I was thrilled to have heard this on the radio news report yesterday! In the past year I have had more than a few clients asking me about it’s availability for their hospital births. Laughing gas takes the edge off of labor pain, can be self-administered, and is covered by insurance. It could take the middle ground between an epidural or nothing at all. Laughing gas is used commonly in the UK and Canada to help women cope with labor pains, but it is currently only in two hospitals in the US.

That’s about to change. Special recognition to Vanderbilt Nurse Midwife Michelle Collins for her quote in the article and undoubtedly the many hours of work she has logged getting this change to occur. Vanderbilt patients, it sounds like the road for laughing gas has been paved, and you could reap it’s benefits during your labor soon (purely my inference on reading the article).

So here’s the full article from abc news: Not Just for the Dentist: Nitrous Oxide Returning to Delivery Rooms .

No matter how hard our society and popular culture try to tell us that THE way to have a baby is by lying flat on your back with ten people yelling in your face ‘Push!!! 2… 3… 4… ,’ I am here to tell you that there are organizations pushing back on your behalf. Lamaze International (they’re not just your mother’s Lamaze any more) has made it’s way as mothers’ advocates, and as part of their 6 Healthy Birth Practices (more to come on all of these), Lamaze advocates for you to ‘avoid giving birth on your back and follow your body’s urges to push.’ read all »

Alpha is a faith-based comprehensive childbirth class to prepare you for the birth of your child whether it is at home, a hospital, or a birth center. Registering now! Check out the website: alphachildbirth.com.

There are always choices, and using Hibiclens instead of routine antibiotics during labor is proven as effective as antibiotic use. Here is the regimen that US midwives use, patterned after European nations Hibiclens standard. Hibiclens is available over-the-counter. You can also use Hibiclens before a GBS swab to test negative. Learn more about the use of Hibiclens: Chlorhexidine (Hibiclens) Protocol for Labor Among GBS Positive Women. As always, discuss the use of Hibiclens with your care provider as your alternative to antibiotics. To learn more about GBS, this is a well researched article from the same blog: Treating GBS (Group B Strep): Are Antibiotics Necessary?

Scar tissue on your cervix can slow dilation during labor. A care provider massaging the scar tissue to break it up can be helpful, but taking evening primrose oil is something you can do at home to help soften the tissue. Remember, a slowly dilating cervix to medical staff is ‘failure to progress,’ which can result in a c-section. Being aware of scar tissue that may be present and alerting your care provider to it can help you have a vaginal birth.

Think of any possible procedure you may have done to your lady parts, and tell your doctor about your medical history and alert them to the presence of scar tissue and it’s affect on cervical dilation.

For example, cryo-surgery is a procedure that uses extreme cold (liquid nitrogen) to destroy abnormal tissue. Abnormal tissue is not cancerous, but thought to be pre-cancerous which is why it is destroyed. A widespread cause, though not the only cause, of abnormal tissues is HPV (human papilloma virus). At least 50% of sexually active men and women in the US may get HPV at some point in their lives. 1 in 2 people.

If you have been affected with HPV and had any procedure done to remove abnormal cells at your cervix, please be aware that the scar tissue left may affect the rate at which your cervix dilates. Using evening primrose oil orally throughout your entire pregnancy, and vaginally each night after 36 weeks can help break up the scar tissue during labor. Have your care provider, when checking you for dilation, also check for scar tissue. If they find any, they can massage it to help break it up.

Read this article written by a San Diego Birth Doula to hear her story: Cervical Scar Tissue- A Big Issue that no one is Talking About.

Unless you were in utter news isolation during Christmas, you probably heard tale of the birth of a baby and recovery of it’s mother after complete cardiac and respiratory arrest during labor. When I first heard the news, I was thankful that this mother and baby  in question survived such a tragic experience, but also wondered at what the entire story may be, the part that doctors were not sharing and media was not telling. Science & Sensibility, a blog from Lamaze International published a transcript of an interview and questions what many are afraid to. Every pregnant woman must make choices, and gathering facts is important in making informed choices. Read the article from Science & Sensibility: Her Survival was a “Christmas Miracle,” but the Disaster was Man-Made.

Some suggestions to help you minimize or eliminate the use pain medication:

- gather a supportive birth team, which could include a doula, and practice relaxation and comfort measures with them before labor

- be sure that medical staff knows your wishes.  Ask for their help and ask to not be offered pain medication.  If you need it, you will ask for it and receive it.  They can help you by giving you comfort measures and giving advice about progress

- use labor coping skills; body awareness, passive or active relaxation, massage and touch, baths and showers, heat and cold, movement, the birth ball, fluid intake, and attention focusing

- when your cervix is dilated to 6 or 7 cm, you and your partner can do a coping assessment.  If you are able to relax between contractions, if not during contractions, and are able to use another coping skill during contractions, you are doing great.

- at about 7 or 8 cm, your contractions are as intense as they are going to get, although they may come closer together.  If you made it to 7 cm without pain medication, you most likely will be able to continue with labor and birth without any medication if you desire, and if labor continues to follow a normal course.

- Questions to ask if you begin to get discouraged: How far dilated am I? How is labor progressing? Is it likely to last much longer? Are there other coping or comfort measures that would help? Can I postpone for 3-5 more contractions and then reassess? The answers to these questions will help you determine how to proceed.