LilSugar

Baby Showers Jan 18, 2012

The Rise of the Fetus Party: Why Midwives Are Concerned

What the fetus! For many expectant parents, routine ultrasounds are one of the things looked forward to most throughout the pregnancy process, offering an incredible glimpse at the eagerly anticipated bundle of joy within.

by Natasha Dantzig

What the fetus! For many expectant parents, routine ultrasounds are one of the things looked forward to most throughout the pregnancy process, offering an incredible glimpse at the eagerly anticipated bundle of joy within. The last couple of years have seen an increase in both the use and popularity of 4D ultrasounds, which provide an almost eerily realistic image of the baby-to-be.

Though parents are understandably delighted by these scans — OMG he has your nose! — creating one more photographic keepsake is not their intended use, which is to monitor the baby's development and ensure that everything looks good medically. Yet the use of these scans has taken a quick departure from their medical origins, with "fetus parties" — where parents-to-be invite friends and family to gaze upon the 3D and 4D scans — becoming more and more commonplace.

While everyone can appreciate why expectant parents are so excited to show off and share these lifelike images of their unborn baby with family and friends, not everyone in the medical community thinks it's such a great idea. In a column for the BBC, Professor Cathy Warwick, chief executive at The Royal College of Midwives, discusses her concern about the growing popularity of "fetus parties": "I think the worrying trend towards the commercialization of pregnancy and trend in 'fetus parties' can add to the burden, and can increase the expectation for mothers, which midwives then have to deal with.”

Did you have a fetus party?

Pregnancy Dec 21, 2010

5 Flash Mobs For Family-Friendly Causes

You might have to be Diane Sawyer to merit an international (and slightly off-tune) flash mob, but the public displays have become common in the last few years.

by Heather Maddan

You might have to be Diane Sawyer to merit an international (and slightly off-tune) flash mob, but the public displays have become common in the last few years. Holiday flash mobs have shut down malls and lifted tired travelers' spirits as of late. Activists also organize to sing, dance, and draw attention to causes near and dear to them. Check out these five purposeful gatherings that focused on maternal and children's issues.

View 5 Photos

Cindy Crawford on Child Birth on My Best Birth

Cindy Crawford Aug 03, 2009

Cindy Crawford Delivered Her Baby, Who Delivered Yours?

When someone asks me who delivered my baby, I don't hesitate to tell them Dr. Joe.

by babysugar

When someone asks me who delivered my baby, I don't hesitate to tell them Dr. Joe. They know that I pushed the child out, but they want to know which professional helped me labor through the process. In Cindy Crawford's fourth and final episode of her My Best Birth webisodes, the model mommy explained how having a midwife at home truly gave her the ability to claim that she, and she alone, delivered her baby. While I get what she's saying, I wonder if some might find her proclamation a bit insulting. Are those who received medical help or had their babies in hospitals any less owning of the action of "delivering"? And what about mothers who required emergency C-sections? Watch the quick clip and tell me what you think of Cindy's perspective.

interviews May 11, 2009

Interview With Ricki Lake: Your Best Birth

Known for her spunky attitude as both Tracy Turnblad in the original Hairspray and her 11-year stint as a daytime talk show host, Ricki Lake has reinvented herself as a women's birthing advocate.

by POPSUGAR Moms

Known for her spunky attitude as both Tracy Turnblad in the original Hairspray and her 11-year stint as a daytime talk show host, Ricki Lake has reinvented herself as a women's birthing advocate. Following the release of her documentary about the shifting of the American mindset from home and drug-free deliveries to medicated hospitalized births where Lake chronicled her own son's home birth, she and director, Abby Epstein, penned Your Best Birth ($18). The text is a guide to natural delivery and birthing options.

We had the opportunity to chat with Lake, mama of two — Milo, 12, and Owen, 7 — about labor and delivery, c-sections and motherhood.

lilsugar: Is it hard for women to convince their families that a natural birth, or midwife, is the way to go?
Ricki Lake: I think it is really hard. There's still the stigma attached and very much less than one percent of people have home births. It's not something that’s talked about. If you go to the Netherlands, this is the norm. I think in Holland 30 percent of births are planned home births and they have a better infant mortality rate and maternal death rate. Midwives handle most of the births. So it's just not in our culture to really be open to it. I’m not on a mission to get everybody to deliver at home. I’m on a mission to talk about informed choice in this area.

lilsugar: Did you believe this would be your calling?
Ricki Lake: No! I was looking for something to speak on and be passionate about and this is the natural fit because of my experiences and because there was a lack of a voice. I thought — this is where I can serve, I can do something that I feel is positive. I’m not telling women what to do, I’m just trying to educate them and understand that having the ideal be a birth where you’re an active participant, whatever that is – if it's “don’t take my baby away from me,” or “don’t give me that epidural yet,” or “give me that epidural now.” I mean whatever it is, to not be a number in this conveyor belt.

To read what Ricki had to say about VBACs and mothering her sons, read more

Poll Oct 29, 2008

Who Helped You Through Labor?

While it is quite common for women to have a doctor help them through the birthing process, many mothers-to-be opt for another approach by hiring a doula, midwife, nurse practitioner or personal coach.

by babysugar

While it is quite common for women to have a doctor help them through the birthing process, many mothers-to-be opt for another approach by hiring a doula, midwife, nurse practitioner or personal coach. Some expectant ladies have a whole team for the delivery.

Aside from your partner, who helped you through your labor?

Source

Pregnancy May 06, 2008

Business of Being Born, Again

Yesterday was not only the festive tequila filled Cinco de Mayo.

by babysugar

Yesterday was not only the festive tequila filled Cinco de Mayo. It was also International Midwives Day. Coincidentally, Ricki Lake's movie, The Business of Being Born was released on DVD.

For those of you who are considering a natural or home birth, check out the $28 flick for an up close glimpse at the process. The former talk show host shares her personal home birth in the film inspiring women to reevaluate their birthing plans.