LGBTQ Childbirth Classes and Provider Trainings

For twenty years, MAIA Midwifery & Fertility Services has been at the forefront of serving the LGBTQ community and cultivating expertise in the unique needs of the families they serve.  Books addressing childbirth for alternative families have occasionally appeared over the years, and as I mentioned in my own book, my favorite is the outstanding publication by MAIA co-founder Stephanie Brill, The New Essential Guide to Lesbian Conception, Pregnancy & Birth.  Now at the helm of MAIA is Kristin Kali, nationally-known midwife, trainer and instructor of classes for LGBTQ families and their providers.  Her one-of-a-kind childbirth classes are offered in a weekend format for the convenience of parents local to San Francisco and Los Angeles as well as families who wish to attend from out-of-state.  See below for a listing of MAIA's upcoming events.

What to Read Instead of "What to Expect"

What do pregnant women really need to do to prepare for childbirth?  Award-winning investigative journalist Jennifer Margulis, Ph.D. reflects on this question in her essay below.  Margulis is the author of The Business of Baby:  What Doctors Don’t Tell You, What Corporations Try to Sell You, and How to Put Your Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Baby BEFORE Their Bottom Line.  Her book is a well-referenced expose that takes on a list of what's wrong with our perinatal healthcare system: from the risky effects of ultrasound on developing fetal tissues, to the harmful chemicals added to prenatal vitamins (and their potential contribution to morning sickness), and the profit motive underlying everything from obstetrical procedures to vaccines to long-term diapering.  Here are Jennifer Margulis's recommendations for what to read, watch, eat, do, and yes--expect--as an empowered pregnant consumer in a difficult maternity care climate.

Aunt Joanie and I were watching PBS’s Call the Midwife the other day.

“That’s not right,” I grumped at the television screen as the mom-to-be was groaning in pain during the first contraction. “She wouldn’t be in that much pain so soon.”

“Shut up,” Auntie Joanie chided. “It’s fiction, Jenny, fiction!”

Uncle Shelly, who’s 80 and a Nobel-prize winning physicist, looks forward to the episodes as much as Aunt Joanie. I applaud Call the Midwife for turning the average Joe or Joanie into a veritable birth junkie and for normalizing birth, but most accounts of childbirth on television and in the movies give the impression that it is a terrifying emergency that happens at lightning speed and is excruciatingly painful.   

Here’s the truth:

Dance to prevent babies from "getting stuck" during birth

A topic I would love to see discussed widely is the role of fitness in pregnancy--and its documented effects on childbirth.  These include shorter labors and a potential reduction in the need for inductions, pain medication, and cesareans, according to researchers such as Dr. James Clapp III, and reported in publications such as Fit Pregnancy magazine.  Whether women start their pregnancies already active, sedentary, slim, or plus-size, incorporating exercise has been proven beneficial.  Looking back at my own pregnancy, I believe regular salsa dancing helped my baby descend into a low, well-aligned position in my pelvis at 30 weeks, where she remained until delivery.  Recently, I have been excited to discover the work of doula and former professional dancer Stephanie Larson, founder of Dancing for Birth™, who describes the potential for dance movements involving the pelvis to improve birth outcomes (see article below).  While fitness does not always guarantee a problem-free delivery, I believe pregnant women would benefit from guidance from their healthcare providers to make these types of exercises a priority.     

FREE Webinars: The "Natural Cesarean" and Optimal Parenting Conference

Several exciting, free online seminars are coming up in April 2013!  You can participate from any location in the world where you have access to the Internet.

On April 11 at 8 PM Eastern time, Dr. William Camann will speak about the "Natural Cesarean" for Isis Parenting (where I also teach classes on newborn care and breastfeeding).  See the previous post on my blog which describes the natural cesarean here.  Dr. Camann is an advocate for changing practices nationally, including such features as slower delivery of the baby's body during a cesarean, breastfeeding while in the Operating Room, and permitting a doula in the OR.

To register for Dr. Camann's talk, go to https://cc.readytalk.com/r/2ngcfj5zhglk.  Also visit the Isis Parenting Web page to participate in free, weekly chats with expert child sleep consultants and lactation consultants, and to access recordings of past Webinars on topics including cloth diapering, potty training, finding childcare, childproofing, and many more.

On April 8-12, en*theos presents the Optimal Parenting 101 Virtual Conference.  To register, go to
http://www.entheos.com/Optimal-Parenting-101/entheos?c=thedoulaguide.  Here is the conference schedule:

Monday, April 8
12 PT/ 3 ET - Alexandra Jaye Johnson - Optimal Parenting 101
1 PT/ 4 ET - Stephen Cowan, M.D. -  Trust Yourself
2 PT/ 5 ET - Giuditta Tornetta - Pain-Free Childbirth
3 PT/ 6 ET - Latham Thomas - Mama Glow
4 PT/ 7ET - Dan Siegel, M.D. - Parenting from the Inside Out & the Whole-Brain Child
5 PT/ 8 ET - John Mc Dougall, M.D. - Healthy Mom, Kids & Environment
6 PT/ 9 ET - Gurmukh - Bountiful, Beautiful, Blissful: Experience the Natural Power of Pregnancy & Birth
7 PT/ 10 ET - Dr. Patricia Fitzgerald - Staying Natural in a Toxic World

Teaching Parents About Doulas in Birthing Classes

by Ananda Lowe

Over the years, I have attended numerous childbirth classes – as a doula accompanying my clients, as a childbirth educator-in-training, and as a pregnant woman myself.  These included natural childbirth, prepared childbirth, twins birth, hypnosis-based birth, hospital-affiliated, privately-run, paid and free classes.

What struck me is this:  although the evidence is clear that doulas may be the most important intervention to utilize for parents desiring natural childbirth, even doulas themselves tend to undervalue their role when teaching childbirth classes — which is unfortunate, I believe.

The last time I observed a natural childbirth class, I timed the portion of the class on the topic of epidurals, and it totaled over 30 minutes, while there was no formal time dedicated to the topic of doulas.   (To be fair, some of my educator colleagues have reported to me that they do provide instruction on the topic of doulas in their classes.)

Imagine the impact childbirth instructors could have if every family leaving their classes had a clear understanding of the medical benefits of doula care, how to find a doula, and how to afford the expense.  Here is an array of suggestions childbirth educators can use to make sure the topic of doulas is central to their classes: