tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4084573131319120612024-03-13T22:22:57.574-07:00The MuleThe Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.comBlogger107125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-63152312170862846842017-03-10T11:23:00.001-08:002017-03-10T11:31:49.268-08:00The Visual Birth Plan from the Positive Birth Book<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">If you've already seen the beautiful positions for labour artwork by the amazing Kate Evans that feature in the Positive Birth Book, you'll be pleased to know that our collaboration goes much further!</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-o9cmhKtRGYY/WMLzPZOJHMI/AAAAAAAABjY/nEvNQTplBPIb-1Zw9obojB8JQoRnRSNXACLcB/s1600/16602391_1809626095971267_3853319607758211450_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-o9cmhKtRGYY/WMLzPZOJHMI/AAAAAAAABjY/nEvNQTplBPIb-1Zw9obojB8JQoRnRSNXACLcB/s640/16602391_1809626095971267_3853319607758211450_o.jpg" width="398" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">I've been in love with Kate's art and imaginative flair ever since I read <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bump-Make-Grow-Birth-Baby/dp/190843435X/">her amazing book Bump</a>, so I nearly passed out with excitement when publishers Pinter and Martin agreed to commission her not just to do these amazing illustrations, but to collaborate with me on a much bigger part of the book - the Visual Birth Plan, or VBP.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">I've loved the idea of a Visual Birth Plan ever since I saw birth plans made from little icons floating around on social media a couple of years ago. These little icons are pretty simple and basic, wouldn't it be better if the icons were more suited to every birth choice, and more beautiful, I thought?!</span></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">I know there are arguments to be made about birth plans 'per se', and I'm not going to go into those here - suffice to say, I think they are a widely misunderstood tool that can really help both women (and their midwives) get real clarity of the kind of birth they want, and think through ALL the possibilities too - ie make not just a Plan A for their ideal birth, but B, C and D as well.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the Positive Birth Book, a huge 52 page section (subtitled Being Birthzilla - ha!) takes you through the total maze of choices you face as a pregnant woman, helping you to work out exactly what you want in every eventuality. Woven through the section are the Icons for the Visual Birth Plan, all uniquely designed especially for the book by Kate.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">The book contains a link (which I'll keep secret for now) where you can download the icons and use them to build your own completely beautiful VBP. You can then share this plan with your care providers (in tandem with a 'longhand' / more conventional written plan if you like), and convey all of your wishes to them, clearly and at a glance.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Here are just a few of the icons to help you get a feel for them...please note that they are for private use in your birth plan only (not that you can build a birth plan with just these few, there are nearly 100 in the book!)...and may not be shared, sold or reproduced without written permission from <a href="http://www.pinterandmartin.com/">Pinter and Martin. </a></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nugn7RqFNQ8/WML6hnhOA3I/AAAAAAAABjw/FSr9WIITTUQKKBO1fdsp4j2wPZaw5zmIwCLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-03-10%2B19.02.32.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="636" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nugn7RqFNQ8/WML6hnhOA3I/AAAAAAAABjw/FSr9WIITTUQKKBO1fdsp4j2wPZaw5zmIwCLcB/s640/Screenshot%2B2017-03-10%2B19.02.32.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-khzlOP1YoBE/WML6ha6yZfI/AAAAAAAABjo/fMYW-gDga6Ig_5MtTcVnv-4xcjK4M3JtgCLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-03-10%2B19.04.21.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="633" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-khzlOP1YoBE/WML6ha6yZfI/AAAAAAAABjo/fMYW-gDga6Ig_5MtTcVnv-4xcjK4M3JtgCLcB/s640/Screenshot%2B2017-03-10%2B19.04.21.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-T50fhORTJjY/WML6hRgGi0I/AAAAAAAABjs/-X0TLz-zsAklHf2wJDV9QLho_J-X6ufzQCLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-03-10%2B19.05.40.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-T50fhORTJjY/WML6hRgGi0I/AAAAAAAABjs/-X0TLz-zsAklHf2wJDV9QLho_J-X6ufzQCLcB/s640/Screenshot%2B2017-03-10%2B19.05.40.png" width="638" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-suRbd4qYoD8/WML6h7-bihI/AAAAAAAABj0/dN2_YLQG8qQ5tnj4ofEdqsZplbRsOyQYwCLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-03-10%2B19.07.23.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-suRbd4qYoD8/WML6h7-bihI/AAAAAAAABj0/dN2_YLQG8qQ5tnj4ofEdqsZplbRsOyQYwCLcB/s640/Screenshot%2B2017-03-10%2B19.07.23.png" width="636" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5rGDXr4x8p4/WML6h0NfGaI/AAAAAAAABj4/Gd43TVso9_gR1lDQ_C7EqF6-Vrzc2fXygCLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-03-10%2B19.08.48.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5rGDXr4x8p4/WML6h0NfGaI/AAAAAAAABj4/Gd43TVso9_gR1lDQ_C7EqF6-Vrzc2fXygCLcB/s640/Screenshot%2B2017-03-10%2B19.08.48.png" width="630" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c1Ok1BepVvo/WML6h4RjD1I/AAAAAAAABj8/U54qlTCMZr0n7fzVeHIF_BHnpBd-q8OAACLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-03-10%2B19.10.19.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c1Ok1BepVvo/WML6h4RjD1I/AAAAAAAABj8/U54qlTCMZr0n7fzVeHIF_BHnpBd-q8OAACLcB/s640/Screenshot%2B2017-03-10%2B19.10.19.png" width="622" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lquUt45bTlU/WML6iJNXyiI/AAAAAAAABkA/u5IEw6PB4WEXDwBIt6PKM64wX6mTK0_6ACLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-03-10%2B19.11.34.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lquUt45bTlU/WML6iJNXyiI/AAAAAAAABkA/u5IEw6PB4WEXDwBIt6PKM64wX6mTK0_6ACLcB/s640/Screenshot%2B2017-03-10%2B19.11.34.png" width="638" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">As I've said, there are around 100 icons in the book and these are just to give you a flavour. There are special icons for all kinds of situations and choices, from Survivor of Abuse, to whether or not you want cervical exams, to who you want to catch your baby, and even a special set of icons for Gentle or Woman Centred Caesarean birth. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Of course, the book is not simply a guide to birth plans, it's MUCH more than that! If you want a flavour of the rest of the contents, <a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2017/03/whats-going-to-be-in-positive-birth-book.html">check this post where I've shared the contents pages.</a> </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Or, you could just buy it! It's out next Thursday!!!</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">How to buy it:</span><br />
<br />
From Amazon - <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Books/Positive-Birth-New-Approach-Pregnancy-Early-Weeks/1780664303/">https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Books/Positive-Birth-New-Approach-Pregnancy-Early-Weeks/1780664303/</a><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">- direct from Pinter & Martin: </span><a href="http://www.pinterandmartin.com/the-positive-birth-book.html">http://www.pinterandmartin.com/the-positive-birth-book.html</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"> (in stock now)</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">- for free worldwide delivery Wordery: </span><span style="color: #365899; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><a href="https://wordery.com/the-positive-birth-book-milli-hill-9781780664309">https://wordery.com/the-positive-birth-book-milli-hill-9781780664309</a></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">- The Book Depository: </span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #365899;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><a href="https://www.bookdepository.com/The-Positive-Birth-Book-Milli-Hill/9781780664309">https://www.bookdepository.com/The-Positive-Birth-Book-Milli-Hill/9781780664309</a></span></span><br /><span style="color: #1d2129;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">Or order from Waterstones, The Hive, CAPERS Bookstore (Australia). It is also available on Kindle, iBooks and other ebook formats worldwide. </span></span></span><br />
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><br /></span>
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">I hope you love my new baby as much as I do!</span><br />
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nlL-krHK9ro/WML8wkeEmkI/AAAAAAAABkM/icKFGXyaRVUq4bUH0K5RtZ9BpL5K-JLCwCLcB/s1600/17212034_10212612336887203_4329476114641654849_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nlL-krHK9ro/WML8wkeEmkI/AAAAAAAABkM/icKFGXyaRVUq4bUH0K5RtZ9BpL5K-JLCwCLcB/s400/17212034_10212612336887203_4329476114641654849_o.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-23667528635166939482017-03-01T04:22:00.004-08:002017-03-01T13:24:45.380-08:00What's going to be in The Positive Birth Book?!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aelpog9yJts/WLNNsZoAo8I/AAAAAAAABhg/i-7PICSYwEQH_rMqTiRU4Y23wj4SK3HxQCPcB/s1600/14444797_10210901308072552_7366098075838453815_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aelpog9yJts/WLNNsZoAo8I/AAAAAAAABhg/i-7PICSYwEQH_rMqTiRU4Y23wj4SK3HxQCPcB/s400/14444797_10210901308072552_7366098075838453815_o.jpg" width="265" /></a></div>
<br />
Did I mention I wrote a book?!<br />
<br />
Yup. A whole flipping book.<br />
<br />
I'm not going to lie to you, it wasn't easy. My partner, my mum, and Bing bunny all helped a lot.<br />
<br />
People sometimes say, "I don't know how you did it!"<br />
<br />
Well here's the answer. Like this:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eoDcFK5Dn4g/WLa5rwA0hFI/AAAAAAAABiU/I_hrrWBRBBw68A_t-w-BwtZso0uticpzQCLcB/s1600/bookselfie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eoDcFK5Dn4g/WLa5rwA0hFI/AAAAAAAABiU/I_hrrWBRBBw68A_t-w-BwtZso0uticpzQCLcB/s640/bookselfie.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
As you can see, I had not spent very long on my 'look' that day.<br />
<br />
Nor had I apparently had time to finish plastering my fireplace.<br />
<br />
But never mind all that! What's in the Book?<br />
<br />
I thought, as we are now in PUBLICATION MONTH!! That I would share with you the ACTUAL CONTENTS PAGES OF THE BOOK.<br />
<br />
It will give you a much better idea of what you're going to get and why it took around three years of my life and an intimacy with the voiceover skills of Mark Rylance to write it.<br />
<br />
Here you go! *drum roll*<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wvDlX47V8iU/WLa652LXatI/AAAAAAAABio/jcxXnxRnv2AFpU5t6t9yQzz6yivpY79IwCLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-03-01%2B12.11.45.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wvDlX47V8iU/WLa652LXatI/AAAAAAAABio/jcxXnxRnv2AFpU5t6t9yQzz6yivpY79IwCLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-03-01%2B12.11.45.png" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qekBWBKU0nM/WLa65zNVrxI/AAAAAAAABig/Ee68gyH1uYoRCYeHu1En7ts8ncQiQW-ZgCLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-03-01%2B12.12.07.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qekBWBKU0nM/WLa65zNVrxI/AAAAAAAABig/Ee68gyH1uYoRCYeHu1En7ts8ncQiQW-ZgCLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-03-01%2B12.12.07.png" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VsXE8hwWaZ4/WLa66OhHk0I/AAAAAAAABik/VkG0k1KdLQAOZ7QhGdUusjs75KNaDSVMACLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-03-01%2B12.12.24.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VsXE8hwWaZ4/WLa66OhHk0I/AAAAAAAABik/VkG0k1KdLQAOZ7QhGdUusjs75KNaDSVMACLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-03-01%2B12.12.24.png" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_copRQ_ttcE/WLa66QnM9ZI/AAAAAAAABis/m41vVCCTIBcecHzD_1q_kcfROQEXizQEgCLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-03-01%2B12.12.38.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_copRQ_ttcE/WLa66QnM9ZI/AAAAAAAABis/m41vVCCTIBcecHzD_1q_kcfROQEXizQEgCLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-03-01%2B12.12.38.png" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w0sV3ptT_yI/WLa66rjsm-I/AAAAAAAABiw/6oRKhwYs-sIURkGIB-sxUxec1i19X9gagCLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-03-01%2B12.12.56.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w0sV3ptT_yI/WLa66rjsm-I/AAAAAAAABiw/6oRKhwYs-sIURkGIB-sxUxec1i19X9gagCLcB/s1600/Screenshot%2B2017-03-01%2B12.12.56.png" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
Thank you patient partner, thank you patient babysitting mother, thank you patient three year old, thank you Mark and Bing.<br />
<br />
I could not have done it without you!<br />
<br />
More on this blog over the coming days as we countdown to the launch on March 16th!<br />
<br />
In the meantime, you can preorder the book! That means you're one of the first to get your mitts on it. Here's how to do it:<br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #676767; font-family: "roboto" , sans-serif; font-size: medium; letter-spacing: 0.32px; text-align: center;">On Amazon:</span><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Books/Positive-Birth-New-Approach-Pregnancy-Early-Weeks/1780664303/" style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #3264a6; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 0.32px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; transition: all 200ms ease-in;" target="_blank"> https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Books/Positive-Birth-New-Approach-Pregnancy-Early-Weeks/1780664303/</a><br />
<br style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #676767; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 0.32px; text-align: center;" />
<span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #676767; font-family: "roboto" , sans-serif; font-size: medium; letter-spacing: 0.32px; text-align: center;">Or for international shipping use Wordery: </span><a href="https://wordery.com/the-positive-birth-book-milli-hill-9781780664309" style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #3264a6; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 0.32px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; transition: all 200ms ease-in;" target="_blank">https://wordery.com/the-positive-birth-book-milli-hill-9781780664309</a><br />
<br style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #676767; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 0.32px; text-align: center;" />
<span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #676767; font-family: "roboto" , sans-serif; font-size: medium; letter-spacing: 0.32px; text-align: center;">Or direct from the publisher: </span><a href="http://www.pinterandmartin.com/the-positive-birth-book.html" style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #3264a6; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 0.32px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; transition: all 200ms ease-in;" target="_blank">http://www.pinterandmartin.com/the-positive-birth-book.html</a><br />
<br />
It should be available on Amazon.com later in the year. <br />
<br />
Bye for now!<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-68760166011701236392017-02-26T12:52:00.001-08:002017-02-26T14:23:20.112-08:00A quick rant about the NHS approach to eczemaFollowers of this blog will know that, about 8 weeks after my third baby was born (he is now 3), he developed eczema that was so severe, he looked like he had been burnt in a fire. Think I'm exaggerating?<br />
<br />
This pic was taken on the 31st October, when he was about 6 weeks old:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jkADiKO_8zo/WLMDUjCNDRI/AAAAAAAABfU/22moN7yT5TYmrDXtL5mm5Krfq83xSLX3QCLcB/s1600/13.10.31-07.02.58-0013%2Bcopy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="380" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jkADiKO_8zo/WLMDUjCNDRI/AAAAAAAABfU/22moN7yT5TYmrDXtL5mm5Krfq83xSLX3QCLcB/s640/13.10.31-07.02.58-0013%2Bcopy.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
Clear skin.<br />
<br />
By 18th November, we were in Eczemaville:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vTKN39iJEPo/WLME4FJ_oyI/AAAAAAAABfg/Rh--XbnGX1MFR-B2l1Ioxr40WssvNe2aACLcB/s1600/13.11.18-07.42.59-0016%2Bcopy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vTKN39iJEPo/WLME4FJ_oyI/AAAAAAAABfg/Rh--XbnGX1MFR-B2l1Ioxr40WssvNe2aACLcB/s640/13.11.18-07.42.59-0016%2Bcopy.jpg" width="382" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
By 4th December, we were in hell:<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-N0GVHDUUkts/WLMFb3EbBNI/AAAAAAAABfk/dBarPdZVYj8X4wCOpdARGB2gi-oa8m37ACLcB/s1600/13.12.04-06.36.24-0002%2Bcopy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="382" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-N0GVHDUUkts/WLMFb3EbBNI/AAAAAAAABfk/dBarPdZVYj8X4wCOpdARGB2gi-oa8m37ACLcB/s640/13.12.04-06.36.24-0002%2Bcopy.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
The next pic is one of those random snaps, probably taken by another child, but for me it encapsulates how I was feeling at the time, the concern I felt for him, the tenderness, and how I could not take my eyes of him, and how I wanted to make it all better.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sjpwZ37LzL4/WLMGLfW4XhI/AAAAAAAABfs/W7zqBhFf6SkTp2K-6-EpGNa7a6olCJTCQCLcB/s1600/13.12.09-01.42.20-0003%2Bcopy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="382" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sjpwZ37LzL4/WLMGLfW4XhI/AAAAAAAABfs/W7zqBhFf6SkTp2K-6-EpGNa7a6olCJTCQCLcB/s640/13.12.09-01.42.20-0003%2Bcopy.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
And here's one more so you get the idea of how severe baby eczema can be. (I had no idea until it happened to me).<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mdsUFriroyo/WLMGgFtw_YI/AAAAAAAABfw/cpdT3SEizU0YELuDhEBxPX0uyBNRpdUJQCLcB/s1600/13.12.10-02.41.40-0004%2Bcopy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mdsUFriroyo/WLMGgFtw_YI/AAAAAAAABfw/cpdT3SEizU0YELuDhEBxPX0uyBNRpdUJQCLcB/s640/13.12.10-02.41.40-0004%2Bcopy.jpg" width="382" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
I've actually had to scroll my screen down so that I can carry on writing this post without having to look at these pics. They literally cause me physical pain.<br />
<br />
Anyway! Let's cheer up because there is a good end to this story.<br />
<br />
After a few more months of living with eczema (during which time my dad was also living with terminal lung cancer - yes my life really was pretty shit around that time), we had a few glimmers of improvement under NHS care.<br />
<br />
At first, just the heavy petroleum jelly they prescribed to be slathered on liberally, seemed to make a bit of a difference. At times his skin just looked 'red' rather than all broken as it is in the last pic above. The steroid cream also worked in that it helped the eczema subside, but as soon as we took our 'steroid break' it would flare again. Other times it would flare without explanation. It seemed there was no fix, no cure, and I was offered disability allowance, which I did not apply for, because I felt that by the time the forms were processed, he would be better. I was determined he would get better, and I began to read online articles and discussions obsessively.<br />
<br />
In February I was reading an eczema group on Facebook and I 'overheard' a conversation between other eczema mums about a miracle doctor called Dr Aron. The way they talked about him was almost evangelical, and I was initially skeptical - but curious. This was a 'proper', 'mainstream' doc, who was a BUPA doc in the UK, and also worked in South Africa. I googled him. Yes, he really was a doc. I trawled the internet for other review of his work, or any mention. All I could find was the same breathless praise, and before and after pics of children who looked just like mine one minute and fixed the next.<br />
<br />
A consultation with him cost £80, plus the cost of a private prescription (I can't remember exactly how much that was, around £30 I think). His method is to prescribe a mix of creams, most of which you get at some point or another under the NHS approach, but just separately, rather than mixed together. Our mix contained mostly diprobase (a moisturiser), plus a small amount of anti-bacterial cream and a small amount of steroid cream.<br />
<br />
A couple of things that Dr Aron told me about eczema made a lot of sense, 1 - that the skin is infected and that by applying steroid cream by itself as per the usual NHS approach, you will make it 'look' better because the inflammation will die down, but once you stop the steroid, the redness etc will all come back because you have not addressed the underlying infection, and that 2 - slapping on thick moisturisers just gives the bacteria a lovely moist place to breed and frolic.<br />
<br />
I can still remember the day the postman (who was as concerned as everyone about our poorly baby) brought the tub of cream. It was the 4th March.<br />
<br />
This is the final pic I took before the first application:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GXcbwSqcE10/WLML9JBIDbI/AAAAAAAABgE/yI3XPQ800AcsAGfTZBLKQEdKZXd2TrJ5wCLcB/s1600/14.03.04-11.43.17-0002%2Bcopy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="382" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GXcbwSqcE10/WLML9JBIDbI/AAAAAAAABgE/yI3XPQ800AcsAGfTZBLKQEdKZXd2TrJ5wCLcB/s640/14.03.04-11.43.17-0002%2Bcopy.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
This was 24 hours later:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6aLmQrtaGEU/WLMMXMS_2GI/AAAAAAAABgI/ReaP1EfjkM8EdYoook7LBhLkVg0eRvYpwCLcB/s1600/14.03.05-09.01.00-0010%2Bcopy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6aLmQrtaGEU/WLMMXMS_2GI/AAAAAAAABgI/ReaP1EfjkM8EdYoook7LBhLkVg0eRvYpwCLcB/s640/14.03.05-09.01.00-0010%2Bcopy.jpg" width="382" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
This was 48 hours later:</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wY11XdC1ZME/WLMNSv-wGBI/AAAAAAAABgU/jxzm3-bw_kgqXepttL69eyo9Q_pxbSedgCLcB/s1600/14.03.06-10.01.01-0022%2Bcopy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="382" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wY11XdC1ZME/WLMNSv-wGBI/AAAAAAAABgU/jxzm3-bw_kgqXepttL69eyo9Q_pxbSedgCLcB/s640/14.03.06-10.01.01-0022%2Bcopy.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<br />
We never looked back. It took a while. We had so much contact with Dr Aron (all via email) - probably around 50 or 60 emails over around 6 months (all for our £80). Day or night he was there for us and I quickly began to understand why so many people talked about him as if he were some kind of saint - because he is.<br />
<br />
It wasn't all plain sailing - we had flare ups and little changes to the treatment, especially to get rid of the stubborn areas. But get rid of them we did, and, following the Aron Regime, we slowly reduced the applications of the cream until - we didn't use it any more. I still have some left in the second tub, and my son has never had eczema since. Here are the two of us recently, he's a peach, in every sense, as you can see:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3ZAdCO39RhI/WLMO2U2vxZI/AAAAAAAABgg/lXQeDCqp-P8_osO_gM8Slepkva4SfHD4QCLcB/s1600/17.02.03-01.06.19-0009%2Bcopy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3ZAdCO39RhI/WLMO2U2vxZI/AAAAAAAABgg/lXQeDCqp-P8_osO_gM8Slepkva4SfHD4QCLcB/s640/17.02.03-01.06.19-0009%2Bcopy.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
Ok, so here's the rant. Over the course of the past 3 years, I have encountered dozens of doctors and medical professionals, due to the fact that our son also has bouts of asthma (less serious now but we had about half a dozen hospital admissions over his second year), and severe allergies to egg and dairy.<br />
<br />
Each time I meet a new doctor, nurse, dietician etc, they always ask about his eczema. And (I hate writing this because god bless the NHS and all that, but it's true), in pretty much the majority of cases, they are dismissive, disinterested, or even scornful of the Dr Aron treatment.<br />
<br />
It's as if they just see me as a slightly deranged mother (and to be fair on several of the occasions I've been talking to them, I've been wearing a coat over my sick spattered pajamas having rushed a child into A&E following a night without sleep). But it's as if, as soon as I say, "I found a doctor on the Internet", they kind of fill in the blanks for the rest of the story themselves? To me, this feels pretty disrespectful, as it's usually patently clear that they are not interested in hearing about it and this makes me feel rather daft and I usually find myself trailing off, feeling slightly embarrassed and / or defeated.<br />
<br />
But as these situations occur again and again, I've started to get more irritated by them. The point is not that every NHS doctor should be taking on board the Dr Aron regime and that I should be made a Chief Advisor to the Health Secretary. I'm not arrogant, and I'm not stupid enough to think that just because Dr Aron worked for us, that automatically makes it a scientific breakthrough that will work for everyone else. But what bothers me here, is the lack of CURIOSITY.<br />
<br />
How can professionals who deal with children and babies with eczema - who are suffering like my son did - every single day, be so utterly disinterested in a the story of a woman who is sitting in front of them telling them there may well be something that could help them? All they would need to do is simply jot down a note, 'Dr Aron', stick that post-it on their monitor, and I'd be happy. Do they not at least want to look it up and see what the deranged woman with her coat over her pajamas is wittering on about?<br />
<br />
I find it bizarre. At the very least, think of the money they could save. After we found Dr Aron, we threw away about 15 or 20 different pots and tubes of cream, all of which had been opened but had failed to help our son. Had we not found Dr Aron, we would have continued to cost the NHS money on these creams, we may have got worse to the point of hospital admissions (many do), and we may well have caved in and accepted the disability benefit.<br />
<br />
That's not to mention the personal toll for a family of living with this terrible condition. Or the suffering of a child.<br />
<br />
So please, if you are NHS professional or person of influence reading this blog - don't take my word for it about Dr Aron, I don't expect you to. But please, for gawd's sake, just BE CURIOUS. Lack of curiosity really is the most depressing trait I can think of in a human being.<br />
<br />
If you want to know more about Dr Aron, here are a few places to start.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://eczemasense.org/pdf/dr-aron-case-studies.pdf">Fifty Dr Aron case studies including before and after pics</a><br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.instagram.com/draronpatients/">Instragram account of before and after pics</a><br />
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/draron/permalink/1076930335744290/"><br /></a>
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/draron/permalink/1076930335744290/">Facebook group (nearly 20k members) of his patients and patients-to-be</a><br />
<a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2014/03/baby-eczema-took-over-our-life-have-we.html"><br /></a>
<a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2014/03/baby-eczema-took-over-our-life-have-we.html">My original blog post about our experience with him</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/health/children/11142266/Eczema-expert-defended-by-parents.html">Telegraph article about my experience with him</a><br />
<i>(always amazed when I see from the pic in this article how much hair I had lost. you don't always notice at the time just how much life is taking it's toll! Luckily my hairline is back where it was intended to be now! Another thing I have to thank Dr Aron for!)</i><br />
<br />
<br />
Thanks for reading all. Even bigger thanks for being curious. Albie says Cheers.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sFM8invRhNw/WLM-M_7tp3I/AAAAAAAABg8/MA0W9qQq6mcqznTCW-iGhYvBzsnC7WATwCLcB/s1600/14962534_10211303565688741_6855201472619047730_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sFM8invRhNw/WLM-M_7tp3I/AAAAAAAABg8/MA0W9qQq6mcqznTCW-iGhYvBzsnC7WATwCLcB/s640/14962534_10211303565688741_6855201472619047730_n.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Oh and don't forget my book is out on March 16th! A must for every pregnant woman, but especially the curious ones! ;-) Preorder here: <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Books/Positive-Birth-New-Approach-Pregnancy-Early-Weeks/1780664303/">https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Books/Positive-Birth-New-Approach-Pregnancy-Early-Weeks/1780664303/</a><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aelpog9yJts/WLNNsZoAo8I/AAAAAAAABhY/APL5yqsyfFkA8VHjDR1bVmcAK-8QXXasQCLcB/s1600/14444797_10210901308072552_7366098075838453815_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aelpog9yJts/WLNNsZoAo8I/AAAAAAAABhY/APL5yqsyfFkA8VHjDR1bVmcAK-8QXXasQCLcB/s640/14444797_10210901308072552_7366098075838453815_o.jpg" width="424" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-2631966640177215872017-02-04T13:51:00.000-08:002017-02-04T13:57:05.673-08:00We need to act now to save Independent Midwives - and birth freedom!Independent Midwives...where do I start with what I owe to them? Without Independent Midwives, I don't know what kind of birth I would have had with my second baby. Traumatised and scared after my first birth (induction, forceps etc), I discovered, right at the last minute, that you could 'opt out' of the NHS. I contacted <a href="http://www.wessexindependentmidwives.co.uk/">Independent Midwives Caroline Baddiley and Chrissy Hustler,</a> and as soon as they walked into my living room for our first meeting, I knew that everything was going to be different from that moment on.<br />
<br />
It's awkward to 'big up' IM's because doing so contains the implication that there is something wrong with NHS midwives. And of course, this is not the case. There are many many fantastic midwives in the NHS and many women have fantastic positive births under their care. The problem that I had, and that drove me to seek an alternative, was that I could not guarantee that I would know the midwife who attended me. In my local area at the time, midwives came from a large 'bank', and I was told I probably would not know the person who turned up to my home birth, and she may not have any experience of water birth.<br />
<br />
I wanted to know my midwife, and I wanted a water birth, but also, and perhaps more than both of these things, I wanted someone who 'believed' in birth (mainly because at that point, I didn't!). I wanted someone who would not feel the need to clock watch, or offer unsolicited pain relief, or give routine examinations that I didn't want, or box tick on a clip-board. I wanted someone who would have the confidence in my birthing abilities that I lacked, and who would bring a special positive energy to my birth space. Basically, I wanted the UK's answer to Ina May Gaskin. And that's exactly what I got.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yrfS2j2u2ik/Ux9mBVouZtI/AAAAAAAABaU/bO2x1pJvcBs5Cla30v-JlYHGgRJCjIxUgCPcB/s1600/waterbirth%2Bcopy-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="273" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yrfS2j2u2ik/Ux9mBVouZtI/AAAAAAAABaU/bO2x1pJvcBs5Cla30v-JlYHGgRJCjIxUgCPcB/s400/waterbirth%2Bcopy-1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
After that beautiful birth, that changed the way I felt about my body, and was one of the many factors that triggered me to launch the <a href="http://www.positivebirthmovement.org/">Positive Birth Movement</a>, I learnt that IM's were under threat. By this time (around Spring 2013) I was pregnant with my third baby, and was writing this blog really regularly (remember that?!), and so I used my blog, and then <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/authors/milli-hill/">my new role as a writer for Telegraph Women</a>, as a platform to voice support for them. They were being told that, due to an E.U directive, they would need to get insurance, or face becoming illegal.<br />
<br />
Now, if you're not familiar with IM's this part might shock you: <i>At this point in time they did not actually have any insurance, and had never had it or been required to have it.</i><br />
<br />
For some reason we've become so familiar with insurance and litigation that the idea of someone being uninsured can make us feel quite uncomfortable. It's as if the very act of being uninsured might make a person less responsible or more likely to do something dangerous.<br />
<br />
Of course, this is not the case. When Caroline and Chrissy came to that meeting in my living room, and explained to me that they were not insured, I couldn't have cared less. Ultimately, even if they had been insured, I would only have got a payout if something had gone wrong due to their negligence. If something had gone wrong due to mother nature, or bad luck, I probably would not have got a penny. Listening to these two fantastic women at what was effectively their 'job interview', I knew I had absolute confidence in them and that they would be the polar opposite of negligent. They would give me one to one care, be by side throughout, and they would know me and be emotionally invested in my welfare. I trusted them completely.<br />
<br />
In some ways this is irrelevant, because the law, rightly or wrongly, <i>did</i> continue to demand that IM's found insurance, and they <i>did</i> go on to find cover. A different and completely wonderful IM, <a href="http://www.mindfulmidwifery.co.uk/">Tara Windmill Robson,</a> attended my third birth, and she and I celebrated in relief when this solution was found. Since then I've promoted IM's wherever I can, as I believe (<a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/mother-tongue/9949281/Home-delivery-why-independent-midwives-are-key-to-the-fight-for-birth-freedom.html">as I wrote in this article for the Telegraph</a>), that IM's hold the key to birth freedom. Without them, we risk birth becoming more medicalised, more institutionalised, and depersonalised. Without them, women's choices narrow overnight.<br />
<br />
It seemed like IM's had been saved, but behind the scenes, all was not well. I learned in the first week of January this year (2017), that they had received the news from the NMC (Nursing and Midwifery Council) that they could no longer practice.<br />
<br />
This seemed unbelievable! Why had this happened?! Wasn't everything all sorted?!<br />
<br />
I'm still not 100% sure I understand the situation fully. In this blog post I'm just going to tell you what I do know...<br />
<br />
First of all, the NMC...<br />
<br />
I've had a brief encounter with the NMC recently after I wrote <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/jan/17/having-a-baby-cattle-midwives-report">this article for the Guardian</a> which referenced the situation with IM's. They took issue with the paragraph about IM's as it originally appeared, and boy-oh-boy was there was a lot of to-ing and fro-ing with the Guardian Reader's Editor and myself as we tried to amend it. (not much fun when you don't have any childcare and you have to navigate the situation with Bing Bunny in your left ear and a 3 year old sitting on your arms).<br />
<br />
One big problem is that the NMC seems to lack understanding of what an IM actually IS. They took issue with my statement in the Guardian that the option of an IM had been removed for women, saying that their ruling only affected a 'small group of IM's' who are members of IMUK, and that all of the other IM's in the country do have the right insurance and can therefore still practice. They seemed keen to diminish the impact of their decision, consistently stressing the tiny number affected, for example, in <a href="https://www.nmc.org.uk/news/press-releases/indemnity-provision-for-imuk-midwives-is-inappropriate-says-nmc/">their original statement on the issue</a>, they say:<br />
<br />
<style type="text/css">
p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 16.0px Calibri; color: #101010; -webkit-text-stroke: #101010}
span.s1 {font-kerning: none}
</style>
<br />
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">‘The decision today only applies to around 80 members of IMUK who rely on their indemnity scheme. In contrast, more than 41,000 midwives in the UK operate with adequate indemnity cover.’</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p1">
Anyone reading this who knows nothing about the issue could easily take away that there were tens of thousands of IM's! In fact, that figure of 41k includes every midwife on their register, including all of the midwives in the NHS. However, putting those two figures next door to each other certainly does make the number affected seem utterly insignificant! Well done, NMC PR department!</div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
"Anyway", the NMC seem to be saying gaily, "there are <i>lots</i> more Independent Midwives who can still practice!" It's not a problem, they say, because all of the IMUK IM's can just get a job somewhere else! No worries!</div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
Um, well, that's not quite the full picture. IMUK midwives are different. They are SELF EMPLOYED. The other UK 'independent midwives' (by this the NMC means private midwives working outside the NHS) are part of private companies. Anyone who has ever tried being self employed will tell you that this is a very different experience to working for a company, in particular in terms of autonomy, than being employed by a company, however small. </div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
So the Independent Midwives that the NMC has got rid of are basically unique. A woman who wants an IM - and by that I mean a SELF EMPLOYED and therefore FULLY INDEPENDENT MIDWIFE, not a 'Private Midwife' - in the UK at the moment, can no longer hire one to be at her birth. </div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
Her only option, if she wants to birth outside of the NHS, is to use a private midwifery company. If she is in London or the south east, she can try <a href="http://www.neighbourhoodmidwives.org.uk/">Neighbourhood Midwives</a>. If she is in Essex or the Midlands, she might get lucky with <a href="http://www.onetoonemidwives.org/">One to One Midwives. </a> But if she's anywhere else in the country, she would have to try a company called <a href="https://www.privatemidwives.com/">Private Midwives</a>, also known as UKBC (UK Birth Centres). </div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
Let me tell you a couple of interesting things about Private Midwives. </div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
First of all, they are the only private midwifery company that claims to cover the whole of the UK and Ireland. </div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
Second of all, they are the people who raised a complaint about IMUK Independent Midwives insurance provision with the NMC. </div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
Yes, you heard correct. IMUK, a group of individuals that are basically the only competition to Private Midwives / UKBC, has effectively been put out of business by the NMC decision, the wheels of which were set in motion by a complaint (which I have personally seen and read) from their main competitor...UKBC.</div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
But that's OK, say the NMC, because all the IMUK midwives who have been put out of business by the decision can just go and sign up with Private Midwives / UKBC!!</div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
Well there's a few reasons, apart from the obvious, why they may not want to do that. </div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
First of all, being employed as a midwife even if it is outside the NHS is not the same as being an Independent Midwife. You are not autonomous. You are not self employed. You are working for the Man (even if the Man is a twinkly eyed midwifery company manager). </div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
Secondly, Private Midwives / UKBC don't seem to have the same values as the IMUK midwives. Take for example their website. Under 'Birth Choices', they list as an option, '<a href="https://www.privatemidwives.com/cord-blood-banking/">Cord Blood Banking</a>' in collaboration with a company called Future Health Biobank. Now, an IM would support you if you really wanted to do cord blood banking, because they support ALL choices. But they would never actively promote it, or take a financial cut from it as presumably UKBC are doing, because, as every IM will tell you, cord blood banking is almost impossible to do effectively without interfering with Optimal Cord Clamping. </div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
Did you know there's a brilliant new birth book coming out next month by a little known birth writer called Milli Hill?! She's given me her permission to share an exclusive extract from her book about Cord Blood Banking, in exchange for this shameless plug:</div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Books/Positive-Birth-New-Approach-Pregnancy-Early-Weeks/1780664303/"><b>THE POSITIVE BIRTH BOOK IS OUT ON MARCH 16TH! CLICK HERE TO PREORDER IT FROM AMAZON TODAY! </b></a></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gx4f_lcR_4E/WDywNW7JbbI/AAAAAAAABeE/wyFFfF3CT8MdeJv0rw9SsON6OqXI15SYwCPcB/s1600/PositiveBirthBook.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gx4f_lcR_4E/WDywNW7JbbI/AAAAAAAABeE/wyFFfF3CT8MdeJv0rw9SsON6OqXI15SYwCPcB/s320/PositiveBirthBook.jpeg" width="212" /></a></div>
<div class="p1">
This extract from the Positive Birth Book is taken from a larger section on everything you need to know about Optimal Clamping:</div>
<div class="p1">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "calibri"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><i>What about cord blood banking?<o:p></o:p></i></span></b></div>
<div class="p1">
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>JA</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/>
<w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/>
<w:OverrideTableStyleHps/>
<w:UseFELayout/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="276">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]-->
<style>
<!--
/* Font Definitions */
@font-face
{font-family:"MS 明朝";
mso-font-charset:78;
mso-generic-font-family:auto;
mso-font-pitch:variable;
mso-font-signature:-536870145 1791491579 18 0 131231 0;}
@font-face
{font-family:"Cambria Math";
panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4;
mso-font-charset:0;
mso-generic-font-family:auto;
mso-font-pitch:variable;
mso-font-signature:-536870145 1107305727 0 0 415 0;}
@font-face
{font-family:Calibri;
panose-1:2 15 5 2 2 2 4 3 2 4;
mso-font-charset:0;
mso-generic-font-family:auto;
mso-font-pitch:variable;
mso-font-signature:-520092929 1073786111 9 0 415 0;}
@font-face
{font-family:Cambria;
panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4;
mso-font-charset:0;
mso-generic-font-family:auto;
mso-font-pitch:variable;
mso-font-signature:-536870145 1073743103 0 0 415 0;}
/* Style Definitions */
p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal
{mso-style-unhide:no;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
margin:0cm;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"MS 明朝";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
.MsoChpDefault
{mso-style-type:export-only;
mso-default-props:yes;
font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"MS 明朝";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;
mso-ansi-language:EN-US;}
@page WordSection1
{size:612.0pt 792.0pt;
margin:72.0pt 90.0pt 72.0pt 90.0pt;
mso-header-margin:36.0pt;
mso-footer-margin:36.0pt;
mso-paper-source:0;}
div.WordSection1
{page:WordSection1;}
-->
</style>
<!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0cm;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-ansi-language:EN-US;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<!--StartFragment-->
<!--EndFragment--></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: #FDFDFD; line-height: 13.5pt;">
<span style="background: #fdfdfd; font-family: "calibri";"><i>Cord blood banking is big
business. While there are some options to <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">donate</span>
your baby’s cord blood, for example in the NHS, there are many more private
companies who charge around £2,000 or more to collect and bank your baby’s cord
blood, which they often describe as, ‘a waste product with life-saving
potential’. However, you can’t do ‘optimal clamping’ <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">and</span> ‘cord blood banking’. So it’s worth considering whether you
want to donate around a third of your baby’s blood volume, by having it banked
for their own or anyone else’s possible future use. Although we can’t predict
every scientific advance of the future, it’s thought that the chance that your
own baby will need their banked cord blood before the age of 20 could be as little
as 1 in 20,000. Also, should your child develop leukaemia, it’s extremely
unlikely that his or her own cord blood will be appropriate for transplant. Essentially,
so-called ‘cord blood’ is actually ‘your baby’s blood’. Perhaps the health
benefits might be highest for your child if this blood goes straight into their
body at birth? </i></span><span style="font-family: "calibri"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<br />
I called Future Health Biobank and asked them what would happen if I wanted OCC but also wanted to bank my baby's cord blood. They said I would be able to wait 2 minutes before collecting, and whilst Private Midwives say they advise a wait is built in, they also admit that the longer you wait, the higher the risk of the sample failing. Let's just say this, if you had had cord blood banking promoted to you by the midwives you had trusted to hire, AND had paid around £2k for it, would you want to risk it not working out, or would you ditch the OCC and get that blood harvested PDQ?!<br />
<br />
It's all a bit murky. This rival company, who complained about IMUK's insurance, and promote the utterly daft practice of cord blood banking, are also alleged to have a voluntary excess of £50k on their policy and to have been, until recent investment from a company on the Isle of Man, substantially in debt. How much of this is true, or who the new investors are, I'm yet to find out, but boy would I love to know.<br />
<br />
I've asked the NMC if they plan to investigate the insurance arrangements of UKBC and they have told me that they, "do not currently have concerns about the indemnity arrangements of any other group of midwives."<br />
<br />
In the meantime IMUK members cannot attend women in labour. There are pregnant women who are directly affected by this decision, and <a href="http://www.birthrights.org.uk/2017/01/birthrights-criticises-nmc-for-independent-midwives-decision/">Birthrights have said that their actions, <span style="background-color: white; color: #373737; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 15px;">“appear designed to cause maximum disruption and damage to independent midwives and the women they care for,” adding that, “we do not believe that these are the actions of a responsible regulator.”</span></a><br />
<br />
I would add that I feel this decision directly threatens the future birth experiences of every woman currently pregnant or yet to be pregnant in the UK today. Independent Midwives represent an alternative model of birth to anything else currently on offer. They believe in the power of women's bodies to birth without interference. They care for women in a completely different way to the service most get under the NHS, offering the kind of individualised care that has been <a href="https://www.gtc.ox.ac.uk/research-centres/sheila-kitzinger-programme.html">shown by research to have better outcomes for safety and satisfaction across the board, </a>and promoted by t<a href="https://www.england.nhs.uk/ourwork/futurenhs/mat-transformation/mat-review/">he recent maternity review </a>as the gold standard to which the NHS should be aspiring.<br />
<br />
And for now - they are...gone.<br />
<br />
Please help save this option for UK women by taking the following action:<br />
<br />
There is a comprehensive list of ways to get involved<a href="https://saveourmidwives.co.uk/get-involved"> listed here on this site</a><br />
<br />
<style type="text/css">
p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 16.0px Calibri; color: #386092; -webkit-text-stroke: #386092}
span.s1 {font-kerning: none}
</style>
<br />
They include...<br />
<br />
Write to the NMC at<span style="background-color: white; color: #5e5e5e; font-family: "josefin sans" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"> </span>complaints@nmc-uk.org (<a href="https://www.saveourmidwives.co.uk/">example letters here)</a><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #5e5e5e; font-family: "josefin sans" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #5e5e5e; font-family: "josefin sans" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">Sign a petition </span><span style="color: #5e5e5e; font-family: "josefin sans" , "arial" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.thepetitionsite.com/867/170/952/allow-women-their-rights-during-labour-independent-midwives-crisis/">http://www.thepetitionsite.com/867/170/952/allow-women-their-rights-during-labour-independent-midwives-crisis/</a></span><br />
<br />
or this one to the UK parliament <a href="https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/178561">https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/178561</a><br />
<br />
or this one on 38 degrees <a href="https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/declare-nmc-action-illegal-and-replace-with-an-organisation-fit-for-purpose">https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/declare-nmc-action-illegal-and-replace-with-an-organisation-fit-for-purpose</a><br />
<br />
Or all three!<br />
<br />
Join this Facebook group <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/443681876022589/permalink/459505261106917/">https://www.facebook.com/groups/443681876022589/permalink/459505261106917/</a><br />
<br />
If you're tweeting, use the hashtag #savethemidwife<br />
<br />
<br />
Here's a few pics from my two births with Independent Midwives.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AupFR48mDTM/UR92cDcnFSI/AAAAAAAABMs/jR6oOKJGcBUCENgDKVBVWCEinCL07Y2IACPcB/s1600/31841_1470021074344_911918_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AupFR48mDTM/UR92cDcnFSI/AAAAAAAABMs/jR6oOKJGcBUCENgDKVBVWCEinCL07Y2IACPcB/s320/31841_1470021074344_911918_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KIDBnTzK3JU/WJZMGEcQWYI/AAAAAAAABes/HKYGTVd67nsILeHoItO808N-z-EGGNUHACLcB/s1600/970606_10202082205320495_80824078_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KIDBnTzK3JU/WJZMGEcQWYI/AAAAAAAABes/HKYGTVd67nsILeHoItO808N-z-EGGNUHACLcB/s320/970606_10202082205320495_80824078_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-k7O_zJXUSfc/WJZMGLvy-SI/AAAAAAAABeo/rkhT2dJqJuk9W_7oiHUUW7r1rtuR1eqjQCLcB/s1600/16106035_10212101108386810_4487817883099564738_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-k7O_zJXUSfc/WJZMGLvy-SI/AAAAAAAABeo/rkhT2dJqJuk9W_7oiHUUW7r1rtuR1eqjQCLcB/s320/16106035_10212101108386810_4487817883099564738_n.jpg" width="319" /> </a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_U8HmUnUNmU/WJZMGOwXlHI/AAAAAAAABew/PBZUh8m2yLwAQbUmlScrJotWtE8UsOUTQCLcB/s1600/16114621_10212101108546814_6630412898100982149_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_U8HmUnUNmU/WJZMGOwXlHI/AAAAAAAABew/PBZUh8m2yLwAQbUmlScrJotWtE8UsOUTQCLcB/s320/16114621_10212101108546814_6630412898100982149_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-39872837976594566542016-11-28T14:40:00.001-08:002016-11-28T14:40:28.822-08:00Sometimes I sits and thinks, and sometimes, I just sits.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YGPHMjyLEhs/WDywwPupO0I/AAAAAAAABd8/SUyeEqvtlOcjsAERZiJ-u_5v05MaXYgCACEw/s1600/Screenshot%2B2016-11-28%2B22.33.09.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YGPHMjyLEhs/WDywwPupO0I/AAAAAAAABd8/SUyeEqvtlOcjsAERZiJ-u_5v05MaXYgCACEw/s320/Screenshot%2B2016-11-28%2B22.33.09.png" width="320" /></a></div>
Oh, how long it has been since I have written this blog! Actually, I've really missed it, and it feels good to be back. But...life has really moved on in so many ways from the days when I used to sit at my desk, one evening a week, and sip wine, and think, and write.<br />
<br />
It's been...how can I put this...hectic. We moved house, not to any house, but to a kind of derelict place, one half of which used to be the village hairdressers and the other half of which had been lived in by a lovely little old lady for about fifty years. Walls needed knocking down. Floors dug up. A staircase ripped out and another rebuilt in it's place, the other way round. For the past three years I have lived under a layer of brick dust, with the sound of an angle grinder haunting even my dreams. My partner - who was born to live on the road in a van and admits it himself - reminds me that many people the world over would be so glad to live in a building site and wouldn't mind the powdered concrete clouds or the lack of central heating or think that not having a kitchen to speak of was anything out of the ordinary. In turn I remind him of the droves of people who would consider the property to be 'uninhabitable' and would stay in a hotel for the duration of the building project, or just never ever touch a house like this with a ten foot barge pole for the sake of their own sanity. There have been disputes. Tear-sodden, brick-dust-coated disputes, in which we've debated the haves versus the have-nots and their respective merits and I've wanted to whack him with the greasy frying pan that could have been so much more easily washed up in the dishwasher I so superficially longed to possess.<br />
<br />
Then there was the baby. When we moved into said building site, I was about 6 months pregnant with baby number 3. I've heard that having a third baby is a bit like - you're drowning, and then somebody throws you a baby - and I'm here to tell you that it's not like that at all, it's much much worse. Or maybe it just feels like that if you're living in a pile of rubble disguised as a house, and then the baby gets sick <a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2014/03/baby-eczema-took-over-our-life-have-we.html">(see here for the story of his horrendous eczema)</a>, and then your dad gets lung cancer and dies.<br />
<br />
OK so I must sound like I'm crying the blues here but this really is the story of the past few years of my life, or at least the story of the events that led to my feeling like a great big boot had swung back, hoofed itself into my status quo, and knocked the whole shebang firmly into orbit. My absolute low point must have been the day after my dad's funeral, when my son had his first asthma attack. I took him to A&E and a nurse took one look at him, picked him up and ran with him down the corridor, buttons were pressed, a team came running, it was surreal. I was terrified. He was OK.<br />
<br />
Of course, this is not the only story of the past couple of years. All of this time my three wonderful children have been delighting me and simultaneously driving me nuts and keeping me sane. I've been writing writing writing away, first for Bestdaily, where I wrote week after week about birth, breastfeeding and motherhood, notching up over 100 articles in just over 2 years. Sadly their website didn't make it, and my column died along with it, but since then I've written regularly for <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/authors/milli-hill/">Telegraph Women</a>, and a few bits and bobs elsewhere, too.<br />
<br />
And all of this time, I've been running the <a href="http://www.positivebirthmovement.org/">Positive Birth Movement (PBM)</a> - launched as a small idea here on this very blog in 2012, and quickly snowballing into a huge organisation with over 400 PBM groups worldwide and an ever-growing presence on social media. I'm so proud of what the Positive Birth Movement has become, and I love hearing the wonderful feedback from women who have - either through social media or the 'real life' groups - found a new narrative of childbirth that has changed their own story. Women who had (like so many of us) a terrifying mental image of birth, but began to believe that it could be different - powerful, beautiful, or even enjoyable - when their own turn came.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gx4f_lcR_4E/WDywNW7JbbI/AAAAAAAABd4/7cOGDFo_arcm0RhXsZxyR-jC3DVWxHrGgCEw/s1600/PositiveBirthBook.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gx4f_lcR_4E/WDywNW7JbbI/AAAAAAAABd4/7cOGDFo_arcm0RhXsZxyR-jC3DVWxHrGgCEw/s400/PositiveBirthBook.jpeg" width="265" /></a>Because of this success, I've now written a book - <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Positive-Birth-Book-Approach-Pregnancy/dp/1780664303/">The Positive Birth Book</a> - which will be published by Pinter and Martin in March 2017. It draws on the real appetite that women have for new, positive messages about childbirth, that the PBM has revealed to me over the past few years! But it's actually much, much more than that. I really feel that the book is quietly revolutionary, because, as well as giving the inside track on what birth is really like and how brilliant it can be, it's also packed with information about choices and rights in the birth room, and brings the same PBM philosophy - that it's up to <i>women</i> to decide what makes birth positive for them as individuals - rather than raising up one kind of birth above another. I hope I'll get time to share more about the book here on this blog over the next few months leading up to the launch, but for now, let's just say that, although it's not littered with the F word, I think it's about as feminist a book about birth as you're likely to find.<br />
<br />
So I feel like I'm at a turning point, although as always I'm slightly afraid to say that in case the Fates overhear me and start randomly slinging crap at me again. At home there is no more brick dust. There are radiators and a dishwasher. There are no longer large holes in the walls. It's beginning to look quite lovely in places. The baby is now 3 and we haven't had an overnight stay in the Children's Ward for about a year now. The PBM is flying. Whilst I love birth, there are to be no more babies and their associated chaos. And the book is with the publisher...so 2017 could be very exciting indeed. Who knows I may even find myself sat at my desk, sipping wine and blogging once a week. Although that reminds me of one of the very funny little truisms my dad used to say:<br />
<br />
<i>"Sometimes I sits and thinks...and sometimes...I just sits." </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i><br /></i>
<i>_________________________________________________________________________________You can pre-order The Positive Birth Book on Amazon or Wordery and it's out in March! </i><br />
<i><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Positive-Birth-Book-Approach-Pregnancy/dp/1780664303/">https://www.amazon.co.uk/Positive-Birth-Book-Approach-Pregnancy/dp/1780664303/</a></i><br />
<i><a href="https://wordery.com/the-positive-birth-book-milli-hill-9781780664309">https://wordery.com/the-positive-birth-book-milli-hill-9781780664309</a></i><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-18186896543156807562014-03-07T13:14:00.000-08:002015-11-19T05:07:51.849-08:00Baby eczema took over our life: have we found the answer?"How come you have stopped blogging?", someone asked me recently. Short answer: I had a baby. Slightly longer answer: I had my third baby, my life is chaos, I got a <a href="http://www.bestdaily.co.uk/search/searchselector.php?query=Milli+Hill&submit=">job as a columnist </a>and it's all I can do to get that done every week, I'm a perfectionist and it takes me ages to write anything, oh, and my baby got eczema and it's pretty much taken over our life.<br />
<br />
Eczema? Isn't that just like, a rash? A bit of dry skin, the odd bit of redness behind the knees. That's what I thought, and almost laughed when the community nurse suggested I apply for disability allowance shortly after the eczema started. Four months on, it has nearly broken me.<br />
<br />
I can't describe to you how awful it is just to <i>see</i> your baby not looking right. This might sound awfully superficial, but I'm sure it's much deeper than that. There must be something hard-wired into the deeper, older parts of a mother's brain, to feel ill-at-ease if her baby looks sick.<br />
<br />
The skin of a baby ought to be creamy. Babies are bloody hard work, but the pay-off is you get to put your face and nose all over them and shower them with love and kisses and raspberries. With my baby, we went from this:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QqRwE1F4dco/UxokriEHQpI/AAAAAAAABYY/MK2jMWFI3w4/s1600/1384284_10202527789619824_2009007486_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QqRwE1F4dco/UxokriEHQpI/AAAAAAAABYY/MK2jMWFI3w4/s1600/1384284_10202527789619824_2009007486_n.jpg" width="377" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
to this:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lMvaDAGnFzY/UxokrpRJAxI/AAAAAAAABYo/-taPIc5uvOo/s1600/1450154_10202802729613152_837682966_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lMvaDAGnFzY/UxokrpRJAxI/AAAAAAAABYo/-taPIc5uvOo/s1600/1450154_10202802729613152_837682966_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g4BZRUpozOU/UxokrksMOGI/AAAAAAAABYk/agIoqfSe9K8/s1600/1458604_10202802730253168_769138910_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g4BZRUpozOU/UxokrksMOGI/AAAAAAAABYk/agIoqfSe9K8/s1600/1458604_10202802730253168_769138910_n.jpg" width="238" /></a></div>
In the space of just three or four weeks, what started as the usual 'milk spots' seemed to evolve into something horrendous.<br />
<br />
At first the doctor said it was a skin infection and prescribed a cream called Fucidin H, followed by antibiotics, which I gave without question - looking at the photos, wouldn't you? But all this did was upset his stomach, and as my doctor seemed at a loss, I took him to A&E.<br />
<br />
There we saw a paediatrician who said it was Seborrhoeic Dermatitis, to stop the antibiotics and to get a cream called Double Base (an emolient).<br />
<br />
When this didn't help either I turned to the facebook community and many suggested I gave up various foods in my diet (as he is breastfed) and see a homeopath. I've never thought much of homeopathy so it shows my level of desperation. To be fair, the homeopath was the only person at that point who really took a thorough history and actually seemed to be determined to help.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Meanwhile the rash spread to cover his whole body.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uf5O1jtPxHM/UxopU88-eAI/AAAAAAAABZI/Khjefqo-f58/s1600/14.01.26-03.19.43-0006.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uf5O1jtPxHM/UxopU88-eAI/AAAAAAAABZI/Khjefqo-f58/s1600/14.01.26-03.19.43-0006.jpeg" width="238" /></a></div>
Over the next few weeks, I gave up dairy, egg, wheat and gluten in the hopes of helping what seemed to be an allergic reaction. There was not much feasting for me over the Christmas season!<br />
<br />
We also saw another paediatrician in mid December who diagnosed eczema and gave us some help and sympathy. We were told to use steroid creams twice daily and in between put on a thick, greasy, paraffin based ointment called Hydromol.<br />
<br />
There were mixed messages about the steroid creams, summed up by this, "They are harmless, but don't use them too much!"<br />
<br />
Sometimes he would look a bit better, and I would think, I've cracked it! I tried keeping food diaries and sometimes I would think I had spotted a pattern. I tried various natural creams, all of which, especially <a href="http://www.hopesrelief.co.uk/">Hope's Relief</a>, were lovely. But none provided what I wanted - cure.<br />
<br />
And moments of hopefulness were always swiftly followed by total despair, as my beautiful baby's face and body were taken hostage again.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-J9vSLrlfaQc/UxoksZcwzkI/AAAAAAAABY0/bCLFq1_QgK0/s1600/1511757_10203138895217082_1868890339_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-J9vSLrlfaQc/UxoksZcwzkI/AAAAAAAABY0/bCLFq1_QgK0/s1600/1511757_10203138895217082_1868890339_n.jpg" width="238" /></a></div>
He did not seem to be as affected by it as you might think, looking at these photos. He has a very sunny disposition, and seems to be able to smile no matter what. Sometimes I think he 'gets it' and I feel a sense of irony coming from him. We are very connected, and the eczema has only made me love him more.<br />
<br />
But my god, it has been a trial. For starters, a lot of the time his face has been oozing pus. Not an infected kind of pus, just a sort of watery, pale yellow liquid. This has meant that (yes, poor me again, here we go) I have been unable to wear any normal clothes for several months - I've been living in supermarket hoodies, which can get chucked in the wash at the end of each day.<br />
<br />
We have had to change his sheet every day, as this would become soaked in pus and Hydromol during the night. He sleeps beside me in the bed and sometimes I have felt disgusted by this soggy, pus-y little guy attached to my breast, I admit it. But only in very dark moments.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5mraxwgQQkg/UxokmXV98hI/AAAAAAAABYU/luqSYW6v-oA/s1600/1796461_10203208835605548_1174489892_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5mraxwgQQkg/UxokmXV98hI/AAAAAAAABYU/luqSYW6v-oA/s1600/1796461_10203208835605548_1174489892_n.jpg" width="238" /></a>The nights overall have been the toughest. Because of his terrible itching, he has been unable to really 'settle' into a deep sleep, in spite of seeming to be a fairly happy sleeper for the first couple of months of his life.<br />
<br />
I have been sleeping holding his arms to stop him scratching. Not very restful for me, but the alternative is impossible - I cannot just lie there and listen to him cry and rub his face with his mittened hands.<br />
<br />
In fact I don't know how anyone could survive this situation without having their baby in their bed.<br />
<br />
I'm completely knackered. This has been one of those periods in your life where you feel you are aging by about a year a day. My hair full of hydromol and pus, my horrible clothes, my haggard, exhausted face...oh there I go feeling sorry for myself again.<br />
<br />
So I've been trawling the internet through my tired tired eyes. You know how it is - breastfeeding and peering at your smartphone. Just over a week ago I overheard a conversation in a facebook eczema group. Some women were talking about a guy called Dr Aron. Their tone was reverent. It had a sort of 'cult' feel to it, as if this Aron guy was the new Messiah.<br />
<br />
Expecting to find a whacky website, I followed the link, to discover a South African Consultant Dermatologist, based in London, who specialises in child eczema. It all sounded good, too good to be true perhaps. I trawled google. I could not find a single person with one bad word to say about him.<br />
<br />
Apparently (and this is anecdotal) he is so fed up with the needless suffering of children with eczema who are often given the wrong treatment that he wants to make his treatment more accessible and 'give something back'. To this end he has set up an online consultancy service, offering a low cost alternative to private face to face appointments.<br />
<br />
His treatment method is based on a mix of creams. If you want to know more, watch this short film or <a href="http://www.draron.com/">read his website</a>:<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/l7RCWDREZ5I" width="420"></iframe>
As we were thinking about travelling to London to see a specialist anyway, this seemed worth trying.<br />
<br />
We are now on day three of his treatment. It's early days, and I'm loathe to get too excited, but so far the results speak for themselves:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HnuyMiMI4lo/Uxoww4dxHqI/AAAAAAAABZY/wIk5thRow2E/s1600/2014-03-06+13.54.19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="236" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HnuyMiMI4lo/Uxoww4dxHqI/AAAAAAAABZY/wIk5thRow2E/s1600/2014-03-06+13.54.19.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Words cannot describe the delicious relief gained from pressing my face up to that taut smooth dry skin and kissing away like mad!<br />
<br />
Even if it all becomes a nightmare again, I will be grateful for these few days of seeing a glimpse of a 'normal' baby.<br />
<br />
Obviously I will be blogging about this again, as if Dr Aron's treatment works (as SO many of his former patients say it does), then the world needs to know about this.<br />
<br />
Please keep your fingers crossed for my beautiful boy, for my patient little girls who miss their pre-baby mummy, for my long suffering partner who has born the brunt, and of course, greasy, pus-y, haggard old me...and watch this space.<br />
<br />
<br />
UPDATE: 14th August 2014<br />
We are still working with Dr Aron and my son's skin remains mostly clear. A blog post with more info coming soon but meanwhile, do join the Facebook group to see Before / After pics of others who have been treated by Dr Aron and talk to a supportive community of eczema mums, here: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/492451777525485/">https://www.facebook.com/groups/492451777525485/</a><br />
<br />
And here is the gorgeous boy!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qVQwRFLYuz0/U-oSXVlJYRI/AAAAAAAABbM/SwtPfPFLDe0/s1600/2014-08-08%2B12.42.50.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qVQwRFLYuz0/U-oSXVlJYRI/AAAAAAAABbM/SwtPfPFLDe0/s1600/2014-08-08%2B12.42.50.jpg" width="238" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
UPDATE: 19th November 2015</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
We remain eczema free and have not used Dr Aron's cream or any steroid for over a year. After a bath we usually apply Lush Dream Cream but other than that, we don't do anything to his skin. He is peachy and beautiful and adorable, just as he was always meant to be! We remain eternally grateful to Dr Aron, and frustrated that this approach continues to be largely ignored by the NHS.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-57875806772515958072013-10-18T03:08:00.000-07:002013-10-18T03:08:05.281-07:00The Positive Birth Movement at the Birthrights Dignity in Childbirth ForumYesterday I was honoured to be a part of the <a href="http://www.birthrights.org.uk/">Birthrights</a> Dignity in Childbirth Forum, held at the Royal College of Physicians in London.<br />
<br />
I gave a short presentation about my organisation <a href="http://www.positivebirthmovement.org/">The Positive Birth Movement</a>, which I'm reproducing here for those who were unable to attend and might be interested to read it.<br />
<br />
Below the presentation I'm also sharing the 'submission' that was made to Birthrights about the Positive Birth Movement, which gives more detailed information about the organisation, including some fantastic feedback from those who facilitate and attend our groups.<br />
<br />
Please come and join the PBM on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/positivebirthmovement">Facebook</a>, <a href="http://www.twitter.com/birthpositive">Twitter</a>, or <a href="mailto:info@positivebirthmovement.org">get in touch with me</a> if you would like more information or want to be involved in any way. You can find your nearest Positive Birth group on our website: <a href="http://www.positivebirthmovement.org/">www.positivebirthmovement.org</a>.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Presentation:</u></b><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-p8bwX2p9Bzg/UmEDpW9n2xI/AAAAAAAABXg/0dQIeq4hV14/s1600/BWtXFMrCAAM7bez-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-p8bwX2p9Bzg/UmEDpW9n2xI/AAAAAAAABXg/0dQIeq4hV14/s320/BWtXFMrCAAM7bez-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
My name is Milli Hill, and a year ago this month I set up the Positive Birth Movement.<br /><br />It all started with a very little idea – the thought that, as a newly trained doula, I might run a monthly birth discussion group in my area – a place for women to gather and share thoughts and feelings about birth, to challenge fear and negativity, and to empower each other with support and shared information.<br /><br />When I had been pregnant with my first daughter five years previously, I had longed for this kind of antenatal group. I didn’t much want to look at plastic pelvises or learn about epidurals. I was more interested in what birth was really like, and I was very very afraid.<br /><br /><div>
In the time since my own first birth experience, I had also noticed – and begun to write and blog about – what I saw as some pretty serious flaws in the current birth system – an imbalance of power, over-medicalisation, and a whole lot of fear. And I watched friend after friend finding their plans for a normal birth end with their feet in stirrups or on the operating table.<br /><br />So I thought that maybe women needed to come together and talk about all this – just a small group – round my gaff – maybe with cake.<br /><br />In late September 2012 I went to a screening of Freedom for Birth, the film about imprisoned midwife Agnes Gereb, and the wider issues of rights in childbirth. It called on women to ‘take back childbirth’. I very much heard this call, but felt at a loss – how could we do this?<br /><br />I saw a world in which women were afraid, and were faced with difficult choices in childbirth – a world in which real ‘evidence’ was hard to come by, and medical opinion was often presented as fact. I felt that women’s freedom was truly being compromised by this situation – for how can a choice be truly free as long as it is based in fear or a lack of accurate information?<br /><br />I started to wonder if my ‘little idea’ – to set up a local birth discussion group, could spread? If I were willing to give my time to this cause for free, perhaps others might do the same? And what if we could use the power of social media to connect all these little groups to one enormous ‘Mother Ship’?<br /><br />There has never been a better time to have a ‘little idea’ than the 21st century.<br /><br />Through my personal blog, and through facebook, I dropped my little idea out into the ocean of cyberspace – and the response was overwhelming – a tidal wave of offers, ideas and positivity.<br /><br />In a year, we now have over a hundred Positive Birth groups in the UK<br /><br />26 in the USA and Canada<br /><br />5 in Australia and New Zealand<br /><br />3 in Turkey<br /><br />2 in Brazil<br /><br />and 1 each in France, Germany, Malta and Qatar.<br /><br />All of our groups are free to attend, and our Facilitators are not paid to run their groups.<br /><br />Most groups are facilitated by doulas, midwives, or other birth workers, but one or two are run by women who are ‘just passionate’ about positive birth.<br /><br />Most of them meet on a monthly basis, some more often.<br /><br />Anyone can attend a Positive Birth group – they are open to all but aimed primarily at pregnant women. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
We welcome all backgrounds and ALL birth choices - we are not the 'natural birth movement', and very much believe that any birth can be positive, so long as a woman is free to make informed choices, and is treated with respect and dignity.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pLx2x7-WlNY/UmEE80wdZDI/AAAAAAAABXs/rojhEWVd9qE/s1600/BWtWEf3IEAAIOIP.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pLx2x7-WlNY/UmEE80wdZDI/AAAAAAAABXs/rojhEWVd9qE/s400/BWtWEf3IEAAIOIP.jpg" width="297" /></a></div>
<div>
The groups are structured as peer to peer discussion – ‘teaching’ is discouraged, shared ideas and conversation are encouraged in its place.<br /><br />All groups are connected via social media, and we have a very active facebook page with nearly 4000 ‘likes’. Our Facilitators have their own extremely active discussion group on facebook, and I also send out a monthly newsletter to keep people connected and announce the monthly discussion theme.<br /><br />Groups are free to use our monthly discussion theme as a starting point, if they so wish. Some of our themes have included:<br /><br /><ul>
<li>Planning a Positive Birth (thoughts, feelings and experiences of ‘birth planning’)</li>
<li>What is a Positive Birth?</li>
<li>Choices in Birth (the many and various choices pregnant women face)</li>
<li>The Language of Birth (the language we use about birth and why this matters)</li>
<li>Images of Birth (what images we have seen of birth in our lives and how these have affected our expectations and experiences)</li>
<li>Place of Birth (how can we have a positive birth in the various locations, what our options are etc)</li>
<li>The Hour after Birth...and Beyond (what we can choose to do to make this important time positive, too)</li>
<li>Oxytocin</li>
<li>Improving Birth (what needs to change about birth and what can we do about it?)</li>
</ul>
<br /></div>
<div>
The Positive Birth Movement has grown far beyond my first imaginings. <br /><br />If I’m honest, the organisation is entirely built on good will, passion, and trust – which I sometime worry might be its weakness as well as its strength! We don’t have much formal structure underpinning all this fantastic positive energy – and this is something I plan to work on over our second year – as this seems to be a way that we might grow stronger, and also gain funding. <br /><br />However, I very much want us to keep the passion to change and improve childbirth at our core – this very ‘little idea’ of women talking to women. By coming together to ‘just talk’ – as women have done for millennia - challenging fears and sharing wisdom and positivity - I very much hope that we can ‘take back birth’. <br /><br />I would really welcome all of your ideas and input – so please do get in touch with me if there is any way that you can help me or would like to be involved. <br /><br />Thank you very much!</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b><u>Submission:</u></b></div>
<div>
<b><u><br /></u></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
We are a grass roots movement, spreading positivity about childbirth via a global network of free Positive Birth groups, linked up by social media. We aim to challenge the current epidemic of negativity around childbirth by bringing women together to -<br /> <br /><b><i> Meet Up, Link Up, and Shake Up Birth. </i></b><br /> <br />Since our ‘birth’ in October 2012, Positive Birth groups have spread to all corners of the globe. We now have over 100 groups in the UK, nearly 30 in the USA and Canada, and a further 20 in the rest of the world, including Australia, New Zealand, Turkey, Brazil, France, Germany, Malta and Qatar. <br /> <br /><u><b>Our core beliefs: </b></u><br /><div>
<br />The Positive Birth Movement believes that every woman deserves a positive birth. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OlSROxRa61M/UmEGacBoAGI/AAAAAAAABYA/ygcH0eXvluk/s1600/Screen+Shot+2012-12-06+at+13.40.32.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="147" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OlSROxRa61M/UmEGacBoAGI/AAAAAAAABYA/ygcH0eXvluk/s400/Screen+Shot+2012-12-06+at+13.40.32.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<div>
By positive birth we mean a birth in which a woman feels she has freedom of choice, access to accurate information, and that she is in control, powerful and respected. A birth that she approaches, perhaps with some trepidation, but without fear or dread, and that she then goes on to enjoy, and later remember with warmth and pride.<br /> <br /> A positive birth does not have to be ‘natural’ or ‘drug free’ – it simply has to be informed from a place of positivity as opposed to fear. The Positive Birth Movement is woman-centred and as such respects a woman’s human right to choose where and how she has her baby.<br /> <br /> You can birth with positivity in hospital or at home, with or without medical intervention. You can have a positive caesarean, or a positive home water birth. Positive Birth is about approaching birth realistically, having genuine choice, and feeling empowered by your experience. <br /> <br /> The Positive Birth Movement believes that communication is the key to shaking up birth. By coming together, in real life and online, and sharing experiences, feelings, knowledge and wisdom, women can take back childbirth. <br /> <br /> <br /><b><u>What we are and what we do: </u></b><br /> <br />All of our groups are completely free to attend, and most run at least once a month. They are mostly facilitated by doulas, midwives, and birth workers, and some are led by women who are ‘just’ passionate about positive birth. They are mainly aimed at pregnant women, but are open to anyone who would like to either gain or share some information and wisdom about birth. <br /> <br />Our groups are not ‘antenatal classes’ – nobody present is an ‘expert’ or ‘teacher’. They are discussion groups, a place where everyone is equal and where all views and approaches are valid. Each month the Positive Birth Movement sets a discussion topic, which the groups are free to use as a starting point for their meetings. Groups can then feed back thoughts or issues that arise to the main Positive Birth Movement facebook page, which also takes that discussion topic as its monthly theme. Past discussion topics have included: <br /><br /><ul>
<li>Planning a Positive Birth (thoughts, feelings and experiences of ‘birth planning’ </li>
<li>What is a Positive Birth? </li>
<li>Choices in Birth (the many and various choices pregnant women face) </li>
<li>The Language of Birth (the language we use about birth and why this matters) </li>
<li>Images of Birth (what images we have seen of birth in our lives and how these have affected our expectations and experiences) </li>
<li>Place of Birth (how can we have a positive birth in the various locations, what our options are etc) </li>
<li>The Hour after Birth...and Beyond (what we can choose to do to make this important time positive, too) </li>
<li>Oxytocin </li>
<li>Improving Birth (what needs to change about birth and what can we do about it?) </li>
</ul>
<br />Positive Birth Groups aim to be a helpful part of pregnancy; a warm and welcoming place for women to hear stories and ideas, to consider what they really want from their childbirth experience, and to challenge any fears or negative expectations they might have.<br /> <br /><b> We believe that if women are empowered to approach birth differently, birth will be different. </b><br /><br /></div>
<div>
<b><u>How I got to thinking about Positive Birth… </u></b><br /></div>
<div>
As a creative arts psychotherapist, trainee doula, writer and blogger about birth, and most importantly, mum – a few things slowly collided for me, and led to the setting up of the Positive Birth Movement in October 2012. Not only do I sometimes feel angry when I hear a ‘typical’ UK birth story, I also feel that the importance of the experience of birth is often completely underestimated – for the mother, and of course for the baby too, and the family unit which is just beginning.<br /><br />In western society, there is evidence of disordered and disrupted attachment everywhere – and I saw a lot of this in my working life before motherhood - in drug and alcohol rehabs, with children in foster care, and with people experiencing all kinds of mental health issues. <br /><br />In the search to heal this, or even prevent it, we often look to parenting, and to the way that the parents were parented. However, birth itself is often completely ignored. <br /><br />Experiencing a positive birth is not ‘just’ a ‘feminist issue’, or even ‘just’ a ‘human rights issue’ – it is an issue for all humanity. Birth as a gentle experience, in which all concerned are treated with dignity and respect, maximises the chances of a great start to the mother infant bond, and a confident beginning to parenting. The power of this cannot be underestimated! <br /><br />Gentler and more positive births could lead to stronger attachments, to better mental health, to better relationships – both personal and societal. To gentler and more positive people – and a gentler and more positive world. <br /><br />So – looking at the current situation for birthing women in the UK, I felt that change was needed, but felt pretty overwhelmed at the prospect of trying to change ‘the system’. I wondered if, instead of focusing on the system and what was ‘wrong’ with it, we could instead change the way that women entered the system. <br /><br />In psychotherapy, you learn that you can’t change the way other people behave, and that you can only change yourself. However, if you change yourself, other people are usually forced to change to accommodate the ‘new you’. For example, a bully can’t be a bully without a victim. <br /><br />So my hope is that by becoming more empowered, informed and knowing their rights, women will enter the system differently, and that the system will be forced to change to accommodate them. <br /><br /><br /><b><u>The birth of a Movement…! </u></b><br /><br />At first, I was thinking about these ideas on a small scale. I had the idea of setting up my own birth discussion group, in which people could share ideas and information. Once I had begun to set this up, I wondered – if a birth enthusiast like me is willing to do this once a month for free, maybe others out there would be willing to do the same. Very quickly, I had the idea of a ‘Positive Birth Movement’, the plus sign logo popped into my head, and I set up a facebook page and blogged about it, never anticipating the scale of the response! Perhaps if I had known how big it was going to get, I might have thought more carefully about starting it in the first place!<br /><br />The response was immediate, and I began to be flooded with emails from people who wished to set up a group. The Facebook page was also popular, and in a year has gained over 3000 ‘likes’. <br /><br />And with nearly 150 groups worldwide, clearly the idea has caught on! <br /><br />It seems there are many many people who are equally passionate about changing childbirth for the better, and who are willing to give up their time for free to do so. <br /><br /><br /><b><u>How it is run </u></b><br />Quite ‘loosely’, would be the short answer to that! <br /><br />Because it was set up on the spur of the moment without much planning, the Positive Birth Movement has developed quite organically as it has gone along, and has evolved in its own way according to the input of all those involved. <br /><br />I try to hold some cohesion by running a Facilitators group on Facebook and sending out monthly newsletters to all our groups. Everyone involved is ‘linked up’ by social media and often Facilitators will support and advise each other independently of me. <br /><br />There is a lot of trust involved. Our ‘logo’ and ‘brand’ is out there in the world, and there is no heavy ‘vetting’ procedure for anyone who wishes to be involved. To some, this might seem risky, but it actually works wonderfully well. Our organisation is all about empowering women and giving them back their autonomy – and this requires trust and respect. <br /><br />Everyone involved has a great enthusiasm for improving birth, and together we have created what feels like a very non-judgemental and positive space, which I very much hope is reflected in our groups. <br /><br />As I have said, all of our groups are free, and Facilitators are careful not to use their real life or virtual groups for self promotion or money making activities. So far, the PBM has raised a small amount of money from holding screenings of Face of Birth, but otherwise, no money has changed hands. <br /><br /><br /><b><u>Feedback from our Facilitators </u></b><br /><br /><b>Samantha Waldron – Positive Birth Hillingdon, London</b> <br /><br />When women come together to explore positively new ideas, stories and information, the room becomes fuelled with oxytocin and power. There truly is a feeling of love and connection between us all and we all go away feeling “high” on the possibilities that can be achieved. <br /><br /><b>Guinevere Webster – Positive Birth Oxford, UK </b><br /><br />We were really excited to add our existing home birth discussion group to the Positive Birth network. Although we felt it was important to keep the focus on home birth because there is no other local forum for this kind of support, being part of the PBM allows us to make it clearer that we are about positive birth wherever it takes place, and people don't have to be considering a home birth to come along or gain from the group. <br /><br /><b>Ann Charles - Positive Birth Central London </b><br /><br />We started in August 2013. I deliberately wanted a venue that wasn't traditionally 'mothery' and would attract people after work. I plumped for the Fifth View bar at the top of Waterstone's Piccadilly. It does nice food and mocktails, you can bring books up from the pregnancy section of the bookshop for discussion and is the sort of place people can drop in and out without feeling like they've entered a parallel universe of church halls, squash and biscuits. So far we've only had two meetings. The first one - only one person came. Second meeting - a different pregnant lady came. Both were planning a homebirth. The struggle at the moment is getting people to come. <br /><br /><b>Melissa Thomas – Positive Birth Derby, UK </b><br /><br />I think that the Positive Birth Movement Derby was the right place at the right time. In an area lacking any resources for supporting mums and pregnant women it is a refreshing and new outlook. The group really has gone from strength to strength slowly but surely. I truly believe it could become a great network, challenging the fear and outdated attitudes that still pervade most maternity services and practices. <br /><br />Our biggest success has been gaining the interest of two academics from the University of Derby. Jenny Hallam and Chris Howard approached myself about developing a collaborative research project, investigating the birth experiences of women who use the Positive Birth Movement meetings. I view the study as being a genuine opportunity to open doors with the NHS, taking women’s experiences to the fore and getting policy makers and support services to really listen. Time will tell what the outcome may be but I’m thrilled to have been invited on board as a research assistant and thoroughly look forward to growing and nurturing the PBM Derby. <br /><br /><b>Mathilde Mazau – Positive Birth Glasgow</b> <br /><br />I co-facilitate Positive Birth Glasgow which my friend and I launched last November. We started our monthly meetings in January this year and our group has since gone from strength to strength. We have over 150 members of our facebook group including mothers, pregnant women, doulas, midwives, an obstetrician, a shiatsu practitioner, trainee midwives and other birth workers. The ‘real life’ group is a wonderful and safe space for women to share, listen and learn during this amazing time that is pregnancy and birth. The Positive Birth Movement as a whole is an amazing and much needed grass roots movement and we are very proud to be an active part of it. <br /><br /><br /><br /><b><u>Feedback from women who have attended our groups </u></b><br /> <br /><b>Michelle Levy, Positive Birth Larchmont, New York </b><br /><br />I was thrilled to find a positive birth group near my home during my second pregnancy. Our hostess, Joyce Havinga in Larchmont, chose focus topics such as Postpartum Care, Addressing Fears, or The Role of Oxytocin. This helped steer the group but free conversation and questions were also welcome. Nothing beats a sense of sisterhood when you need it most. Sometimes we received literature. This group is invaluable because more free services need to be available to new mothers. We were all motivated by the good intention to give and receive support. <br /><br /><b>Sarah Dauncey, Positive Birth Portsmouth, UK </b><br /><br />What I love about the Positive Birth Movement meetings is that they are about mums / parents / families empowering themselves and encouraging each other, the ‘professionals’ who support the group provide information but the emphasis is on each family taking the information and making their own decisions to have what makes a positive birth for them, no one tells anyone else what they should want or do. <br /><br /><b>Susan Last, Positive Birth Derby, UK</b><br /><br />I became involved with the Positive Birth Movement primarily because, having had three amazing home water births myself, I wanted to spread the word about what might be possible for others. My birth stories are definitely an antidote to the horror stories so many women hear, even if my choices aren't for everyone! I'm also deeply committed to the sharing of accurate information and know that the research I do can be helpful for others, if only to point them down research paths of their own. <br /><br /><b>Kristina McGuinness, Positive Birth Glasgow </b><br /><br />It's amazing to have positive support and encouragement in an area often shrouded not only by negativity but also mystery. It has been an amazing support for me and helped me realise I'm not crazy for wanting a natural home birth. <br /><br /><b>Veronica Hunter, Positive Birth Larchmont, New York </b><br /><br />I recently had a wonderful home birth (VBAC after twin c-section two years ago) of a lovely 9lb 4oz baby girl at exactly 41 weeks. Had I not attended the birth group I would probably have stayed with the Ob I saw up until 30 weeks who would probably not have permitted VBAC of a 9lb 41 week baby. Not having another c-section was very important to me because I truly believe the c-section I had previously got my twins and I off to a difficult start. The ease of breastfeeding this baby girl and her calm nature (perhaps in part due to her smooth entry into the world) have been wonderful and very different from the twins. So many thanks for making me aware of the choices out there and the beautiful way nature designed the process to work. <br /><b><br />Nicola Zoumidou, Positive Birth Glasgow </b><br /><br />Fantastically supportive group of amazing women. I came away from the Glasgow meeting feeling empowered. <br /><br /> <br /><br /><b><u>The Positive Birth Movement - Where Next? </u></b><br /><br />Over the next year I would very much like to strengthen and further promote the Positive Birth Movement, whilst maintaining the integrity and spirit which seems to be so appreciated by all involved. <br /><br />I have taken some advice on gaining charitable status and hope to look into this further in 2014.<br /><br />Our main aim for the coming year is to increase awareness of our groups among pregnant women – this is a free resource and although some groups are over-subscribed, there are others which are struggling to fill places. I would love any offers of help to connect pregnant women and the midwives who work with them to our groups.<br /><br />Funding would certainly help us to raise our profile, too, with good quality printed material and a better website at the top of our wish list.<br /><br />However, even without financial help, I feel sure that the Positive Birth Movement will continue to grow and spread, simply because there are so many women out there who are so passionate about improving birth that they are willing to run our groups at their own expense. Whatsmore, there seems to a be a growing sense among ‘mothers-to-be’ that the current ‘average’ birth experience, is not really good enough, and a desire amongst them to explore their options and choices. The Positive Birth Movement meets this need perfectly.<br /><br /> <br /><b><u>Dignity in Childbirth – Respect, Autonomy, Choice</u></b><br /><br />We very much hope to contribute to dignity in childbirth, by encouraging women to become informed decision makers in their birth experience, by spreading more awareness of birth choices, and by encouraging both self-respect and the demand for respectful treatment from all pregnant and birthing women, and all those who work with them.</div>
The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-7129665054209825702013-06-03T14:49:00.000-07:002013-06-03T14:49:29.307-07:00"Positive, Empowering Birth? Sounds Like Bullsh*t To Me!"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
I once read somewhere that the goal of psychotherapy is to reveal the secrets we are keeping, even from ourselves. We all do this. We all keep a few bits of reality out of sight, sometimes because they are painful, but more often, perhaps, simply because to acknowledge them would be a difficult admission of a lifetime of misguided beliefs, misdirected energy, and mistakes.<br />
<br />
We see this a lot with the birth issue. Sometimes it's as if simply talking about birth in a positive way is too much for people to tolerate. The cultural attitude that birth is dangerous and downright unpleasant has become so engrained that many people seem to no longer see it as an attitude at all - they see it as a solid FACT. To challenge this would involve accessing ways of thinking that, whilst they may exist, are completely beyond everyday awareness, like rooms in a mansion that have been put under dust sheets and long forgotten.<br />
<br />
In the media, journalists with the power and influence for positive change often reveal their own beliefs about birth, beliefs so deeply held they can only be perceived, by the holder, as facts. In <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2013/jun/01/natural-birth-childbirth-midwife-ecstasy">this recent article</a> in the Guardian, for example, the interviewer met Caroline Flint, one of the UK's most highly regarded midwives. Flint was clearly overflowing with wisdom and wonderful positive messages about birth, so much so that the interviewer herself was, "almost swayed" - almost. Ultimately, for reasons the interviewer probably keeps secret, even from herself, she felt compelled to dismiss Flint's ideas - with all their power to be transformative for women - as 'transcendental gubbins', accusing her of 'piling guilt onto mothers', and wheeling out an Obstetrician to remind us yet again not to pin our hopes too high when it comes to labour, because, after all, yup, you guessed it, all that matters is a healthy baby.<br />
<br />
You don't have to look very far to find <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2333008/The-women-say-theyve-proved-giving-birth-doesnt-hurt-No-gas-air-epidurals--just-positive-thinking-Dont-mock-Theyre-deadly-serious.html">similar examples</a> of the media pouring scorn on the notion that birth can be pleasant, delightful, or even <a href="http://www.cosmopolitan.com/celebrity/news/orgasmic-birth-is-a-thing">orgasmic</a>. In fact, it's much harder to find an article that doesn't. Even articles that are about women who do actually manage to have positive births seem to carry the addendum, 'Birth is not like this for most women. For most women it is painful and frightening. We just thought you might be entertained for a moment by this lunatic fringe who think otherwise.'<br />
<br />
Sometimes in life we start with the evidence and build up our beliefs, other times we start with our beliefs and make damn sure we find some evidence. Nothing illustrates this better than a story told to me in my first pregnancy by a midwife friend, which I'm pretty sure taught me more about birth than a lot of the books I have subsequently read:<br />
<br />
<i>A field mouse is snuggled in a little nest of hay, quietly beginning to give birth to her litter of babies. Some walkers pass by, see the mouse, and feel worried. What should they do? Knowing there is a vet nearby, they scoop up the mouse, and gently take her to the vets surgery. The vet assures them there is no need to panic, puts the mouse on the examination table, and shines bright lights on her. The mouse is frightened, and her labour stops. The vet tries to restart it with drugs, to no avail, and eventually performs a caesarean. The mother and all of her mouse babies survive. "Well", say the people who found her in her field nest, "Thank goodness we were passing by and saw the mouse in time, otherwise, who knows what might have happened?"</i><br />
<br />
In the stories we hear, and the events that take place in our lives, we often see what we most want to see, and filter out or dismiss the stuff that doesn't conform to our belief system or world view. When we apply this to birth, it means that often the stories of women who relish and enjoy it do not sit comfortably with us, and that we prefer and even find more reassuring the stories of horror and trauma, which reinforce the attitudes we have come to believe are facts.<br />
<br />
There may be many reasons for this collective denial, which often keeps women a prisoner of their own self-fulfilling prophecy, believing that birth cannot be positive let alone 'transcendental', and therefore not even trying to make it so. For some women, perhaps, having had their own babies in unpleasant circumstances, it's too painful to admit that things could have been different. Maybe this is what is meant when, as it often is, the notion of 'piling on guilt' is raised.<br />
<br />
To move forwards, perhaps this pain needs to be acknowledged; a few generations of women who have missed their chance for an empowering experience and instead had a birth they would rather forget. Maybe they need a collective apology, for the shaving, the cutting, the stirrups, the steel, the brutal experiences they suffered, and continue to suffer, in the name of progress? Perhaps this would be a way of pulling off the dust sheets in the long forgotten room, of laying bare the secrets we are collectively keeping from ourselves - and of clearing the way for women to make a new start and have the positive births they deserve.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-7260687133898149202013-05-21T05:54:00.000-07:002013-05-21T05:54:39.115-07:00The Blood and The Beauty: Placenta PrintsThe first time I gave birth, they took the placenta away. They didn't ask. They just took it, and of course, I didn't notice. I was busy, waking up from the dream of birth, and falling in love with the first creature I laid eyes on.<br />
<br />
Weeks later, in the darkness of night, I remembered. Where was it? I had wanted to keep it. What had they done with it? Could I get it back? No. It was gone, and strange as it sounds, I cried.<br />
<br />
Not so much for the piece of my flesh - lost. I cried for the bigger loss it somehow stood for - the birth I wanted, but didn't get.<br />
<br />
Somehow, the birth I wanted got replaced with the birth they wanted. And, in the birth they wanted, nobody keeps their placenta. Why would they want to do that?<br />
<br />
So I cried, for the flesh lost, and the dreams disregarded.<br />
<br />
The second time I gave birth, they took the placenta away. They didn't ask. They just took it, and of course, I didn't notice. I was busy, waking up from the dream of birth, and falling in love with the first creature I laid eyes on.<br />
<br />
In the kitchen, I heard rustling, the giggles of my toddler, the quickening breaths of creativity. Moments later, with some pride, a procession appeared, midwives-toddler-all, carrying three large pieces of paper, on which they had made pictures - the imprints of the placenta.<br />
<br />
Strange! Why would they want to do that? And yet I treasure them, these bloodied pages, even now they transport me straight to that moment, to the blood and the beauty, to the love and the care and the oxytocin, and the transformation, of something base and animal into something of meaning, and deeply deeply human.<br />
<br />
Everything leaves its mark.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OuvZ7Aw_Pp4/UZtqVeelOFI/AAAAAAAABWc/3OTO9XdJY0M/s1600/IMG_0297.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OuvZ7Aw_Pp4/UZtqVeelOFI/AAAAAAAABWc/3OTO9XdJY0M/s640/IMG_0297.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vIEAbxffY7E/UZtqa9PNALI/AAAAAAAABWo/soUHpXoBOMg/s1600/IMG_0298.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vIEAbxffY7E/UZtqa9PNALI/AAAAAAAABWo/soUHpXoBOMg/s640/IMG_0298.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1TSVzgUDNE8/UZtqarKkcZI/AAAAAAAABWk/YqnfyaW3w4E/s1600/IMG_0299.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1TSVzgUDNE8/UZtqarKkcZI/AAAAAAAABWk/YqnfyaW3w4E/s640/IMG_0299.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-73786103595366116832013-05-08T01:23:00.000-07:002013-05-08T01:25:00.249-07:00Cut Me Open or Send Me Home: The Lottery of Maternity Care<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4XdNGd95UyQ/UYmI6et0vlI/AAAAAAAABVk/PZ4zNfKwG5U/s1600/Doctor_reviewing_pdq.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4XdNGd95UyQ/UYmI6et0vlI/AAAAAAAABVk/PZ4zNfKwG5U/s320/Doctor_reviewing_pdq.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Pregnant women are offered medical interventions so often that it's almost hard to imagine getting through an entire pregnancy and birth without having one. Whether it's injections, induction, or an intravenous drip, there are so many choices for women to make, and often they feel, quite understandably, that the best choice is to place their trust in the experts, who are, after all, offering them 'evidence based care'.<br />
<br />
But if midwives and obstetricians are offering 'evidence based care' - that is to say, they are making their recommendations based on good quality research - why then does the advice that individual clinicians offer, and the policies that individual hospitals and trusts implement, vary so greatly?<br />
<br />
A <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/maternity-units-shamed-but-not-named-in-firsttime-study-8599805.html">new report</a> from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) suggests that the disparity between hospital statistics has finally come to their attention, although I'm not clear why it has taken them so long to notice information that has been available on sites like <a href="http://www.birthchoiceuk.com/">BirthChoiceUK</a> for years?<br />
<br />
RCOG points out, for example, that in one hospital the induction rate is 38%, in another, 17%. Emergency caesarean rates vary from 20 to 40%, and forceps from 16% in one unit to 38% in another. Of course, the evidence here is clear and hard to ignore: <i>not all interventions are necessary, and a whole lot of women are having traumatic and unpleasant birth experiences that could have been avoided.</i><br />
<br />
It's great to see a giant like RCOG admit that there are failings. One would hope that this is a big step towards positive change, with a promise that in the future doctors will have their individual stats compared to national averages, and be asked to explain any great deviations.<br />
<br />
But - for now at least - it doesn't necessarily help the pregnant woman on the front line. It's all very well to number crunch and compare stats. But when you are carrying a precious child within you, or are even perhaps in the middle of birthing them, and the professionals in whom you are placing your trust start talking about 'increased risk', it's difficult to ignore them. You might be one of the thousands of women who are being offered intervention that isn't really necessary, but what if you're not? Do you really want to be the woman who takes a stand, only to discover - too late - that, this time, the doctors were right?<br />
<br />
Let's say, for example, you are over forty years old. In one hospital you might be told you 'need' to have your labour induced on your due date, because of an increased risk of stillbirth. However, in a different hospital, induction on the grounds of your age would not even be mentioned and you would be treated the same as any other woman.<br />
<br />
If you're under the care of the hospital who routinely induce older women at 40 weeks, you face a dilemma. Who do you believe? Who do you trust? Stillbirth is a powerful word. Can you ignore this advice? Whatsmore, do you even realise that there are women just like you only a few miles down the road who are not even being told they need induction and who are not even having to consider this horrible dilemma?<br />
<br />
Induction advice in general seems to vary greatly from hospital to hospital, with some women reporting 'prodding', 'harrassment' and 'shroud waving', from around 38 weeks, while others sail past their due dates and even past 42 weeks without too much concern. Women under pressure feel they should perhaps listen to the experts - but how can such widely differing policies be 'evidence based practice'?<br />
<br />
Last week I went to meet the Ob myself. Due to my second baby being over ten pounds at birth, there were concerns raised at my booking in appointment for baby number 3. I was told I would need consultant led care, regular growth scans, and induction at 38 weeks. Since that booking appointment I've switched to an Independent Midwife, but kept my Ob appointment, mainly out of curiosity. I wanted to hear what he had to say, for myself, and for all the other women who presumably get similar referrals after 'big babies'.<br />
<br />
I took the morning off from looking after my two year old, and, along with <a href="http://www.mindfulmidwifery.co.uk/">Tara my midwife</a>, went to the hospital, armed with a bundle of papers including scribbled stats about dating scans and induction for 'suspected macrosomia' (big babies), many of which I gleaned from <a href="http://sarahockwell-smith.com/2012/11/04/big-babies-the-curse-of-mis-diagnosing-a-macrosomic-infant-part-1/">this wonderful blog post.</a> Me and Tara had about an hour to wait, and, quite frankly, by the time I was face to face with the man in the suit, I was a little bit hungry, and spoiling for a fight.<br />
<br />
Imagine my disappointment when the utterly charming Ob said, "There is nothing wrong with you, you are perfectly healthy, and you pushed out a ten pound baby no problem. Why are you here?!"<br />
<br />
Across the hall, the Ob we didn't get to meet was holding his clinic. Insider info told me that he 'didn't believe in vaginal birth', and had insisted his own wife had an elective section. I couldn't help feeling slightly cheated that I hadn't got to read my stats to him, or tell him in detail about my five minute drug free second stage, maybe whilst Tara sat on his chest.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-48SEFHFV0Ls/UYmNP8vNr3I/AAAAAAAABV8/CH5zKf3qEhg/s1600/IMG_0209.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-48SEFHFV0Ls/UYmNP8vNr3I/AAAAAAAABV8/CH5zKf3qEhg/s320/IMG_0209.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
We drove home for soup and an antenatal check up on the sofa, half giggling, half wondering - what happened? Why was he so laid back, when we both personally knew women who had been put under tremendous pressure to be induced for 'big babies'? Conspiracy theories were offered - had he been reading my blog?! I asked on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/themulesmouth">my facebook page</a> - what were other women's experiences in a similar situation, and I've been flooded with responses.<br />
<br />
Looking at the stories I've been sent, one thing is clear. There is no uniformity. There is no evidence based care. Some women encountered no negativity at all, some were induced at 38 weeks, some were made to get out of the birth pool to push, others were given the OK for a home water birth, some were not 'allowed' to birth at home, some were advised to have an early epidural.<br />
<br />
Like all of these women, my maternity care was not evidence based, it was pot luck. I'm told my Ob was 'one of the good guys'. I could have had the man across the hall. I might not have had a confident midwife to back me up. I might have felt scared of birthing a big baby. I might have agreed to regular scans and early induction. I might not have realised that what I was getting was 'personal opinion' dressed up as 'evidence based medical advice'.<br />
<br />
This might seem like a desperate situation, but actually, I think it's largely positive. Things are changing. If RCOG themselves are noticing and publicly admitting that, "We cannot be sure that every woman is getting the best possible care," this has got to be a step in the right direction.<br />
<br />
What's needed now is for more women to take the power back into their own hands. Realise that even the professionals themselves are acknowledging failings. Ask more questions. Get second opinions. Use the internet, forums, facebook groups and <a href="http://www.positivebirthmovement.org/">Positive Birth groups</a> to talk to other women and hear their stories. Take responsibility, take time to think; get informed, and do not place blind faith in professionals. Above all, abandon any expectations of evidence based care. Because it simply does not exist.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-39690353144035946962013-04-24T13:59:00.000-07:002013-04-27T13:50:12.833-07:00Dan Poulter MP: Hear Women's Voices, Respect Women's Choices, Meet with IMUK!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LrAZqHNoTkQ/UXg5W3XPtfI/AAAAAAAABSc/0Hkh40b0B-4/s1600/38_Rotate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LrAZqHNoTkQ/UXg5W3XPtfI/AAAAAAAABSc/0Hkh40b0B-4/s320/38_Rotate.jpg" width="269" /></a></div>
<i>UPDATE: 26th April - IMUK have received word from Dan Poulter's office that he will meet with them on 7th May. IMUK are grateful to everyone who helped them campaign for this.</i><br />
<br />
OK, before we start, well Dan Poulter, he's the Health Minister for Women's Health. There are several different Health Ministers, all of whom report to Jeremy Hunt, the Secretary of State for Health. You knew all that, right? Yup, me too, me too, just checking.<br />
<br />
So - Independent Midwives, who as we know, <a href="http://www.independentmidwives.org.uk/?node=8766">face becoming illegal and extinct from October 2013</a>, have been trying to get a meeting with Dan Poulter for several months to discuss their demise and gain his help and support.<br />
<br />
Meeting with Dan Poulter is key to the IM's campaign. And yet, not only is he <b>refusing to meet with them</b>, he seems to be <b>actively avoiding them</b>.<br />
<br />
For example, IM's and their supporters have sent Christmas cards, Valentines cards, and hundreds of letters explaining their situation and the barriers they face in careful detail. <b>Dan Poulter did not acknowledge the contents of a single letter in a personal way and instead sent out standard replies.</b><br />
<br />
About 600 supporters demonstrated outside parliament on 25th March and several MP's came outside to meet with them. <b>Dan Poulter did not meet with any of his constituents. </b><br />
<br />
Nicky Garret, Independent Midwife and one of Dan Poulter's constituents has asked to meet with him at his MP surgery. <b>Dan Poulter has tried to discourage this meeting</b> saying that he can only talk in his surgery about constituency issues. Nicky Garret intends to attend the appointment anyway, later this week.<br />
<br />
There are several possible reasons why Dan Poulter is behaving in this way.<br />
<br />
<b>Firstly</b>, it's possible that he feels that a solution has been found for IM's in the form of social enterprise companies - the suggestion is basically that they band together to form one formally constituted legal entity - however, IM's feel (and they have told Dan Poulter such), that this is not a solution they are happy with, as, above all, their work would then cease to be 'independent midwifery'. They also point out that a similar project, <a href="http://www.neighbourhoodmidwives.org.uk/">Neighbourhood Midwives</a>, has had £260k of public money invested in it and yet has not so far been able to secure a contract from NHS commissioners.<br />
<br />
<b>Secondly</b>, Dan Poulter seems reluctant to acknowledge and respond to Recommendation 20 in the <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/independent-review-of-the-requirement-to-have-insurance-or-indemnity-as-a-condition-of-registration-as-a-healthcare-professional">Finlay Scott Review</a> (an independent report on the requirement to have insurance as a condition of registration for health professionals):<br />
<br />
<i> "In respect of independent midwifery, the review recommended that for groups for whom the market does not provide affordable insurance or indemnity, the four health departments should consider whether it is necessary to enable the continued availability of the services provided by those groups; and, if so, the health departments should seek to facilitate a solution.” </i><br />
<br />
<b>And thirdly</b>, we could speculate that Dan Poulter's own life experience is getting in the way of his judgement. He's a medical doctor who specialises in Obstetrics, and as a Senior Health Officer, he would have spent six months working in the area of complicated birth. It's unlikely he would have ever seen a normal birth, and certainly almost out of the question that he would have attended the sort of blissful home birth that IM's specialise in.<br />
<br />
Perhaps someone who has such a tainted view of birth is the wrong person to be appealing to for help in this instance? However, Dan is the man, IM's need him to meet, listen and help, and they are now calling on him in an <b>Open Letter</b> (see below), which has also been sent to senior Ministers, the Cabinet, and the national press.<br />
<br />
<b>IMUK requests an urgent meeting with Dan Poulter, Jeremy Hunt and David Cameron before the 10th May. A Department of Health consultation on this matter ends on 17th May. Time is running out.</b><br />
<br />
It seems extraordinary that the plight of Independent Midwives is being ignored by the government - effectively they seem willing to stand by and watch them disappear, in spite of their offering a standard of midwifery which currently meets the Governments own targets, as set out in documents like Maternity Matters, for example:<br />
<ul>
<li>choice in maternity care </li>
<li>continuity of care </li>
<li>increased home birth rates </li>
<li>increased normal birth rates</li>
<li>increased breastfeeding rates</li>
<li>increased satisfaction </li>
</ul>
<div>
And they say <b>money talks</b>, especially when you are trying to get a politician's attention, so how's this: Independent Midwives care for
approximately 3000 women a year, an estimated saving of <b>£12 million </b>for the
NHS. This figure could increase as thousands more midwives would work
self-employed if insurance was available. At a time of a rising birth rate of
22% and a deficit of 5000 midwives, the Government are ignoring part of the
solution to the plight of childbearing women and the national midwifery
shortage.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
As some of you know, this issue is personal for me. I was attended by IM's <a href="http://www.wessexindependentmidwives.co.uk/">Chrissy Hustler and Caroline Baddiley</a> for my second daughter's birth nearly three years ago, and together they gave me the most priceless gifts - confidence, courage, fortitude, strength, and a completely incredible birth experience that I will never forget. Pregnant again at the moment I'm working with <a href="http://www.mindfulmidwifery.co.uk/">Tara Windmill Robson</a>, who comes to see me every two or three weeks, usually with her armfuls of books, fun craft ideas for my girls, love and inspiration. I can't wait to give birth in her inspiring presence.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
However, due in September, I deeply fear that I may become one of the last UK women to give birth with an IM and experience this amazing standard of care. Losing IM's will be a great loss to the entire midwifery profession, leaving no alternative choice to the NHS in this country.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
So finally Dan Poulter, a personal plea from me: do these wonderful women the respect and courtesy of meeting with them, and help to keep birth choice, and normal unmedicalised birth, alive in the UK. For whilst you might be an expert in obstetrics, I doubt you've ever been present at a birth moment like this one, and if you don't help save IM's, it might become even rarer and harder to come by than it is already.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-V4IKOJHLHao/UUzEbXfOSRI/AAAAAAAABQs/Ylqw4iq_eqg/s1600/waterbirth+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="271" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-V4IKOJHLHao/UUzEbXfOSRI/AAAAAAAABQs/Ylqw4iq_eqg/s400/waterbirth+copy.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
A copy of the Open Letter to Dan Poulter from IMUK is pasted below.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Please sign the petition to support Independent Midwives, <a href="http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/44382">click here.</a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Please write to your MP, join the facebook page <a href="http://www.facebook.com/ChooseYourMidwife?fref=ts">Choose Your Midwife, Choose Your Birth</a>, get tweeting, blogging and sharing.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://www.drdanielpoulter.com/text.aspx?id=22">Contact Dan Poulter</a> himself and DEMAND that he meets with IMUK before 10th May. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Thank you.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zaZYgYGU1Cg/UXg5EWZ8ckI/AAAAAAAABSY/D9cNo10BHYE/s1600/Independent-midwives-logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zaZYgYGU1Cg/UXg5EWZ8ckI/AAAAAAAABSY/D9cNo10BHYE/s1600/Independent-midwives-logo.jpg" /></a></div>
<div>
<u>To Dan Poulter, Health Minister </u></div>
<u><br />Cc Jeremy Hunt, David Cameron, Stephen Dorrell, Margaret Hodges, Members of the Cabinet, National Press </u><br />
<br />
<b><u>Open letter to Dan Poulter and the Government from Independent Midwives UK </u></b><br />
<br />
Further to your <i>standard</i> issue letter dated 16th April 2013, in response to Independent Midwives UK (IM UK) correspondence, public campaigning, petitioning <i>and</i> public rallying regarding the issue of finding workable, affordable insurance for Independent Midwives to comply with EU Directive (2011/24/EU). We <b>publicly state</b> how extremely frustrated and concerned IM UK are by both your complete refusal to meet with board members of the organisation, and the obscene inertia in firing off standard responses to letters, Christmas cards and Valentine cards sent by members of the public over the last few months.<br />
<br />
IM UK represents the <b>only</b> health professionals who will be outlawed in October as a result of the linking insurance to registration; it is not only short sighted to refuse to meet with us, but is insulting and unprofessional to do so in such a manner. You have agreed meetings with The Royal College of Midwives and Neighbourhood Midwives – organisations who support IM UK, but whom are not <b>directly</b> affected by the legislation and have their own campaigns to fight. <b>We believe that you are unwilling to meet with IM UK, because acknowledging support for Independent Midwives from the public and maternity stake holder organisations in the UK would entail you having to recognise and respond to Recommendation 20 in the Finley Scott review: </b><br />
<div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
"In respect of independent midwifery, the review recommended that for groups for whom the market does not provide affordable insurance or indemnity, the four health departments should consider whether it is necessary to enable the continued availability of the services provided by those groups; and, if so, the health departments should seek to facilitate a solution.” </div>
<br />
The independent review by Finlay Scott states that it is through no fault of our own that indemnity insurance is not available - lack of availability is due to commercial reasons and not for clinical risk. We see no evidence of you honouring the recommendation Mr Poulter; indeed there is mounting evidence that you are actively trying to avoid it! Independent Midwives will no longer be able to register, simply because insurance is not available, and women will lose the choice of a safe alternative to the NHS. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
The DoH continually claims that a solution has been found in social enterprise companies; £260,000 of public money was invested in the Neighbourhood Midwives project, which whilst a potential alternative to the NHS, it is not independent midwifery and to date it has not been able to secure a contract from NHS commissioners. <br />
<br />
Independent Midwives are fully qualified and regulated; they are the midwives who provide the maternity care <b><i>you promised your voters </i></b>in Maternity Matters and other documents. This includes: <br />
<br />
· Choice in maternity care <br />
· continuity of carer <br />
· increased home birth rates <br />
· increased normal birth rates <br />
· increased breastfeeding rates <br />
· increased satisfaction <br />
<br />
The Government are making illegal the only midwifery service which fully meets these criteria. Independent Midwives save the NHS an estimated £12 million a year by providing a high standard of care for women outside the system. There is a rising birth rate in the UK of 22% and a deficit of 5000 midwives; losing Independent Midwives will only compound the problem. <b><i>Does the government that supposedly supports choice want to be responsible for women losing this choice and for increasing further burden on the NHS? </i></b><br />
<br />
In summary, IM UK and its supporters have informed you of the barriers facing Independent Midwives in accessing insurance many times. Our requests for meetings have been refused; you are avoiding the voice of the thousands of voters who have pledged support and engaged in this campaign; it is disrespectful that you ignore these concerns and respond with ill thought -out standard replies - replies which ignore specific questions and only waste more taxpayers’ money. <br />
<br />
<b>IM UK again requests an urgent meeting with you, Jeremy Hunt and David Cameron to discuss this issue before 10th May. </b><br />
<br />
Jacqui Tomkins (Chair IMUK)<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<!--EndFragment--><br />
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-GB</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>JA</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/>
<w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/>
<w:OverrideTableStyleHps/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="276">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0cm;
mso-para-margin-right:0cm;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0cm;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
text-autospace:ideograph-other;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:Calibri;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<!--StartFragment-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<!--EndFragment--><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-GB</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>JA</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/>
<w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/>
<w:OverrideTableStyleHps/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="276">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0cm;
mso-para-margin-right:0cm;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0cm;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
text-autospace:ideograph-other;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:Calibri;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<!--StartFragment-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<!--EndFragment-->
<!--EndFragment--></div>
The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-25305296928817738802013-04-24T11:23:00.002-07:002013-04-24T11:27:59.434-07:00How Men Can Play Their Part in the Birth RevolutionI was extremely delighted to have my second article published by the Telegraph on the 18th April. It looked at the recent research that has made the news, suggesting that fathers are getting post traumatic stress disorder after witnessing their partners giving birth. Reading some of the coverage, I couldn't help but notice how readily the world seemed to accept that birth is a traumatic event, and wondered, as well as supporting fathers during and after difficult births, shouldn't we also be trying to make birth less traumatising for <i>everyone</i> - fathers, mothers and babies too?<br />
<br />
Read the full article <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/mother-tongue/10003723/Men-need-to-better-prepare-for-the-gore-of-childbirth.html">here.</a><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ot-EnDnzOp8/UXghaH-kDMI/AAAAAAAABSE/8PrUmlpA5aY/s1600/Screen+Shot+2013-04-18+at+21.20.16.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="278" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ot-EnDnzOp8/UXghaH-kDMI/AAAAAAAABSE/8PrUmlpA5aY/s400/Screen+Shot+2013-04-18+at+21.20.16.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Writing for the Telegraph, running The Positive Birth Movement, editing my book about water birth, trying to help in the campaign to <a href="http://www.facebook.com/ChooseYourMidwife?fref=ts">Save Independent Midwifery</a>, and gestating baby number three whilst looking out for one and two - well, I'm spread pretty thin, so apologies to all for my lack of blog posts at the moment.<br />
<br />
Somehow in between now and Christmas I've got to finish <a href="http://www.facebook.com/waterbirthbook">Water Birth: Stories to Inspire and Inform</a>, take <a href="http://www.positivebirthmovement.org/">The Positive Birth Movement</a> to the next level, write some more articles worth reading, and bring another human being into the world. Oh, and we might move house too.<br />
<br />
All this and I can't drink. Wish me luck.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-7163294283665143832013-04-10T14:45:00.000-07:002013-04-10T15:17:09.742-07:00Overdue? Desperate to Avoid Induction? This Method Really WORKS!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T_5oAXJXk38/UWXKXRjpSzI/AAAAAAAABRs/r5TROd8ElOc/s1600/450px-Ananas_comosus_dsc07804.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T_5oAXJXk38/UWXKXRjpSzI/AAAAAAAABRs/r5TROd8ElOc/s320/450px-Ananas_comosus_dsc07804.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
On average around <a href="http://www.birthchoiceuk.com/Professionals/index.html">20% of UK women</a> have their labours induced, some for medical reasons, others because they are 'post dates', that is, they have gone a certain number of days past their EDD (Estimated Due Date). How many days your care providers will 'let you' go past your EDD before pressuring for induction varies from trust to trust, but often women find that conversations about induction start on or even before their EDD, with 'sweeps' being routinely offered to encourage labour to start, and difficult to navigate meetings arranged with Obstetricians in which women are talked to about 'increasing risk'.<br />
<br />
Getting to the bottom of the actual reality of the risk of going past 41 or 42 weeks is tricky, mostly because so many women don't actually get this far. Midwife Thinking has a great article <a href="http://midwifethinking.com/2010/09/16/induction-of-labour-balancing-risks/">here</a> about the balance of risks a woman contemplating agreeing to induction must consider. Many women feel under enormous pressure once the conversations about risk have begun, and not surprisingly, many agree to induction even before they reach 42 weeks (considered by the W.H.O and others to be 'term').<br />
<br />
In between getting to their due date and accepting that induction is their fate, women often engage in a frantic catalogue of activities in an attempt to avoid a medical start to their labours. I was one such woman, and have already written an account of this fortnight of utter lunacy in the post '<a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2011/01/they-let-me-go-overdue.html">They Let Me' Go Overdue.</a> Read it and weep, as I did, on an hourly basis. Thanks to google, the list of ideas for 'overdue' women to send themselves bonkers with is endless, from eating pineapple (utter nonsense by the way), to drinking castor oil (cheaper than a colonic, and twice as effective).<br />
<br />
The methods are all described as 'natural', although many of them may not feel this way at the time. Take for example this suggestion from <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Birth-Sex-The-Power-Passion/dp/1780660502">Sheila Kitzinger</a>, not normally partial to encouraging women to lie in the lithotomy position and allow men to save them with their magic wands, but in the race to avoid induction, she makes an exception:<br />
<br />
<i>"Lie on your back, head and shoulders well supported by as many pillows as you like for comfort, your partner facing you and kneeling between your parted legs. Lift one leg so that your foot is over his shoulder. Then the other. Though this position is not comfortable, it allows the deepest penetration so that the tip of the penis can touch the cervix...When he has ejaculated he should stay inside you for five minutes or so while you stay in the same position, with legs raised for 10 to 15 minutes, so that the cervix is bathed in semen."</i><br />
<br />
Then there's the 'sweeps'. They seem friendly enough - no sinister drugs - just a midwife and her finger, and many of us accept them without question. Do they work? How could we ever really know? Most women who have them are due to start labouring any day, so anyone who does begin after being 'swept' surely can't be sure that it was this that actually got things moving. Nor are they without risk - your midwife may accidentally rupture your membranes meaning you face induction anyway - see <a href="http://womens-health.jwatch.org/cgi/content/full/2008/710/1?q=etoc_jwwomenbe">here</a> for some research on this.<br />
<br />
Whether it works and whatever the risks may be, what really concerns me about not just the sweeps, but every other mad method on the post-dates bucket list, is that they smack of desperation, and betray a complete lack of confidence in a woman's body. As innocent and natural as they may seem, they are nevertheless the tiny tiny tip of a bloody big iceberg of mistrust in the process of birth, which many many women find themselves running aground on at some point between 38 weeks and the moment they first hold their baby.<br />
<br />
We have to ask ourselves, do we trust our bodies to do this thing or not? If we do, if we really believe that we were made to birth normally and naturally and hopefully joyfully, then why are we engaging with any of this stuff? Why would we need our membranes swept or our cervix's bathed in semem or fifty quids worth of reflexology? Surely, we will just go into labour when our bodies and our babies are ready? And if we don't believe this, if we really feel we need 'intervention' to even get started, why then, let's book ourselves in for every medical procedure on offer and welcome this modern salvation of our frail and dysfunctional female bodies with open arms!<br />
<br />
The stress caused by the desperation of trying to induce yourself to a deadline will probably do more harm than good, making it less likely that you can relax and get in the zone required to start spontaneously anyway. So here's my method, and damn I hope it makes me rich. If you are getting near your due date, or just past it, and are coming under any pressure, either from yourself or others, to begin your 'attempts to avoid induction', try this: <i>Do nothing.</i> Yes. You heard me. <i>Do <b>absolutely</b> nothing</i>. Try it. It's harder than you think. It takes a cool resolve, a mindfulness, and a deep and strong belief in yourself and your baby and mother nature herself. Exactly the mindset you need when you go into labour, funnily enough.<br />
<br />
Don't let your confidence be undermined. You were made to birth. Just believe. Wait.<br />
And do<b> nothing.<i> </i></b><br />
<i><b><br /></b></i>
<i><b>Nothing.</b></i><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-90744434027549365762013-03-27T15:44:00.002-07:002013-03-27T15:45:59.759-07:00Fighting for Independent Midwifery, Birth Freedom and Human RightsThis week, the fight to save Independent Midwifery intensified, as five hundred people congregated in London in silent protest.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UUYdAcAhEbg/UVNr8-6mnXI/AAAAAAAABRA/RXYRS5wJpfc/s1600/575677_10151375261309639_1534197834_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UUYdAcAhEbg/UVNr8-6mnXI/AAAAAAAABRA/RXYRS5wJpfc/s400/575677_10151375261309639_1534197834_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VLt9Kla6Kf8/UVNsOQq-9EI/AAAAAAAABRI/0QnOv---1hc/s1600/599315_10151375217999639_939001096_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VLt9Kla6Kf8/UVNsOQq-9EI/AAAAAAAABRI/0QnOv---1hc/s400/599315_10151375217999639_939001096_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pq5LVGd9ls0/UVN1-gpVPfI/AAAAAAAABRY/o37EewT21gU/s1600/600284_10151375601619639_91343137_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pq5LVGd9ls0/UVN1-gpVPfI/AAAAAAAABRY/o37EewT21gU/s400/600284_10151375601619639_91343137_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
I wasn't able to be there, but I was thrilled to play my part in the day by writing this article, <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/mother-tongue/9949281/Home-delivery-why-independent-midwives-are-key-to-the-fight-for-birth-freedom.html">Why Independent Midwives are key to the fight for birth freedom</a>, which appeared in the Telegraph online on Monday morning.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-h_XCQwP-1Bk/UVNp_bP0YJI/AAAAAAAABQ4/p9LL5S-lZWE/s1600/Screen+Shot+2013-03-27+at+21.51.14.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-h_XCQwP-1Bk/UVNp_bP0YJI/AAAAAAAABQ4/p9LL5S-lZWE/s320/Screen+Shot+2013-03-27+at+21.51.14.png" width="303" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Of course, this was very exciting for me on a personal level too, as this is the first time I have had an article published at this level. It's amazing what can happen when you "Switch Off Your Television Set and Go and Do Something Less Boring Instead" - two years ago I started out writing tentative little numbers about<a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2010/11/cbeebies-guilt.html"> fish fingers</a> and <a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2011/06/leaving-house.html">my daily struggle to leave the house</a>, and today I found myself sat at a table in a London studio, with cans on my ears and a fuzzy mike in my face, being asked to make sense of some of the issues around the current state of birth freedom in the UK.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I was joined my the absolutely vibrant and wonderful Virginia Howes, the Independent Midwife many of you saw recently on ITV's <a href="https://www.itv.com/itvplayer/home-delivery">Home Delivery</a>, and human rights Barrister Barbara Hewson. Over the phone came the voices of two wonderfully passionate and articulate mothers, Amy Scott and Alexis Brooking.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bTmEA5Ot7x4/UVNwJAkxRFI/AAAAAAAABRQ/aXXMVJZbS0I/s1600/Screen+Shot+2013-03-27+at+22.17.17.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bTmEA5Ot7x4/UVNwJAkxRFI/AAAAAAAABRQ/aXXMVJZbS0I/s400/Screen+Shot+2013-03-27+at+22.17.17.png" width="297" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
It was an absolute honour to be a part of such a rich and important discussion. You can listen to it by visiting this link: <a href="http://ruvr.co.uk/2013_03_27/women-right-choose-give-birth-home-midwife/">http://ruvr.co.uk/2013_03_27/women-right-choose-give-birth-home-midwife/</a> and clicking 'download'. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The story of Independent Midwifery is unfolding day by day. I feel very optimistic that with so many people working so hard, a solution must surely be found. The very latest news from the campaign today is that David Cameron has written to the Health Minister saying that women need this choice and that he must arrange a meeting with <a href="http://www.independentmidwives.org.uk/">IMUK</a>. So - this seems very hopeful.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
This is an issue, not just about birth, but about human rights. We are all fighting, not just to save Independent Midwifery, but to preserve a model of care that is woman-centred, holistic, and intuitive, and that is not highly focused on risk management. This issue matters greatly for the future of midwifery itself, and for the birth experiences of all women, now and in the future.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
If you haven't already, please <a href="http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/44382">sign the petition.</a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<br />The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-46431679097978988582013-03-22T13:56:00.000-07:002013-03-22T13:58:05.280-07:00Save Independent Midwifery: Keep Birth Choice Alive!<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>JA</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/>
<w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/>
<w:OverrideTableStyleHps/>
<w:UseFELayout/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="276">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0cm;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-ansi-language:EN-US;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<!--StartFragment-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><i>The following article appeared in the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/milli-hill/save-independent-midwifery_b_2917718.html">Huffington Post</a> today.</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">Independent
Midwives, the only alternative to NHS maternity care available in the
UK, are currently under threat. This Monday – 25<sup>th</sup> March – they are
taking to the streets of London in protest at a E.U.Directive that requires all
registered health professionals to have mandatory insurance. Independent
Midwives (I.M’s) won’t be able to get this insurance – due to their low numbers
and the potentially high cost of claims the premiums would be prohibitively
expensive – and unless the Government answers their call to help them find a
workable solution, they face becoming illegal and extinct from October 2013.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">I first came across I.M’s during my second
pregnancy in 2010. Having had a hospital forceps delivery with my first baby
that, both physically and emotionally, took a long time to recover from, I knew
the impact that a birth experience could have, and planned to have a home water
birth with baby number two. For me, home was the place where I would feel
safest, and where I felt this secure feeling would maximise my chances of birthing
without unpleasant intervention.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">However, my local maternity system changed
during my second pregnancy. ‘Community Midwives’ became obsolete, and were
replaced by a ‘bank’ system in which you were seen for antenatals by one of a
large number of midwives from the area. I never met the same person twice. For
a home birth, I was told, there might not be a midwife available to come to me,
and even if there were, it was very likely that she would be a complete
stranger. Even the midwives themselves were dissatisfied, and warned me that it
also meant that the midwife sent to me in labour might have little or no
experience of home or water birth.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">All of this added a new layer of anxiety on
top of my existing fears about a repeat ‘feet in stirrups’ experience. There
were so many unanswered questions about who would be sent to attend me at this
pivotal moment in my life. I felt this
really mattered, and was intrigued when a friend suggested I look into the
option of an Independent Midwife. After a few phonecalls, local I.M, <a href="http://www.wessexindependentmidwives.co.uk/">ChrissyHustler</a>, came to our house and spent a whole evening talking things through
with myself and my partner as our daughter slept upstairs. When she left, we
turned to each other and said, ‘Right, that’s decided then!’. There just seemed
no question of making other choice now that we had seen what Chrissy could
offer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">This turned out to be one of the best
decisions of our lives. Chrissy, and her colleague <a href="http://www.wessexindependentmidwives.co.uk/">Caroline Baddiley</a>, made the
birth of our second daughter a day that we will never forget – for all the
right reasons. In spite of my fears they gave me the confidence to trust my
body, and helped me to see birth as something safe and normal. They encouraged
me to allow my then two year old daughter to be a part of the experience, and
having her dip in and out of the room as I laboured, at one point with a bunch
of hedgerow flowers for me, was simply magical. It seemed the room was filled
with love that day, and I birthed my second daughter powerfully and joyfully
and without difficulty.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-V4IKOJHLHao/UUzEbXfOSRI/AAAAAAAABQo/pxIQaBFtm04/s1600/waterbirth+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="272" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-V4IKOJHLHao/UUzEbXfOSRI/AAAAAAAABQo/pxIQaBFtm04/s400/waterbirth+copy.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">This wonderful service comes at a cost: an
I.M charges around £3000, which for some people would be out of the question.
However, in cases of hardship, I.M’s often lower their fees, offer barter
arrangements or allow spread payments. For others, it is perhaps a question of
priorities – a small sum in comparison to the amount many spend on weddings,
cars or holidays. In our case, although our income is relatively low, we felt
that this was an investment we were happy to make. A birth that empowered me as a woman and as a
mother, and that gave our baby the gentlest possible introduction to our family
and to the world – this was what we paid for, and this was what we got.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">Independent Midwifery is a birth option
that needs saving. For starters, without it there will be no alternative to the
NHS, leaving a system that is already struggling and overstretched with a
monopoly on UK childbirth. With I.M’s currently the only place for women to
turn if they have ‘higher risk’ pregnancies, and, for example, they want to
deliver a breech baby or twins at home or naturally, the loss of I.M’s will
mean that birth options narrow and even risk disappearing completely.
Whatsmore, linking insurance to registration has worrying implications for
women birthing in the NHS too – for who knows what might happen once insurance
companies have a say in our childbirth choices?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">If a solution can’t be found, and I.M’s
become illegal, this Autumn I’ll be one of the last UK women who are lucky
enough to enjoy what David Cameron has described as the ‘gold standard’ of
midwifery care. I’ll know my midwife, <a href="http://www.mindfulmidwifery.co.uk/">Tara Windmill Robson</a>, isn’t insured, but,
having got to know her, I am certain that she is unlikely to be ‘negligent’ in
her care of me – I trust her. She is
passionate about birth, and gives me devoted, continuous care – which I think
makes you a lot less likely to make a mistake than an insurance policy ever
could. Let’s hope that the powers that be can understand this and find a way to
keep Independent Midwifery – and birth choice - alive for the women of the
future.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"></span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: none; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 14px; padding: 0px;">
Take Action:</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: none; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 14px; padding: 0px;">
Petition the UK Government: <a href="http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/44382" style="border: none; color: #0081c7; cursor: pointer; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;" target="_hplink">click here</a></div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: none; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 14px; padding: 0px;">
March and Protest in London on 25th March: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/ChooseYourMidwife?fref=ts" style="border: none; color: #0081c7; cursor: pointer; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;" target="_hplink">Choose Your Midwife, Choose Your Birth</a></div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: none; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 14px; padding: 0px;">
Facebook campaign group: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/groups/231153153595704/" style="border: none; color: #0081c7; cursor: pointer; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;" target="_hplink">Independent Midwives UK</a></div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: none; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 14px; padding: 0px;">
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/notes/choose-your-midwife-choose-your-birth/nhs-midwives-information/225850574222147" style="border: none; color: #0081c7; cursor: pointer; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;" target="_hplink">More info</a> on how the legislation will affect NHS midwives and women birthing in the NHS.</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: none; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">
</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: none; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">
</div>
<div class="clear full" style="background-color: white; border: none; clear: both; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 1px; height: 8px; line-height: 1px !important; list-style: none; margin: 0px; overflow: hidden !important; padding: 0px;">
</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<!--EndFragment-->The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-91107834345869316622013-02-28T13:33:00.001-08:002013-02-28T13:56:49.512-08:00Stop Googling Your Birth Options, And Hop Up On The Bed, Dear<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qpcb9e2ZK3s/US_GVXSwEjI/AAAAAAAABOs/-JYvbWaylzE/s1600/Image_from_Peru_of_a_doctor_who_helps_a_woman_childbirth.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qpcb9e2ZK3s/US_GVXSwEjI/AAAAAAAABOs/-JYvbWaylzE/s400/Image_from_Peru_of_a_doctor_who_helps_a_woman_childbirth.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
Here's something every pregnant woman might like to know: during labour, you will be given a routine vaginal exam every four hours, and this will be used to check your cervical dilation, and to chart your progress. Your midwife might mention this at your antenatal appointments, but here's what she probably won't tell you - the exams are <b>optional</b>, you can <b>refuse</b> them, and unless there seems to be a problem or you actually want to know how dilated you are, it's probably better that you do, since this invasion of your privacy can actually bring you out of your Labourland trance, making your 'mammalian self' feel threatened and slowing or halting the very progress they are trying to check.<br />
<br />
Learning about the various procedures, such as 'V.E's', that are likely to take place during your labour and birth can help you to make truly informed decisions about whether to accept or refuse them. It can allow you to think about the kind of labour you really want, and empower you to know your rights and take control of the experience, giving you a feeling of ownership and satisfaction, regardless of the way you ultimately birth your baby. There is a wealth of information available now to pregnant women, in particular thanks to the internet, and at the touch of a button you can inform yourself, and discuss your plans and concerns with other women who have 'been there, done that'.<br />
<br />
Brilliant, right? What's not to like about this? Surely those concerned with the care of birthing women must be thrilled that some of them are actually taking an interest in what happens to them, and - often literally - getting off their backs and taking an active role in their labours? You would hope so, and yet Terri Coates, a practicing midwife, lecturer in Midwifery, and clinical editor to Call the Midwife, doesn't seem to be in favour of it in <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/9892679/Call-the-Midwife-adviser-modern-mothers-expect-perfect-birth.html">this interview</a> from Tuesday's Mail:<br />
<br />
<i>"A lot of young women in the 1950s didn’t even know where babies came from. They were happy to have someone lead them and were more deferential. Now women are far more savvy, have apps on their phones, mum-and-baby books, better education. They know what they want and how to get it. Managing their expectations is like walking a tightrope. They expect the perfect birth, the kind they see in magazine pictures. Some feel that if they have anything but a drug-free birth, they’ve failed. But if they end up with a healthy baby, they’ve done extremely well."</i><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
So - the modern and informed woman is making life difficult for the professionals who have to 'manage her expectations'. Terri Coates seems to suggest that our access to information is encouraging us to set our sights too high, and she trots out the patronising and tired old idea that we should all be happy with a healthy baby. This attitude completely dismisses the mother's birth experience, and is often most painful to those of us who experience birth trauma, making us feel that we should stop complaining and be grateful that everyone simply survived.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
As Elizabeth Prochaska, founder of <a href="http://www.birthrights.org.uk/">Birthrights</a>, the new UK organisation dedicated to promoting human rights in childbirth, puts it:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<i>"What's worrying is an increasing tendency for healthcare practitioners to view the mother as simply a vessel for the production of her foetus, and to say “as long as you get a healthy baby and a live mother out of it that's all that matters". But it's not all that matters. Look at the cost to the healthcare system of women with serious disorders post-childbirth...The rise of post-traumatic stress disorder and post-natal depression are problems, too."</i><br />
<br />
<div>
Women who have been traumatised <i>are</i> finding their voice, as in <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2270941/Birth-trauma-Libby-ORourke-Toni-Harman-Julie-Hainsworth-traumatic-labours-Britains-hospital-wards.html?ito=feeds-newsxml">this recent article</a>, in which several women, including Toni Harman from <a href="http://www.oneworldbirth.net/">One World Birth</a>, speak about the terrible treatment they suffered during labour and birth, including being shouted at, having their wishes ignored or belittled, and feeling as if they were being raped. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
However, commenting on their stories, Dr Gedis Grudzinskas, a former professor of obstetrics and gynaecology at St Barts Hospital, London, seems unmoved. It seems he agrees with Terri Coates - we women are getting our hopes up too high:<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<i>"There's a world of diminishing resources but increasing expectations from mothers-to-be. Labour is an all-consuming process, and discussion can be very difficult because you might only have one-and-a-half minutes between contractions. So there may be a perception of doctors and midwives being too assertive - therefore bullying - but they have the patients' best interests at heart."</i><br />
<div>
<i><br /></i></div>
<div>
Our hopes are too high - we expect silly things like a decent shot at the birth we really want, and if that turns out not to be possible, for professionals to talk to us and touch our bodies kindly and with respect.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Grudzinskas also echoes Terri Coates yearning for the good old days, when women - apparently - just did what they were told without question, and the dangerous technology of the internet was not at their disposal:<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<i>"In the old days, women referred to doctors as experts. Now, many women think they're well-read because they've done research on the internet. But much of that information isn't correct."</i></div>
<div>
<i><br /></i></div>
<div>
Birth guru Sheila Kitzinger takes on this attitude in her excellent new book, Birth and Sex:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<i>"An obstetrician once snapped at me that he couldn't stand 'back seat drivers'. He meant women who had ideas about what they wanted in childbirth."</i></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
And, with the usual twinkle in her eye, she tells this story:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<i>"One obstetrician in a major teaching hospital where one in four women had a Caesarean was pleased that there is 'increasing maternal input into childbirth'. It is not clear what he means by this. Women have always had a lot of 'maternal input'. Doctors could not produce babies without them."</i></div>
<div>
<i><br /></i></div>
<div>
Women - with the help of the internet and all of the information and communication that it brings, are taking back childbirth. Slowly, ever so slowly, the balance of power is shifting, and it is <i>this</i> that is causing some professionals to feel uneasy and long for a time when women would defer to their expertise, not ask so many questions, and comply.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
If a woman declines vaginal exams in labour, this is likely to make things a lot easier and more enjoyable for her, but have the opposite effect for her carers. They will have to rely on other methods (and skills that they may not have) to make their assessments. They will not be able to chart her dilation on a partogram. If they can't do this, they won't be able to fully assess her 'progress' or lack of it, and follow their usual procedures and protocols according to the clock. They might even have to behave like the midwifes 'in the old days' as Dr Grudzinskas would put it, and, putting down their clipboards, turn their eyes to the woman as the most powerful and knowing figure in the room.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Water birth, pronounced risky by <a href="http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/breaking/16161537/rules-revised-on-water-births/">some doctors</a>, has a similar effect of restoring power to the woman at the expense of those who attend her. As Marsden Wagner, director of Maternal and Child Health for the World Health Organisation for fifteen years, puts it in <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Water-Birth-Unplugged-Proceedings-International/dp/1898507538">Water Birth Unplugged</a>:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<i>"Water birth like home birth is controversial. Why? Because the obstetricians are out of control. It's that simple. The water helps the woman, but it sure doesn't help the birth attendant. It's the opposite of the lithotomy position (on the back with feet in stirrups), which helps the birth attendant, but doesn't help the woman. With water birth, the birth attendant has many dilemmas, do I roll up my sleeves, do I get in the pool, do I take my clothes off, what do I do here? You can't really attend a water birth and keep your sophisticated control and dignity."</i></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
If you are faced with a choice about procedures and interventions in childbirth - ask yourself - who is this most likely to benefit, reassure, or make comfortable - me, or my carers? We must not be deterred from learning as much as we can about our rights and our options in childbirth, no matter how much it may inconvenience midwives or doctors. We do not have to comply with their suggestions, unless we wish to. We are allowed to be powerful in childbirth. Whatsmore, birth is not simply a means to an end - our birth experience matters, and is of primary importance, not just to us, but to our babies, our families, and the whole human race. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<i><br /></i></div>
<div>
<i><br /></i></div>
</div>
The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com27tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-9671537315570993172013-02-16T05:51:00.001-08:002013-02-16T07:38:09.701-08:00My Search for Birth Freedom in a Climate of Fear and MistrustEvery generation likes to think they're free, and often only the clarity of hindsight reveals just how restricted they actually were. My mother, for example, thought, like many women in the 1970's, that it was the very pinnacle of freedom to have her labour induced, to be able to choose on which day of the week her baby came, and to be in a hospital which offered 'state-of-the-art' care for her and her baby. Looking back on it now, she can see just how far from freedom she truly was: shaved, enema'd and pethidined, with no formal talk of consent, and later, ushered sternly back to bed by Matron as she wandered the hospital corridors, drug-hazy and looking for the baby they had taken from her.<br />
<br />
Nearly forty years later, that baby - me - is pregnant for the third time, and wondering - am<i> I </i>free? Do I have full freedom of choice to have the birth I really want and need? Can I feel assured that anything that is 'done to me' in the name of medical science will be absolutely necessary and helpful? And are there restrictions that none of us are even able to see, and that will only become apparent when the baby inside me is fully grown and making their choices against a new and different backdrop?<br />
<br />
Already I have met resistance to my plans to birth at home. At my first appointment with the midwife, the flag was automatically raised because my last baby was born weighing ten pounds four. This is me just after I birthed her. You can see just from my face what a life or death struggle it was:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AupFR48mDTM/UR92cDcnFSI/AAAAAAAABMs/uQLIk5hJO3Y/s1600/31841_1470021074344_911918_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AupFR48mDTM/UR92cDcnFSI/AAAAAAAABMs/uQLIk5hJO3Y/s400/31841_1470021074344_911918_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
She was born in the water after a second stage that lasted about ten minutes, without a whiff of gas and air, without a single vaginal exam, without any instructions on when or how to push, without a hand laid on me except in love, and without a stitch.<br />
<br />
But because she was 'so big', 'they' want me to do things differently this time. They want me to have consultant led care, a hospital birth, and an induction at 38 weeks. (That's a whole month before either of my other babies have been born - I'm a ten month mama!)<br />
<br />
The size of my baby might have been a 'flag' for them, but let me tell you, I have 'flags' too, and I know how to wave them. They might not trust my body - but I don't really trust <i>them</i> - there are things that make ME lose faith in THEIR abilities. I don't want to list in detail all of my reasons here - I never want this blog to single people out or publicly criticise individuals - but let's just say that a few incidents and some inside information has led me to feel a lack of confidence in my local maternity unit, and a strong suspicion that they don't trust birth and don't have much faith or understanding of it as a completely natural process.<br />
<br />
This local feeling would seem to reflect a national and international picture. In her latest book, 'Birth and Sex', Sheila Kitzinger describes a climate in which 'choice' is a buzz-word that is meaningless when applied to women's actual realities: "The rhetoric of 'choice' ignores the pressure exerted on women to have a particular birth place - hospital - and kind of care - obstetric management, and the power of the medical system, so that discussions about choice often amount to emotional blackmail."<br />
<br />
Worse still, it seems that even those midwives who wish to support real choices have their hands tied. Kitzinger writes, "Midwives who support women in their own free choices are more at risk of being reported to the Nursing and Midwifery Council and losing their registration."<br />
<br />
The prosecution and persecution of midwives who refuse to, as Kitzinger puts it, "guide women to 'correct' choices", is epitomised currently by the case of <a href="http://www.facebook.com/JusticeForBeckyReed?fref=ts">Becky Reed</a>, held in the highest regard by leading members of her profession, a member of the legendary Albany midwives, and up before the NMC on the 11th March. Her campaigners state, "For Becky, one of the UK’s most respected midwives, to be treated in this way constitutes an attack on midwifery autonomy. If she is ultimately sanctioned, it will make it more difficult in the future for midwives to confidently support women’s birth choices."<br />
<br />
They might well have written, 'make it EVEN MORE difficult' for it seems like this is already very much the case. As a trainee midwife recently said to me, "I'm already learning that it's best to keep any strong views or opinions to myself, otherwise I'll risk not getting the job at the end of training.", and a qualified midwife confirmed, "At the end of the day, it's a job and you have to feed your family. If you make too many waves you put yourself at risk."<br />
<br />
<i>In this climate of fear and mistrust, how can any of us be truly free? </i><br />
<br />
For me, too many flags and a search for true freedom have led me, as I did in my second pregnancy, to book an Independent Midwife. I just don't want to give birth in a system that has no trust in me or my body, that sees birth as medical not emotional or spiritual, and that is so intent on following protocol that it can't see the woman behind the clipboard.<br />
<br />
We had our first visit from Tara on Valentine's Day, and she brought red paper and silver string for my daughters to make heart decorations. And this summed up her visit. It was all about hearts. She wanted to get to the heart of my previous birth experiences, she wanted to understand the fears and hopes in my heart for this new baby and birth, she wanted to share the joy in the hearts of my whole family, and she wanted to connect with me, the birthing woman, at heart level. Instead of being left, as I was by the NHS, with worries and fears about my possible malfunctions, Tara stayed for six hours, and left us all with a feeling of great excitement about the months ahead and the wonderful birth experience we will all share.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fJah43kp8SI/UR-Hh4HGzmI/AAAAAAAABNg/nMqeWM2-RFk/s1600/IMG_0017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fJah43kp8SI/UR-Hh4HGzmI/AAAAAAAABNg/nMqeWM2-RFk/s400/IMG_0017.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-25a7qHdwwyI/UR-IPZTZ10I/AAAAAAAABNo/ArzXu2UZGvo/s1600/IMG_0019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-25a7qHdwwyI/UR-IPZTZ10I/AAAAAAAABNo/ArzXu2UZGvo/s400/IMG_0019.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nTcy6qmzouA/UR-ITqgcnqI/AAAAAAAABNw/MPIoa5tRQdY/s1600/IMG_0020.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nTcy6qmzouA/UR-ITqgcnqI/AAAAAAAABNw/MPIoa5tRQdY/s400/IMG_0020.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
<br />
I've exercised my freedom, I've raided my savings, and I've made my free choice - to have a midwife at my birth who I already know, who truly believes in the wonder of my body and who understands how to behave in order to make birth a beautiful and empowering experience for me and my family. But it's lucky I didn't wait any longer to get pregnant, because from September 2013, Independent Midwives are likely to be unable to practice as they currently do, due to an EU Directive that requires all health care practitioners to have indemnity. If nothing is done to save IM's, it seems likely that the free choice I just made to opt out of the NHS system for birth will no longer be one that is available to pregnant women in the UK.<br />
<br />
I'll be writing more about Tara, Independent Midwifery and the campaign to save it, as my pregnancy progresses. In the meantime, please sign this petition to help their campaign:<br />
<a href="http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/44382">Finding a workable and affordable solution for Independent Self Employed Midwives</a><br />
We need to take action now to help preserve, improve and extend freedom of choice for all birthing women. Every woman should have the right to be attended by a midwife who is able to practice safely whilst remaining in touch with her heart. Every midwife should have the right to think, feel and work openly without her hands being tied by protocol and fear.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
~ o ~</div>
<br />
To find out more about Becky Reed, please visit the Facebook page: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/JusticeForBeckyReed?fref=ts">Justice for Midwife Becky Reed</a><br />
To find your nearest Independent Midwife, please visit <a href="http://www.independentmidwives.org.uk/">www.independentmidwives.org.uk</a><br />
To find out more about our midwife Tara, please visit <a href="http://www.mindfulmidwifery.co.uk/">www.mindfulmidwifery.co.uk</a><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-33840252324287883002013-01-30T14:22:00.000-08:002013-01-30T14:22:26.099-08:00How do YOU 'Self-Soothe'?The question of whether or not babies can learn to 'self-soothe' continues to divide parenting writers and experts. Does a baby left to cry alone in their cot eventually find ways to comfort themselves, to make themselves feel better? Or do they simply stop crying after a while because they realise that nobody will come and that there is nothing they can do about it - they learn that they are helpless?<br />
<br />
Let's look at this from a fresh angle. Regardless of where you stand on this issue, let me ask you a question: How do YOU 'self-soothe'?<br />
<br />
Think for a moment.<br />
<br />
The shit is hitting the fan. You are distressed. You have lost your job. Your relationship flounders. Someone close to you is sick. The usual suspects. You feel 'emotional'; you are upset, jangled, stirred.<br />
<br />
What do you do?<br />
<br />
How do you try to regulate yourself, to bring yourself back into balance?<br />
<br />
You might sit with your difficult feelings for a while, aware that they are part of life's pattern and will pass. You might cry, alone or in the arms of someone who cares. You might go for a run, or distract yourself with a project. Perhaps you stare into space. Maybe you pretend it's not happening. Maybe you eat. You might pour a drink. But do you stop at just one? And do you stop at just a drink?<br />
<br />
Do you find 'comfort'? Are you ever fully 'soothed'? For some, this place is never reached, and attempts to find it become increasingly desperate - perhaps using drugs, self harm or other destructive behaviours. If this is you, you might not describe them as destructive, because you truly believe that they are helpful to you and that you will eventually find the inner peace that you seek in them.<br />
<br />
The choices we make when our world is in turmoil are not simply genetic or the luck of the draw. They are a direct result of how we were treated as children.<br />
<br />
If the adults around us could tolerate our distress, respond to it consistently, and bring us comfort, then we will now, as adults, be able to do this for ourselves. We will still feel distress, but we will not be afraid that it will overwhelm us or kill us or swallow us up. If the adults in our childhood were inconsistent, unresponsive, or worse still, abusive, we may well have difficulty in responding healthily to difficult feelings or situations. We will be more likely to be overwhelmed by life, seek comfort in unhealthy places, and take longer to recover from hard times, if we are able to recover at all.<br />
<br />
In fact, the debate over whether babies learn to 'self-soothe' should become obsolete. Because the fact of the matter is - they do. We all learned to 'self-soothe' when we were babies, all of us. Every time we felt distress, we learnt a little bit more about comfort. Every time we were held, shooshed, rocked, nursed, sung to, kissed or hugged, we learned something. Every time we were ignored, left alone, told to stop crying, shouted at, shamed or threatened, we learned something. We learned to stay with our feelings and let them slowly shift, or to find ways to bury them, deny them or disown them.<br />
<br />
Yes, babies learn to self-soothe. A baby who cries in the night and is quickly enveloped in loving arms learns to soothe themselves quickly and with love. A distressed baby who is left alone learns to soothe themselves by switching off their feelings, minimising them, disassociating. The more such lessons are repeated the better they will be learnt.<br />
<br />
Perhaps those 'experts' who advocate leaving babies to cry it out have a difficult relationship with their own distress - a childhood lacking in comfort which they now wish to play out through their books in the homes of strangers. It might be interesting to ask <i>them</i> the same question, <i>"How do YOU self-soothe?"</i><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-89793764978434133922013-01-06T14:27:00.000-08:002013-01-06T14:29:58.851-08:00Dear Daughters - I'm Sick Of You Waking Me Up!Dear Daughters<br />
<br />
Brace yourselves, I have a confession to make. It may or may not surprise you. Here goes...<br />
<br />
<i>I don't like being woken up in the night! I REALLY don't like it! I can't stand it!</i><br />
<br />
Maybe you thought it just washed over me - all part of the service - like chopping cheese into chunks or sitting through Waybaloo - well you're wrong. Being woken up and dragged from the delicious depths of sleep two, three, four, five times a night is WAY more irritating than that! WAY MORE! And, quite frankly, I'm bloody well sick of it!<br />
<br />
It's not just the nights - which are bad enough - it's the evenings too. For five years now I have had my enjoyment of every single evening compromised in some way, either because I've been trapped in a bedroom breastfeeding, singing, storytelling or simply begging you to go to sleep, or because I've had to abandon my delicious food / fascinating film / other grown-up activity, and go back upstairs to soothe you back to slumber.<br />
<br />
And then there's the days. I used to be bright eyed, sparky, witty even. I used to have a 'To Do List', and <i>do</i> the stuff on it. Now my face is as grey and puffy as my brain and I cry when I can't find a matching pair of socks. You might think that all I need is a good night's sleep, but deep down I know that this state of insane confusion is becoming The Way I Roll and that I'm slowly morphing into a Mad Middle Aged Woman. This is how it happens.<br />
<br />
Yes, dear girls, the days, the evenings, the nights - all a chaotic blend of mind-numbing sleep deprivation, dreams that are never finished, and constantly, completely fucking irritating interruption. But do you know what? All of it is just a teeny tiny tip of the most enormous iceberg of what I would do for you.<br />
<br />
For as long as I am alive, if you need me, I will come, no matter how much it inconveniences or even irritates me. Call me in the middle of the night from a train station four hundred miles away, and I will jump in my car without question. Get sick and I will camp on the cold hospital floor for as long as it takes. Without hesitation I will empty the bank, I will cut off limbs, I will turn my back on friends, I will serve time, I will move to a new country, I will lay down my life. No matter how old you are, or what the situation, I will be there.<br />
<br />
Which kind of makes missing the end of the film while I pop upstairs to soothe you back to sleep seem like nothing much really.<br />
<br />
For some reason I can't quite fathom, not everyone sees it this way. Being a 'parenting blogger' who speaks out against sleep training makes me a sort of 'High Profile Softie', and sometimes a target for people who think I should be treating you differently. Their arguments, often put forward angrily in blog comments, all seem to boil down to two essential points:<br />
<br />
1. Letting you continue to disturb my sleep means I am ignoring my own needs.<br />
2. Responding to your cries round the clock is 'spoiling' you and teaching you that the world revolves around you. You will grow into a selfish person with no boundaries and probably end up in prison.<br />
<br />
Let's quickly deal with these points, firstly -<br />
<br />
1. Ignoring my needs? My 'need' is to respond to you, to be there for you, to comfort you, to mother you. While you are small, and vulnerable, and dependent, I actually <i>want</i> to provide you with all the reassurance I can that you are 100% safe and loved. Doing so brings me great fulfilment. I absolutely know that this solid start will stand you in good stead as you grow and move away from me into the world, which brings me to -<br />
<br />
2. Responding to a small child's needs day and night does NOT create a fragile adult destined for a difficult life, rather it provides a secure foundation, a strong sense of self-worth, and an ability to find comfort in healthy places - essential for long term mental well-being. If you actually talk to people who are finding life hard - prisoners, addicts, the mentally unwell - you will struggle to find any of them who say, "If only my parents hadn't been so responsive, so loving, so consistently warm and kind to me, 24/7".<br />
<br />
And so, dear daughters, I will continue to be there for you at night as well as in the day, and ignore the critics, the baby trainers, the journalists and the researchers who say 'Shut the door and let them learn to sleep alone'.<br />
<br />
I confess, I don't like having my sleep interrupted, not one bit, but I know that - for now - you need me, and I need to be there for you.<br />
<br />
By the way, I really can't stand the Soft Play Area, either.<br />
<br />
It's amazing what you'll suffer for someone you really love.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
- - -</div>
<br />
<br />
<i><br />You know you're in love when you can't fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.</i><br />
Dr. Seuss<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-43019770100694149712012-12-15T10:57:00.000-08:002013-06-18T07:41:44.376-07:00'Childism' - As Utterly Unacceptable as Sexism and RacismIn the past few decades, mankind has had to shake up their attitudes about a number of things. It is no longer considered to be 'ok' to degrade, humiliate, taunt or insult another human being on the grounds of their sex, race or sexuality. It still happens of course, but it is not considered acceptable. Make a sexist or racist joke down your local pub and you might get away with it. But post an image on Facebook that derides another human being, and you're likely to be reported or even prosecuted. That is, unless that image is of a child. Then it's ok.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OseHFuLj5s8/UMx4ya5kI_I/AAAAAAAABIo/KC-qzKQNEJo/s1600/381972_465563606822594_1022854884_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OseHFuLj5s8/UMx4ya5kI_I/AAAAAAAABIo/KC-qzKQNEJo/s400/381972_465563606822594_1022854884_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Sr4MfYFtC80/UMx43RPG3WI/AAAAAAAABIw/-Il_WXTI14E/s1600/537620_10151151091717721_1719774758_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Sr4MfYFtC80/UMx43RPG3WI/AAAAAAAABIw/-Il_WXTI14E/s400/537620_10151151091717721_1719774758_n.jpg" width="297" /></a></div>
<br />
These images have been doing the rounds this week. Most commenters seem to agree that they are 'hilarious':<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"Comedy Gold'</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"Gave me a smile - thanks"</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"A bit of humour"</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"I just love this!"</blockquote>
<br />
I beg to differ. The children in these pictures look sad, and humiliated. At a time when they clearly need help to sort out their sibling rivalries and calm their emotional storm, the grown ups responsible for their care have instead chosen to ridicule them. They are powerless to refuse this treatment, nor can they consent or otherwise to the photo being taken and shared on Facebook for the world to see.<br />
<br />
It's hard to imagine any other group in society being treated in this way. But if we were to take a similarly degrading image of a woman, for example, there would be an outcry!<br />
<br />
A few months ago I was inspired to write <a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2012/08/responsive-parenting-why-tantrums-matter.html">a post about tantrums</a> when I saw this image on Facebook, and read the comments beneath it:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TW8N_SBBsP0/UMyYz1_W1UI/AAAAAAAABJk/_mXuxeiNIQI/s1600/552002_437637349625328_468701762_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TW8N_SBBsP0/UMyYz1_W1UI/AAAAAAAABJk/_mXuxeiNIQI/s400/552002_437637349625328_468701762_n.jpg" width="297" /></a></div>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"Who needs a mop when you have a pre-schooler?!"</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"PMSL!"</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"I laughed so hard at this photo!"</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"Good on the mum for carrying on!"</blockquote>
<br />
But is it really funny to see another human being in complete distress, and whatsmore, to take a picture of them and post it online?<br />
<br />
These images are considered acceptable because they belong to a world in which we are prejudiced against children, seeing behaviour such as fighting with siblings or throwing tantrums in a shop as clear signs of their inability to control themselves, the burden they place on their carers, and their 'badness' or 'naughtiness'.<br />
<br />
This is a world in which it is considered perfectly normal and justified to turn our backs on the distress of another human being, so long as they are a child. So normal, in fact, that you can learn exactly how to do it on prime time television. Note in this clip from Supernanny that the mother is twice offered comfort, whilst the emotional needs of the child are completely disregarded:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/UWwDmqnBkGo?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
<br />
This attitude has been described as 'Childist' by Elizabeth Young-Bruehl, psychoanalyst and a leading expert on the nature of prejudice. Her book on the subject - <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Childism-Confronting-Prejudice-Against-Children/dp/0300173113/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1355594542&sr=8-1">Childism: Confronting Prejudice Against Children </a>- is excellent, describing in complex detail how our childist attitudes - in just the same way as racism or sexism - create a world in which it becomes acceptable to dislike children or even harm and abuse them.<br />
<br />
<i>"CHILDIST beliefts - that children are burdensome and absorb more than their share of resources, that they should serve adults, that they are property, that they lack reason, that they are rebellious and must be broken through harsh discipline - do not reflect current scientific knowledge about children's development, capabilities, and needs. It is CHILDISM when adults interpret children's dependence as inferiority, and thus deny children's rights. We are CHILDIST when we transform the adult responsibility to care for children into an excuse to exercise unchecked power."</i><br />
(Childism - extract from the Press Release)<br />
<br />
It is time for us to stop finding it acceptable or even funny when we see evidence of childism, in real life or online. We need to take this prejudice seriously, and to stand up for children, who are often not given a voice in our current society and therefore unable to stand up for themselves. Once we recognise and acknowledge our childist attitudes, we take the first step towards much needed change.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Related Post: <a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2012/05/never-mind-feminism-lets-challenge-our.html">Let's Challenge Our Anti-Child Attitudes</a><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com88tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-29861266365762391002012-12-07T05:56:00.000-08:002012-12-10T10:23:38.150-08:00Should We Be So Very Scared of Giving Birth?<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>JA</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/>
<w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/>
<w:OverrideTableStyleHps/>
<w:UseFELayout/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="276">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0cm;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-ansi-language:EN-US;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<!--StartFragment-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><i>This article has now been published in the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/milli-hill/childbirth-fear-should-we-be-scared_b_2249676.html?utm_hp_ref=uk">Huffington Post.</a></i></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span>
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span>
<span lang="EN-US">Tapping into the twenty first century
zeitgeist is easy, and a bit fun - you just have to tap into Google. For
example, enter ‘very scared of’ … and you’ll see the top four things that
people are very scared of, right now, like this:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ThrWNM8oGOg/UMHyWJivW-I/AAAAAAAABG8/uFF8A49-oHc/s1600/veryscaredofcloseup.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="131" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ThrWNM8oGOg/UMHyWJivW-I/AAAAAAAABG8/uFF8A49-oHc/s320/veryscaredofcloseup.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Many women are scared, afraid, terrified of
giving birth. Some – as many as one in ten – suffer
from <a href="http://www.standard.co.uk/news/health/one-in-10-women-suffer-tocophobia--fear-of-child-birth-8316493.html">Tocophobia</a>, a morbid fear of giving
birth that leads them to seek elective caesarians if they can. Others, while
they may not have a diagnosable psychological disorder, are still extremely
anxious and fearful about the task of bringing their baby into the world.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">It’s not really surprising that so many
women feel this way. The media portrayal of birth ranges from the rather
ridiculous soap opera version – 'woman looking terrified and sweaty delivers
baby in pub drama' – to programs like One Born Every Minute – 'woman looking
terrified and sweaty begs for drugs in hospital drama'. Birth education in
schools is woefully lacking and standard ante-natal input is often focused on
what your options are if you cannot cope. Is it any wonder we’re all 'very
scared'?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">Ironically, going into labour feeling
extremely afraid can actually increase your chances of having a difficult or
even traumatic experience. Not only can fear increase tension which in turn
makes birth more painful, but approaching birth with negative expectations can
lead to a more ready acceptance of medical interventions, which usually serve
to increase rather than remove any discomfort or trauma. All these frightened
women (and I was one of them once) end up getting the experience they both
expected and dreaded – the<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>prophecy is
fulfilled, fear becomes fact:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TvzwrliU7hA/UMHv301JupI/AAAAAAAABGs/-54BBq1NpPg/s1600/FbecomesF.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TvzwrliU7hA/UMHv301JupI/AAAAAAAABGs/-54BBq1NpPg/s400/FbecomesF.png" width="351" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Is there any real justification for fear of
giving birth? As well as the current negative media portrayal, there is an
accompanying widely held belief that childbirth is dangerous, and that we
should all be grateful for modern obstetrics, because, before it was invented,
‘women used to die’. But this is an oversimplification of a complex historical
issue – many women used to (and in many parts of the world, still do) die in
childbirth, not because of their bodies are poorly designed for birthing, but
due to poor maternal health, poor diet and most of all poor hygiene. In the
19th century, over half of all deaths in childbirth were caused by <a href="http://fds.oup.com/www.oup.co.uk/pdf/0-19-820499-X.pdf">Child-Bed Fever</a>, a direct result of
doctors simply not washing their hands.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">The statistics we have on Western maternal
mortality show a sharp increase in the early 1900’s, peaking in the 1930’s, in
direct correlation to increased medical intervention such as botched caesarians
and badly administered drugs. But the largest killer was always infection,
often caused by doctors going from woman to woman and even from mortuary to
birthing room, and this only subsided with the invention of drugs to fight it.
Turning to the modern day, the country with the most medicalised model of
childbirth, the USA, has seen rates of <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/24/maternal-mortality-rate-infographic_n_1827427.html">maternal morbidity</a> double in the past
25 years. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">In some cases, modern obstetrics saves
lives, there is no doubt about that. The difficulty, for Western birthing women
and no doubt their doctors too, is achieving some clarity about which cases are
in actual need of medical help, and which would be best left alone. This, along
with the conundrum of whether fear itself, and birthing in an environment not
suited to our mammalian selves, is actually causing some of the hold-ups and
struggles in modern labours, is a difficult and confusing tangle for us all to
unpick, especially when you are nine months pregnant, or worse still, nine
centimetres dilated. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">In this complex environment, women are
coming together to try to improve and inform their birth choices, and maximise
their chances of a positive birth experience. In many ways, there has never
been a better time to be pregnant - antenatal education has moved on from
panting and plastic pelvises, and there now exists a whole host of vibrant
groups offering everything from the latest information about evidence based
care, to campaigns for birthing rights, for example <a href="http://www.thebirthiwant.org.uk/">The Birth I Want</a>, <a href="http://www.oneworldbirth.net/">One World Birth</a>, <a href="http://www.facebook.com/OneBornEveryMinuteTheTruth">One Born Every Minute - The Truth</a>, and <a href="http://tellmeagoodbirthstory.com/">Tell Me A Good Birth Story</a>.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">I recently founded <a href="http://www.positivebirthmovement.org/">The Positive Birth Movement</a>, a grass
roots organisation aiming to spread positivity about childbirth via a network
of free to access antenatal groups, linked up by social media. Within six weeks
of launching we have over 30 UK groups and another 15 as far afield as New
Zealand, Turkey, Germany, South Africa and the States. We believe that every
woman deserves a positive birth – and that this doesn’t always have to be
'natural', but rather that:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hiMAmt4D-k4/UMHxEXB8FiI/AAAAAAAABG0/jyKru4JQ_iU/s1600/Screen+Shot+2012-12-06+at+13.40.32.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="145" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hiMAmt4D-k4/UMHxEXB8FiI/AAAAAAAABG0/jyKru4JQ_iU/s400/Screen+Shot+2012-12-06+at+13.40.32.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The enemy of fear has always been information
and communication. If you are worried about giving birth, you are not alone.
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/positivebirthmovement">Join The Positive Birth Movement on Facebook </a>or <a href="http://www.positivebirthmovement.org/">visit our website </a>for more information.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Childbirth-without-Fear-Principles-Practice/dp/1780660553/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1354888140&sr=8-2">Childbirth Without Fear by Grantly Dick-Read</a> and <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Birth-History-Tina-Cassidy/dp/0701181192/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1354888200&sr=1-1">Birth: A History by Tina Cassidy</a> were helpful to me as I wrote this article.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<!--EndFragment-->The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-81543402240849847882012-11-13T14:36:00.000-08:002017-07-31T15:17:38.171-07:00Sometimes I Pass the Place Where We Once Lived - A Sonnet<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sometimes I pass the place where we once lived</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And glimpse three ghosts arriving at the door</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A woman - me, a man, a newborn child,</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Alighting, in the darkness, shocked and sore.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I watch them cross the threshold, disappear,</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">They don't exist now - all of them are gone,</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For brand new parents barely last a day,</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And babies only live 'til they are one.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In twenty years I'll show you our old haunts:</span><br />
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">"We used to come here once when you were small"</span></i><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You'll shrug, but I'll see flashes everywhere -</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Each gate you climbed, each park, each village hall.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> Our lives move on, we change, evolve, adjust, </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> Leaving our trace, our imprints in the dust.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XIq-TrGvwXc/UKLGZyYNMvI/AAAAAAAABAU/wECJSeQ4nZ4/s1600/319237_2387070640010_5292148_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XIq-TrGvwXc/UKLGZyYNMvI/AAAAAAAABAU/wECJSeQ4nZ4/s400/319237_2387070640010_5292148_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>If you are partial to sonnets about parenting you might also like: </i><br />
<i><a href="http://mamamule.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/i-lie-with-you-until-you-are-asleep.html">I Lie With You Until You Are Asleep</a></i><br />
<i><br /></i>
The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-35187074616964433762012-10-25T15:17:00.000-07:002012-10-25T15:17:31.216-07:00The Positive Birth Movement: What It Is and How to Get Involved<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
Too many women are not having a positive birth experience. A positive birth experience does not always have to be a natural, blissful, drug free birth. But it does have to be a birth in which a woman feels she has had freedom of choice, access to accurate information, and that she is in control, powerful and respected. And it should also be a birth that she approaches with some trepidation, yes, but without fear or dread, and a birth that she then goes on to enjoy, and later remember with warmth and pride.<br />
<br />
Currently, we are stuck in a loop that is hard to break. It goes something like this:<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pT5HdLy_vqc/UImnITU4-FI/AAAAAAAAA-U/Hycxnv0R4xI/s1600/Fear+Becomes+Fact+2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="358" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pT5HdLy_vqc/UImnITU4-FI/AAAAAAAAA-U/Hycxnv0R4xI/s400/Fear+Becomes+Fact+2.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The 'Fear Becomes Fact' Cycle of Negativity</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
Often, when as birth activists we try to address this loop, we focus, quite rightly, on what happens in the hospital. We wish there was less intervention, we question how much of it is necessary, and we shake our fists at the doctors who anaesthetise, yank and cut away women's hopes of a natural or positive experience. But what if we let that be, and tried to break the cycle at a different point? What if we challenged the information, feelings and negative expectations that are held in women's minds and hearts as they feel the first tightenings of labour? What if women walked towards the hospital reception with an entirely different mind-set?<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />This week I launched <a href="http://www.facebook.com/positivebirthmovement">The Positive Birth Movement</a>. The Movement aims to break the Fear Becomes Fact Cycle by spreading positive messages about childbirth. We aim to tackle the current negativity about labour and birth in the following ways:</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br /></span>
1. By building a network of peer to peer Positive Birth discussion groups, which will be free for all women to access.<br />
2. By ensuring that all pregnant women are made aware of this network and can gain easy access to a local group.<br />
3. By using social media to build an umbrella Positive Birth group, to which all smaller groups can feed back.<br />
4. By encouraging the sharing of expertise, information and positivity in the umbrella group.<br />
5. By sharing and challenging 'human rights in childbirth' issues via the umbrella group.<br />
6. By promoting positive messages about childbirth.<br />
<br />
This is a movement in its very first days of life! So it will certainly change, evolve and grow with time. But for now, our main focus is the building of a network of groups to Meet Up, Link Up and Shake Up Birth! Here's how:<br />
<br />
<b>Meet Up </b>- organise a regular gathering, discussion group or meeting to talk about themes related to Positive Birth.<br /><br /><b>Link Up</b> - use social media to link up these groups to build a global network of support and positivity. Take advantage of the expertise, solidarity, power and clout of the network. Gain advice and support on anything from niggling birth questions to human rights issues. Or just spread some positivity!<br /><br /><b>Shake Up</b> - Challenge the culture of fear and negativity that surrounds birth, and the negative messages that women and girls receive. Support and empower pregnant women and help them to approach birth with a completely different mind-set.<br /><br /><div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b><u>Want to set up a Positive Birth group? </u></b></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
If you would like to set up a Positive Birth group, here's how to get started:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>Who can Facilitate?</b></div>
<div>
Anyone can create a Positive Birth group. You might be a doula, midwife or birth worker, or just have a passion for positive birth. You are not required to be an 'expert', the idea is simply to 'facilitate' (the definition of which is 'to make easy'). You can 'make it easy' for women to gather, communicate, support each other and share information quite easily. All you need to do is set a date for a meeting, either in your house, or a local cafe, hall or other venue, as you prefer. Let The Positive Birth Movement know about your group and we will add you to the network.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>Who should attend?</b></div>
<div>
Pregnant women, birth workers, and anyone interested in positive birth. However, if your group is entirely made up of birth workers, you might use the opportunity to brainstorm how you can reach more pregnant women, or other ways you could make a difference.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>How often should we meet?</b></div>
<div>
This is up to you, but it would be helpful if it could be at least monthly, and regular, for example, the first Monday of each month. This would make it easier for pregnant women to access.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>How should we structure our meetings?</b></div>
<div>
This is up to you. If we are going to 'trust birth', we need to trust women to follow their intuition when it comes to running these groups! You might like to start by introducing a topic for discussion and stating the purpose of the group. You might also like to decide whether the group will be confidential. At the end of the group you might like to summarise what you have discussed and make sure that any questions or issues that are outstanding have been noted so that they can be fed back to the online umbrella group.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<div>
<b>Can I charge for a group?</b></div>
<div>
No. All Positive Birth groups must be free and not for profit. However, if you are hiring a hall for your meeting you may like to share the cost between you.</div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>Any other Do's or Don'ts?</b></div>
<div>
Not really. I don't really want The Positive Birth Movement to become just another bureaucratic and controlling establishment! All I would say is to remember that the main aim is positivity and that this should mean respect for women and their choices. Remember to listen and facilitate, rather than try to teach or preach. This is not about evangelising home birth or drug free birth. This is about empowering women to approach birth differently and to expect and enjoy a positive birth - whatever that means to them.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
If you would like to facilitate a group, please <a href="mailto:milli@birthinsight.co.uk">get in touch with me with the details.</a> </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
A suggested topic for November is 'Planning a Positive Birth' - more info and suggestions to follow, and to be found on the Facebook group.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Even if you cannot facilitate or attend a group, please join us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/positivebirthmovement">Facebook</a> and<a href="http://www.twitter.com/birthpositive"> Twitter</a> and help us to grow this idea, and transform the Fear Becomes Fact cycle into... Positivity Becomes Fact! </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/positivebirthmovement">www.facebook.com/positivebirthmovement</a></div>
<div>
<a href="http://www.twitter.com/birthpositive">www.twitter.com/birthpositive</a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
If you have any thoughts, ideas, questions or suggestions please email me <a href="mailto:milli@birthinsight.co.uk">milli@birthinsight.co.uk </a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
<br />
<br /></div>
The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-30766404065915161132012-10-21T15:25:00.000-07:002012-12-12T20:19:22.274-08:00The Positive Birth Movement: Meet Up, Link Up and Shake Up Birth!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iQl5mHLOLn4/UMlXOp85aQI/AAAAAAAABHw/79v2LSzwllQ/s1600/PBMlogo.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iQl5mHLOLn4/UMlXOp85aQI/AAAAAAAABHw/79v2LSzwllQ/s1600/PBMlogo.png" /></a></div>
In September I had two wonderful and life enhancing experiences, firstly I began my Doula training, and attended an excellent week-long course with Kate Woods of <a href="http://www.doulatraining.co.uk/">Conscious Birthing</a>, and secondly, I took a rare evening off nursing my daughter to sleep and went to a screening of <a href="http://www.freedomforbirth.com/">Freedom for Birth</a>. Both - coincidentally - took place in Glastonbury, a Somerset town dominated by the mystical Tor and filled with a sense of creativity and transformation that never fails to inspire.<br />
<br />
For a long time on this blog I have tried to cover the subject of a woman's right to a positive birth. One of my first ever posts was an attempt to address the politics of power in the birth room: <a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2011/01/they-let-me-go-overdue.html">"They Let Me" Go Overdue. </a>Later, I wrote about how <a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2011/07/birth-story-special-every-woman.html">Every Woman Deserves a Positive Birth</a>, the impact of what I called <a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2012/03/becoming-mother-wallpaper-of-fear.html">The Wallpaper of Fear</a> on the birthing woman, the importance of <a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2012/08/do-we-dare-teach-our-daughters-truth.html">giving our daughters positive messages about birth</a>, and most recently, the global <a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2012/09/get-off-your-backs-for-birth-revolution.html">Birth Revolution</a> and the <a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2012/09/reflections-on-freedom-for-birth.html">Freedom for Birth </a>screenings.<br />
<br />
The thread between all of these posts has been, I think, the desire to question the status quo, to spread a message of positivity about childbirth, and to empower women to reclaim birth and make truly informed decisions. One of the many subjects we were asked to consider in our Doula training was our own personal 'blueprint' for birth - something that particularly interests me given my background in the world of therapy. What messages have we been given throughout our lives about childbirth? What images have we seen, what sentences have we heard that have stuck in our minds? For many of us, the messages have been mostly negative. Our expectations of birth are pretty low, and we approach it with fear.<br />
<br />
Thinking about my own personal blueprint, I was reminded initially of how my mother always told me that, "when you give birth, you lose all your dignity", and get used to, "everybody and their uncle," looking at you, "down there". Of course, I now realise that although this was <i>her</i> experience, it didn't have to be mine, but so often, especially when we are given this information from a young age, we simply do not think to challenge it. However, if we <i>don't</i> challenge it, it becomes increasingly likely that it<i> will </i>happen to us, and that we will be telling the same story to our own daughters. Self-fulfilling prophecy becomes self-perpetuating myth: misinformation becomes reality, rumour evolves into fact.<br />
<br />
Even if we are well-armed and determined to read a few books and break a few cycles, the negative messages can still drip into our mind and take hold when we are least expecting it. When planning a home birth, I so clearly remember the Health Visitor's comment, who had come to visit and look around our narrow three-story house. When I told her I was planning to give birth in the top floor bedroom, she said, "I'm sure it will be fine, the only concern they sometimes have is whether they can get a stretcher down the stairs." Immediately I got an image of myself, strapped to a white board like a casualty from the trenches, moaning and blood-stained, whilst two paramedics strained in a staircase corner under my full-term weight.<br />
<br />
How does a birthing woman wriggle free from such imagery and a life-time of negative input? In many cases, including my own, she doesn't - it's an almost impossible task. She might have a well informed neo-cortex, but there are so many layers of crappy misinformation in between this and the ancient mammalian limbic system she needs to engage to give birth easily, that she simply doesn't stand a chance. Add to this the fact that she's giving birth in a system that has it's own hugely negative 'blueprint' and is often stretched to it's limits, and it's even clearer to see why so many natural birth plans end up on the cutting room floor.<br />
<br />
I don't think that women can expect 'the system' to change - I think that <i>we</i> need to change how we are when we enter the system and that in this way the system will have no option but to change to accommodate us. Reading and informing ourselves in an intellectual way is an excellent start, but I think we also need to go deeper, and explore and challenge the very roots of our feelings and fears about childbirth. We need to 'redecorate': to gleefully tear down <a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2012/03/becoming-mother-wallpaper-of-fear.html">the wallpaper of fear </a>and replace it with much more positive surroundings. And to do all this, we need to communicate.<br />
<br />
To this end, I've decided to play my own small part by setting up a <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Positive-Birth-Movement/313159915458878?ref=tn_tnmn">The Positive Birth Movement</a>, and I've organised our first discussion group with an open invitation to pregnant women, fellow Doula's, birth workers and anyone with an interest in positive birth. Our first meeting is on November 6th - <a href="http://www.facebook.com/events/276594809128129/">HERE </a>is the Facebook event page for it - and what I've been wondering is - would you like to join us?! If you are local to me in Somerset UK you would be most welcome, but of course, many of you are further afield, and anyway, my house is not quite big enough all of you! But could we possibly set up a system whereby women all came together in small groups on a regular basis to share information, ideas, experiences, thoughts and feelings about birth, and then fed back to each other on a larger scale using social media?<br />
<br />
The advantages to this would be both the solidarity and extended expertise provided by a wider group than it would be possible to gather in 'real life'. For example, one group may have a question that they are unable to answer that they could put to a wider audience, or they may even encounter a human rights issue that they feel should be raised and discussed amongst a larger group. There would be power and 'clout' in our numbers. I would hope that it would also simply create a 'buzz', a feeling of warmth and shared purpose, and a sense that, in the face of dark times for birthing women, we are 'doing something'.<br />
<br />
If you would like to join up with the meeting on November 6th, here's what to do:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>Organise a discussion group yourself, or hold a meeting of an existing group, on or as near to November 6th as possible.</li>
<li>Let me know about it, by <a href="mailto:milli@birthinsight.co.uk">email</a>, or my <a href="http://www.facebook.com/themulesmouth">Facebook page for The Mule</a>, or <a href="http://www.twitter.com/themulesmouth">twitter</a>. </li>
<li>Join up with <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Positive-Birth-Movement/313159915458878?ref=tn_tnmn">The Positive Birth Movement </a>on Facebook.</li>
<li>Follow loosely this month's theme: <b>Planning a Positive Birth</b></li>
<li>Tweet about it with the hashtag #positivebirth</li>
<li>Share your stories, questions, issues or positivity with me via <a href="mailto:milli@birthinsight.co.uk">email</a>, <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Positive-Birth-Movement/313159915458878?ref=tn_tnmn">Facebook</a> or <a href="http://www.twitter.com/themulesmouth">twitter.</a></li>
<li>Blog about it and let me know.</li>
<li>Watch this space for news!</li>
</ul>
<br />
You don't have to be a midwife, doula or birth professional to take part. <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Positive-Birth-Movement/313159915458878?ref=tn_tnmn">The Positive Birth Movement </a>is about ALL women coming together to share their experiences and help each other. For example, three pregnant women could all get together and brain storm their birth plans. Think how much they might learn from each other's choices! This is a chance, not to teach each other, not to judge each other, but just to listen to each other.<br />
<br />
If the first Positive Birth link up is successful, I will try to arrange another meeting in the first week of December.<br />
<br />
As always, let me know your thoughts!<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>For more information on Doula Training with Conscious Birthing please visit <a href="http://www.doulatraining.co.uk/">www.doulatraining.co.uk</a></i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>For more information about my own work as a Dramatherapist and trainee Doula please visit <a href="http://www.birthinsight.co.uk/">www.birthinsight.co.uk</a></i><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-408457313131912061.post-73156717658155570662012-10-16T15:22:00.000-07:002012-10-16T15:34:05.061-07:00Responsive Parenting: Moving Towards Parenting Without PunishmentResponsive Parenting begins in utero, as we start, however tentatively, to recognise a life at once within and beyond ourselves, and to consider their needs alongside our own. It is this deep and strengthening connection with another person, and the resulting desire to respond to their needs rapidly and with love, that forms the bedrock of Responsive Parenting. Responsive Parenting is not about how we feed our babies, how we transport them from a to b, or where we lay them to sleep. It is deeper, and much much more important than that.<br />
<br />
Maternal responsiveness - the way mother (or other main caregiver) watches, understands and meets their child's needs - has been shown in <a href="http://www.who.int/maternal_child_adolescent/documents/84_992_999/en/index.html">study after study</a> to be fundamentally important to everything from language acquisition, to social competence, to long term emotional well being. Here is my definition of Responsive Parenting:<br />
<br />
<b>Responsive Parents:</b><br />
<ul>
<li>Observe their children, notice and interpret their cues, and take prompt action.</li>
<li>Respond to their child with love, consistency, empathy, kindness and humanity.</li>
<li>Question and seek to understand their own responses to their children and the familial and cultural background that informs them.</li>
<li>Help their children to learn more about their responses to their own emotions, and to other people.</li>
<li>Acknowledge that all children are individual unique human beings who need to be responded to in individual unique ways.</li>
</ul>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
It is difficult to see any way in which Punitive Parenting could sit happily alongside Responsive Parenting. By Punitive Parenting, I mean using some, or all, of the following techniques, as part of your parenting approach:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Shouting, shaming, name calling, intimidating or humiliating.</li>
<li>Withdrawal, or threatened withdrawal, of objects, privileges or love.</li>
<li>Isolating, eg 'naughty step', 'time out'.</li>
<li>Smacking or threatening to smack.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<div>
They sound pretty awful in a list like that, but many of us use some or all of them from time to time, often because it's the only way we know, and we get a bit lost, especially when the heat is on. Notice I called this post '<i>Moving Towards</i> Parenting Without Punishment' - as I really want to stress that making this change and parenting in a more child-centred and gentle way is something that all of us, both as individuals, and as a society, are still learning about. And as my eldest daughter, then three, so brilliantly put it: "Learning is Falling". </div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Here are ten techniques and tips that I find helpful in my own personal move towards parenting without punishment. Please do add your own in the comments section below. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>1. Keep the Physical Tank Topped Up</b></div>
<div>
Children's behaviour almost always takes a nose dive with tiredness or their blood sugar. It's of course not fair to then punish them for their actions which are caused simply by needing to eat or sleep. Avoid feeding or sleeping routines if these come at the expense of your child's behaviour and your subsequent sanity. Offer regular healthy snacks and let your child off the hook if they lose their grip at the end of a busy day.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>2. Keep the Emotional Tank Topped Up</b></div>
<div>
Make sure you are giving your child bags of love and attention <i>before</i> they have to ask for it. Children don't always ask for you to notice them directly - sometimes they just draw on the coffee table or throw a spoon at their sister. Our lives are busy, but try this: set aside two or three minutes <i>before</i> you begin packing the car / cleaning the house / leaving for work or whatever it is you have to do. Take just those few minutes, and before you start anything else - hug, kiss, cuddle, dance, laugh, talk, listen, notice. Tell your child how utterly brilliant you think they are, and then, and <i>only then</i>, get on with the boring grown-up stuff.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>3. Shift Your Thinking</b></div>
<div>
We all need to change not just our expectations of children, but the whole way we view them. The punitive model of parenting that most of us grew up with assumes the worst of children, and pits offspring against parent in a never ending battle that can last an entire childhood. Once we start down this road of:</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>despairing of our children, rolling our eyes, complaining about them</li>
<li>telling them off for not behaving like fully formed adults</li>
<li>getting cross, frustrated, and shouting at them</li>
</ul>
<div>
we can get trapped in a battle situation that is not enjoyable for either party and, if left unchecked, can spiral quickly downwards to become a miserable habit. We need to soften, to try to see things from their perspective, and assume the absolute best of them at all times. Hopefully then we will begin to feel as a family that we are all on the same side, supporting each other.</div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>4. Model Kindness and Empathy</b></div>
<div>
Children learn quickly about how to behave from what they observe, not from what we tell them. If we always try to be kind, forgiving and gentle with them, they cannot fail to become kind, forgiving and gentle with themselves and others as they grow. Likewise, if our child behaves unkindly to another person, this is a chance to show them a better way - by focusing our energy on saying sorry and showing concern to the upset person, in full view of our child. Some parents prefer never to tell their child to apologise - my personal view is that this is age dependent, and that once a child reaches around two, it is ok to gently explain how and why we say sorry, although fairly pointless to enforce it. Again, if we assume the best of our children, we would conclude that they do regret their actions, but are too overwhelmed / upset / developmentally unready to express this in a formal way.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>5. Hold Realistic Expectations for your Child's Age</b></div>
<div>
This can be difficult, as we are not all developmental psychologists, and even they don't completely understand the developing brain or have all the answers. Suffice to say that many of the behaviours that children, particularly younger children and toddlers, get punished for, are actually just normal phases of their development - in other words, things that they simply don't understand or cannot help. For example, my two year old drew with a biro across our vinyl tablecloth, and it won't come off. I don't punish her though, because I know she doesn't understand how much tablecloths cost, what money is, what sentimental value is, what the past is, or what the future is. She just wanted to make her mark. </div>
<div>
There are lots of online resources on child development, for example, <a href="http://www.child-encyclopedia.com/en-ca/home.html">The Encyclopedia on Early Childhood Development</a>, and <a href="http://www.zerotothree.org/child-development/">Zero to Three.</a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>6. Reframe Negative Behaviours as Positives</b></div>
<div>
If we truly try to see the best in our children, then we might even find ourselves admiring some of the behaviours that in another light, we might be tempted to punish. Perhaps they are not 'bad' or 'naughty' after all, but just strong-willed, determined, feisty, passionate, creative, exciting, or humorous? Picture them in twenty years time, once the natural refinement of adulthood has smoothed the rough edges off their current rather crude approach. With a bit of work, these could be just the qualities to take them to the top of their field! Reframing their behaviours in this way allows us to soften towards them, and even feel proud of their stubborn or wilful ways.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>7. Set Clear Boundaries with a Clear Head</b></div>
<div>
Parenting without punishment is NOT parenting without guidance. Children need strong boundaries to enable them to feel safe and loved. Set boundaries for your children and discuss them at times when everything is going well, rather than when it's all hitting the fan. Allow your children to have some input into limit setting and consider having some 'rules' that apply to the grown ups too. For example, 'in our family, we do not hit, we respect each other, we are kind etc'. There is no reason why this should all just apply to the children! If a child crosses one of your decided boundaries, don't 'do nothing' - as a Responsive Parent, you need to respond, without resorting to punishment. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>8. 'Time In'</b></div>
<div>
Many parents use 'Time Out' - getting their child to sit alone in an allocated place for an allocated time - as a standard punishment. But often, this is simply isolating a child right at the moment they need you the most, when their emotions are raging out of control, and they need your help as the adult to help them calm down, regulate, and make sense of what just happened. A much better response is 'Time In' - bringing a child in close, holding them on your lap, listening to them, talking calmly with them about what is happening. As soon as you see difficult behaviour approaching or escalating, give your child some 'time in'. The sooner the better. An early time in will often also 'fill the emotional tank' (see 2) and prevent challenging behaviour from happening. (More on time outs / time ins here from psychologists <a href="http://www.ahaparenting.com/parenting-tools/positive-discipline/timeouts">Laura Markham</a>, and <a href="http://www.herald.ie/news/naughty-step-has-ruined-parenting-says-rtes-david-3226440.html">David Coleman</a>.)</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>9. Try for 'Oxytocin Led' Responses!</b></div>
<div>
Oxytocin, dubbed the '<a href="http://www.oneworldbirth.net/videos/michel-odent-on-the-love-cocktails-in-birth/">Love Hormone</a>' by birth pioneer Michel Odent, is the hormone that helps us to give birth, breastfeed, orgasm, fall in love, bond with others and empathise, to name just a few. Oxytocin is secreted by the pituitary gland when we look at or hold in our arms the person we love, and produces a feeling of warmth, relaxation, gentleness and well-being, a feeling of being in love! But often, in difficult parenting situations, when we are on the cusp of resorting to punishment, we are flooded, not with the hormone of love, but with the hormone of fight or flight - adrenaline. We are upset, angry, our buttons are being pushed, our pulse is rising. Adrenaline is a hormone of action - it makes us want to 'do something' - hence something like the naughty step might seem a good idea. Stop. Breathe out. Take some time out for yourself if needs be. Better still, have some 'time in' with your child, hold them, kiss them, remember how much you admire and adore them, and raise your oxytocin levels! Then respond from that place of love.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>10. Always Approve of Feelings, Don't Always Approve of Behaviours</b></div>
<div>
It's really important to help our children to understand their emotional life and to give them words to describe what is happening inside of them. It's also important to give our approval of <i>all</i> their emotions, even anger or other so called 'negative' emotions. This can be difficult as so many of us were told as children not to have certain feelings or were disapproved of when we displayed them. But approving of and accepting our children unconditionally can be a powerful gift and can <a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2012/01/everybody-hurts-ten-ways-to-help.html">help them to grow into adults who are able to cope emotionally</a>. The misunderstanding about peaceful or non-punitive parenting is that if we don't punish, we therefore have to approve of our child's every action, and this is simply not the case. For example, if, at a parent and child group, our child hits another child, we might say, quite simply: "It seems like you are feeling very angry. It's ok to be angry, but it is absolutely not ok to hit someone." Use 'time in' or take your child out of the situation and help them to understand their feelings. Reiterate often your approval of the feelings, but not the behaviour. (It's ok to <i>feel</i> x, but not ok to <i>do</i> y). A great book about this is <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Raising-Emotionally-Intelligent-Child-Gottman/dp/0684838656">Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child by John Gottman</a>.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<i><br /></i>
<i>Other posts on Responsive Parenting:</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i><a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2012/06/babies-dont-need-attachment-parenting.html">Babies Don't Need Attachment Parenting, But They Do Need Responsive Parenting</a></i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i><a href="http://www.the-mule.com/2012/08/responsive-parenting-why-tantrums-matter.html">Responsive Parenting: Why Tantrums Matter</a></i><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Please do leave your own suggestions and thoughts in the comments below.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
The Mulehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06786143388807016249noreply@blogger.com8