Anyone do natural birth in Bama?

missmiss307

I'm just curious if anyone chose natural childbirth. I am researching my options right now and would love to hear your experience. I know homebirth and getting a midwife isn't an option, but I know that my OBGYN is extremely supportive of natural birth and will do her best to accommodate my wishes. I'm on the fence for now, but I am trying to decide what's best for me and my LO.

amandabrooke81

Hi, I personally chose the "druggie" route, but when I got involved with LLL for BFing I heard/learned a great deal about natural births/homebirths, etc. Obviously since this state won't legally authorize professional midwives, homebirths have become a hot topic.

I'm not sure if this would be a good route, but the Alabama Birth Coalition website is https://www.alabamabirthcoalition.org/ and there are nurse midwives that can attend hospital births. You might try the "Get Involved" tab to inquire of hospital options for natural birth assistance and other resources.

HTH

starsmaycollide

Hi!  I'm preparing to go med free. I'm going to use different positions/elements from the Bradley method along with the hypnobabies program to help me avoid meds/ an epidural.

I bought the hypnobabies home study course off ebay and have been listening to the tracks every night and they are really relaxing. I'm on week 3 of 5 of the 'lessons' so to speak.  Deciding to use this tool and reading Marie Mongon's book on hypnobirthing has been great for me- it's really help me look at the birth positively and decreased my anxiety about labor (-'m typically a big worrier by nature.

And just to clarify-the name sounds corny, and it even feels corny at first-but the premise is to learn to put yourself in deep relaxation during labor in order to have a better experience. The tracks in the hypnobabies home study course help me meditate daily and listen to positive messages about birth so I will feel confident.

My OB basically said she wants my experience to be as much like we want it as possible, so that is helpful. I also know from reading a recent article on natural birth in Birmingham that St. Vincent's offers tubs, birth balls, and labor bars, along with gliders-so I look forward to having a hep lock,  moving around and utilizing whatever helps me most at the time. I also plan on laboring at home for awhile before going in. 

starsmaycollide

oh and just FYI- there are some doulas in Birmingham listed at https://www.birthwell-birmingham.com/-not sure how travel fees may work/re possible, but it's a resource for you if that's something your interested in.

If you are needing a book to help with more research, I LOVE The Birth Partner by Penny Simkin-it's really great for any kind of birth/expectant mom, but has lots of info on comfort measures during labor .

sdkrlm

this may not be a feasible option but they have birthing centers in Tennessee too.

I think hiring a doula would be a great idea also.

And - Katie (Aubie) went natural on the board - I"m not sure if she planned it or just happened that way but props to her! 

 

MissLMS

If you want to go natural, I second Sarah's suggestion of hiring a doula. It's what I plan to do whenever we have our next child. There are a few doulas in birmingham, but there is also a website for one in Tuscaloosa: https://www.tuscaloosadoula.com/Site/About_Me.html

 Also, I highly recommend reading up on natural childbirth. I really liked the book Ina May's Guide to Childbirth. https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_29?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=ina+may%27s+guide+to+childbirth&sprefix=ina+may%27s+guide+to+childbirth

Also, I would say to keep an open mind and don't be scared. I was deadset on wanting to do natural and I made it to 8.5 cm before I caved in and got an epidural because I knew it was my last opportunity for one and I was scared to death. But, overall I had a great birth experience and labor was no where near as painful as I thought it would be. (I labored mostly at home and walked 2.5 miles around the neighborhood while in labor. When we got to the hospital, I was 6 cm and bounced on the birthing ball while posting on my laptop. It seriously was nothing like I imagined it to be unmedicated.)

Good luck.... and I'm sure the girls on here who had successful natural births will have lots of good tips!

missmiss307

Thanks so much for all the resources, ladies! Lydia, I actually looked up Melissa (the doula in Tuscaloosa) at your suggestion, and we have a lot of mutual friends, so I sent her a message to see if she would be willing to meet and talk about natural child birth. I have a long way to go in making a decision, but all the suggestions here have been really helpful!

missmiss307

Oh! And, Starsmaycollide (sorry, I don't know your name!), thanks for the info on hypnobirthing. I read some about it on the natural birth board, but some of the stories there about it were a little weird (someone said she communicated with her dead grandmothers while she was practicing it?!). Hearing you talk about it makes me feel a little better about looking into it, at least.

starsmaycollide

missmiss307:

Oh! And, Starsmaycollide (sorry, I don't know your name!), thanks for the info on hypnobirthing. I read some about it on the natural birth board, but some of the stories there about it were a little weird (someone said she communicated with her dead grandmothers while she was practicing it?!). Hearing you talk about it makes me feel a little better about looking into it, at least.

No problem, your welcome! My name is Lauren. And WHAT? Her dead grandmother? If that  helped, more power to her, but I promise it does not teach you to communicate with the dead. lol.

I will say I am not full on with all of it-like it says to call contractions things like 'pressure waves' or 'surges' because it's positive language. I understand that concept, but "contraction" isn't something I autonatically find negative, so I won't be insisting they be referred to as something else. But, I do get what they mean about not looking at labor in a scary. negative way-avoiding negative stories, not calling it 'labor pains', etc. 

Also, there's the premise that it can make for a painless birth. If that happens, it may be because the person learns to perceive pain differently, (they teach you to think about it as pressure, not "OMG pain!!")  but I would not intend on aiming for something that is unrealistic, ya know? So I am all for when the voice on my tracks says, "you can have a MORE comfortable" birthing, but I'm not expecting magic, either. Hope that makes sense. 

The thing that sold me on trying it is the scientific principle of fight or flight response. When your body goes into that response from fear/panic/ etc., (like in the movies-the lady's water breaks and everyone runs like chickens with their heads cut off!)  you naturally tense up-and that includes the muscles needed to get your baby down in the right position for birth. This makes labor worse. If hypnobabies can help me not fight the contractions, but go with them/breathe better/relax as much as can be expected, I think I definitely could be in less pain and and be more successful in avoiding meds.