how to birth on your terms - birth photographer€¦ · chose if i had a pleasurable birth or a...

HOW TO BIRTH ON YOUR TERMS.

Ever wondered what your options were during child birth? Think you know what your options are? Do you want to know but don't know where to look because you just, don't know what you don't know?

LOOK NO FURTHER

I'm here to help you. I want you to know everything. As much as I can jam pack in this pack, I want you to know it all. I want you to know it all because I want you to have the information to make an informed decision based on YOUR needs. Not the needs of society. Or your mother in law, or sister, or best friend, or cousin-twice-removed. For YOU. I want YOU to be in control. I want YOU to be respected. I want YOU to birth like a badass. On YOUR terms.

Sounds good? I thought so. Keep reading to find out how to formulate a birth plan that suits you the best.

Lacey Barratt

Birth Photographer, Doula, and all-round bass-ass

[email protected]

How to birth on your terms / page � 1 www.laceybarratt.com.au


Lacey Barratt

How to Birth on Your Terms

March 2017

What's in a Birth "...one cannot actively help a woman give birth. The goal is to avoid disturbing her unnecessarily."

- Michael Odent

Y O U D O N ' T K N O W W H A T Y O U D O N ' T K N O W .

This is such a true term. It's so hard to find out what all is out there unless you know what you are looking for. It's a bit like soul searching. Close your eyes for a second. I'm serious. Eyes closed? No, just kidding. Then you can't read. Imagine you're pushing out your baby. How do you envision it? Like, how do you REALLY envision it? Are you in a hospital? Or in a pool or a bathtub? Are you on all fours? Who is there? Is your lover there? Are you alone? Is someone telling you how to push? Are you following your body? None of these are right or wrong answers. The right answer is however you feel the safest. I have birthed in a hospital, at home with a midwife, at home with NO midwife, and a birth centre. Was any of my births less of a happy moment than another? No. Do I wish I could have changed things. All the damn time. There is so much to birth. Birth shapes us as humans, whether we want to believe it or not. That can kind of be a scary feeling. One thing I will not do is say to you, "as long as you have a healthy baby that's all that matters." Because it isn't all that matters. But, that's a WHOLE OTHER BALL GAME. For now we will stick to being bad ass and learning as much as we can.

A n t e n a t a l O P T I O N S .

Let's start with antenatal care. You just got a positive result. (Congratttsss!!!) Now what? Where do you feel safest birthing? At home? A hospital? Maybe you have medical needs that should be watched under the care of an obstetrician? Did you know some OB's will go to your home and assist you in birthing there? Maybe you want private midwifery in a hospital. You might feel safe in a birth centre that emulates being at home, but your close to a hospital. Maybe, you want to birth by yourself and have no antenatal care at all. That's ok too. ALL of these are viable options. What happens if you can't find the care you want? Keep looking until you find it.


F o r m u l a t i n g a p l a n .

Let's make things very clear. Just because you chose to birth in a hospital under the care of an OB does not disqualify you from having as natural of a birth you chose to. The main things (which we will break down later) to consider for your birth is:

*where you want to birth

*How you want to birth

*Whom you want to be present

*3rd stage (birth of the placenta)

*fourth trimester care (postpartum)

Why are these important? Because you deserve to be respected. You deserve to have a choice over your body and who touches it and how. The only time it is considered "acceptable" to have your vagina touched without permission is during birth. This is not true. Having your bodily autonomy respected is number one. Saying no is OK. Let me say that again. You say it with me. Saying no is OK. Asking why is OK too. Being vocal is ok. Asking questions is ok. Actually, I implore you to ask questions. "What is that for?" "What happens if..." "What does that do?" I highly suggest finding a doula that fits with you and your needs. Let's dive into breaking these aspects down a little deeper.


Drugs or no drugs. That is the question.

During the preparation of my third babe, I had an epiphany. It was truly life changing. I was reading Orgasmic Birth (get it!) and one of the biggest things I learned was that pain and pleasure originate from the same neurological receptors. They come from the same place. Which taught me that I could chose if I had a pleasurable birth or a painful birth. Everyone's pain threshold is different. Deciding prior to birth that you want to have a drug free birth, then during birth choosing to have pain relief does not mean you failed. It means you chose what suited you best at that specific point in time. Let's chat about this a bit more. What is important is that you know what pain relief does and how it can positively and negatively affect the outcomes of your birth. This is how you are able to make that decision during labour, and know you made the right decision, with no guilt or remorse.

Types of pain relief

*Saline injections

*Pethadine (Demerol in USA)

*Hot water ie birth pool, bath, shower

*Hot/cold packs/laughing gas

*Epidural

*Tens machine

*Touch from your lover/friend/midwife, rebozo, birth ball, changing positions


This is what no one tells you. There are other forms of pain relief besides the epidural. If a tens machine is applied in early labour, it numbs the receptors making those transitional surges more bearable. If you are having back labour (usually a sign of a malpositioned baby) saline injections can work miracles (although extremely painful to get) the benefit is a good one.

E P I D U R A L

Let's chat.

Let's talk about the epidural as pain relief. And what you really need to know about it. Epidurals have their time and place. They are not all bad. They are not all good. It is individual to the woman and her circumstance. Quick story. My second babe and I woke with contractions at 5 am. I got in the shower. At 5:10 am I was on the floor of my shower begging for the husband to wake up and help me out. We arrived at the hospital at 6am. I needed to push in the car. But my environment stalled my labour. By the time I arrived to the hospital and was told to calm down and I didn't really need to push, I was so erratic and deep into transition, I literally thought I was dying. My brain was unable to connect with my body. Within an hour of waking up my body was ready to push a baby out, and my brain was not processing that. I tried to breath. And tried talking to my husband. He tried kissing and touching me. But nothing was bringing me to a safe space. I asked for a shot of pethadine. Finally I was checked and told I was 10 CM and could not have any pain relief, as it would go to the baby. I demanded that shot. Within seconds after getting it, I felt eerily at peace. I wasn't going to have a baby until I got into that headspace. I had relaxed enough with the aide of the pethadine to push our boy out. A quick 3 contractions later at 7:30am and I was holding our second baby boy. Had I sat in my shower another 10 minutes I likely would have accidentally birthed unassisted. I felt safe at home. And I wasn't having anyone telling me my body was lying to me, when it indeed was not. Epidurals work in the same way. They can allow you to rest, without the over powering feeling that your body is driving this thing. It can relax you enough to help a malpositioned baby turn to the occipit anterior position, for optimal foetal positioning.

Epidurals can also go the other way. It can stall labour. It can add to other interventions such as assisted delivery due to failure to feel when to push, nasty tears and episiotomies, and synthetic oxytocin to help your uterus contract because you're TOO relaxed. When you get synthetic oxytocin (pitocin or syntocin) it blocks your ability to make your own natural hormone. Meaning your labour is now 100% controlled by another human other than yourself. Knowing these things can help you make a better decision during labour for your one unique circumstance.


The Placenta. You have just birthed your baby. He/she is on your chest. HOLD UP CARE PROVIDER. Don't

clamp that cord just yet (insert record scratch sound effect here.)

H O W D O Y O U W A N T T O D I S C O N N E C T Y O U R B A B Y F R O M H I S / H E R P L A C E N T A ?

‣Clamp and cut immediately? (Standard practice in hospitals unless otherwise notified)

‣Delayed cord clamping? (Waiting until the cords stops pulsing before disconnecting your baby from his/her placenta)

‣Cord burning ceremony? (An ancient tradition by using candles to cauterise and burn through the cord)

‣Lotus birth? (Letting the placenta fall off naturally from your baby and never cutting the cord)

‣Do you want to birth the placenta first and then disconnect?

‣Do you want your partner or other family member or even YOU cut the cord? Do you want to tie it with a cord tie?

‣Do you want to keep your placenta? Bury it? Encapsulate it? Make jewellery out of it (from Beyond the Willow Tree) <-- ya like that subtle shout out?

To find out more about these options, please ask your care provider, dig deeper into your own research from trusted sources, or hire a doula.


The Golden Hour You can opt to have time stop during the hour after your baby is born. Newborn checks can wait. Checking your yoni can wait. Unless there is a posed risk, time can stand still.

W H A T D O I D O F O R T H E F I R S T H O U R ?

‣ Smell your baby

‣ Let your baby naturally find your breast

‣ Skin to skin

‣ Smell your baby some more

‣ Breastfeed

‣ Kiss your lover

‣ Have the room quiet to maintain your space to enable a physiological third stage (if that is what you opted for)

‣ Stitches can wait

‣ Baby's weight can wait

‣ Vitamin k and hep b injections can wait (if you chose to have them)


Third Stage of Labour There are two ways to birth your placenta. You can birth it naturally or with the aid of syntocin. (Synthetic oxytocin that we talked about to help your uterus contact during an induction or augmented labour.)

P H Y S I O L O G I C A L T H I R D S T A G E

This is where your body naturally produces oxytocin to release your placenta. This can take 5 minutes, or take an hour or longer. Talk with your care provider prior to birth to determine what is a suitable timeframe before birthing your placenta. It is best if your care provider not apply traction to the cord to avoid risking pulling it away from the uterine wall prematurely. This can result in a postpartum haemorrhage (PPH) requiring a shot of synthetic oxytocin or surgical repair to stop the bleeding.

M A N A G E D T H I R D S T A G E

If you opted to have an induction or augmented birth (meaning you went into spontaneous labour but needed some help along the way with added synto) it is suggested your receive this shot. This is because the synto from your labour has blocked your body's natural ability to make oxytocin, meaning you'll need some help to get your uterus to contract in order to release the placenta and close the hole where it once was. Synto is also used to help control a PPH. These aren't things to be afraid of. Just things to know what they are for and how they are used and for what purpose in order to chose what works best for you.


P O S T P A R T U M C A R E

This should be apart of your birth plan as well. Ensuring you have proper care after birth is just as important as having a birth plan. Ask friends and family to bring food on designated days. Have someone readily available to help with other children. Research Lactation Consultants in your areas prior to birth if you chose to breastfeed. Pre-make "padsicles" for the immediate days postpartum to help with swelling and tears and grazes. You can soak them in witch hazel, aloe vera, and lavender. You can find other goodie recipes on google too. How long do you want to lay naked in bed with your baby? A week, 6 weeks? When do you want visitors? Do you want to post on social media immediately, or wait until your ready to be contacted after you have bonded with your baby? Buy some good books to read, get a gorgeous journal to write in, and download some of your favourite music and keep it on your night stand should you want to stay in bed. You can also suss out postpartum doulas to help in the immediate postpartum days too. The possibilities are endless. There are no wrong answers except making sure you are 100% loved, supported, and respected- even after birth.

*please note Lacey is NOT medically trained. Please seek medical advice from your care provider


Brainstorm With Me L A B O U R P U S H I N G T H I R D S T A G E P O S T P A R T U M


Name: Place of birth: Birth partner: Contact numbers:

Thank you so much for taking the time out to read and respect my wishes during my birth. During labour I would like <present> to help support me. I would also like to have my birth documented by <name photographer and/ or insert website.> During labour I would like <insert wishes here>. During pushing phase I would like <insert preference here.> When I birth my placenta, I would like to <insert how you you like to honour your placenta here.> please, for the first hour after birth, I would like <insert wishes here.>

I understand that birth can take its own natural course. In order to avoid any interventions, I would prefer <insert preference here to avoid intervention should you want that.> Given the nature of birth, should an emergency arise, I would like to be informed of all of my choices prior to having any medical procedures performed. In the event of a Caesarian Section, I would like to be <awake or not,> I would like to have my placenta <delayed clamping, saved to take home, not cut at all etc.> If possible, I would like to <have a clear drape/curtain lowered to see my baby born.> I would also like to discuss the possibility of <a maternal assisted Caesarian section> during our next antenatal appointment. Immediately following birth after my Caesarian, I would like <immediate skin to skin.> Weight, measurements, and other checks can wait until in recovery. I would like my birth partner present in theatre with me, and to be able to follow our baby and be informed where he/she is going, and what will be done to him/her before any procedures are done. Please do/do not give formula. I would like access to a hospital appointed Lactation Consultant if the hospital has one.

I am looking forward to having you in my birth space and cannot wait to share that experience with you.

Thank you.

<insert name here>

*please note this is a sample and can be tailored to whatever suits your wishes


To Whom it May Concern:

how to birth on your terms - birth photographer€¦ · chose if i had a pleasurable birth or a...

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