9-23-24 S Tenuta
The collective ideas of birth in our culture seem quite limited. Birth options can be birth options if a person knows the possibilities. How many birth options do you know?
When I got pregnant, that is when I decided to learn about pregnancy and birth. That was a bit late in the game to be open to the many possibilities and to do the research that is involved when working full time. I did take birth classes, and I did get more information than I had prior, but in hind sight, that really was not enough. I wanted a natural birth. I wanted baby to come when ready. I did not want drugs. I did not want to harm my baby. Yet, I had some fears and traumas that blocked the projections of my perfect birth ideas.
So, if anyone reads this, I hope to let you know you have options. The thing is, options come with knowledge and with work. You must work through your fears, and your misinformation. You must work past the cultural projections that say birth is dangerous. Realize it is a natural process of keeping people on the earth. It is a process that has worked for millions of years. It works well when fears are released, and when traumas are processed or set aside for the journey of labor and birth.
What kind of options are there? I will share from what I have learned. There are hospital births, home births, birth center births, prison births, upright births, supine births, breech births and cesarean births. There are births that happen quickly, and those that take hours, or days. There are births that happen when a woman is squatting, positioned on her hands and knees, lying on her back, lying on her side, and even when a person is unconscious. The body knows what to do if given the proper tools. These tools are walking, moving, taking a shower, soaking in water, baking a cake, drinking plenty of fluids and eating plenty of protein. If a person feels tired, it is wise to allow the mother to sleep, or take a little bit of honey or other nourishment. Every cell in the body needs protein and nourishment to be healthy and energized. Every cell in the body when in labor gets exhausted if not nourished properly. This can cause a cascade of less than desired events to occur.
In regards to when babies arrive, babies enjoy being with their mothers. They smell the mother’s pheromones and can even identify their mother if given that option. They want to feel safe. They want to be held and kept close to mother’s beating heart, on her chest is the perfect place as this will encourage baby to suck and the sucking will help the placenta expel as well as help the uterus to clamp back into its natural position. The first hour is a sacred hour which causes baby and parents to bond in a unique way. Bonding can happen later, but not in the same hormonal atmosphere as the first hour after birth.
In regards to the umbilical cord, the common practice in hospitals is to cut the cord quickly after birth, but this has no research to back its benefits. An instance that cutting a cord is needed, could be that baby’s cord is so entangled that baby and practitioners can not untangle baby. This could be a very long cord. There are benefits for baby if the cord is kept attached for at least the first hour. Blood can pass from the placenta to baby, and the membranes can begin to dry naturally. At least 1/3 of baby’s blood needs to enter baby from the placenta for full blood volume support. This blood and placenta are still a form of baby receiving oxygen as a support system, in case baby is taking its time adapting to the earth atmosphere. Stem cells are going into baby that can benefit its health system for years to come. Some say there is also energy being passed. We all have energetic systems that surround our bodies and our being. The energies are called meridians and chakras. They can be energized well if baby and placenta are allowed to gently transition to earth living in the arms of mother and father.
If a person is interested, there is also what is called a Lotus birth. This is leaving the umbilical cord attached to baby until baby releases it. That means it has dried enough and baby no longer needs it. You realize, in the uterus, the placenta was the pillow and friend of baby. It provided nourishment and took out things no longer needed. It provided oxygen and exchanged the gasses of the blood. It was a great support to baby. By baby letting the placenta go on its own, think about the child power given to baby given the time to make this first decision. We want empowerment in this life. How empowering that could be for our children and the future of a society.
If a mom is in a hospital, she needs to know that she has the right to make decisions. She has the right to ask questions. She has the right to ask for more time to decide and to do research. She has a voice if she knows she has options. It is wise for mother to know her choices. If she does not know options, then she actually has no choices. How many birth options do you know? Keep researching.
If you have further questions in regards to options, do contact In Touch and In Tune. There are birth options. How many do you know?
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