Breastfeeding: natural must be easy

We have all heard the horror stories about breastfeeding – how it can be hard, women have no milk, it hurts, etc. The truth is, our culture has shifted away from breastfeeding for so long that many of our health care professionals and our families are in no position to help us.

Breastfeeding is the normal way humans feed their babies. It should not be painful because pain is an indication that something needs to be fixed – in many situations, that is the latch. With a good latch and feeding on demand, you can help establish a good milk supply for your new baby.

We assume that natural means easy. Once breastfeeding is well established, it is easy. For many, getting started is not.

Here is how to set yourself up for breastfeeding success:

1) Take a prenatal breastfeeding class

2) Attend a series of La Leche League meetings (To find one in your area, visit: www.lllc.ca)

3)  Have a birth doula who can help you initiate breastfeeding

4) Have phone numbers for local breastfeeding clinics, postpartum doulas, and La Leche League leaders who can support you along the way.

An OB is a surgeon!

On the weekend, I taught a childbirth education class and when I explained the difference between health care providers, some women said they never knew.

Yes, an obstetrician is a surgeon who specializes in the care and management of high risk pregnancies. Many women in Canada have OB’s as their health care provider, not because they are high risk, but because they aren’t offered other options when they see the pregnancy test is positive. Many walk-in clinics and family physicians will refer a pregnant woman to an OB.

Often women will complain that going to an OB’s office is like a baby factory. You wait about an hour (sometimes more) for a five minute appointment where you are rushed out the door before you have the chance to ask your questions. For some women, this works – tell me what to do, where to go, and I’ll do it. For others, this isn’t their preferred choice.

Do you know your options? In Ontario, women can choose their health care provider: we have midwives (they support home or hospital births), some family doctors still attend births, and obstetricians. Look into them and see which one fits your wants and needs.

Does a doula replace your partner?

At a recent birth I attended, many of the women in the room commented that next time they gave birth, they would forgo having their partner and just invite a doula. It made me think of the added support that a doula brings because of her training, support, and experience. Partners are often experiencing birth for the first, second, or third time.

A doula is not meant to replace one’s partner but can help them participate in ways that they are comfortable with. I have seen many different partners and they have all been engaged in their birth experience, just not in the same way.

It can be challenging for partners to see someone they love be going through something difficult and painful, especially when they have no idea of what it feels like. Even with being prepared, in the moment, anyone can feel lost, confused, and even useless. A doula can help the partner find ways to be involved that help the labouring woman. Some partners have slow danced with her, helping her open her hips, let gravity help open her cervix, and show her she is deeply loved. Others have prepared some food and drinks for her, massaged her back and hands, or even sat in the birthing tub with her.

A doula can help coordinate all the people in the room or the birthing environment. This can include ensuring someone is looking after older children, there is enough food for the people attending the birth, everyone gets a chance to use the bathroom, and that each of the support people get a few minutes to sleep or rest for themselves. A doula can stay with mom as she is recovering after the birth if a partner needs to go with their new baby for testing or to the intensive care unit, this way no one is left alone.

A doula can help ease a partner into the birth by providing information when things look frightening. This can be especially useful during transition, the last phase of the first stage of labour. A woman in transition has contractions that are about one minute to one and a half minutes in length and two to three minutes apart. This gives her very little rest and is a very intense part of the labour process.

A doula is there to support the entire birthing team. For the woman and her partner, a doula is there to help them both enjoy their birth experience in ways that are comfortable for them.

If you are considering inviting a doula to your birth, ask them how they work with partners, what level of support is available, and ask for references too if you want some personal accounts.

Womb with a View

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