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Meet Lauren McClain, Bowie Birth Educator and Author

5/25/2016

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I first met Lauren in 2010.  Over the years, I've had the pleasure of getting to know this amazing woman on a personal and professional level.  She has a wealth of knowledge and information about birth, in general, and breech presentation, in particular.  She works hard to help women know their options in pregnancy and labor, and to make informed decisions for themselves.  She offers Birth Boot Camp childbirth education classes in Bowie, Maryland, helps breech mamas worldwide on her website, and is the author of Breech Baby Handbook.  
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How did you get into the birth world?

After my breech baby, I went into hyper research mode to find out if I actually needed a cesarean or if there were intelligent, trustworthy, and wise providers who would have offered me a vaginal breech birth.  I wanted to know if I made the right decision--to have a pre-labor cesarean for a footling breech baby who weighed 10 lbs.  It started as a path to affirmation, to know if the story I told myself in order to lay on the operating table was true.  I told myself that we needed the surgery; that the surgery saved one or both our lives.  It's a common refrain in birth stories and in my case I wanted to know if it was true.

Was it true?

I don't know.  I don't think so.  I think she could have been born safely, but the truth is I really needed someone to tell me that.  I had fallen into the belief that it wasn't safe.  I believed it was possible but probably very dangerous and not a smart path--not a good choice.  I would have been plagued with anxiety, my husband would have been worried, and there was no one who supported it.  That may have made it unsafe or overly dramatic and intense. 

If I had met Mary Cooper back then, I could have done it.  She's an Ohio midwife who works primarily among the Amish and other plain people.  She's done thousands of births and feels very confident about breech and women's birthing ability in general.  If I ever have another breech after 35 weeks, I will drive to Ohio and stay at a hotel until I go into labor--if she'll have me!

So anyway, I realized how important full information is, and how important it is to have people around you that believe birth works.  Birth is so much better when you believe it works, when you trust your body and your baby.  I was way too ignorant and needed more support than I got.  I decided to provide that where I could--to breech mamas online and with birth classes in person.  

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What spurred you on to write your Breech Baby Handbook?

I researched and wrote the website to help parents of breech babies make decisions about their care almost 5 years ago.  It's helped a lot of people who are looking for answers.  When I am in mega research mode myself, I'd really rather have the layout of a book.  So I decided to put everything I know about breech in a book format, with headings and sections, and references, charts and graphs and all that good stuff.  There's also better updating, more tips, slightly more information.  It's the first thing to get added to when I get new information.  Having the book serves two purposes.  One is to make getting information and support for breech choices easier and faster and the other is that I get a little income and am forced to keep things current.  I did it as a public service for long enough that it was starting to get slow...now I have a reason to keep it going.  A whole lot of information is still available on the website for free, but the book adds another dimension. 

Who do you hope will read this book?

Women with breech babies and their families, of course.  Though it's good to know about breech options early in pregnancy.  Mostly though the big free tip is that every woman should ask her provider to check the position of her baby by 34 weeks.  A lot of the things we can do to help babies turn work better earlier.  That said, I really hope more birth workers will read it and be certified as Friends of Breech Babies, so they can offer breech consultations and help all their clients have optimally positioned babies or feel confident about their choices with breech.  There simply isn't much time when you find out your baby may be born breech. It's overwhelming.
 
How can care providers help breech moms?

Midwives and doctors can start fostering a community where vaginal breech birth is a safe and acceptable practice.  This means attending training, talking about it, finding a provider to shadow for breech births, and working to bring the option back.  People don't offer vaginal breech birth because women don't demand them.  I know that one midwife or one doctor usually can't just do as she pleases and buck the system.  That can be dangerous for their license and their job and sometimes their freedom.  But if they always refer women with breeches to providers who do offer vaginal breech birth, at least for a consultation, the climate will start to change.  There's a big difference between "No, a cesarean is your only option, it's not safe" and "I can't help you, but I know someone who can."

What can breech moms do to help themselves?

If you already have a breech baby (34 weeks +), decide if you want to have a vaginal breech birth.  Look at the research and the professional opinions, and decide.  Find someone who can attend you if you do want to and transfer your care.  Then decide if you want to try to turn the baby.  You're better off being with a supportive provider, even if your baby is head down.  If you want to try to turn the baby, be serious but relaxed about it.  Which is as hard as it sounds.  You can't do a few breech tilts here and there and look at spinning babies once a week and expect anything to change.  You have to be serious about it.  Try the Vinaver Method, see a hypnotherapist, go to the chiropractor, etc.  Not just one and done.  But you also have to stay positive and stay relaxed, being OK with whatever happens. The oxytocin has to stay high for you to even go into labor, and there are more breech babies with stressed mothers.  Good luck, right! 

How do you feel the environment is changing for breech moms?  Or do you think it is?

Vaginal breech birth is coming back.  It is.  There is great breech research coming out of Europe soon, and there has already been some.  More trainings are being offered, there are conferences about it. The professional opinions are opening up.  Institutional and system change is always slow, but it's coming.  Pregnant women and their families are helping to drive it.  People need to leave practices that don't offer what we want, and we need to tell them why.  Change follows the money. It's still an economy. 

Do you feel the environment is changing for birth in general?  

For sure.  Kind of like in the 70s, when our mothers were demanding they be able to labor without drugs and with their husbands present, more women now are asking for the freedom to move around, to make the decisions themselves, to have full information.  Birth classes used to be more about birthing in such a way as to not bother or annoy the hospital.  Here are ways to relax and breathe so that you can just lay there as if you are asleep or stay in the bed like they like you to do, and they won't push drugs.  I'm not saying that relaxation and breathing aren't important.  There are few things that are as important as being able to relax--body, mind, and soul, and getting oxygen to your muscles and baby. That's tantamount to safe birth.  Not to mention pleasant birth.  But modern birth classes help women advocate for themselves, move around in labor, practice upright birth, involve the partner.  Moan if you want to, use these balls, this rebozo, etc.  The options for pain relief are more varied and widely available.  Doula practice is strong.  It's much easier now to be part of the decisions, to advocate for yourself.  Doctors and midwives know they have to make some accommodations. It's a work in progress. 

How can care providers and other birth workers help birth be better?

Listen to women, and give them full information.  Give them options. If you don't feel comfortable with what they want, send them elsewhere.

How have you been able to make birth better, for your students?  For your community?  For the world?

The best part about teaching is opening doors and saying, "Have a look in here."  If I've helped anyone, it's because she looked behind one of those doors and explored it herself.  Then she can make a decision about what feels right for her.  Sometimes she will look for other doors to open on her own, now that she knows about the kinds of doors to look for.  No matter what she decides, I can still be standing there with her.  And I think that's how we make a difference.  Just be.  ​

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What's in a TENS?

5/12/2016

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Last week, I had the pleasure of meeting with other doulas for an amazing workshop hosted by an incredible woman, Penny Bussell Stansfield.  The topic:  using the TENS unit in labor.  Ever heard of a TENS before?  I hadn’t either until recently.  So let me share with you what it is, what it feels like, and why it may help you in labor.

What is a TENS?

TENS stands for Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation.  What that means is that mild electrical impulses are transmitted from a handheld device to stimulation pads attached to the mother’s back.  The impulses, through the pads, stimulate her nerve fibers.  The device can be held by the mother so she can be in control of the power, intensity, and setting as she goes in and out of contractions.  The unit itself is pretty small.  The handheld device is smaller than a Wii remote and each pad is about 2” x 3” big.  The lead wires that go from the pads to the device are about 3 feet long.

What does it feel like?

Jessica Koester and Dorothy Haines, two doulas from New Jersey describe it as a “shower massager without water,” which is a perfect description!  The TENS feels like a pleasant vibration sensation on your back.  As you up the levels, the vibration increases.  You can read more in Jessica’s and Dorothy’s blogpost here:  http://yourbestbirth.blogspot.com/2010/01/tens-anyone.html?m=1

Why may it help in labor?

In 1965, the Gate Control Theory was proposed by Ronald Melzack, a psychologist, and Patrick Wall, a neuroscientist.  “The Gate Control Theory of Pain holds that the perception of physical pain is modulated by interaction between different neurons, both pain transmitting and non-pain-transmitting.  Activation of nonnociceptive [non-pain-transmitting] fibers can interfere with signals from pain (nociceptive) fibers at the level of the dorsal horn in the spinal column, thereby inhibiting perception of pain.  This is because activation of nonnociceptive fibers (through rubbing the area or through TENS) inhibits the firing of nociceptive fibers, which carry pain signals.  Thus the brain can control the degree of pain that is perceived, based on which pain stimuli are to be ignored.  In other words, the brain controls the perception of pain quite directly.  This understanding led Melzack to assert that pain is ‘in the brain’.  Pain awareness can be reduced by increasing innocuous stimuli, such as the tingling sensation from the TENS unit.”  (Penny Bussell, www.pennydoula.com)  Basically this theory states that if non-pain-transmitting neurons, which travel faster to the brain, are stimulated, they can override the pain-transmitting signals that travel more slowly, in essence, “closing the gate” to the brain.

With that in mind, using a TENS unit in labor can help 2 things:  1) when used on a low frequency, the tickling sensation stimulates the production of endorphins which are the body’s natural pain relieving hormones; and 2) when used on a high frequency, the non-pain-transmitting neurons are stimulated and override the pain-transmitting neurons (thus “closing the gate” on those pain messages).


The advantages to using a TENS unit in labor include:
  • The mother may feel more in control of labor since she operates the device herself.
  • She has freedom of movement.
  • She can remain clear-headed (vs narcotic pain relief).
  • She can still employ other comfort techniques in addition to the TENS (except no bath or shower).

However, there are some things to keep in mind when considering using a TENS:
  • It is less effective than an epidural (which blocks the pain receptors completely).
  • Some women do not find it helpful.
  • It should be started in early labor to be effective.
  • It cannot be used in water, so no bath or shower.  However, the mother can just turn off the device and take the pads off if she wants a break in the water.
  • Do not use if you have seizures, a pacemaker, or a rash or injured skin in that area.
  • Do not use before 37 weeks (you can try it out on your arm before 37 weeks if you want to see what it feels like).

How do I use a TENS?

Each TENS comes with instructions but here are the basic steps:
  • Make sure the skin is clean and dry in the area you’re going to apply the pads.
  • Apply 2 pads right below your bra line, about an inch away from each side of the spine.
  • Apply the other 2 pads so the bottom of the pad is in line with the top of your bottom, and have both pads in line with the top 2 pads.
  • Attach the leadwires to the pads (for the OBI unit, placing the colors diagonally opposite seems to have the best results) and then plug the leadwires into the unit.
  • Turn the unit on and press up or down to increase or decrease frequency.  You can also push the BOOST button to have it be a continuous vibration vs the bursts.

That’s it!  It’s really quite simple!  I’m so excited to be able to offer this tool to my clients in labor.  If you have any questions, shoot me an email!

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What a baby chick taught me about birth interventions

11/10/2015

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I always wanted to live on a farm because I love animals.  As we would pass by rolling farms on my childhood family vacations, I would press my face against the window longingly, wondering what it would be like to own and take care of all those horses, cows, sheep and chickens.

When my husband and I visited England several years ago with our children, I took as many opportunities as I could to drive through the countryside and take my kids to farms.  It was neat to see my 18 month old learn the animal names and sounds first-hand.

Three years ago we started homeschooling our kids.  I decided as a science project to have my kids incubate chicken eggs.  My friend had a free-range farm that I could borrow eggs and an incubator and then return any hatched chicks to her.  It was perfect.  My kids and I learned all about chick development and the hatching process.  We were thrilled when hatching day came.  We spent the first month of their lives watching and playing with them.  They would even cuddle in my kids’ laps.  We were all sad when it was time for them to go back to the farm.

A few months ago, we decided to incubate again.  As hatching day came and went, we were still hopeful all was well.  The next day, one of the chicks began to pip through its shell.  There was just a little hole that we could hear chirping through.  We waited all day for progress but nothing happened.  The clear membrane around the chick began to dry and thicken.  I began to worry.  
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I looked online for what to do and found directions on how to help the chick hatch.  I carefully got tweezers and picked a small straight line around half of the egg and then stopped, laid the egg on a warm, wet washcloth, and waited.  Within five minutes the chick was hatched.  My son and I hugged each other in excitement that it worked.

And then the dread kicked in.  I had intervened in that chick’s hatching.  I had done exactly what I was against for pregnant women:  intervening in the natural process of birth.  So often, expecting moms experience routine interventions in the hopes that it helps keep mom and baby safe but sometimes it can actually lead to bigger interventions, such as cesareans.

But, and this is a big but, what I recognized from this experience was that sometimes, those interventions truly are necessary, under the right conditions.  When I thought back to my helping the chick, there were 2 things I did that I feel good about:

  1. I waited as long as I could.  The membrane sac was white and hard which meant the chick was not able to spin in his egg to continue to pip around his shell.  And he had stopped chirping.
  2. I did the least amount of intervening I could.  I only pipped about halfway around the shell.  I then provided the chick with a wet washcloth and stepped back to let the chick take care of the rest.  Which he did.

How is this chick like a pregnant woman?  She deserves the same respect.  She deserves to be given as much time as is safely possible to birth her baby, and once interventions are deemed necessary, start with the minimal amount and then step back and see if her body responds and continues on its own from there.

It’s a blessing to have the medical technology we have to help women in extraordinary circumstances to birth their babies but overuse and mismanagement of this technology is a concern.  Let’s try to give nature a chance.

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