Message from the Chapter Leader

Hello Birth Warriors!

I think it is time to officially unveil the new face of ICAN of the Twin Cities, as we have had three major changes in our board this year.

The first is to say with a heavy heart goodbye to Sarah Shannon.  She has been part of ICAN of the Twin Cities for 6+ years and has really been the one who knew how to get all our ideas more than just talk.  She is extremely high energy and organized and excellent at setting goals and following up so we all stayed on track.  She just received her Ph.D in Sociology from the U of M, so how she put so much time into our chapter, while working on that, along with being mom to two boys and wife still amazes me.  She has inspired me to act on what I believe in, and she has given me the tools to know how to do it.  Besides all that, I consider her a true friend, so it shouldn't have surprised me when I burst into tears the day I said goodbye to her before they drove to Georgia.  I guess I should add that she and her husband (also a new doctor-congrats to you too, Jerry) have both accepted positions at the University of Georgia in Athens.  ICAN of the Twin Cities owes a debt of gratitude to the Shannon family and we have grown so much together-our boys, our bellies (pregnant ones, I mean), our VBAC journeys.  It is hard to say goodbye to such a momentous part of my life, but Sarah was definitely that and I say Thank you and Onward!  I know they will bring many great things to Athens.

The second big change is that Kara stepped back from her Chapter Leader duties to focus on her career and her family a little more.  She is still on the board, thank goodness, so it isn't sad, but a little scary as I have assumed her position.  Kara has fearlessly led our chapter for 6 years and these are big shoes to fill.  Under her direction, we attended ICAN conferences, held several huge fundraising events, and yes, started the Twin Cities Birth and Baby Expo, not to mention keeping the monthly meetings running and growing.  She has always been the brains of our group-knowing when to put the brakes on something too big, and when to say "go for it."  She is an accountant in her regular life and very organized and good with details, and I have tried to learn as much as I can from her.  I am nervous about running our chapter, but as long as she is still with us, I will always have her knowledge base.  She was also an officer for ICAN International, so is a wealth of insider information.  Not to mention, she is a great person and her family too has grown right along with us.

The third is that we grew our board.  Our "old" board had been Sarah, Kara and me for a long time.  We then invited Jill a year ago, which gave us some much needed new energy and woman-power.  But with the loss of Sarah, we were facing a pretty big hole so we put out a call and received several impressive applications.  And now we are so excited to have Katie (congrats on your HBAC!), Alexis and Kelly as new ICAN of the Twin Cities board members.  We also had a wonderful lady named Ruth, but she suddenly moved back to Chicago so we had only a short time together.  I believe that Chicago has some VBAC challenges, so I have encouraged her to get involved there, as I am sure they need all the help they can get.  We will certainly miss her and appreciate her stepping up to the call.  So now, our "new" board has just the right mix of creativity and high energy and more woman-power we were looking for, as each woman brings fabulous and unique skills.  I know we are on track to grow our chapter in a way that will continue to be on track with the ICAN mission, by reaching more and more women.  Thank you, ladies, for joining!

So from here, we are working on adding to our chapter and getting more visible and organized and accessible.  The addition of the Facebook Group has already added a huge jump in online help-so thank you Katie for managing that.  We are looking to grow our library, our website, our presence in the hospitals and other communities we haven’t been very visible in yet.  Our top priority will always be our meetings and the mother-to –mother support that is critical to healing and learning, so look out for some really great meetings coming up.  And of course the Twin CitiesBirth and Baby Expo is coming Saturday, October 12.  Finally, Kelly will be managing the Blog, so look for upcoming interesting and helpful posts.

We are truly lucky to live in an area that has many options for first time and VBAC moms to have the birth they deserve and should have. We have choices here, and it isn’t like that everywhere.  Little by little, one VBAC at a time, one prevented cesarean at a time, birth gets safer and better.  I feel very rewarded being a part of this and look forward to doing more. 

Rock you birth and your life ladies-there is no one who knows your baby, your body and your needs better than you!

Heather

WHAT TO EXPECT when you are a good little patient.....

Babble has a nice little "10 things every expecting woman should know" post, and the first one was to throw out your What to Expect book. I know I don’t need to say the whole name of the book because I am sure every one of you have it, probably from a baby shower, or coworker, or sister in law or whatever. It is like the Baby-Book-Bible. In fact, I received two copies-one from my sister and one from a free new-baby care package through my insurance company!

Looking back, it is no wonder I walked into my medicalized birth that ended in a failed induction/c-section and never questioned it. It was, after all, all in The Book! Nowhere in that book does it say to get away from your OB and see midwife, do not get induced unless absolutely necessary (and what absolutely necessary even is or how to find out), question your OB, say no, believe in your body, and so on. Right? Or did I miss that? Maybe there were little things like explaining what a midwife is (thought I cannot remember reading this), or even avoiding an unnecessary induction. Maybe. But they didn’t tell me that the OB would order an unnecessary induction. They did not tell me that my body could birth and intervention should only be rarely used. They never, ever said to question any medical protocol at all, so it never occurred to me. They never mentioned any sort of difference between the medical model and midwifery model. If they did and I missed it, my apologies, but I certainly do not remember any. That book helped to support my basic unquestioning belief that there was one right way to have a baby-in a hospital with lots of machines and ORs, and that birth is scary and dangerous and thank goodness for modern medicine!! The only good thing I can say about it was there was a little paragraph about childbirth prep classes and they mentioned Bradley. I ended up buying a Bradley book in my ninth month (too late), and then took a Bradley class for my next birth, my VBAC.

So anyway, Babble has a funny post about the book, and also the 10 tips for first time moms. The tips are good, though I would also add DO NOT WATCH A BABY STORY or any of those TV shows, and to take a long, comprehensive birth class like Lamaze or Bradley. And to ask someone from ICAN if they were to do it all over again, who would they have catch their first baby…..

The Babble posts:

Pregnancy Tips for First-Time Moms

10 things every expecting woman should know

Reason #482 Why You Should Throw “What To Expect When You’re Expecting” Out The Window

This title is my favorite and sums it all up perfectly:

What To Expect When You’re Expecting AKA Call The Doctor, Your Whole Family Is Dying

I always tell people to throw that book out too, and get one or all of the many other fabulous books out there—Ina Mays Guide to Childbirth, Henci Goer’s The Thinking Woman’s Guide to a Better Birth, and so on. I have often complained to the bookstore when I see their huge section devoted to the What to Expect franchise and really nothing of any quality otherwise (they look at me like I am insane). Helping women to have an empowered birth is still a steep uphill battle, but well-worth the fight!

Being prepared matters

Just over a week ago I got a text message from a friend asking for prayers. His wife was being induced at 35 weeks due to low amniotic fluid.

My first thought?

Oh crap. She's gonna end up with a c-section. Yet another friend to "welcome" into the Sisterhood of the Scar.

Turns out, I was wrong. Even though she was induced at the hospital with the 3rd highest cesarean rate in the Twin Cities (30%), she escaped a surgical birth.

How did this happen?

I bumped into her at church this morning. She told me that she was freaked out when she knew she was headed for induction. She had the same thought I did, that she was probably going to end up with a cesarean. The chances were certainly good - a high risk situation, induction, a preemie on the way...

I think it was her preparation (and no doubt support of her husband and others) that made a huge difference. This was her second birth. Her first had been at the same hospital, but they were well-prepared the first time, too. They had taken Bradley classes and stayed home as long as possible during labor. She had a drug-free birth the first time around. That same mindset and preparation helped her avoid more interventions during her induction this time. She told me, "The only bummer was that I had to be in the bed the whole time [for monitoring, Pitocin, etc]. But I used having to go to the bathroom a lot as my excuse to get up often. So, I got the drug-free birth I wanted. Well, except for the Pitocin...."

My friend was prepared to meet the challenges of an unexpected, stressful birth because she knew from experience as well as from childbirth eduction that sometimes you have to work with what you've got. She knew that moving around is so important in labor. So, she used a little trick to work the system and get up as  much as she could. It wasn't a completely ideal situation, but she worked for the birth she wanted even despite the odds.