Alternative Birthing Methods

photo credit: eyeliam

A birthing method is considered “alternative” if it deviates from what is considered the norm in most modern cultures: a laboring woman enters the hospital, where the staff takes her in as a patient, monitors the birth, and the doctor performs the delivery. Alternative birthing methods include home births, water births, hypnobirths, and others. Here are some of the alternative ways of bringing baby to birth that parents are choosing.

Bradley Birth

This method of birthing is also called husband (or partner)-coached childbirth. This is because the Bradley method, which was developed by an OB named Robert Bradley in the late 40s, involves the whole family in the preparation and process. Bradley students are taught the importance of nutrition, exercise, breastfeeding, and other pre-natal and post-natal health issues, and the husband  is included in the education.

Bradley students learn about how to communicate with their health care providers and hospital staff, and the post-partum period is also discussed. The Bradley method emphasizes a medication- and intervention-free delivery.

The Bradley method can be practiced at home or in the hospital. The husband/partner assists in the birth.

HypnoBirth

Self-hypnosis methods have been developed to help some women overcome the pain of labor. In fact, moms who choose this method may not even seem to be in labor at all! Hypnosis is the power of suggestion, and practitioners learn to tap into the woman’s subconscious where they can make use of this power. Like the Bradley method, hypnobirth can be practiced just about anywhere a woman is in labor. To prepare, expectant mothers work with a professional instructor to learn the technique.

Lamaze

Often depicted on television or in movies as “natural” childbirth, Lamaze emphasizes breathing and relaxation techniques. By controlling her breathing, learning to relax and changing her body’s position at certain points during the labor, the mom-to-be is said to gain control of the labor and experience less pain. Lamaze is a form of natural childbirth which emphasizes minimal interventions and medications, as well as the mother’s comfort and ability to move around.

Water Birth

Laboring and giving birth in a tub of warm water is said to help relieve the pain of labor and help women relax. A true water birth means the baby is born in the water, but some women will use water off and on during their labor and delivery. Water births can take place at home or in a birth center.

Home Birth

Giving birth at home is something more and more women are choosing. If you are having an uneventful, uncomplicated, low-risk pregnancy, giving birth at home with a midwife can be a very positive experience for women who prefer familiar surroundings.

What is the advantage of these alternative birthing choices? For one, ease of breastfeeding initiation. Babies born to mothers who are active and involved in their births nurse quicker and more easily, typically. When mom has been exposed to painkilling drugs in labor, baby is often affected in a way that makes the early breastfeeding experience difficult. Preparing for breastfeeding begins with birth!

Breastfeeding, in almost all cases, should continue when mom is sick.

Most illness in mom is caused by a virus, which are typically most contagious before mom even knows she’s sick. That means baby has already been exposed. Most of the time, sudden weaning causes more problems than it solves – both for baby’s physical and emotional well being.

When you’re sick, all you want to do is lie in bed and watch movies or read a book. But, you’ve got a baby to feed. Unlike formula-feeding moms, you can resume lying in bed while nourishing your child. So think about that whenever you complain about nursing a baby: at least you don’t have to get up.

The best thing you can do when you’re sick with a cold, flu or another common illness is to continue nursing your child.

Breastmilk contains antibodies that are specific to your illness.

If you have the flu for example, your milk will protect your baby against the flu or at least lessen the severity of it. How cool is that?! Often, the nursing baby in the house doesn’t get sick at all, especially if the baby is still exclusively breastfed and not eating solid foods yet.

It is very rare that you’ll have to discontinue breastfeeding because of an illness.

As always, consult with a breastfeeding supportive health care provider about your specific condition. For some serious illnesses, you may be advised to give your child expressed breastmilk for a short time because you are taking medication incompatible with nursing – or you’ll have to nurse on a particular schedule so that the baby is eating when the drug isn’t present in your milk.

But, in the vast majority of instances, you can breastfeed just fine.

Here is a link to an article published by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) on the topic: Can I Breastfeed With Swine Flu (H1N1)?

In a nutshell, the article discourages weaning even in the case of mom being sick with swine flu. It suggests mom pump her milk and have someone else feed baby, so that baby can continue to receive antibodies she has produced.

Review: Traditional Medicinal’s Organic Mother’s Milk

I received a box of Traditional Medicinal’s Organic Mother’s Milk when I first started to breastfeed and found that I truly enjoyed it right from the start. I prefer this over Yogi’s Nursing Mother’s tea as this one tastes lighter and smoother. Mother’s Milk is a caffeine-free, all organic blend of herbs and spices designed to promote lactation in breastfeeding mothers.

Traditional Medicinals Mother’s Milk, 16-Count Boxes

Anise is a spice that I have never enjoyed. The fact that Mother’s Milk seems to use less of it than Yogi’s nursing tea is a plus for me. What I taste when I drink Mother’s Milk is a sort of sweet, yet a little spicy blend of herbs. It tastes best with a touch of honey. It also contains the herbs of fennel, fenugreek seed and coriander, which are a nice combination for a healthy milk supply. The blend of spices smells delicious too.

The way I prefer to drink this tea is cold. I brew a pot of this overnight, chill and drink cold throughout the day. Since there is a tiny hint of spearmint in it, it can be refreshing. This way I am getting in several cups on a daily basis. During the winter months, a warm cup can be soothing for the body.

My milk production has been steady and plentiful throughout the years, perhaps due to drinking this tea. This is also one of my favorite gifts to give a pregnant mother who has planned to breastfeed or still deciding to do so. Having a low milk supply is worrisome for many women and having this tea helps reduce that worry. A box of 16 bags costs around $5.

See also: Yogi Women’s Nursing Support Tea review

This doesn’t have to mean weaning, however.
photo credit: EraPhernalia Vintage (somewhat busy)

If you are a nursing mom, there are some extra steps you can take to ensure you and your baby cope well with this change in schedule.

This means stocking up on milk to nourish your baby while you’re away, keeping up your milk supply and remembering a few comfort techniques for yourself.

Here are a few tips for nursing moms who have to be away from their baby.

1) Store Milk for Baby

Depending on how long you’ll be gone, you’ll want to begin pumping extra milk daily to be stored and used to feed your baby while you’re on your trip. This might take a couple of weeks, depending on how much your baby eats, how often you pump and what your milk supply looks like.

Many moms find that it’s easiest to pump extra milk in the morning when their supply is higher, or after a nap. (Typically a woman has more milk after a period of sleep.)

Store your milk in freezer-safe containers that the babysitter or another family member can pull out and warm for baby when he or she is hungry.

If your baby is not used to bottle feeding, it might be a good idea to briefly introduce the bottle to him or her before leaving. It usually works best if someone else offers the bottle, not you, as baby will often reject a bottle when your breasts are nearby.

You can also leave behind an article of clothing of yours, such as a shirt or nightgown, to remind baby of your smell while feeding.

2) Keep Up Your Milk Supply

While away, it is important to keep up your milk supply if you plan on nursing your baby when you get back. To do this, you’ll need to find a pump that works well for you. It may be a hand pump, electric pump or by hand expressing your milk. You’ll want to pump as often as your baby usually nurses, if possible. The pumping will cause your body to believe it is still nursing and continue to produce milk on a regular basis.

Many women find it helpful to take along a picture of their baby to look at while pumping or a blanket that has their smell. It is a good idea to use the same blanket during a couple of feedings before leaving and take this with you. You might want to wear nursing pads throughout the day to catch any leaking that may occur.

3) Comfort Techniques

Not being able to nurse as frequently can cause painful engorgement for some women. The breasts feel sore, tender and hard in some areas.

Pumping the milk out can help out tremendously, but you may still want to employ some comfort techniques for your own benefit.

Take a warm compress, such as a hand towel moist with warm water and place on your breasts. After a few minutes of direct heat, take some natural oil, such as sweet almond oil and gently massage the lumps in your breasts. This will help the milk flow easier and is a good time to pump some milk out.

After massaging the breasts, a cold pack might help reduce discomfort and pain. A hot or cold shower can replace the hot or cold packs if you wish.

There is so much conjecture on the issue of breastfeeding and medications, but the truth is, there are ways to judge whether a medication is safe for a breastfeeding mother.

However, if you pick up most medicine bottles, you’ll see on the warnings label, “Do not take if pregnant or breastfeeding”. Sometimes, that’s alternated with “Ask doctor before use if pregnant or breastfeeding”. The reason for the warnings? Mostly legal. Companies don’t want to be sued so they put the warning on their products. Sometimes the same medications that are prescribed to premature infants are deemed unsafe for the nursing mother – when her baby would only get a tiny portion of the medicine via her milk! Obviously, that makes no sense.

Drug companies don’t want to test their products on live nursing moms and babies for obvious reasons. No company is willing to risk the life or health of a baby to test the safety of their drug.

Because of this reason, we have to rely on what we know about how a medication acts in the bloodstream. This is so because breastmilk (often called “white blood” by breastfeeding experts) is made from the nutrients in a mother’s blood.

Another factor is, is the medication safey used on infants? Then it would likely be safe for a nursing mom – since again, the baby would only be exposed to a small amount of the drug, if any at all (depending on when she takes the drug, how long it stays in her bloodstream, and how and when she nurses baby).

Another issue is the baby’s age. Some medications that may be ill-advised for a newborn would be just fine for an older baby who weighs more, and is eating some solid foods.

Generally speaking, drugs that were safe to take when you were pregnant as safe to take while breastfeeding. Drugs like Tylenol are widely known for being “safe”, although you would be smart to use it in moderation, and only after clearing it with your OB/GYN. The medication can and does make it’s way into your baby via milk, so it’s discouraged to take medications that would directly affect your baby, like Aspirin.

If you want to know if a specific medication is okay to take, you can look it up on LactMed. LactMed is a drugs and lactation database that has information on most drugs currently on the market, and their compatibility with breastfeeding. Check it out before taking a drug, for your peace of mind, but definitely also follow your common sense and take no more than the recommended dose, and less, if possible.

Another good source of information on breastfeeding and medications are your baby’s Pediatrician, the local Poison Control hotline, and a La Leche League leader.

If you need a medication, don’t assume you must wean. Most medications are quite safe for the nursing couple, or can be managed with dosages and timing to be compatible with breastfeeding.

See also:

Breastfeeding and cold medicine

photo credit: Leonid Mamchenkov

But sometimes mama gets sick with a cold and that’s no fun! Moms don’t get to be sick. We have to suck it up and keep going and take care of the little ones even when we feel bad. If you get a cold you might be tempted to take some cold medicine. Can you mix breastfeeding and cold medicine?

You probably already know that when you are breastfeeding, your milk may contain some of the drug that you ingest, depending on the formulation of the particular medicine. Some drugs don’t pass easily into the milk, some do. The fact is, most medications are safe for nursing mothers. However, since when your baby nurses he or she may receive some of those ingredients that could be potentially harmful to your infant, it’s important to know which cold medicines (and other meds) you can take while breastfeeding.

The best route when you are breastfeeding is to try to hold off as long as possible before you take any cold medicine. Try comfort measures that are safe and non-toxic both to you and your infant, such as rest, getting plenty of fluids, sipping hot broth or chicken soup, taking baths for muscle aches, etc.

Keep in mind that most cold medications have been proven to be ineffective anyway. Since colds are caused by hundreds of different viruses, the medicines help to control symptoms but end up hampering your body’s efforts to heal. It’s not fun to have to blow your nose every 30 seconds, but your body is attempting to get rid of the infection. Same with coughing. It serves a useful purpose. Sip hot tea made with honey and lemon to soothe your throat.

Since medications are so varied, it’s not possible to list every drug here and whether it is safe for nursing moms. There are several places you can get the specific information you need for the particular medicine you want to take.

• Your baby’s pediatrician – your baby’s doctor is probably more informed about medications that are safe for nursing moms, because s/he knows what drugs are safely prescribed to babies themselves. If a drug is prescribed to babies, then it would obviously be safe for a nursing mom, since only a small amount of the medication will make it through her system to baby’s.
• Poison Control Center - believe it or not, your local poison control hotline is a fantastic source of information of what drugs are safe for nursing infants. Since you already have that number handy, try them as a source.
• La Leche League – your local LLL leader can reference a book called Medications and Mother’s Milk (or get in touch with a leader who can). This book is considered the best authority on the topic. Keep in mind that many doctors are simply ignorant of the factors involved with whether a medication is safe and may make a blanket recommendation that you wean when you need to take medication. That is rarely necessary.

When deciding whether a medication is safe for nursing moms, the experts consider whether the medicine shows up in the blood, what the “half life” of the medication is (the less time it’s in the body, the safer it probably is for a nursing mom), the age of the baby and other factors.

Another thing to consider and ask is how a medication will affect your supply. Some cold medicines such as Sudafed (which is considered safe for nursing moms) can have a negative impact on your milk production, which makes sense – since Sudafed “dries you up” it is logical that it will have that affect on your milk also. Most of the over-the-counter medicines including non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDS) like Tylenol, Advil, etc are safe to take during breastfeeding.

You might also want to try homeopathic remedies for a cold. These are also nice for babies and toddlers and older children. There is a learning curve with homeopathics, but they are safe for nursing moms and have many uses that go beyond the common cold.

More:

How to find breastfeeding supportive health care providers

Of course, if you are a breastfeeding mom you should make every effort to stop smoking. If you simply cannot quit cold turkey, it may surprise you to know that the recommendation of experts (including La Leche League and the American Academy of Pediatrics) is that you should still breastfeed your baby.

photo credit: zenera

If you smoke, do not stop breastfeeding due to fear that the nicotine that passes into your breast milk is harming your baby. Breastfeeding and smoking is much better than giving your baby formula because breast milk has antibodies that will help combat the effects of your smoking near your baby. That’s right, some of the risks of second hand smoke such as lung cancer and asthma are lowered because of breast milk.

Breastfed babies have fewer respiratory illness, even if their moms are smokers.

One of the biggest concerns with breastfeeding and smoking is that nicotine may contribute to reduced breast milk production and problems with letdown. If you are having trouble providing enough breast milk to your baby, you may try to cut back on the amount of cigarettes you smoke each day to see if that will help.

Some more recommendations:

• Do not smoke around your baby. This is pretty obvious.
• Smoke right after you breastfeed, not before or during. Ditto for nicotine gum – chew it after feedings.
• Cut down as much as possible.
• Find as many ways to reduce stress as possible. Breastfeeding in itself tends to calm a mom down due to the relaxing effects of prolactin and oxytocin, the hormones involved in nursing.

Read more about breastfeeding and smoking here.

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