many onesies a baby actually needs.

Can’t make it to the sale?  Email the Get Babied! Doulas (doulas@getbabied.com) for a copy of the list so you can still be sure you still get everything you need.

Get Babied! 3823-A Airport Blvd. Austin TX 78722   (661)-DOULA-61

www.getbabied.com

The National Organization of Circumcision Information Resource Centers has posted a very informative video on their website (www.nocirc.org). I highly recommend watching it if you are wanting more information about circumcision of boys. They state the following on their site:

What you need to know…

Cesarean vs. VBAC: A Dramatic Difference from Alexandra Orchard on Vimeo.

Watch how a baby is born by cesarean section and see the dramatic difference of what both the mother and baby experience in a home water birth after cesarean.

Release: Immediate

Date: March 2, 2010

Contact: Get Babied! (661) DOULA-61

Meet the doula: the new must-have accessory for moms-to-be

Austin, (Texas) — Arriving at the hospital in labor can be an exciting but scary moment for many first-time parents.  Even though mom may have an excellent, trusting relationship with her doctor, the reality of modern hospital delivery is that the doctor is not called upon until the final throes of labor when the baby is about to be delivered.  That leaves the other 12-24 hours in the hands of the nurse that is assigned and with the ongoing shortage of nurses in most hospitals, patients end up sharing nurses with one or two other laboring mothers.  Instead of leaving the experience of childbirth to the fate of the quality of the nurse, a growing number of women are engaging outside help from doulas.

No doubt the new popularity of doulas owes something to celebrity endorsement. Nicole Kidman had a doula at the birth of her baby, Sunday Rose, last year. ‘I’d heard horror stories of 40 hours of labor,” she said, ”and I was sure that would be me, but I had a very easy labor” Nicole reported to Oprah when discussing the effect of a doula at her birth. Kelly Ripa had a doula.  So did Demi Moore, Cindy Crawford, Jennifer Garner and Ricki Lake. Doulas are the latest Hollywood “pregnancy essential” and moms all over Austin are following their lead.

Ricki Lake’s doula-assisted birth (ABC television)

Doulas are professional childbirth assistants who offer support and information to pregnant women in areas such as prenatal care, breast feeding, mother-infant bonding and postpartum care.   They also provide continuous emotional, physical, and information support to parents during labor and delivery.

Research indicates that mothers who used doulas during pregnancy are healthier, more satisfied with their birth experiences and more likely to breast feed.  Some studies even suggest that if all pregnant women used doulas, childbirth costs could be dramatically reduced, because women who use doulas tend to have shorter hospital stays and fewer complications, use less medication and are less likely to need caesarean sections.

The Get Babied! Doula Collective (www.getbabied.com), the first and only practice of its kind in Austin, takes the role of doula to a higher level of service and professionalism.  The four doulas in the collective share a 24/7 on-call rotation for assisting their clients in labor.  As soon as a mother goes in to labor, she calls the 24/7 on-call number, (661)DOULA-61, and the doula on-call for that day will be at the mother’s side within the hour.  Applying a traditional on-call concept to the practice of doula birth assistance ensures that Get Babied! doulas are well rested, and available any time of the day or night for their clients.  In addition to their unique on-call rotation they also offer many full service packaged childbirth experiences including pregnancy massage, childbirth and breastfeeding classes, lactation consultation, meal delivery, photography, pregnancy bookstore, prenatal and postpartum support, and monthly seminars on pregnancy and childbirth topics.  Get Babied! hosts a “Meet the Doulas” night the last Monday of each month where moms-to-be can meet and get to know the doulas in the collective and the various services Get Babied! provides to ensure a pampered pregnancy and blissful birth.

Get Babied! Doula Collective doula Stephanie Scott applying massage and counter-pressure to comfort her laboring client Manue Reynolds.