The Birth Partner – Penny Simkin

The Complete Book of Pregnancy and Childbirth – Sheila Kitzinger

The Mother of All Pregnancy Books – Ann Douglas  (we also have The Mother of All Baby Books)

Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth – Ina May Gaskin  (we also have Ina May’s Guide to Breastfeeding)

The Thinking Woman’s Guide to A Better Birth – Henci Goer

Pregnancy, Childbirth and the Newborn – Penny Simkin, Janet Whalley, Ann Keppler

The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding – La Leche League Int’l

We have many other titles in our pregnancy,childbirth, breastfeeding and parenting sections, and Maggie will order in anything you need.

Tips for new doulas: ask “established” doulas if you can borrow their books before you buy them. You may have to read a certain book for certification purposes but that doesn’t mean it’s going to fit with your philosophy or that you’ll want it on your bookshelf. Something else to consider is splitting the cost of books and DVDs with another doula.

As your business expands it’s up to you to decide whether you are going to lend out your materials are not. Not every doula has a lending library, but if you do, chances are you are going to lose a few books every year books so factor that into your fees.

Happy Reading!

“Labor induction is significantly associated with a cesarean delivery among nulliparous women at term for those with and without medical or obstetric complications,” the authors noted. “Reducing the use of elective labor induction may lead to decreased rates of cesarean delivery for a population.”~ Ehrenthal, D.B., X. Jiang and D.M. Strobino. 2010. Labor induction and the risk of a cesarean delivery among nulliparous women at term. Obstet Gynecol 116(1): 35–42.

I urge you to look at the study(ies) for yourself. Here is the link to the study quoted above and another study on the definition of ” term pregnancy”.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20567165

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20567179

Because being “overdue” (by who’s standards I would ask) is directly linked to induction and, according to the above study, induction is linked to c-section rates reading these two studies together makes sense.

I am a birth doula, with a counseling background and I am sharing these studies because I want women to  be as informed and knowledgable as possible.

The more you know the more powerful you will be so if you have questions or concerns after reading these studies please talk to your midwife or doctor.

Greetings from your Newfoundland SPAR
By Jillian Hand Humphries, CD(DONA)

Hello from Newfoundland and Labrador!

 There have been a lot of changes happening
here in the city of St. John’s lately. Let’s start with the good news!

 Midwifery legislation is finally in the works for our eastern province. The first reading
of the bill to legislate midwifery as part of an umbrella legislation occurred on
May 6. Two more readings are needed and will likely happen before the summer. A
core group of professionals will be ready to take this on in the fall and then the
act will be proclaimed into law. This is a great first step; however, we still have
a long way to go. The continued lobbying for midwifery services implementation will
be a key factor in moving forward and offering midwifery as an equal choice for
women.

On a sadder note, St. John’s is losing its only midwife. This remarkable woman has
been offering women the option of homebirth despite the lack of legislation, and
in June she will be moving on to another province. As a Doula Collective, we wonder
what the impact of this may be for those women who are determined to have their
babies at home. One can only wait and see. All the same, we wish her the best of
luck and can only hope for her return in future.

The Doula Collective NL continues to remain busy with doula requests and lobbying
efforts. A gap we have identified is the lack of postpartum doulas that are available.
We are hoping that within the next year, there will be more postpartum doulas trained
and ready to assist in filling this gap for the women and new families of this
province.
For more information about the Doula Collective NL, please visit our web site
http://www.doulacollectivenl.ca/

A note from me: For those of us in Nova Scotia the above scenerio sounds all too familiar. If you are a doula, a midwife or a self-avowed birth junkie please send a note of support to our sisters in Nfld & Lbr. *sorry for the crazy structure of the letter, it didn’t translate well from email to blog *

Written by Robie H Harris

Illustrated by Michael Emberley

As a mother, a doula and a sex educator I feel a lot of responsibility when it comes to raising sexually healthy kids.

I want them to be informed but not overwhelmed, and, I want what they learn to be age-appropriate but not prudish or shame-based.

Luckily, I waited until just the right book came into the store.

“It’s Not the Stork” is a well put together, well researched, fact based primer on the birds and the bees. The illustrations, while cartoony, are all anatomically correct & they’ve tried to include as many types of families and ethnicities as possible.

I was thrilled that they talked about both vaginal and surgical birth, as well as the sperm & egg meeting in a petrie dish (they talk about the more common way of fertilization too). There is even a picture of tandem breastfeeding!

Most importantly, my boys loved the book. They are only 2 and 5 years old so we skip a lot but that is the beauty of “It’s Not the Stork”. The book is designed to be used in the way that is most appropriate for your child(ren).

I know we will still be reading and learning from our copy of “It’s not the Stork” for many years to come.

Review written by- Shannon Hardy, CD(DONA)

We will be meeting at my house on June 30th at 3:30 to talk about “The Business of Being a Doula”. We will be talking about contracts, fees, accounting, partnerships, anything related to the businessy side of doulaing (is that a word?)

I have set up a FB event page if you’d like to RSVP. (you can RSVP here too but it would be best for my scattered brain if they are in the same place)

*CHANGE OF DATE* The date has changed for the BoBD, we will be meeting at my house on Tuesday July 6th at 3:30*******

Venus Envy will be mounting an art exhibit for Pride Week and is putting out a call for submissions, in any medium. The subject of the exhibit will be Queer Erotica. Pictures of your work should be sent to the show’s curator, Shannon Hardy: info@halifaxbirth.com

Deadline for submissions is July 6th and the exhibit will be held at Venus Envy- Halifax, 1598 Brrington St.

Our mandate is to showcase Nova Scotian/Canadian artists.

We’ll talk about fees, contracts, accounting, insurance and all things businessy.

As a new doula, having mentors who were willing to share their paperwork and knowledge with me was invaluable, so I hope every doula who can attend will be here.

We will also be discussing the importance of back-up arrangements, networking and safety.

See you soon

First, decide whether you feel more comfortable going solo or with a partner.

Next, the person performing the massage should wash their hands and trim their nails.

Gather up your favourite lube and a hand towel. I suggest a glycerin free lube as they are less likely to cause a yeast infection, but my #1 choice would be an organic, glycerin free, water-based lube, like Sliquid or YES.

If you would rather use a vibe, lucite dildo or a Kegel exerciser to massage your perineum bring that too. Vibes and dils work wonderfully for perineal massage but if you’d like to use a Kegel exerciser I suggest the Isis. This is not an endorsement for Dr. Laura and I have no invested interest in selling her product, the Isis just happens to be well designed for perineal massage.

Lube, toys and Kegel exercisers are all available at Venus Envy.  Full disclosure: I work for Venus Envy and I think our store rocks!

Find a place where you feel comfortable, some women swear by the bath, some women prefer a a bed & lots of pillows. It’s important that you choose a private spot, where you feel safe because you want your vagina to be as relaxed as possible. The same advice goes for your birthing space.

Squeeze a dollop of lube (maybe a nickel size, definitely not a loonie) onto your fingers or your toy.

Place your thumbs or toy approx. three to four centimeters inside your vagina. Press downward and gently slide your toy or thumbs to the side. Gently but firmly keep stretching until you feel a tingling sensation. When you feel the tingle, hold the pressure steady for about two minutes.

If anything hurts STOP. If the massage doesn’t feel comfortable STOP. I know I just wrote to wait until you feel a tingling but if it feels BAD, it is time to STOP. If you are the partner performing the massage check in with mom regularly.

As you keep pressing with your thumbs or toy, slowly and gently massage back and forth over the lower half of your vagina, working the lubricant into the tissues for three to four minutes. Reapply lube as necessary.

As you massage, pull gently outward (and forward) on the lower part of the vagina with your thumbs hooked inside. This helps stretch the skin much in the same way that the baby’s head will stretch it during birth.

Massage you perineum once or twice per day, starting around the 34th week of pregnancy.

There is no evidence that 100%, scientifically proves that perineal massage ensures a tear-free birth but what it will do is help you and/or your parnter become intimately acquainted with the strong and perfectly designed muscles that will be helping to birth your baby.

Remember, a slow, peaceful, upright delivery are all keys to an intact perineum.

I was attending Doula at the Zoo in Moncton, but at that exact moment I was listening to Line Belanger give her the talk “Nothin’ But Mammals”.

She explained how we’ve bred dairy cows to the point they can’t give birth without the use of chains (***note***this is not always the case) and how the calves are immediately whisked away and are never allowed to drink their mothers milk because it is too valuable a commodity. (there was more but I don’t want to misquote Line so I’ll leave it at that)

I don’t think Line had any intention of turning us vegan. She managed to come across as passionate about animals, compassionate for all living beings, yet not preachy in the least.

But as I listened and as a ruminated (unintentional cow reference) on the title of the talk I realized, we ARE connected. I can no longer separate my beliefs surrounding the sacred feminine & the power of creation between human and animal.

We are all living beings & we are connected. That’s enough for me.

Program Assistant

Term: 30 hours per week/16 weeks

The Single Parent Centre is operated by the Home of the Guardian Angel.  The Centre opened in 1980 to respond to the increasing number of young single mothers in need of basic community support.  Since then, the Centre’s programs and services have evolved to meet the changing needs of the community.  Today, the Centre provides a continuum of support for all families and their children with a particular emphasis on supporting and nurturing parents through pregnancy, infancy and the early childhood years.

Position Description:

The Program Assistant helps with childcare and the overall work of the centre.  He/She also provides assistance to the Early Childhood Educator/Playroom Facilitator in providing motivation, education and fun for the children while their parents are participating in programs at the centre. 

Qualifications:

 (service Canada requirements) 

• A full time student returning to full time study in the fall of 2010
• Must be between the ages of 15-30
• A Canadian citizen or permanent resident or person to whom refugee protection has been conferred
• Legally entitled to work in Canada

(HGA requirements)

• Respect for children and Adults
• Ability and willingness to work with children
• Ability and willingness to welcome all who come to our centre

Duties:

Direct Service

• Assist in facilitating the childcare component of the Centre

• Assist in creating attractive bulletin boards with the children’s work
• Be with children initiating activity with them and preparing activities every day.
• Prepare snacks with and for the children
• General housekeeping tasks
• Assist the Playroom Facilitator in preparation for children’s programs

Administration

• Log the names of children attending including any notes re: allergies
• Assist with clerical work when possible
• Record monthly stats

 Community Outreach

• Know assets of the community
• Participate with others in projects