Wondering About Doulas or Alternative Birthing...

I had a water birth at HCMC with the midwives and a private doula and it was amazing. I felt very in control. We did what we wanted for the entire birth, I did not tear and my doula did help greatly. I have a friend that did water birth at St, Joe's in St Paul and had a great experience there as well. I highly recommend the water birth, i loved it and was drug free!
What about having a home birth your second time around? I have several friends that have done home births and wouldn't do it any other way. Good luck!

I had a doula and loved it. I wouldn't necessarily say that it gave me more control over what was going on (my body made a lot of the decisions for all of us, and the labor ended in a c-section), but it gave me a consistent person, someone to reassure me, and a person who could ask questions that never occurred to me. One example of this is that I ended my pregnancy on bedrest due to high blood pressure and she asked me to have the midwives check my blood pressure in assorted different common laboring positions, so that we all knew my options for labor going into the delivery. It's a good idea to check with your OB or midwife or whatever to make sure that they can work with doulas. My midwives were totally fine with it; not sure how an OB would be. My doula was Channing McKinnley, who works out of Saint Paul, and just recently, Blooma in Edina. There are also websites that list local doulas. Channing also did my chiropractic stuff during pregnancy, and was a godsend. I never believed in chiropractory before the pregancy, but now I am a complete believer. I don't know what she did, but it worked wonders.

I should add that I used the Park Nicolette midwives at Meadowbrook and loved them. Kaisa Johnson was my favorite, but they gave many. Because of the fact that you don't know how we be on-call during your labor, they actually hold midwife open houses at the hospital (Methodist) with all their midwives so that you can meet everyone and talk to them. It's a big operation, but I really felt well cared for during everything. What made me really love them was that, by the time we realized it couldn't be anything but a c-section, Kaisa stayed with me the whole time so that I wasn't alone while my husband went with the baby.

B.,

I had my first son in Washington D.C. I was hoping for a natural birth. What I ended up with was 36 hours of pitocin induced labor and lots of pressure for many interventions including a C-Section. I ended up with a vaginal delivery, but it took a lot of pushing back against the staff and hours of labor. I had the epidural, and all the montioring that goes along with it. In the end, it was fine, but not what I had wanted.

Last year I had a second son at St. Joe's downtown St. Paul. I used the midwives at Generations Womens Clinic. I had a waterbirth. It was amazing. I can not recommend the staff at St. Joe's or the midwives at Generations more. They only checked me 2 or 3 times the whole time I was in labor. I decided when to push, for how long to push, and what I wanted to do during labor (stand, sit, be in the tub, etc.) And, there were only 4 of us in the room - my midwife, the nurse, my husband and myself (when my first son was born I think I counted 10 people including the medical students).

I thought about a doula, but was so comfortable with the midwives (there were only 2 at the time - now they have 3) that I decided I trusted them to help me. I know someone who used the same practice and had a doula and it helped her (her first baby). The midwife came as soon as I got to the hospital (I was already in pretty hard labor at that point) and she never left my side until my baby was born.

Anyway, here is the contact info for Generations. Again, it was a COMPLETELY different experience than my first delivery, and I highly recommend both the Generations Womens Clinic and St. Josephs downtown St. Paul. The midwives also deliver at Woodwinds. Their practice is also in a great little office, quiet, inhouse ultrasound, never a wait, it is really about perfect. :)

Generations Womens Clinic
###-###-####
1030 County Road E W Ste 200
Shoreview MN 55126

Good luck!
J.

SAHM to 9 month old Joey and 2 1/2 year old Charlie

I would second the referral of Park Nicollet midwives at Meadowbrook. They were great (I Also had Kaisa Johnson and just loved her). They allow you to be really involved, and treat you as a person having a baby not a patient. I have delivered once with an OB and twice with a nurse midwife and would highly recommend a NM. I liked the OB, but I wanted to feel more in control like you were sharing. Good luck!

I want to give you a couple titles of books to look into. The first one, The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth by Henci Goer, was recommended to me by my best friend's mom who is a midwife. (As of LAST year she had already delivered over 900 babies!) I'm half through the book and what I like about it is that it gives you all of your options and explains the pros and cons in a pretty non-biased manner since the author is neither a midwife nor an obstetrician.

The second title is A Spiritual Guide to Midwifery by Ina May Gaskin. Ina May is basically the "mother" of midwifery. She has a Master's Degree and gives talks at midwifery conferences all across the nation. This book is fun to read because she has included the mothers' accounts of their own births so you can see it from the mother's perspective. It's a little "far out" as far as language because most of this took place in the 60's and midwives were quite the alternative, but it's a fun read.

Personally, I'm going to have my babies at home with a midwife and I would never get an epidural or any other drugs. I would never induce labor, I would not call myself "overdue" if I went past 40 weeks (as 42 weeks is actually the norm) and I will not have my baby laying flat on my back or some similar position. These are just a few things I've learned from reading and from attending my best friend's 2nd birth (her mom as midwife and it was a water birth). It was a relaxing and very non-traumatic experience. I just wish more women out there had a chance to experience this and be exposed to this without getting scared into all these invasive procedures by the media, TV shows, and everyone else who thinks in a mainstream way.

I applaud your efforts to seek out a better alternative! And I hope you take the time to read a little more and educate yourself so you can make the best decision for YOU. :)

With our daughter it was the county hospital, or an Amish midwife... there were just not choices for us. I have heard very good things about the water births, though I also loved my epidural so I personally would have trouble giving that up. Just remember that although you have a lot of control when everything goes smoothly, make sure you pick a place that has a back-up staff that could step in if it doesn't. Though I think most if not all places do. Have fun picking.. and conceving too!

B.,

Doulas are also great because there is the contact before and after then birth that are not necessarily part of the birth experience that the midwife does. You may still want to look into that. Also, in the metro and surrounding area there are many women who decide to do homebirths with midwives and doulas. There is also a birth center in Menomonie, WI, http://www.MorningStarBirth.com, which is where I am going. I looked into Generations and other options in the metro area and all indicated that induction was still part of their possible interaction during the birth process. Way less with Generations, but still a possibility at least in the telephone conversation. That didn't work well for me since my 1st daughter was delivered by Cesarean and induction increases the likelihood of a repeat Cesarean. (This doesn't sound like your issue however).

Depends on how natural you want to go, but either way a doula's support is wonderful.

C.

B.,

Congrats on deciding to expand your family! Evryone has given you GREAT advice and options. I also highly recommend using a doula. My mother is a doula at HCMC and also a private home birth midwife. Some hospitals provide an on call Doula, but you can also hire one privatly which is what i'd recommend. My mother was present at both of my births....and I couldnt have done it without her! My first was at home (not planned...crazy story) my mother delivered. And my second was in the hospital with a midwife. I personally was more comfortable at the hospital using an epidural. If there is a next time for us I would love to try a water birth.....with my mother there of coarse! My mothers name is Nickie Kerrigan and you can contact her at ____@____.com free to contact with her with questions or for referrals.
Good luck to you and your family!

I've had all 3 of my kids at Woodwinds, the most recent one was born in July. I've gone with the midwives for all three and have been very happy. My first labor I did naturally, the 2nd I got an epidural (I felt so out of control and filled with panic), so for my 3rd I wanted to feel more calm and in control. I tried a class and method called "Hypnobirthing" that Woodwinds offered, and it worked really well. During my 3rd labor I was able to stay calm, and do it drug-free...I didn't even have to have an IV...it was so nice!!! I've heard Doula's are great, and I've heard Jessie Weber is fantastic.

Good Luck!!

Like everyone else - I highly recommend a midwife and doula! I had both of my daughters at Woodwinds with midwives and my mom who is a doula and had great experiences. The 1st birth was natural and I had an epidural with the 2nd. My midwives encouraged the tub and let me push only when I felt like it (there was no "counting"). My midwife stayed with me almost the entire time I was in labor, even letting me squeeze her with a big bear hug while pushing, she encouraged all different positions as did my doula. My 1st daughter is 4 and my 2nd is 2 months and the 2nd time around at Woodwinds was a little different - they put my baby in the tub with me for her 1st bath, sent us home with picnic lunches so we didn't have to cook right away...
Check out www.childbirthcollective.org
Good luck :)

I was coming here to suggest that you use midwives this time around and I see that someone has already beat me to it. I have a friend who also went to the Generations clinic and loved it. She has had three drug-free births and has had wonderful experiences. I've had two children with midwives and have also had good births. Fortunately, my deliveries have been very quick so I didn't need too much in the way of intervention. However, I am confident that a midwife is the way to go if you are looking for a little more autonomy in terms of your childbirth and care. Good luck!

Hi B.. I would definitely encourage you to consider using a doula for your second birth. We hired one when our son was born, and it made all the difference in terms of feeling supported throughout the entire birth. Check out the website of the Childbirth Collective (http://www.childbirthcollective.org/), which holds weekly informational meetings where you can get good information and meet some Twin Cities doulas. Good luck! A.

We had a doula and LOVED it! Though Woodwinds will supply free ones, I'd highly recommend getting your own so that you can meet her ahead of time and discuss your birthplan. We had one, and she really helped by giving suggestions to us about and helping to administer massage, essential oils, and different positioning. She also helped us to really advocte for what we wanted. When the nurse came in and told us what was happening, our doula asked why one drug and not antother. After hospital personnel left, she would talk with us about what we wanted versus what was happening and how we wanted to handle that. It really helped to have someone explain stuff and help us to advocate for ourselves. It is such a vulnerable time that it's hard to be strong and stand up for what you really want for your birth.
If you need any help choosing a doula, I can ask mine if she knows any others or how to find one; just let me know.
:) M.