Wednesday, August 5, 2015

Are You A Proactive Parent?

I'm very pregnant in my last trimester with Maya in Nasugbu, Batangas  

If you have been following me on my Instagram account @dharmadreamsbig, you know that I use the hashtag #MindfulMotherhood a lot. When I come across lessons from my little gurus or find a moment that I want to freeze in social media's memory bank, I use it. To remind me that time is more precious than gold because it is fleeting and that my little tots will grow up much sooner than I could imagine.

And then another facet of mothering is Proactive Parenting. I was invited to an event by Hi-Precision Diagnostics to introduce Panorama, one of their latest scientific tools for expecting mothers. 

Hi Precision Diagnostics present Panorama
Ichel Alignay, a Parenting, Relationship and Family Life Specialist spoke about what Proactive Parenting means. Coming from her background, as a mother and a certified pyschologist, she spoke about how each child is different based on temperament, learning style, personality and intelligence. So, we should, as parents, also be responsible in how we raise them uniquely according to their needs. I absolutely agree with her on this and that is why I have chosen Attachment Parenting and Waldorf Education for my children because it makes most sense for our family values and their temperaments.

Mel Ongsue-Lee of Hi-Precision with various experts in the field of Medicine and Psychology

And then came Camille Cyncynatus, who has a PhD in Biochemistry and Microbiology. She spoke about the science behind Panorama which is very new in Asia. Did you know that you can determine a lot about your baby's genetic health in utero by simply drawing from your blood as early as 9 weeks? Pieces of their DNA is found in the placenta and mother's blood which I find so fascinating because I did a lotus birth with Maya (not severing her from her placenta...at all). 

Dr. Maria Niza Reyes, OB-Gynecologist and Perinatologist talks about the importance of pre-natal screening. For many mothers, being proactive means preparing for the future.

What is Panorama anyway?

Panorama is a non-invasive prenatal screen testing made for women over 35 years old or has had previous history with chromosomal conditions. More and more women are choosing to delay marrying and child-bearing so we have an increase of pregnant mothers in their late 30's onwards which doesn't automatically makes them high risk (as long as they are eating right, exercising, etc.) but these moms have a slightly higher chance of having difficulties in pregnancy and birthing babies with special needs. What are you screening for exactly? Most chromosomal disorders: Down Syndrome, Edward Syndrome, Patau Syndrome, Tuner Syndrome and Triploidy. Instead of doing an Amniocentesis which requires poking a needle into your uterus which may have multiple complications.

"The likelihood that a woman under age 30 who becomes pregnant will have a baby with Down syndrome is less than one in 1,000, but the chance of having a baby with Down Syndrome increases to 1 in 400 for women who become pregnant at age 35. The likelihood of Down Syndrome continues to increase as a woman ages, so that by age 42, the chance is one in 60 that a pregnant woman will have a baby with Down syndrome, and by age 49, the chance is one in 12." 


Watch the video on the benefits of getting Panorama non-invasive prenatal screening here.

Personally, I do not have the reasons to do this since I am below 35 year old and there is no history of chromosomal disorders in my family plus I make it a point to live a healthy life. Others however, are not like me. So, ultimately, it is your personal choice since it is a sensitive and even moral subject to many. Be equipped to deal with the results when you do find out and get help. In the end, it's all about having options. And being prepared is key to parenting - no matter which path you take.

Mommy Bloggers of Manila unite: Christine Dychiao, Me, Em Sulit, Cat Arambulo-Antonio, Jackie Go, Pam Siao and Tin


And for parents who want to take charge in parenting proactively when raising children, I highly recommend attending this workshop at St. Michael Playhouse in Makati :)



Hi Precision Diagnostics
(02) 741-7777
www.hi-precision.com.ph

St. Michael Playhouse
st.michael.playhouse@gmail.com

Monday, August 3, 2015

6 Medicinal Herbs for Post-Partum Relief

Postpartum goodie set with tinctures, herbs and salves by doula Irina Otmakhova.

My doula Irina makes amazing all-natural tinctures, herbal teas and salves for mothers! Here are some of the products she offers for post-partum mamas.


1. Mother Ease

Mother Ease tinctures


This tincture is prepared with loving intention to easy your postpartum symptoms. Motherwort is the active ingredient in this tincture. The flowering tops, consumed as a tincture, have an affinity for alleviating anxiety and depression, particularly when associated with the hormonal fluctuations associated with the changing times in a woman's life.

Baby blues or sometimes even postpartum depression is a reality for some women postpartum. One way to help the condition is to invoke the herbal remedies. Mother's ease tincture is made of Motherwort, a perennial herb known as the connector herb between the heart, the nervous system and the womb. Motherwort carries us through the transitions in and out of our cycle of mothering. Ideally suited for transition into the motherhood the Mother's Ease tincture eases hormonal transitions and supports a balanced emotional state.

2. Vital-Fire Tincture : This tincture is made specifically for those pesky after birth pains. Cramp Bark is an antispasmodic herb which increases the efficiency of uterine contractions and supports the uterus' ability to contract in a coordinated and effective manner. This is a great tincture for mothers who are planning to breastfeed to relieve those cramps while nursing your sweet new baby.

3. Sitz Bath: This herbal infusion is used topically to sooth the sore or damaged tissues. The healing herbs such as uva-ursi, plantain leaves and lavender blossoms among many others are brewed into a strong “tea”, which then are added to a sitz bath basin. The mama is invited to soak for 20 minutes.


Herbal Sitz Bath


4. Prana Bum Butter: This is great when used topically to soothe sore, swollen or bruised tissues. Also helps with hemorrhoids. The butter is prepared using the healing infused oil mixed with soothing Shea butter and Cocoa butter.
prana bum butter


5. Placenta Pills: Irina also encapsulates the nutritious placenta after birthing!

Placenta Encapsulation: Happy placenta pills
6. Placenta Tincture
A batch of placenta tinctures custom made for three postpartum mamas. Placenta tincture is a constitutional remedy that can be used for the baby throughout her/his life. The placenta contains vitamins, minerals, hormones and stem cells, so it is a good immune system booster.
Placenta Tincture

Are you a post-partum mama?


Postpartum mama in a Rebozo Tuck In Sealing Ceremony
Rebozo tuck-in as part of the Birth Sealing process. The state of pregnancy and birth is associated with expansion - physical, emotional and on the energy level. Once the birth happened it takes a while for the mother's body to come back together. However, it's not only the physical body that needs to shrink back, there are also emotional and energy bodies that require special attention. The Rebozo Tuck-in postpartum ceremony originates in Mexico where traditionally new mothers were wrapped in long scarves along seven energy points (chakras) to seal the birth experience on the energy level. Mothers usually feel reinvigorated and reborn after the procedure.

We are having our next Sacred Postpartum workshop in Beyond Yoga Libis this Saturday, August 8. You may pre-order your medicinal herbs for Irina to take to the event. Email conscousbirthmanila@gmail.com

For more details, please check out poster below or register through www.consciousbirthmanila.com/events






Wednesday, July 22, 2015

The Parenting Emporium


A few weeks back, I was able to meet and mingle with other mothers who share similar passions as I do when it comes to parenting. Beng and Maricel previously known as "The Medela Moms" were in pursuit of a project to suit the needs of modern parenting. More than merely helping mothers through lactation consultations, they envisioned a place where parents can get support for the ever growing demands of raising a child.

The Parenting Emporium is their answer and their gift to the community! Like they all say, "It takes a village to raise a child" And so they presented different experts in a wide range of topics, from nutrition to style to education and more. All these people have will act as mentors for parents to get a wholistic view of this challenging but fruitful journey of mindful parenting.


And guess who I saw? An old friend, Tita Jacqueline Alleje! She was the person responsible for the healthier meal alternatives that day. Denise and I remember eating in her old cafe in Makati during our college days...over a decade ago?!

Thanks to SM Woman for my outfit-on-that-day!

I'm always pleased when there is veg food in events :)


Do dropby their newly renovated space for baby essentials, too!



Many kids got to enjoy the do-it-yourself cupcake station by Cupcakes by Sonja <3



Always glad to see some friends. Jane and Martine super brilliant mamas!

Denise and I hang out with Baby Rory and Timi :)


Here with me is Smart Parenting's Editor-in-Chief, Mia Fausto Cruz and her baby with Em Sulit and her little one, too!



Here are the Catilos and Pam Begre with my godson, Mauro :)



Look at all the goodies I brought home from the party :) Thanks Beng and Maricel! 


Drawing is by me made during the Waldorf teacher training :)

I am happy to announce that my next Sacred Pregnancy and Conscious Birth Workshop on August 1, Saturday will be held here! Yipee! 



Registration link to the workshop is here

Please pass the information to all expecting couples or even those wanting to conceive. We'd like to plant seeds of consciousness on the gentle birth revolution early on! 

See you there!

Monday, July 6, 2015

To The South: Sacred Pregnancy + Conscious Birth

Since the birth of Maya, more and more people are waking up and choosing nature's way of birthing. One of them is my friend, Cat Juan Ledesma who has had a previous natural vaginal birth in Australia but has chosen to hire a doula and to birth in the water 2nd time around. Read her birth story here.

Cat graciously invited us to conduct the Sacred Pregnancy Conscious Birth workshop in her home in Alabang for the southerners wanting the knowledge and techniques, Irina and I share with a passion. See photos from that day :)

Just before Kelly Misa and husband Carlos birthed their son, they were practising labor techniques using the stability ball!


An inversion taught during the Gentle Birth essentials module which is so good for optimal fetal positioning!


Irina explains more about the concept of WHY your baby's positioning is CRUCIAL to a fast and more comfortable birth.


One of our attendees, Andrea, has had a previous homebirth with our midwife, Deborah Gustafson!


A couple from Bacolod flew all the way to Manila to learn about their birthing journey together <3






Our host, Cat, spoke about on having a sacred space for herself during pregnancy and beyond.


We practiced some hypnobirthing techniques on ourselves and partners to get us into an ideal birthing state.

Photo by Cat Juan Ledesma

All smiles after finishing another workshop with these gentle parents-to-be!
Photo by Cat Juan Ledesma


Thank you to Cat and all the sponsors that have given loot to our participants!


Photo by Cat Juan Ledesma

To join the next series of workshops, email consciousbirthmanila@gmail.com or visit www.consciousbirthmanila.com/events




Thursday, July 2, 2015

Promo Code: Pre-Natal, Active Birth and Post-Natal Yoga Training in Manila!

I've got exciting news for my readers! There is an upcoming Pre-Natal, Active Birth and Post-Natal Yoga Teacher Training happening in Manila this October :)

If you read the birthing story of Maya, you would know that my yoga practice has truly helped me achieve the birth of my dreams. Being mindful is the right brain-state for the whole duration of motherhood - from pregnancy, birth and post-partum. And that is exactly what yoga does to you. Keeps you present to the moment in which everything exists. If you could teach this gem of a practice to ALL the women, then traumatic births and unnecessary c-section rates will decrease. This is why I'm totally supporting Beyond Yoga's Mindful Birth Yoga Teacher Training...because I want the Gentle Birth Revolution to rise in the Philippines! If you feel a call to help others, like I do. Then please sign up for this!












And for you my dear readers, please sign up with a special promo code "Birthing Beyond", to avail of all these treats from my participating blog partners:






Conscious Birth Manila: A mini sampler of a new-mommy kit and P1000 discount on Sacred Pregnancy & Conscious Birth and Sacred  Postpartum Workshops

INDIGObaby: Bath and body samples and discount vouchers

Rawlicious Green Smoothies: Organic green smoothies and discount coupons

The Juice Barista: A set of fresh-pressed juices and discount vouchers

STRIP: Strip Mama brazilian wax discount vouchers 

Cult Favorites: Itch Defense and My Amazing Blow Dry Secret Shampoo and Conditioner samples

Body-Food: All-natural bath and body loot

Flow Retreats: 1,000php discount coupon on any of the 2015 retreats

Cutieverse: A mystery gift

Brown Belly: All-natural Bath salts made with essential oils

Hillside Cafe and Juice Bar: Wellness shot, Bliss Balls and a gift certificate!


Ysabel's Daughter: Slimming and Firming products for the first 3 sign ups!

Leelu Mobile Massage: 20% discount for Pre-natal massage and 10% discount for Lalaland massage

Planet Noah: All-natural Oasis baby oil for mothers and babies

Let's help spread the seeds of awareness of gentle mindful births by sharing this post on your social feeds! 

Thursday, May 21, 2015

Sacred Post-Partum Sealing Ceremony

If you've been followin this blog, you'd already know by now that my doula-to-Maya, Irina Otmakhova of Conscious Birth Manila and I have been organizing Sacred Pregnancy Conscious Birth and Sacred Postpartum Workshops and Retreats. I always look forward to these because it is a chance to reconnect and regain the feminine power, to practice healing rituals and feel the vibrational energies of positive like-minded women doing some magic to each other!

My most favorite ritual (so far) is the Rebozo Sealing Ceremony which is done during the Sacred Post-Partum workshop. 

First, the mother is given a heated oil massage by her kindred sisters to help release any tension. See this lucky mom getting a once-in-lifetime experience of 10 hands massage. 


And then, Irina supports and lifts and binds different parts using the Rebozo to help seal the energy and physical body. See the rice sacks outside the mother's arms? This is also heated in the rice cooker so that mother can really feel right and secure with the binds and sacks by her side. It's really a wonderful feeling being there tucked with organs being encouraged to come back into place after carrying your baby for 10 moons and birthing your baby!


After minutes of silence or being struck a few inches above the body with the singing bowl for vibrational healing, we slowly open the binds and give the mother words of encouragement on her path to wholeness ❤️


If you would like to experience this for yourself in a group or private setting, please get in touch with Irina at consciousbirthmanila@gmail.com 

Monday, May 4, 2015

Birth Story Inspiration: The Birth of Estelle Helena

I am continuing my positive birth story project because I want expecting mothers to hear more of what can go right vs what can go wrong.The mind is such an important tool in birthing that if you allow an ounce of doubt, fear or negativity to creep in, then it materializes!



Here is the wonderful birth story of Estelle, the daughter of Samantha, a Filipina doula behind The Maya's Nest in Vancouver. An important lesson here is that many times in life, things don't go as planned. Despite her preparation for a homebirth, Samantha birthed in the hospital. Read her very detailed, educational, honest and funny story.





June 4th, 2014 – now 39 weeks 4 days. I had my midwife appointment early that day and while measuring my belly, we saw that for the fourth week in a row, there was no growth. My midwife had me go get an ultrasound to make sure all was okay and thankfully baby was “a good size” and “perfect” according to the technician.


As I was driving home, contractions started to hit – coming in at about 5 minutes apart and lasting for a bit under a minute each. I got home and the contractions kept coming. I called my midwife to give her a heads up and she suggested I give my doula Rebecca a call. It was still early in the evening and I felt I had some time so I decided to go on a walk with Joseph and Michael to the park. By the time I got back, the contractions had picked up. They were now about 4 minutes apart and lasting over a minute. Rebecca arrived at around 10:00pm. The contractions kept coming. As they got stronger, the only thing I wanted to do was walk. I went up and down my hallway more times in that evening then I expect I have the whole time I have lived here. Every few minutes I would stop and lean on the wall as a wave would come over my body, while Rebecca would squeeze my hips with the nice warm rice packs. By the time 3:30 am arrived, my legs all of a sudden could not take another step. The 6 hours of walking finally hit my body and all I could do was lie down. So I did. Then they slowly started spacing out. By 4:00 am the contractions were gone. Rebecca suggested going to sleep and that my body was telling me that I need to rest. We all went to sleep and after a bit, Rebecca went home as well.
I woke up the next day to no contractions – completely confused and so upset. What happened? What was that whole night for? Am I really going to have to go through that all over again? My mind was starting to get very negative. I could not get the feeling of failure out of my head. Why wasn’t my body working?
After a nap and talking to my doula and some other doula friends of mine, I started to feel better. My mind shifted back to where it needed to be. I kept reminding myself that my body was just taking a break. For whatever reason, it needed it so I must trust it. The rest of that Thursday was spent hanging out with my son, my husband and my parents. I also had my doula friend Jodi come by to do the Miles Circuit with me to see if perhaps it was positioning that had stalled my labour. I sent my husband out to go grab some Thai food and we were just going to have a relaxed night at home. After dinner and a bit of television, I went to bed and passed out right as my head hit the pillow.
Then all of a sudden I woke up to wetness. It was 3:30 am and my membranes had ruptured. I put a pad on and headed back to bed. I have been here before and I knew that the best thing I could do was get more sleep. Funny coincidence – with my son, my water broke the day before my due date after eating some Pad Thai and now with my daughter, the exact same thing happened. Looks like Pad Thai equals membranes rupturing for me! Haha!
I woke up the next day at about 7:00 am. I headed down to breakfast and calmly told my family my membranes had ruptured. I called my midwife to give her the heads up. She spoke to me about my options and offered that I do the Midwives Cocktail – a mixture of oils and other natural ingredients that may help induce labour. A big part of me wanted to let my body just do its thing. After all, 95% of women go into labour within 48 hours after the rupture of the membranes, so why wouldn’t I this time? With my first I waited 30 hours before getting induced and in that time not one contraction hit. I knew that the last thing I wanted to do was get medically induced again. Not only would it mean saying goodbye to my home birth, but it would also mean pitocin contractions and I was so fearful that  I wouldn’t be able to go pain med free if that happened. I decided to go to my prescheduled chiropractor appointment and see if  Dr. Marie could help get my labour going. My midwife Lindsay was going to come by at noon and we would decide then to go ahead with the cocktail or not.
After a great chiropractic appointment, I headed home with all the ingredients for the cocktail. I decided I would go ahead and do it. Much like other natural inducers, the cocktail will only work if your body is ready to go into labour. If it worked, fantastic. If not, then we wait, but at least I tried to help it along – at least that was my thought process behind it. After chugging it down, Lindsay check me as a starting point so that she could let the second midwife know that she needs to get ready to come for my home birth. I was not very dilated but Lindsay felt pretty certain that when labour starts, she expect it will go quite fast for me. If contractions hadn’t started to get consistent by 4:00 pm then I was to take a second dose of the cocktail.
As soon as she left, the contractions started. I tried to rest, but just couldn’t. The contractions were coming strong and were quite close together. I asked my doula Rebecca to come. Of course, in her drive to my house, my contractions started to stall again. When she arrived, I felt terrible for calling her over again but this godsend of a woman did not let me feel bad. She reminded me that is what she is here for and we will see if anything more happens. It was getting close to 4:00 pm so I decided to take my second dose of the cocktail. Then Rebecca and  I did some pelvic floor releases to help open up my pelvis and get baby into a better position. As soon as we finished, the contractions picked back up again. They were coming in fast and strong. This felt different then the other night. These felt much more intense. This was it. I knew it. I was going to meet my baby girl soon.
At about 6:00 pm my midwife Lindsay called. I happily told her the contractions were regular and they were getting longer and stronger and closer together and that it wouldn’t be long before she would need to come in. And then she gave me my bad news. She was on her way to the hospital because another patient was in labour and unfortunately that meant that if I did go into active labour, that I would have to give birth at the hospital because she could not leave the other patient.
Cue the tears! And lots of them! I could not believe it. For months I had been preparing mentally and emotionally for this home birth. I worked so hard to get to a place where I was excited to birth at home. My mind and my heart were ready for it. Aside from that, I had spent good money preparing. I took home birth focused prenatal classes, rented my birthing pool and bought all the equipment for it, plus bought everything for my home birth kit. I was ready. This was the birth I was ready for. I always knew a hospital transfer may be needed – but in my mind it was only for an emergency. I was not ready to not get a chance to birth at home for something completely out of my control like someone else happened to go into labour first. I was so mad and so heartbroken. I wanted the labour to stop. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to my dream birth for what I felt was such a dumb reason. How could this be happening?
As much as I hoped for the contractions to stop though, they just wouldn’t. They kept coming and kept getting stronger and stronger. At about 8:00pm I had the strongest contraction yet and I just knew that I had to go. I looked up at Rebecca and said “I have to go don’t I?” and she slowly nodded her head to say yes. So we went to the hospital.
On the drive over, as the contractions started coming fast with not much break in between, I had a little talk with myself. I told myself that I needed to get my mind out of this funk. I needed to set aside the disappointment for now. The plan had changed. I had to adjust. No a hospital birth was certainly not what I wanted, but it was happening. I could still totally have my natural birth. I could still rock this birth.
When we arrived at the hospital at around 8:30 pm, Rebecca and I went straight up to Labour and Delivery while Michael was parking the car. Michael and Jodi, my second doula, then followed. While waiting, the contractions kept coming. My body had taken over. My moans were strong and deep. I kept having flashbacks to my prenatal class and could hear that moans that one of our teachers, Morag, was doing and I knew I was doing it right. With out a doubt I knew I was in active labour.
When Lindsay came, she asked if she could check me. She said the other lady was just about to push and if I was not very dilated and the other lady births soon, then we may be able to get back home still. I nodded in agreement but knew deep down that  I wasn’t going to be going back home. This was where I was going to birth, and that was okay. Lindsay checked me and as per my request, did not tell me how dilated I was, just that we had some time. Lindsay headed back to the other lady as she was going to be pushing soon.
As soon as she left, the contractions picked up even more. All of a sudden I started feeling lots of pressure in my bum. The admitting nurse said she needed to check me again as they need to see if I should be admitted and given a delivery room. Again, she respected my choice not to know the number. After getting checked, the contractions got even stronger. I started getting pushing urges although I knew it was too soon, but it was definitely happening. The admitting nurse asked to check me again because of the pushing urges. After she checked, she said she was putting me in a room right away.
I slowly made my way into the delivery room, stopping what felt like every few seconds as another wave of contractions would go over my body. Lindsay came back and looked confused where we were all going. I told her I felt the urge to push and she told me it was still too early and to just breath through it. When I got into the room, I decided to lean over the bed, rocking my hips. Rebecca and Jodi worked together with hip squeezes and massages to help me through each contraction. Jodi asked if I wanted to try to shower and I decided to give it a go. After setting me up in the shower, Jodi handed the shower head over to Michael. There we were, just the two of us in the shower. I don’t know how long we spent in there, but it felt like quite awhile. It was wonderful and peaceful. Michael would spray the water over my back while massaging me. There was a handle that I held on to for dear life as each contraction came over me. I remember bouncing around in there while blowing raspberries to help stop the urge to push. Every so often another strong urge would come over me but I worked hard to try not to push even though that is all the my body seemed to want to do. When it got too much, something told me to just get out of the shower.
Out I went. I told them the urge was so strong. The new nurse then said she needs to check me. I laid on my back and as she checked me she happily said “You are at a 9.5! You can push!” This sweet nurse did not know about my preference to not know how dilated I was and my poor husbands eyes just about popped out of his head. He told her I didn’t want a number but I told him “No it is okay. 9.5 is a nice number!”
My plan was not to push laying down. I wanted to be standing or squatting but once my body hit that bed, I felt like I couldn’t move. I am not quite sure when it was that Lindsay joined us but I just remember her saying to go on my side. Finally I started to push. One big push and I could feel the aptly named “ring of fire.” One more push and baby’s head was out. Lindsay asked me to reach down and feel my baby’s head. It was the most amazing experience. I could feel her perfect head and could touch her sweet face. One more push and Lindsay said to go ahead and catch my own baby! It was so amazing! I grabbed her little body and put her straight on my chest.
10:30 pm on June 6, 2014 I gave birth to my baby girl Estelle Helena. She weighed in at a hefty 9 pounds 6 ounces and was 20 inches long.
Oh – my – gosh. I did it. I had a completely natural birth. No paid meds. Nothing. Just my body doing what it was made to do. I was amazed that it all happened so fast and that the epidural did not even enter my mind once. Although yes the contractions were not pleasant, I felt they were manageable. I knew they were happening for a purpose. I knew that each wave going over my body was getting me one step closer to meeting my baby. As each contraction hit, I felt myself get stronger and stronger. I trusted my body and I trusted myself.
I later found out what at the first check, I was only 4 cm dilated which means I had gone from 4 cm to fully dilated and baby in my arms in just 2.5 hours!
Much of the third stage of labour I don’t really remember. According to Michael, I was able to give birth to my placenta right away with out the use of the oxytocin shot, which is exactly what I wanted. However, as soon as the placenta was delivered, my midwife informed me that I had retained membranes and in order to reduce the chance of too much bleeding, I agreed to having the oxytocin shot. An IV was also put in for more of the oxytocin. While baby was on my chest, we tried to get her to latch to help with the natural production of oxytocin as well. Nothing was helping though. The membranes were not coming out. Lindsay then informed me that she has to call the OB in and I may have to go into the OR. I would have to be knocked out as the pain would be too much. That would mean 1-3 hours in post op recovery. For some reason I didn’t feel scared. I was upset that I would be away from my brand new baby for so long but I also felt like everything would be okay.
When the OB came in, she had me change positions and thankfully was able to pull out the membranes. Phew! No need to be separated from baby! By the time this was done, it was just after midnight on the 7th, her original due date. We were offered to go home after a couple hours but I decided to stay until the sun came up.
By 7am, we were headed home. What a great difference from my first where I was in hospital for 4 days! When we arrived home, Joseph and my parents were all awake. Joseph was very excited to meet his new baby. She was sat in her car seat and after a bit of investigating, Joseph leaned forward and gave Estelle a kiss on her forehead. My heart melted. Here were my two beautiful children. My family. I felt so lucky and could feel my heart growing as each second passed watching the two of them together.
Now that about two weeks has passed, and I have had time to process what happened, I am still in love with my birth. I will not lie and say that I am not disappointed that I couldn’t even try for my home birth. Every time I see another mom on my moms group successfully home birth, I get flooded with jealousy, despite being happy for them. Why couldn’t I get that birth?
With what happened with my retained membranes though, it is most likely I would have had to have been transferred after the birth which would have been way more stressful. Whether it would have happened at home or not, I am not sure. Would having been able to birth at home made the natural oxytocins stronger that the membranes wouldn’t have been retained at all? Who knows.
Despite the disappointment of not being able to birth at home, I still look back at my birth with pure happiness. I did something that if you had said I would do 3 years ago when I was pregnant with my first, I would not have believed you. I had my natural pain med free birth. I did it. My birth itself was full of the most wonderful support. My doulas Rebecca and Jodi were invaluable and my midwife Lindsay was so supportive of all my birth preferences. My husband was my rock. I felt safe. I felt calm. I felt empowered. My birth was beautiful.
What a journey this has been. Welcome to the world my lovely Estelle.
***
I had the opportunity to collaborate with Sammie just last weekend for our Sacred Pregnancy and Conscious Birth workshop in her hometown Cebu. If you are from Cebu, please join the recently launched Facebook group Gentle Birth in Cebu.

Monday, March 23, 2015

Bumps, Births, Babies

Red Tent Mums hosts a FREE holistic health conference online!

Who are they? They are a team of two women from Australia, (a yoga teacher and a doula!) who are passionately advocating natural pregnancy, mindful births and postpartums. I totally love the combination, it just reminds me of my relationship with my doula and partner in SPCB (Sacred Pregnancy and Conscious Births) retreats and workshops, Irina.






I'm a little bummed that I totally missed out on Day 1 with some really juicy talks by my favorite speakers on gentle birthing like Sarah Buckley and Debra Pascali-Bonaro. Once the talks are out live, they will only be availabe for 24 hours. You also have the option to purchase all the talks and ge to listen to whenever is most convenient for you :)

Sign up here now!

Pregnant Pause by Mommy Mundo



A few days ago, I was invited to speak at Pregnant Pause by Mommy Mundo. I talked to expecting parents (many of them first timers!) about the benefits of yoga for pregnancy, labor and birth.

Here I am starting with alignment and basic pranayama



I also shared my VBAC (vaginal birth after a ceasarian) home water birth and lotus birthing story to the group and many seemed interested in wanting a gentler path for their babies, too.


Thank you, Janice for asking me to share my knowledge and experience on birthing! I hope that I had planted seeds of consciousness for these parents to know that there are far more gentle options than what is considered "normal" these days.

To know more on this sacred pregnancy and conscious birthing journey, we have an upcoming workshop this April for expecting parents and even those who will consider parenting in the near (or far) future! Participants may email consciousbirthmanila@gmail.com