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Trust that women can birth the babies their bodies create and they will believe it too. Daisy Case asserts that interventionist births are not a result of a failure in physiology, but rather, a lack of faith.
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This short, sweet piece describes the interaction between father-to-be and laboring mother at a Ukrainian homebirth. This piece is one of four articles in this issue describing different aspects of birth in Ukraine.
Photo by Janko Ferlič
This article outlines possible solutions to a deflexed, posterior breech birth. The author makes the case that active birth is one of the most effective approaches.
Read more…. Breech, Posterior and a Deflexed Head! An Active Birth Solution?
Photo by Joey Csunyo
Some Traditional Practices from Around the World
Read more…. Some Traditional Practices from Around the World
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Traditional Chinese Medicine is a summary of ancient practice experiences, rather than the results of randomized controlled trials. This article uses evidence from modern scientific knowledge to determine whether TCM theories of normal delivery are well-supported by evidence-based medicine.
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The author tells the story of her empowering late-pregnancy change from planning an obstetrician-led hospital birth to having a midwife-attended homebirth.
Photo by Daria Nepriakhina
Babies born in developing countries around the world often do not have the benefit of sanitary methods for cutting the umbilical cord or keeping the cord clean. This article discusses a variety of the traditional cord care practices that have evolved in different countries, some of which are harmful and some that help to ensure that bacteria do not enter the cord stump.
Read more…. Some Traditional Umbilical Cord Care Practices in Developing Countries
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Avery, during his newborn exam
Working as a home health aide while pursuing her midwifery education, Rachel Knudsen discovers the parallels between the way people enter the world and the way they leave it, and makes the case for both conscious birth and conscious death.
Vocal toning isn’t just an exercise for singers; use of this technique can benefit birthing mothers by causing their pelvises to relax and open.
Drawing of a birth by the author’s then four-year-old son—complete with mother, baby, and the placenta in a bowl (lower right).
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In telling the story of witnessing of a friend’s two similar yet different births, Remer explores how a care provider’s attitudes and beliefs about birth can affect their interactions with the laboring mother, and in turn affect her experience of the birth.
Photo by Ibrahim Rifath
Despite a series of misadventures, the woman featured in this story has a nice birth.
Photo by Tim Bish
Contributing Editor Judy Slome Cohain writes about her experiences training to be a midwife.
