Pregnancy, Parenthood & Playtime

I have to admit, since I graduated high school, I haven’t really looked back or gone back to visit with my old teachers as many do. But yesterday I was pleased to read an article in the Connecticut Post about the Bridgeport Aquaculture school expanding, and in turn will be able to double their enrollment. I was smiling from ear to ear as I read this and watched the video that went along with the article.

From my Sophomore year of high school, till my Senior year I attended the aquaculture school. Growing up on the water, with a father who was not only a Longshoreman but also an Oysterman on Long Island Sound, it was second nature to want to go to the aquaculture school when it came time for high school, and I was also strongly encouraged to by both of my parents. My grades were good enough, as well as attendance so when I put in my application, I was interviewed and accepted.

Over those next 3 years, I learned everything from Coral Propagation to how to repair a outboard boat engine. All those things that people don’t normally even have interest in, let alone think about learning in high school. On top of that I was able to make friends, and learn with people from other school districts. Since I went in the morning, I was also accompanied by Bridgeport, and Fairfield schools.

At times it was tough, and I think many underestimate the academics that really go into that school, and the educational needs that are being met. Many classes offered and in some standards considered college level science classes, especially those who choose to take part in the intensive program which increased your hours at the school.

During my time, I was also able to take part in a national organization called the FFA, or better known as The Future Farmers of America. Sounds strange for a fish school though right?  Many of the principals of farming go hand in hand with aquaculture, which is farming of the sea in so many words.

As a parent, with high school as a very distant thought as neither of my children are in school yet, I hope the Aquaculture school continues to thrive and expand so when my boys are high school age, I can help to encourage them to consider the school because of the great educational benefits, as well as the fun that I had when I was there. Nothing beats having class on a boat once a week!

Good Job to the state and federal government for putting money into a program that is truly worthy!

Lots of us have been out apple picking with our families, so in  honor of that I decided to post a fun, yummy, and great recipe to make into a family activity. Yesterday myself and my toddler made this and it came out delicious!

1 Cup Oil
3 Eggs
2 Cups Sugar
1 Tsp. Vanilla
3 Cups Diced Apples
3 Cups Flour
1 Tsp. Cinnamon
1 Tsp. Baking Soda
1 Tsp. Salt
1 Cup Chopped Nuts or Raisins

Combine all the liquid ingredients
Gradually add all of the dry ingredients while mixing.
Add apples and nuts/raisins last.

Bake in two separate bread bans, or 3 separate disposable foil loaf pans.
Bake at 300 Degrees for 1 1/2 hours.

Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes.

Consumer reports tackles everything from cars to stereo systems, but now they are taking a much needed turn into the maternity care community, and they are also helping to debunk some common maternity care myths, that are still used in the Obstetric field today.

I hope you enjoy this great piece of information from Consumer reports.

True or False?

An Obstetrician will deliver better maternity care, overall, than a midwife or family doctor.
False. Studies show that the 8 percent to 9 percent of U.S. women who use midwives and the 6 to 7 percent who choose family physicians generally experienced just-as-good results as those who go to obstetricians. Those who used midwives also ended up with fewer technological interventions. For example, women who received midwifery care were less likely to experience induced labor, have their water broken for them, episiotomies, pain medications, intravenous fluids, and electronic fetal monitoring, and were more likely to give birth vaginally with no vacuum extraction or forceps, than similar women receiving medical care. Note that an obstetric specialist is best for the small proportion of women with serious health concerns.

Induced Labor can halt fetal development.
True. The vital organs (including the brain and lungs) continue to develop beyond the 37th week of gestation. There is also a five-fold increase in the brain’s white matter volume between 35 and 41 weeks after conception. Inducing labor (with synthetic oxytocin, for example) might stop this growth if the fetus is not fully developed. Between 1990 and 2005, the number of women whose labor was induced more than doubled.

Due Date estimates can be off by up to two full weeks.
True. This inaccuracy can lead to a baby being delivered by induction or Caesarean section up to two weeks earlier than its estimated due-date, cutting off important weeks of fetal development.

“Breaking the Waters” helps hasten labor.
False. There is no evidence to support the fact that this common practice (about 47% of women) shortens labor, increases maternal satisfaction, or improves outcomes for newborns.

Induced labors increase the likelihood of cesarean sections in first time mothers.
True. The cervix may not be ready for labor. Other effects of induced labor include an increased likelihood of an epidural, an assisted delivery with vacuum extraction or forceps, and extreme bleeding postpartum.

Once you have had a c-section, it is best to do it again.
False. Studies show that, as the number of a woman’s previous C-sections increased, so did the likelihood of harmful conditions, including: trouble getting pregnant again, problems delivering the placenta (placenta accreta), longer hospital stays, intensive-care (ICU) admission, hysterectomy, and blood transfusion.

Labor itself can benefit a newborns immunity.
True. When babies do not experience labor (if the mother has a C-section before entering into labor, for example), they fail to benefit from changes that help to clear fluid from their lungs. That clearance can protect against serious breathing problems outside the womb. Passage through the vagina might also increase the likelihood that the newborn’s intestines will be colonized with “good” bacteria after the sterile womb environment.

Epidural anesthesia is a low-risk way to make labor easier.
False. Many women welcome the pain relief, but might not be well-informed about the increased risk of its side-effects, including lack of mobility, sedation, fever, longer pushing, and serious perineal tears.

Epidural anesthesia presents risks to newborns.
True. Babies whose mothers received epidurals during labor are at risk for rapid heart rate, hyperbilirubinemia (the presence of an excess of bilirubin in the blood), need for antibiotics, and poorer performance on newborn assessment tests.

Episiotomies reduce the risk of perineal tearing.
False. Evidence shows that routine use of episiotomy offers no benefits but rather increases women’s risk of experiencing perineal injury, stitches, pain and tenderness, leaking stool or gas, and pain during sexual intercourse. Yet in 2005, 25 percent of women with vaginal births continued to experience this intervention. Episiotomy is one of several obstetric practices adopted into common usage before being adequately studied.

The source for Consumer reports information came from,
Source: “Evidence-Based Maternity Care: What It Is and What It Can Achieve,” a detailed review of clinical evidence by Carol Sakala and Maureen P. Corry published by the Childbirth Connection, the Reforming States Group, and the Milbank Memorial Fund, October 2008.

I hope mothers take the chance to read this, and about their provider before laboring and birthing with them!

As a mother who has had two cesarean sections, and someone who deeply works in the birth community, the rising numbers of cesarean sections across the country, as well as across the state of Connecticut is deeply concerning. Not just as someone who is educated about this, not just as a mother who hopes to have more children some day (and not be forced to have unnecessary surgery), but it is also becoming concerning to maternity care providers nationwide.

This morning I read an article in one of my favorite parenting magazines, Mothering. It was about the state of birth in the United States and the lack of access to real education, information, and providers who will attend a Vaginal Birth after a Cesarean Section, also better known as VBAC.  Numerous studies, publications, and scientific evidence have proven VBAC to be safer than elective repeat cesarean sections, which is really a no-brainer. Cesarean sections are major abdominal surgery which any surgery carries risks. There are some cases in which the risk of the procedure is out weighted by the medical need for the procedure, but certainly not at the numbers we are seeing them today. Connecticut currently holds a 34.6% cesarean section birth rate. Meaning when you step foot inside a hospital to give birth to your child, your risk for a cesarean birth is 1 out of every 3 women that steps foot in that hospital, some hospitals in the state have up to 45% cesarean rates making your risk go up even higher.

In some hospitals across our state, there are something called VBAC Bans. Hospitals that will simply not accept any woman who is planning or wanting to have a vaginal birth after a cesarean section. Meaning, either these women need to travel out of their area, opt for a birth at home, or consent to a repeat cesarean which they have no desire or need for.  Why is this all so alarming?   Below is a quote I took from the article about this subject in Mothering Magazine…

In 2002, 26.1 percent of US women gave birth by cesarean. The majority of these were elective repeat operations and first cesareans for dystocia, or failure of labor to progress, a highly variable diagnosis. The cesarean rate is the highest ever for this country. Eighteen percent of women had a primary cesarean, a rate also unprecedented.2 Of concern is the fact that young women between the ages of 18 and 24 have the highest number of first cesareans.3 A cesarean rate of no more than 15 percent is recommended by the World Health Organization,4 and a goal of the US National Health Service is a cesarean rate of 15 percent for first-time mothers by the year 2010.5

What stands out the most is the fact that after studying, running statistics, surveying, researching, and publishing reports, The World Health Organizations states for a country of our status, there should not be a cesarean birth rate over 15% and we are OVER double that number at this point in time.  Why again is this so concerning? In my opinion, and again this is just my personal opinion. I am not a Doctor, I am not a medical professional, I do not work as a medical professional in any capacity at all. I am simply a mother, who has extensively researched this, for the health and well being of myself, and my children.  I do not believe that women are fully being informed of their risks or even learning how serious this surgery truly is. It is the most popular surgery among women today, women electing to have cesarean’s with their first pregnancies, women electing to have major abdominal surgery for no medical reason in the thousands of elective repeat cesarean’s that are taking place today. Why? It completely boggles my mind. As a parent, I can simply not wrap my head around electing to put myself, and my baby at risk for no valid reason.

Below is another quote taken from the very well written and educational Mothering article.

Dangers for the Mother: Although cesarean section is safer than ever before, it is still major abdominal surgery with inherent risks. A woman who has one cesarean will always be at risk for a uterine rupture in a subsequent pregnancy, whether she labors for a VBAC or has an elective repeat cesarean delivery.With one prior uterine scar, the risk of a uterine rupture is 1 in 500, compared to 1 in 10,000 for a woman without a cesarean scar. Each additional cesarean increases that risk. Postoperative complications include risk of injury to other organs (2 percent), hemorrhage (1 to 6 percent of women will need a blood transfusion), blood clots in the legs (0.06 to 2 percent), pulmonary embolism (0.01 to 2 percent), infection (up to 50 times higher), and complications from anesthesia. A woman is four times as likely to have a placenta previa (low-lying placenta) in her next pregnancy, putting her at risk for miscarriage, bleeding during pregnancy and labor, placental abruption, and premature delivery. One birth by cesarean puts a mother at 10 times the risk for placenta accreta (placenta grows into or through the uterus), for which women often require a hysterectomy to stop the hemorrhaging. The incidence of placenta accreta has increased tenfold in the last 50 years.

A US study found that mothers are four times more likely to die from a cesarean unrelated to health problems, compared with women who have vaginal births.

These are not small risks, they are not minor complications, and some of the impacts on the infant can become lifelong issues especially with the increased risk for breathing problems in cesarean born infants.  These are not things I am making up, I simply am not sugar coating them like some women would prefer that people do. I knew going into the birth of my second child that having a VBAC was important, not only to me, but to my child, while that plan did not work out, he got several benefits of  attempting a VBAC.  One being, he came when he was ready. Had I scheduled a repeat cesarean, he may have been born prematurely given I had been given two different due dates. One sooner than the other.  The March of Dimes has also spoke out against elective cesareans before 39 weeks gestation because of the great risk for a baby that is simply not ready to join the world.

One thing that many women neglect to talk about is the emotional impact of a cesarean section on the mother. In the months after I had my first child via cesarean I heard a lot of “Just be happy you have a healthy baby”  of course I am happy that I have a healthy baby, but that doesn’t change the fact that many women do feel negatively about their birth experience, and even in some cases they are traumatized.

No, this does not only happen in women who have had surgical deliveries, but it is so prominent in the cases of cesarean sections that there is an international organization that aids these women in their recovery, and offers them an amazing support system for their recovery, and future births. ICAN also known as The International Cesarean Awareness Network.  If there was no need for this group, it would not exist, nor would it have thousands of members internationally. But people do not want to really understand that there are negatives of the large number of cesarean sections taking place today.  Another great quote from the Mothering Article reads….

Emotional Scars of Cesareans: Personal accounts from women who have had a cesarean, as well as emerging research, suggest that despite a healthy baby and a timely physical recovery, some women experience cesarean birth as a traumatic event. An unanticipated cesarean is more likely to increase the risk for postpartum depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). As in other traumatic human experiences, the symptoms of birth-related PTSD may emerge weeks, months, or years after the event.9–11 Women re-experience the birth and the emotions associated with it in dreams or thought intrusions. They avoid places or people that remind them of the event. Some mothers have difficulty relating to their infants, and some will avoid sexual contact that may result in pregnancy. They will also exhibit symptoms of hyperarousal, such as difficulty sleeping or concentrating, irritability, and an excessive startle response. Untreated post-traumatic stress often leads to clinical depression.12

A traumatic birth of any kind can leave a woman feeling disempowered, violated, or betrayed. Unless she has had the opportunity to process the event, in her next pregnancy a woman who has no way of controlling what she perceives as events that are likely to reoccur will sometimes choose to repeat a cesarean with a known physician in a more controlled environment.

It is comforting today to see the emotional impacts of this surgery, and the experiences being addressed in such a large scale publication. In my time working with ICAN and running the chapter here in the state of Connecticut, I have been contacted by numbers of women who are in need of a shoulder to cry on, someone who understands when they say they hated their birth experience, someone to talk to about them not connecting with their newborn like they feel they should, someone to just listen. If you think that all these women are ok, you are wrong.

Sure there are thousands that just go on with their lives, and there are thousands who know their cesarean was medically necessary for one reason or another, like I experienced with my second cesarean, which I fully knew was necessary. But believe me, out of the circles of women you may know, there is at least one that is hurting from her experience, but is ashamed, scared, or intimidated to share how she really feels for the fear of the oh so common, “Just be glad you have a healthy baby” because that is hurtful.

Until you have walked in someone elses shoes, you should always think twice about what you have to say about their personal experience. That goes especially to those who have never had children, or had a cesarean section.

Sorry for being kind of long today.

As parents, the last thing we want is a sick child, especially if we have more the one child in the house, because whatever germ makes its want into the house will spread like wild fire to everyone, including you!
So I put together a small list of simple things we can do to keep ourselves, and our children healthy and safe this cold and flu season!

• If you are feeling sick, a little under the weather, or are getting a cold or some type of illness, stay home. That will help others, including children from catching whatever it is that you have picked up. Being considerate to others is a big one!  (On a side note, see if you can work from home if at all possible)
• Same goes for keeping your sick children home from school. Kids share everything, including their illnesses, so do other children, and parents a favor and keep them home from school if they are sick. Some children suffer from compromised immune systems also, you will be doing them a great favor.
• Cover your mouth and nose with a disposable paper product when you sneeze or cough.
• Avoid leaving food out, whether it is your lunch, a drink, or just some snacks.  Food out in the open is a huge way to aid in the spread of germs.
• Wash you hands!  (The proper way to wash your hands is….Rub your hands together with soap and water for a full 15 seconds at the least, then rinse your hands thoroughly, and dry them completely.)   Always wash your hands before you eat too!
• Disinfecting wipes!  They work wonders for around the house, card, school class rooms, keyboards, grocery store shopping carts, and everything else you come in contact with on a daily basis.

With just a couple small steps it can help you and your children stay nice and cold and flu free this summer!

Also remember, eating healthy and maintaining your health is another small way to help keep your immune system in tip top shape to fight off virus’s.

‘Tis the season for Pumpkin picking with the family!
We try to make it a point to go every year as a family, before I had children of my own, I would always bring my nephew, but it was more for me because I just love fall outdoor activities like that, as well as carving the pumpkins!

We have made our pumpkin picking date for next weekend, but I really wanted to write something today.

Anyways, enough sadness in the midst of a fun post!

There are tons of great places to go pumpkin picking here in Connecticut, and some of these same areas have beautiful fall foliage, which is worth a drive in itself. I am going to start with my local favorite for pumpkins…

Camden last year at Jone's Pumpkin Seed Hill

Jones Family Farms -  Pumpkin Picking at Jones starts on September 26th, and lasts through Halloween day, from 10am till 5:30pm. My best suggestion for going is during mid day when the sun is nice, bright, and HOT!  It is up on a hill “Pumpkin Seed Hill” and the wind can be very gusty and cold!  Pumpkin Seed Hill is located at 120 Beardsley Road, Shelton, CT. 06484.  For more information on the crops for the day, call Jones at 203-929-8425.

Silverman’s Farm – Pumpkin’s are now ready for picking at Easton’s Silverman’s Family Farm. Located on 451 Sport Hill Road in Easton, CT.
Silverman’s is open daily from 9am till 5pm year round, except closing on select holidays. Call for more information on the pick you own crops, 203-261-3306

Lyman Orchards – Pumpkins are also now ready at Lyman Orchards in Middlefield! For more information about pick your own hours at Lyman Orchards, call 860-349-1793. Lyman Orchards is located at the junction of Routes 147& 157 in Middlefield, CT.

Bishop’s Orchards – Pumpkins are now available for picking at Bishop’s Orchards right here in Guilford, CT. For more information about pick your own conditions and hours, you can call their pick your own hotline at 203-458-PICK. Fall pick your own is located at 480 New England Road, Guilford, CT.

Now, I listed the above because they are all places that I have personally been to and picked at.
For a full list of places to pick, all over the state of Connecticut click this link for Where to find Pumpkin Picking, Corn Mazes, and Hay Rides!

Happy Picking!

I am going to be away from blogging for a couple days because I experienced a great loss this past week.

I met Karen in 2008 when I started my ICAN chapter here in Connecticut. She was the very first person to contact me about ICAN and she was so excited. She came to all of our meetings, she spoke at meetings as she was an amazingly educated and helpful child birth educator as well as birth doula. I could always pick up the phone and have an instant answer to any question I had, she was just that good. As time went on we became much closer. We would chit chat on the phone for hours, all hours of the night, about God knows what. We would go to her house as a family to spend time with her, hang out, all have dinner together with her and her husband, and she just became a second mother to me.

Karen comforting me while in labor with Benjamin

When it came time to look for a doula for my VBAC, I couldn’t think of a better person, and of course she was the perfect fit. She was with me for my long labor, over 18 hours of it, all night long, slept in a chair in the hospital, and I couldn’t think of a better person to have supported me through my experience.

Yesterday I received an e-mail that she passed away through the grape vine, but only 6 hours earlier I had got an e-mail from her directly. I didn’t believe it. Which I think is the first step to accepting death for any person. Disbelief.
I e-mailed her immediately which was not answered. Over night, into the morning, and finally this afternoon I received an e-mail from her e-mail address. I was convinced that everything was ok, and it was not for real. Until I opened the e-mail and

Karen and Leigh helping me through another contraction

learned it was from Karen’s eldest son, and not her.

My world shattered.

She was my
Mentor
Second Mother
Friend
Support System
Doula

and I will miss her more than I will ever be able to actually put into words.

You would think right? The most infections, illness, colds, flu’s, and what have you are running ramp-it in the hospitals. So why would mothers choose to deliver their brand new babies in a place where they are can pick something up? Especially with all this swine flu hysteria?

I have given birth in the hospital twice, obviously because I had two cesarean sections. And both times I came home with some type of cold/illness. With my first, I came home with full blown bronchitis. Thank goodness for breast milk because I would not want to have my little guy get sick and luckily he never did. With my second son, I came home with a horrible cold which turned into a full blown sinus infection. I attribute being susceptible to these illnesses because I had major surgery and as most know after major surgery, such as a cesarean section, your immune system is seriously compromised while you are healing. Which is another reason why mothers coming down with infections after cesarean’s are common stories.

But now with this whole “H1N1 pandemic” taking place, you would think twice about going into a hospital to give birth, because I mean, studies have shown home birth with a qualified provider to be as safe as a hospital birth, so why expose yourself and your new baby to all the germs and the possibility of the H1N1 Virus.

It is no secret that H1N1 has killed not only pregnant women, but also women who (just coincidence) had cesarean sections.

Kind of makes you stop and think?

I was pregnant with my second child when this whole “pandemic mania” started, and I didn’t get it, why? Because I did normal flu prevention things like washing my hands, which is all that my midwives advised that I do.

Now, take a look at the “target” crowd that they are saying should get this experimental vaccine that has not been properly tested because it was pushed along so fast to simply get it on the market. (Sorry, but I would never vaccinate myself with something that the MAKERS would not even USE!!!)
Children and pregnant women. But have they tested the long term effects on the pregnant women, the fetus, or the child that results of the pregnancy? Are all these women going to get the vaccine then we have a huge number of stillbirths or uterine ruptures, or something catastrophic?

Nope, I am not a doctor, I am not someone testing these vaccines, but as we see in MANY past drugs that were given to pregnant women, there were serious repercussions on the baby itself, and their health as they grew. There is the 1950′s when all pregnant women would have X-Ray’s of their pelvis. Then they found out that gave the babies cancer.
Then there was the scopolamine era, when babies in turn would be born with missing or dis-formed limbs. Then the cytotec era when it was being given to all women for induction who had a previous cesarean section. What did that show? THOUSANDS of ruptured uterus’s.
It is a trial and error thing when it comes to these drugs being used in pregnant women, and it is downright scary.

I really hope that pregnant women seriously think about this vaccination.