Pampered Pregnancy – Blissful Birth

And this means the arrival of your little bundle of joy is also quickly approaching! Don’t be without professional birth and postpartum support when the big day comes. Doulas provide emotional, physical and informational support to the laboring mother/couple. Come and meet the lovely doulas of Get Babied! Doula Collective on Saturday August 27th. The last Saturday Meet the Doula Night is THE one to attend. There’s food, drinks, a guest speaker and a couple sharing their birth story. It’s an all around fun experience.

Here’s the breakdown to the big Meet the Doula Night:

7pm: The doulas are on. We talk about how Get Babied! Doula Collective works, why it works, etc…all the nitty gritty.

715pm: Dawn is walking proof on why you should sign up with Get Babied! as early in your pregnancy as you can. She attended almost all the MTDN she could when she was pregnant. When it came time for her big day, all the doulas were hoping to be hers. Hear her side of her son’s birth story.

730pm: Regan Danforth House, Sr. Sales Director with Mary Kay, will be speaking on the importance of self-care and pampering for mothes, prenatally and postpartum.

745pm: The fun begins. Our famous speed dating of the doulas! We will set up the room and for 3-5minutes you get to speak to as many doulas as you want. You can speak to only certified or apprentice doulas if you know the rotation you will be choosing. Or you can speak with everybody if you are still deciding. Here’s a link to some good questions to ask a doula in an interview: go here

So. Now that you’ve got the scoop on the next MTDN and have jotted it down on your calendar, we look forward to meeting/seeing you!

Dear Dylan,

You were born on a beautiful, sunny Saturday morning in May.  Your mom had been up quietly laboring with you throughout the night.  Her contractions started around 10pm Friday evening.  She and your dad tried to stay in bed and rest up as much as possible to get ready for your grand entry.  Your mom texted the GetBabied hotline around 2:30 in the morning, saying that she had been having some “increasingly painful cramping that had been coming and going” and some seemed almost 2 min. long and maybe 5-7min apart.  She also said most of the pain was in her lower back and hips.  Since I was her doula on call that day, I texted her back some suggestions for her back-labor and gave her my cell phone number to call me when she wanted my help.

I came over to your house, Dylan, a few hours later, around 4:30 in the morning.  Your daddy was watching out the window for me, and when I came in, your sweet dog licked me, as if to say Hello.  Your doggy also woke up your grandma who was sleeping upstairs.  It was like she knew something special was happening. Your mom had been laboring nicely on her hands and knees in her giant tub when I got there.  She then tried to rest some more in bed.  After sending your daddy off to the couch to take a nap, I made sure your mommy stayed hydrated and massaged her back and feet a little.  She had thrown up a few times, so instead of chugging regular water, I suggested she start sipping on some coconut water.  Before long your mom wanted to get back into the tub.  She was amazing!  She kept taking good, deep breathes and was really “in the birthing zone.”  Around 7 am, after spending more time in the tub and on the toilet, she decided she really wanted to head to the hospital.  Her contractions were at least a minute long, if not longer, and were maybe a minute apart.  I woke your dad up and we all got ready to head to the hospital.

We arrived at Seton SW around 7:30am.  A nice security guard offered your mom a wheelchair after seeing her leaning against the car and me squeezing her hips.  The nurse wheeled her right up to the L&D floor, and your dad and I hauled all the luggage up to the room.  Your mom’s water broke 10 minutes after being there at the hospital while she was sitting on the toilet.  What a good sign!  I knew it wasn’t going to be long before we got to meet you!

When your mom finally decided that she could make it to the hospital bed, she let the nurses put on a hep lock, check your heart rate and check her dilation.  She was at already 9.5 cm dilated!  She labored some more in the bed, on hands and knees, on the toilet and while standing and swaying.  Your dad kept warming up the rice bag in the microwave for your back, and we both did a lot of counter-pressure on your back and hips. When Dr. Eduardo came in and checked your mom again, (because she started to involuntarily push), she was completely dilated.  This was at around 8:45am, and after about 30 minutes of powerful pushing, you were born at 9:17.  You weighed 8lbs and 5.5oz, and were 21.6 inches long.  The first thing the doctor did was place you on your mommy’s chest, and the first thing you did was pee on your mom!

After a lot of cuddling you were ready to nurse and lots of pictures were taken by Tanya, another doula with GetBabied!.  Your grandma was called in, and she didn’t even know you were born, yet!  What a birthday party!

I was honored to be a part of your birth, Dylan.  It truly was a privilege to be able to witness your mom’s strength in labor and your dad’s loving support.

Your Doula,

Amy Nevland CD(DONA)

Rebecca, Jeromy and Baby Dylan

Michelle called the Get Babied! line at 12:40pm on April 25, 2011. She had been having early labor contractions all morning and they were starting to get a little closer together. She was calling to let us know that she was going in to the office of OBGYN North to get checked. She was expecting to go home, but during a non-stress test the strip measuring Baby Kate’s heart rate started going crazy (or the monitor was in the wrong spot). Michelle called me at 2:40pm to let me know that they were instructed to go to the hospital to be monitored. Things had also really started to pick up for Michelle.

I got to Michelle and Jim’s room at 3:00pm. Everything was fine. Whatever was or wasn’t happening with the baby in the office had calmed down. Michelle was breathing easy through contractions, and they were starting to get closer together. As the contractions got closer and stronger, Michelle continued to breath through them beautifully but you could tell they were getting more uncomfortable with each passing one. Michelle really wanted to get out of bed, but she had to be continuously monitored since she was attempting a VBAC. We were all relieved when Nurse Brittanie came in with the portable monitor!
Michelle labored for a long time on her ball leaning forward onto Jim who was sitting on the bed. I sat behind her, and Jim and I rubbed her back and shoulders. Jim was really calm and a great birth partner for Michelle who was also laboring so calmly. They made a great team.

Eventually Charge Nurse Betsy came in to fix the monitors, because they weren’t staying on Michelle’s belly very well. Since Michelle had to be monitored and they were having a hard time getting a reading in this position, Michelle switched to side lying in bed. Things were really intense at this point. This was a great position for Michelle to rest and zone out in between contractions. Jim stood behind her and stroked her back while I was in front holding her hand and reminding her that she, “had this”. Things were moving along very fast. Her contractions had gone from short six minute apart contractions to long 2 minute apart contractions in just over two hours! Michelle was considering an epidural if she wasn’t far dilated. Dr. Schmitz came in to check Michelle around 6pm (this was the first time she was to be checked since the week before) and she was a 9! Dr. Schmitz left us to continue doing just what we were doing.

Michelle continued to labor in her zone, and Jim and I continued to try to keep her calm and comfortable while nurses scurried around setting up the room for delivery. Michelle started to feel like pushing not long after she was checked. Dr. Schmitz felt like she wasn’t quite ready, so she left and said she would be back in about ten minutes. Twenty minutes came and went and Michelle was feeling really pushy. She wasn’t grunting like a lot of moms do. She was really breathing her baby down. I think that might be why the nurses weren’t convinced she was fully dilated. Finally, Dr. Schmitz came back around 6:40pm to check Michelle again. She was fully dilated and +2 station! Way to go mama!

Michelle started out pushing in side lying and continued to breath her baby down and push just to the point of comfort. Nurse Donna and Dr. Schmitz were really encouraging her to really bear down to move Baby Kate down faster, because her heart rate was getting a little high with the first few pushes. Michelle figured out how to find her push through the next few contractions. Nurse Donna kept trying to tell Michelle what to do, but she was figuring it out for herself. At one point, Michelle looked over at the nurse and said, “Would you PLEASE just BE QUIET!?”. I had to stop myself from laughing. Michelle was so polite! Michelle was also an amazing pusher. Jim and I were on either side of her cheering her on and giving her progress updates. She got to feel Kate’s head twice. Kate had so much hair! Michelle didn’t push for long, and after only 40 minutes Baby Kate was out at 7:19pm. Kate came out so calm and alert and went straight to mama’s chest. Talk about a successful VBAC!!

The Birth Story of Devin James Greenslet

After consultation with their birth team, Deliah and Matt chose to begin induction due to mild pre-eclampsia. They arrived at the hospital on Sunday March 27th, joined by Deliah’s mother, Sherry. At the time of her admittance, she was already 3cm dilated and 80% effaced. Pitocin was administered at 1:30 am on Monday.  They knew there may be some time waiting for Devin James so they all tried to rest despite the lack of creature comforts in the hospital setting.

By the time the doula arrived the morning of March 28th, everyone was awake and ready although it was not a “typical” active labor scene, as Deliah was still able to get  in and out of bed with ease. The doula introduced herself and chatted before beginning a hand and foot massage. Matt was a super Dad the whole time. He was always by Deliah’s side, encouraging her, making her laugh and he even gave her a hand massage while the doula massaged her feet! Sherry, Deliah’s mom, was also an amazing asset to the team and kept a positive conversation going. At this point, the contractions were very tolerable. Deliah barely had to stop talking to get through them, although they were coming at a consistent rate. The birth team distracted Deliah with a silly movie trivia game (“Resident Evil!” was always Deliah’s answer). The doctor arrived and spoke with Deliah about breaking her water to see if that would accelerate her labor. After a cervial exam revealed very little progress (still 3cm, but more effacement), around 12:45 Deliah and Matt decided to have the membranes ruptured as well as leaving the pitocin on, although the dose increments would be smaller and further apart.

We didn’t know it, but Deliah’s body was ready. Even as the doctor was breaking her water, she dilated to a solid 4cm and her contractions became harder and more consistent. Matt, the vigilant husband, asked the doctor about Deliah being able to labor out of the bed. The doctor said she could as long as her BP was kept at a normal level. So, Deliah rested a while in bed, receiving foot and hand massages until the contractions were strong enough that she could not try to rest anymore. At this point, around 1pm, the birth team set her up on the ball, leaning over the bed. Deliah, who was starting to struggle with the contractions on the bed, really liked this position and started doing deep breathing and low vocalizations during contractions.

At 2:20 pm, Deliah was really working through each contraction. The birth team would switch places: Matt, Sherry and Michelle took turns applying counterpressure supporting her shoulders and holding cool clothes on her forehead. The team was so great in supporting not only Deliah, but each other. Matt continued encouraging Deliah and gave great counterpressure support while Sherry was ever the doting mother, rubbing her daughter’s shoulders and giving her sweet little kisses. At one point, Deliah looked at her mother and asked “Is this as bad as it’s going to get”, and both the mother and doula looked at each other with empathy. The nurse came in around 2:30 and because the blood pressure readings were slowly creeping back up, requested that Deliah return to bed. The nurse, after just saying she could tell by Deliah’s labor pattern that it could be a while yet, decided to perform another cervical exam and discovered that  she had dilated to a strong 6, almost 7cm! Everyone cheered!

Deliah on a birthing ball, Michelle applying counterpressure

But poor Deliah; progressing almost 4cm in barely 2 hours is A LOT of work. And although Deliah was handling them like the warrior-momma she is, she was starting to get tired and in classic transition mode, she started to doubt herself. This is the part where the mother really needs her support team and Deliah’s team was amazing. Matt continued to encourage her, saying she was amazing and of course she could do it. Sherry rubbed her arms, telling her how proud of Deliah she was. The doula, Michelle, recommended a new breathing pattern to distract Deliah from the pain. So while the nurse got the fluids in the IV line set up and the epidural table ready, Deliah’s support team walked with her through each contraction as they became even more intense and closer together. Deliah then started moving her legs and hips with the contractions. The doula asked her, “Are you starting to feel pressure with the contractions?” and moment later, Deliah looked at Michelle with wide open, pupil dilated eyes, and dealt with her biggest contraction yet! They started to breath through it together, but then Deliah’s body instinctively bore down and began to push. The doula distracted Deliah again and had her breathe through the pushes while the nurse grabbed her glove so she could check her. The nurse then said she had good news and bad news; Deliah was fully dilated, complete effacement and baby was at a +2 station, the bad news was that it was too late to get an epidural. This was at 3:20pm, less than hour after she was 7cm. Deliah is a birthing warrior and was able to labor without pain medication as she had wanted despite her doubt in herself.

The nurse had Deliah give several side-lying pushes before having to call the doctor because her pushes were extremely effective. The doctor arrived at 3:40 and Devin James was born at 3:46pm! A beautiful 19 1/2 inches, 6 lbs 11 oz boy who snuggled with his mom and dad for about 25 minutes before getting measurements and then was right back on his mother’s chest for some quality skin to skin time. At 4:15, Devin James latched on for the first time. Since it’s a learning process, Devin and his mom spent an hour breastfeeding and getting to know each other with the proud dad watching and assisting. Congratulations Deliah and Matt! Devin is simply precious.

Deliah holding Devin, Michelle the doula, Matt the SuperDad

It’s almost springtime! You know what that means: spring cleaning, picnics, nesting in preparation for your baby and finding your doula!

Join us Saturday March 26th at 7:00 pm at our office at 3823A Airport Blvd for our monthly Meet the Doulas Night. We are Austin’s only on-call Doula collective! And you can meet us all at this event.

At 7:00 we gather next door to our office at Neighborhood Acupunture Project (they have more space than we do) for a short presentation on what doulas do in general, and what we do at the Get Babied Doula Collective specifically.

At 7:15 special guests Erin & Drew share the story of the birth of their baby Eleanor with the assistance of Ame and Cary’s doula skills.  You can read about their birth here:

At 7:30 Karen Schroploff will be speaking about Exercising in Late Pregnancy.

At 7:45 we will have a doula “speed dating” session – each of the Get Babied doulas will be assigned a number and you can jump in and start talking to any doula for about 3 to 5 minutes. Then a lovely gong will sound as a signal to move onto the next doula station. This way you get to meet as many doulas as possible.

For those of you who have attended MTDN in the past – you’re most welcome to skip the early part and just join us at 7:45.  Speed dating gives you an opportunity to have a more intimate dialog with us and talk with us more personally.  We also want to check in with you since last month to see what is happening in your pregnancy.  We consider this more like a “free prenatal appointment” with snacks and entertainment.  During this time, you’ll have our ear for any other questions or concerns that may have surfaced in the last month about your pregnancy, labor, delivery or postpartum care.  MTDN is also a great place to turn in pending paperwork or make payments in person.

If you are unable to make it to MTDN – please email us (doulas@getbabied.com) to schedule a free private 30 minute consult at your convenience during our office hours.  The advantage to MTDN of course is you get all 10 of us at once.

We look forward to seeing you there!

I had the honor of attending a beautiful birth on Monday.  Mama Sarah gave me permission to share her story. Sarah Sharp is a jazz singer and songwriter here in Austin – check out her website and go see her show sometime! Also, read Sarah’s testimonial about her birth experience.

Sarah called us at 4:30 am to let us know she was in labor. When I talked to her on the phone, she sounded happy and excited that she was finally going to get to meet her son Angus. I talked to her again at 5:00, and she was already heading to the hospital. Her contractions were fairly painful, and she was already 4 cm dilated before labor began. Since Angus was her third baby, she knew her labor would probably go quickly.

When I arrived at the hospital at 6:00 am, Sarah and her husband Andy were coping well with the contractions. Her cervical check showed that she was already 6 – 7 cm dilated. The contractions were short, but pretty frequent. Sarah liked to move around – she was constantly swaying, walking, and changing positions. She wanted suggestions for ways to move around that would make her contractions more comfortable and help the baby to descend.

The room was very bright when I got there – the fluorescent lights were glaring. We dimmed the lights, and when the sun came up we opened the blinds so that the natural light came in and we were able to turn the overhead lights off completely. Because the window looked out onto the roof, we didn’t have to worry about anyone seeing in. The view out the window was of some kind of weird boxy metal air conditioner thing. Andy took one look at it and said that if it was outside his window he’d put little arms and legs on it and make it into a decorative robot air conditioner thing. I liked Andy.

I asked if Sarah wanted to hear some music. She was up for it, so I played the Rachel’s station on Pandora with some little portable speakers I had. The mellow orchestral music and the lowered lighting really helped to change the atmosphere from a clinical hospital space to a serene, nurturing birth space.

I had brought my birth ball, and when I suggested Sarah try sitting on it, she found it very comfortable. I did the double-hip squeeze with the next contraction. It made a huge difference for Sarah; she said, “WOW! That REALLY helps.” I think from that point on, we did the double-hip squeeze on every contraction until the baby was crowning. Andy did most of the squeezing. After I had done a few hip squeezes, Sarah asked Andy to try. She gave very specific instructions for him as labor progressed, and he obliged for the rest of labor. By the time the baby was born, Andy was a pro. He swayed his hips when Sarah did, and he even climbed up onto the bed with her when he needed a better angle. Usually I’m the one doing the hip squeezing for hours at a time – Andy really made my job easy!

Sarah used the birth ball for most of her labor. We raised the bed and piled pillows on so she could sit on the ball and lean all her weight forward onto the pillows, concentrating on relaxing her entire body. She also liked standing next to the bed and leaning forward onto the ball. With Andy following Sarah’s strict orders about exactly how to do the hip squeezing, I sat on the bed by Sarah’s head and massaged her neck, shoulders, and hands. She breathed slowly and deeply with total control. When I noticed her clenching her teeth, tightening her shoulders, or holding her breath, I’d remind her to relax and inhale deeply.

At 8:00, Dr. Mingea did Sarah’s second cervical check. She was 9 centimeters dilated with a slight anterior lip, 90 – 100% effaced, and the baby was at +1 station. Her bag of waters was still intact. The nurse, Nancy, told us that we should call her as soon as Sarah felt an urge to push or her water broke, because once either of those things happened, the baby would be well on its way.

Twenty minutes later, Sarah’s contractions became very intense. She began trembling and had a harder time maintaining control during her contractions. I reminded her more frequently to breathe slowly and deeply and to keep her voice deep and low to encourage her cervix to open. At 8:20, Nancy checked Sarah’s cervix again because her trembling and vocalizations indicated that she was well into transition. Her cervix had not changed, and she still had no urge to push.

By 9:00 Sarah started talking to Angus, asking him to come down. She felt like he just wasn’t quite low enough. I suggested positions that would encourage her pelvis to open so that he could move into the proper position to fully descend. We tried marching with giant open steps, and we tried lunging. But Sarah didn’t like standing positions because during contractions she wanted to be seated on the ball with Andy doing the double hip squeeze. The seconds that it took to recognize the contraction coming, sit down on the ball, and order Andy to work his magic were simply too excruciating. Sarah wanted to use gravity to get Angus to descend, but none of the upright positions were working for her.

Since Sarah’s labor had been progressing so quickly until she reached 9 centimeters, I began to wonder if perhaps Angus needed more help rotating in order to move down. Around 9:30 I suggested Sarah get into a knees-to-chest position on the bed, which is one of the best positions to allow a baby to rotate. After about 5 contractions, Sarah felt the urge to push. We called Nancy immediately, and she stayed with us for the rest of the time. It became clear that Angus was definitely on his way.  Soon Nancy had Sarah panting in an effort to resist the overwhelming urge to push for as long as possible so that Dr. Mingea could get there in time to catch the baby.

When Dr. Mingea came in, Andy finally got to climb down off the bed and rest his arms. Sarah moved from hands and knees into a sidelying position. At 10:00 am, she pushed Angus out slowly and gently, with great control.

This was a lovely, calm, serene birth. Dr. Mingea and her team were always there if Sarah or Angus needed anything, but they were also happy to leave Sarah alone to create her own birth space and labor her own way. It was a delight to see how Sarah and Andy made their birth happen just how they hoped it would.

Sarah, Steph, Andy, and baby Angus, born 8/2/2010