Covid-19 + Birth {Challenges & Benefits}
If there is one thing I have learned as a life lesson that is also 100% applicable to all things birth, it's that every single challenge can be an incredible learning lesson and this holds true for what happened while women were pregnant and birthing during the Covid-19 pandemic. Challenges like pulling birth partners out of the birth rooms (unacceptable btw), moving healthy, low-risk moms to out of hospital births (the challenge is in the unexpected), mental health, women being pushed to their limits. They were all so daunting and so difficult.
But...
Tune into this episode because the other side of those challenges are so beautiful. Birth partners figured out what they need to know and how to support these moms - because what if they could get in but the doula wasn't allowed?, women realized how strong they were and that their bodies were made for birth when they moved their care out of hospital, women found their voices and started asking questions about policy and legalities - they stood up for themselves and their babies, and hopefully we all learned a little compassion no matter where you were at - pregnant or provider.
Show Notes:
1:17 - Our reviewer of the week shares the joy of being born at home and also how useful the "Where Can I Have My Baby?" podcast episode was in talking with her husband about her desire to give birth at home!
9:16 - The number one thing we've learned from Covid-19 was about preparation. I'm not only talking about toilet paper! 😏
12:06 - Challenge #1: They pulled everyone out of the birth rooms - husbands, doulas, literally any and all outside support for mom + what we learned! 😍 It's so important that our birth partners prepare with us. As a doula it's so important that I train and understand how to help a mom - it's the same for dad!
17:00 - What are some other things birth partners should know? Stages of labor - how can dad tell where mom is at without knowing dilation? How to use tools like a birth ball, massage tools, massage in general, different positions for birth, how to push or breathe baby down, what happens postpartum and what mom wants, and more.
19:15 - Challenge: Hospitals were moving healthy and low-risk moms to other birthing locations outside of the hospital....but what if mom was wanting an epidural or to have a NICU and not transfer just in case? It's a challenge because it was unexpected.
19:52: What we learned? It is SAFE for healthy, low-risk moms to birth outside of the hospital. Birth is not an emergency. Covid-19 helped to prove this! We are also stronger than we think and I know many women got a chance to realize this by choosing a different birth space than they would have otherwise.
26:23 - Challenge: Mental health. The stress that women were experiencing while pregnant during this pandemic was also causing women to experience physical manifestations. Something that I noticed from women within the birth course was the great amount of prodromal labor that was being experienced (this in anectdotal but it was very interesting!).
30:31 - Challenge: Women were pushed to their limits. The benefit?? Women found their voice! It's so important to surround yourself with a supportive birth team AND it was amazing watching women stand up for themselves and their babies.
32:24 - Challenge: Medical providers and nurses asked to work through the pandemic. What we learned? How to have compassion for each other.
34:07 - How can you make sure you're prepared no matter what? Listen to the podcast,
join me in the My Essential Birth Course!!, listen to positive birth stories (on the podcast, when people tell you them), watching births on YouTube, reading good books (see below),
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ALL the best,
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