Omaha’s Baby Fair!
I am super excited about the baby fair that is going to be held next Saturday! Brandi’s Birthing Service will be there, so come check out our booth. I will be there, passing out info and talking to mothers about the benefits of doula care care, and childbirth education. So come out and show your support, and make sure to check out the rummage sale, the proceeds of the rummage sale go to help the Midwives Place, Nebraska’s only free Standing birth Center.
So stop by the booth, grab some info on doula care, and child birth education, plus enter to win lots of awesome prizes and other goodies offered at the Omaha Baby Fair. As an added incentive, I will have coupons at my booth for my childbirth classes, but you’ll have to come check us out to find out just how much of an amazing deal I am offering.
Bring your pregnancy, birth and labor questions and I will answer them from the prospective of a doula, and an educator (keeping in mind that my advice should not replace your care providers) But I would love to address such topics as, what positions help move baby into a more ideal birth position, Can a Doula Support me in an Unassisted Birth, What is Free/unassisted birth and why are mothers choosing it, How is laboring at home different than laboring in a hospital, or at home (and soon in the birth center), What is the difference between an certified doula and an uncertified doula and the difference between types of midwifes (CPM, CNM, and DM), Can a doula help me if I am having a hospital birth/ Planned C-section, What if I want an epidural and so on if you stump me on a question I will ask for your E-mail though so I can get you a proper answer 
. I am not afraid to answer the tough questions, and I know that my form of doula care differs from some of the other doulas in the area. So please stop by and have a conversation with me.
Be there! Saturday, July 16th to Stinson Park at Aksarben Village From 9:00 am – 1:00 pm and Look for Brandi’s Birthing Service, at the Omaha Baby Fair.
311 Singer, Nick Hexum had a Home Birth!
The Band 311, that started here in Omaha, Nebraska~now has a pretty unique claim to fame. It seems their singer Nick Hexum can now add Midwife to his list of roles. He successfully assisted his wife in giving birth to their second child when during the birth the baby got a little stuck, Shoulder dystocia is a fairly common variation in normal labor but can be very scary for a family who is expecting to have a midwife available to help out. Dad, Nick Hexum, did a super job helping his little girl become unstuck and she and mamma where checked out by the midwife about 10 mins later.
Home Birth, is a great thing, and I am glad that the family was prepared to handle things, because as well know labor has a mind of its own. It can move quitly or slowly, and well baby will come just as soon as baby is ready so it pays to make sure you are well prepared. This planned home Birth, with a trained Midwife turned quickly into an unassisted home birth, and mom and dad handled birth fantastically.
Check out what People has to say about Nick Hexum’s unassisted home birth.
Choices
It makes me so sad to hear of mothers being robbed of their choices in labor. I see this happen everyday, mothers get their choice to breastfeed cut short by bad advice, i see labor options removed due to hospital policy, i see midwife care denied due to foolish and outdated laws and irresponsible fear. I see mothers trying their best to navigate a broken system, and being destroyed in the process.
So I am here today, as a doula, an educator, a friend, and an advocate of trusting birth. Mothers, doctors, midwives, doulas, nurses, all need to learn how to trust birth. Birth is safe!
Child Birth Classes
I am very pleased to announce that I will be offering birth education classes. Wander on over to the Birthing Classes Tab and check out the July dates. I will be offering Child Birth Class alternating first and second Saturday for the Jam Packed Saturday Class, and various week days for the 4 week child birth series.
Topics Covered are
Myth Busting 101/Informed Decision Making
Comfort Measures and Support
The Reality of Labor
New Born and Post Postpartum Care
All Classes are held at Brandi’s Birthing Services New Location 7905 L St Suit 420 Omaha, Ne, Hope to see you there!
Brandi’s Birthing Service has a New Location!
I am very pleased to announce that Brandi’s Birthing Service is expanding! ~ we have a new office location.
I will now be offering:
Mommy Groups~ a safe place for moms to come and unwind and discuss day to day issues.
Educational Support ~ in the form of child birth education~ Topics include Myth Busting 101/Informed Decision Making, Comfort Measures and Support, The Reality of Labor New Born and Post Postpartum Care~, Breast Feeding Support~ and referral to Lactation consultants as needed, baby wearing~tips and tricks, and parent education classes~ focusing on trouble shooting common difficulties parents face, focusing on an attachment parting style of raising and RIE philosophy .
Doula consultations~Meeting with a doula should be done in a comfortable, safe and welcoming environment, With a private office space I will be able to host client meetings with out disruption from outside influences and I can make sure the space is well set up for little ones.
Connections to other community resources~ I will have information to share regarding how to reach other birth workers in the community, chiropractic care resources, and information on finding alternative health care practitioners should you desire a change.
I am now located off of 79th and L St Omaha, Nebraska, just on the boarder of Omaha and Ralston
Office hours will vary due to the on call nature of the doula business, so please always call ahead to assure that I will be available to meet with you. I can be reached by phone at 402 254-1755 don’t hesitate to leave a voice mail if I am unable to take your call.
I can’t wait to see you at 7905 L St, Suit 420, Omaha Nebraska, 68127
Unplanned!
I have always wanted a home birth, to me a hospital has never been part of my adult birth plans, now that’s not to say hospitals are bad but it’s not for me. I have always wondered what a family would do if they could not make it to the hospital (keeping in mind here I wrote about an unplanned unassisted birth due to weather) so its not a new idea, just something I felt I needed to expand on a bit more. If it is clear you are not going to make it to the hospital, do you have a plan B, and the supplies to take care of things at home?
Well Today I was talking to my lovely partner Joe, owner of Small Space Survival and part of the discussion was on that very topic, and I honestly do not believe that anyone should count on being able to make it to a hospital, because, well things can and do come up. So I started doing some searching and found a few good resources for those who want a hospital birth, but like me, want a back up plan just in case.
I found a cheap Emeregency Ob Kit that contains
1 pair of sterile exam gloves
1 sterile disposable scalpel (for cutting cord)
1 sterile OB pad
1 plastic lined underpad
3 disposable towels
1 receiving blanket
4 sterile gauze pads
1 sterile bulb syringe
2 sterile plastic umbilical clamps
1 disposable plastic apron
1 plastic bag for placenta
2 twist ties
2 OB towelettes
For only 10 bucks at Cascade Healthcare Products. Now to me, that would do for oh crap gotta catch the baby… but they had more.Their standard home birth kit is only 33 bucks! that comes with things to help with body fluid control and basic baby care items. They have bigger kits, but if your planning to be elsewhere for birth, this ought to cover what you need should you happen to be stuck at home.
In that Kit you get
- 10 – Light Underpads, 23″ x 24″
- 5 – Medium Underpads, 23″ x 36″
- 2 – Plastic-backed Sheets
- 1 – Maternity Sani Pads, Pkg of 14
- 1 – Perineal Irrigation Bottle
- 12 – Gauze 4×4 Sterile, Pkg of 2
- 1 – Alcohol Prep Pads, Pkg of 20
- 1 – Flexible Straws, Pkg of 10
- 1 – Infant Tape Measure
- 1 – Basic Cotton Cap
- Bulb Syringe
- Lubricating Jelly
- Glove (Pairs)
- Glove (Singles)
- Iodine
- Cord Ligation
- Sanitary Brief
To me, for less than 50 bucks, you can have a back up plan and know that you would be able to help your little one arrive safely into this world. Regardless on your views of home birth, this seems like a minimal investment to help ensure that some sanitary measures are able to be kept and you can handle a normal (non medically eventful) at home should you not be able to make it to the hospital.
I am sure you can shop around and pick up the supplies here and there and maybe save a buck or two, but for a person not planning on using it, this seems like an easy way to peace of mind.
Who Code, Breast VS Formula
We all know that breastfeeding is a hot button issue, but I just wanted today to share the WHO code, and the simple fact that certain companies are not following it, and sadly both sides have issues. I am sure their are others out there, but the first ones that come to mind are Nestle (and Danone is mentioned in this article as well) and Medela.
Now I know that sometimes a mother must use Formula, Breastfeeding doesn’t work, and various other reasons, But if you are going to buy from these companies atleast know who your buying from.
As for Medela, well their product has some other issues as well that make their breast pumps less than ideal, so if you need a breast pump I have heard nothing but positive things from the WHO Code compliant company Hygeia
I would also like to make it clear I am not suggesting you don’t buy from these companies but, be informed about their practices, I also have no personal experience with Hygeia products, but I have heard wonderful things about them from moms who have used them.
Eats on Feets ~ Iowa
I posted awhile back that Eats on Feets had gone through a transition and became human milk for human babies, and was corrected in the comments saying that Eats on Feets is alive and well. However it appeared that while the two groups where being formed and separating from each other some of the state pages got lost. After all Eats on Feets was one and HM4HB is another so when they split some went one way and the others went another, such is life
Well, Eats on Feets did not have an Iowa group, and I thought that was very sad, after all Iowa has lots of mothers, and lots of babies and I am sure we need some more ways to share the love and liquid gold. So I have stepped up as the Eats of Feets, Iowa Page leader. Now that doesn’t mean much exactly I just hang back and make sure only nice things are shared on the page. It is worth noting thought that Eats on Feets is alive and strong and now Iowa has their own chapter to share the love.
Check them out!
Eats on Feets (main Page)
Eats on Feets (main Facebook page)
Eats on Feets (Iowa Facebook page)
and just for good measure lets not forget about our neighbors Nebraska who recently got their own page too!
Eats on Feets ( Nebraska)
The 2011 Mothers’ Index
I have talked a lot about how our country needs to do better for mothers. I have climbed on my soap box more times than I can count (on here and speaking out to friends and families) about how our health care system is flawed. But it goes so much deeper than that! I found The 2011 Mothers’ Index report to be quite informative and I enourage you to go read it. If you choose not to atleast read this. The USA placed 31st in the world on the best/worst place to be a mother. We are supposed to be the most developed nation, and we placed 31st. We spend who knows how much money on other nations, other countries and everyone elses citizens, and we place 31st?!
Here is a direct quote from the article as to why we recieved the rank we did.
The United States ranked 31st this year based on several
factors:
• One of the key indicators used to calculate well being
for mothers is lifetime risk of maternal
mortality. The United States’ rate for maternal
mortality is 1 in 2,100 – the highest of any industrialized
nation. In fact, only three Tier I developed
countries – Albania, the Russian Federation and
Moldova – performed worse than the United States
on this indicator. A woman in the U.S. is more than
7 times as likely as a woman in Italy or Ireland to
die from pregnancy-related causes and her risk of
maternal death is 15-fold that of a woman in Greece.
• Similarly, the United States does not do as well
as most other developed countries with regard
to under-5 mortality. The U.S. under-5 mortality
rate is 8 per 1,000 births. This is on par with rates
in Latvia. Forty countries performed better than
the U.S. on this indicator. At this rate, a child in
the U.S. is more than twice as likely as a child in
Finland, Greece, Iceland, Japan, Luxembourg, Norway,
Slovenia, Singapore or Sweden to die before
reaching age 5.
• Only 58 percent of children in the United States are
enrolled in preschool – making it the fifth lowest
country in the developed world on this indicator.
• The United States has the least generous maternity
leave policy – both in terms of duration and percent
of wages paid – of any wealthy nation.
• The United States is also lagging behind with regard
to the political status of women. Only 17 percent of
congressional seats are held by women, compared to
45 percent in Sweden and 43 percent in Iceland.
I am shocked, and saddened for our country that we could not do better than this. Our families deserve better than this.
May is International Doula Month
I am privilaged to be able to call myself a doula, and while I am a bit different from the main stream doulas out there, I would like to say thank you to all my fellow doulas in Iowa and Nebraska.
I have been in the area almost a year, and have met some wonderful, wonderful doulas, educators, and friends in the area.
To my closest friends, you know who you are! and our community would not be the same without you! and to all the other doulas some I know quite personally and others that I do not, keep supporting mothers and families, and doing what doulas do best~ being a source of support, education and comfort.