Books I recommend you read.

The Thinking Woman's Guide To A Better Birth

by Henci Goer

Active Birth

by Janet Balaskas

Nursing Mother, Working Mother

by Gale Pryor

The Birth Partner

 by Penny Simkin

~Info about Doula's & their education  

What kind of training does a Certified Doula have?

 Doulas Network

~Breastfeeding:

 Womens Health

101 Reasons to Breastfeed!

Lactation resources 

Cord Clamping ...when is the right time? click here

Kangaroo care

    Kangaroo care seeks to provide restored closeness of the newborn with mother and/or father by placing the infant in direct skin-to-skin contact with one of them. This ensures physiological and psychological warmth and bonding. The kangaroo position provides ready access to nourishment. The mother's body responds to the needs of the infant directly, helping regulate temperature more smoothly than an incubator, her milk adjusts to the nutritional and immunological needs of her fragile infant, and the baby sleeps more soundly.

  While this model of infant care is substantially different from the typical Western NICU procedures described here, the two are not mutually exclusive, and it is estimated that more than 200 neonatal intensive care units practice kangaroo care today. One recent survey found that 82 percent of neonatal intensive care units use kangaroo care in the United States today.

What are normal Newborn reflexes?

See a video of newborn reflexes and read about their importance.

~Nutrition during pregnancy

My Pyramid-USDA

 Expectant Mothers Guide to Healthy Eating

Inductions & Are they safe?

 Bishop Score

~Epidural info:

American Pregnancy Assocation

Medical Risks of an Epidural

Penny Simkins Pro's & Con's

Pro's & Con's

 Should you circumsize?

Is a Mohel better for your son's circumcision? click here

 Mohel- Samuel A. Kunin, M.D. 818-881-4548

~Episotomy data:

American Pregnancy Association,

Childbirth.org

~Perineal Massage & Benefits:

Childbirth.org

Ever wondered what your cervix looks like during your monthly cycle?

My Beautiful Cervix

WHO

~Are home births safe?

Citizens Of Midwifery

PLANNED HOMEBIRTH

Lamaze International-Celebrate Birth

Breech Baby?

How about Baby Spinning!

Baby Spinning

Pregnancy Compilations

 HELLP syndrome

General Resources in LA

 http://www.at-la.com

Neat Fact of the week!!!

Can my baby see when its born?

At birth the baby sees 7-10 inches away from their face.

This is the perfect distance for sight when breastfeeding.

Usually the baby at this age can only distinguish between black and white.

By two months the baby visually prefers human faces to object's.

At 3-4 months color in an important part of vision, stimulating them with vibrant colors is perfect for this age!

You can introduce colorful mobiles and patterned sheets. 



DID YOU KNOW.....

• Fentanyl (which is one of many drugs that are used as the epidural) is "estimated to be 80 times as potent as morphine as an analgesic" (pain reducer)?

• Stadol (which is one of many drugs that are used as the epidural) "is transported across the blood brain and placental barriers and into human milk?"

• Nubain's (which is one of many drugs that are used as the epidural) "placental transfer is high, rapid, and variable" and "permanent neurological damage attributed to fetal bradycardia has occurred." Other problems "during labor include fetal bradycardia (baby's heart rate is slow), respiratory depression at birth(baby's breathing is slow), apnea (baby stops breathing), cyanosis (baby turns blue) and hypotonia (baby is limp)."

• ALL of the drugs above have this warning attached: "infant respiratory distress/apnea following the administration during labor" or "resuscitative and intubation equipment and oxygen should be readily available."